Nissan Cube or 4wd Ford Escape

Looks like later this year my company will be going to company cars. As I understand it the choices are either Nissan Cube or 4wd 4cyl Ford Escapes for those in the snow belt.

I qualify for either and have a choice.

I do not have to pay for the gas or the repairs so mpg is not much of an argument. What I do have to do is spend about 35k miles behind the wheel each year so I am thinking about comfort and convenience.

My thought is with the Escape.
What are your thoughts?

Go test drive them on your own time to see which one is more comfortable. As to getting pointed at and laughed at factor, go for the ford.

I plan to drive them but I was looking for collective knowledge that may not come out in the 15 minutes spent driving one.

Agreed on the clown car aspect.

First thing I always did when looking at a car. Sit in it,see if everything is comfortable. Then test drive it.

My vote is for the Cube. I'm biased because I love quirky cars, but I think it looks cool and practical too. Do you need the 4WD? That might sway my decision.

I'd get the Cube anyway.

Escape, mostly because I hate that damn cube commercial...

bequietanddrive wrote: . Do you need the 4WD? I'd get the Cube anyway.

Need 4wd, no not really. Yes, I see snow, but need 4wd?

jrw1621 wrote:

bequietanddrive wrote: . Do you need the 4WD? I'd get the Cube anyway.

Yes, I see snow, equals needs 4wd.

fixed

RossD wrote:

jrw1621 wrote:

bequietanddrive wrote: . Do you need the 4WD? I'd get the Cube anyway.

Yes, I see snow, equals needs 4wd.

fixed

Only if you can't drive worth a damn. I've yet to own a 4wd car and have lived places that received staggering amounts of snow. Here in northern MN the relatively small snowfall has been a relief.

keethrax wrote:

RossD wrote:

jrw1621 wrote:

bequietanddrive wrote: . Do you need the 4WD? I'd get the Cube anyway.

Yes, I see snow, equals needs 4wd.

fixed

Only if you can't drive worth a damn. I've yet to own a 4wd car and have lived places that received staggering amounts of snow. Here in northern MN the relatively small snowfall has been a relief.

+1 I got along just fine for 5 years of icy snowy New England winters w/FWD and taking it slow, in fact, most people who had problems were either light weight RWDers or 4WDers who though they could drive normally on snow in 4WD...

If I have the choice between fwd and awd (because thats what the escape is) I'd pick awd everytime over fwd. I've made it through wisconsin winters for the past 12 years in rwd/fwd/4wd/awd and I'd rather turn more wheels than less. Try going up a large ice covered incline with only one wheel motivating you and you'll be looking at that nice awd/4wd making it up the hill while you're sliding backwards. YMMV. Dont be afraid of a little mechanical advantage, it wont make you a worse driver, or better for that matter.

I used to DD a Porsche 944 Turbo and it saw it's share of snow and I never ended up in a ditch, but when I did get a 4wd truck.....wow it was nice. It was so effortless compared to the Porsche, which I guess I should have expected. Anyway, I'd pick the Escape regardless.

Normally I'd vote against the Escape for their propensity to lunch automatics every 100k or less, but seeing as you won't be picking up the cost of repairs, my nod goes to the Ford.

My research shows that the 2010 Escape goes from a 2.3L to a 2.5L 4 cyl and a 4 speed trans to a 6 speed trans.

What else are these engine/trans found in?

The engine is the Duratec/MZR. Found in a whole slew of FoMoCo cars and is the defacto 4 cylinder now days for Ford/Mazda. Its in the Miata but at the 2.0L capacity. Hell, it's even in the Formula Atlantic cars. Not sure about the trans though. Cosworth makes parts that'll fit the 2.3 and 2.0L sized engines..... < homer> mmmm cosworth < /homer>

Ford

Go with whichever has the better heater, which usually means ford. :)

ford, your criteria makes it pretty simple.

and I'm a nissan fan.

I would have a tough time saying "NO" to the cube, and the $7-$10k lower price-tag should be a no brainer for your company...but yeah, at face value, I suppose the ferd makes sense.

I HATE the 4 cylinder escape. My mother has a Mazda Tribute(scape) with the 6, and it is not bad, but the 4 is plain gutless.

I would pick the cube, I think it will carry more, be more comfortable, and more fun to drive. (get a Nismo catalog...)

then again, I like quirky too...

jrw1621 wrote: My research shows that the 2010 Escape goes from a 2.3L to a 2.5L 4 cyl and a 4 speed trans to a 6 speed trans. What else are these engine/trans found in?

That's the first time the trans is matched with that engine (well, it and the Fusion). The trans is the 6 speed that's also seen in the Taurus, Edge, etc- all the v6 FWD. Having worked on projects with it for many years now, I'm really happy with the new trans. It's a 6F.

I hear the 2.5 is a significant improvement over the 2.3. Not sure how, since I thought the 2.3 was really good, too.

If you were buying it, new, you should contact me, directly. Can't help with the Cube, if that's your choice...

Eric

I kinda like the weird asymmetrical rear window of the cube. That's all I got.

I think the Ford would likely be the better choice for you and your needs. Me, I would totally go for the Cube. Every other vehicle around here is an Escape so I would pass on that just for that reason alone. Plus...... I like weird too.

alfadriver wrote: If you were buying it, new, you should contact me, directly. Can't help with the Cube, if that's your choice...

Thanks for the offer of help but this will be a corporate fleet purchase.

No brainer-the Ford. Seriously.

Toughest part about the Cube would be people always trying to dump fish food into it to feed the big rainbow fish inside.