Hello, from Columbus, OH. I'm a new member to the forum, but have been in a Ford family all my life and have owned Fords for the last decade+. I don't currently have an Escape or one of its siblings, but I do have a 08 F-150 XL and a 96 Mustang GT. I've been contemplating selling my F-150 and replacing it with a Mariner, so I came here to do research and gather info/feedback from owners. Looks like a great community, perhaps I'll be joining as an owner.
So, I'm interested in replacing the F-150 (XL, 4.2L V6, manual, regular cab, 6.5' bed, quite a few upgrades) for a number of reasons: the F-150 is my current DD, I've owned it since new and it was exactly what I wanted when I was 23…4 years later, I'm interested in more interior space/seating, better gas mileage than the ~17-18 that the F-150 gets, and more interior amenities (the Mustang, and the Pontiac G8 GT my fiancé drives, have spoiled me).
However, I can't go with a small, more efficient car, as I still need a vehicle that can haul/tow reasonably; I have an open 5x8 utility trailer that I use regularly to transport motorcycles & my riding mower, to move stuff around, haul brush and trash, etc. I also occasionally tow a 6'x12' enclosed trailer to move some stuff around, and during the summers, I tow a small powerboat, a 1978 Fabuglas w/ a 2-stroke outboard (total weight is in the neighborhood of 2500 lbs when loaded & headed to the lake). None of these trailers have their own brakes, since they're smaller and relatively lightweight. Most of the towing is relatively local, 100 or less total miles each time, but in the summer, I take a couple long trips: 1 trip to Knoxville w/ 3 sportbikes on the 5x8 (roughly 2000 lbs total and 750 miles round trip, through the mountains), 2-3 trips to Michigan w/ the boat (roughly 420 miles round trip each, mostly flat), and 1 long trip to Minneapolis w/ the boat in tow (roughly 1800 miles round trip).
I'm most interested in an 09+ Mariner, for the following reasons: I prefer FoMoCo vehicles, I think the Escape/Mariner are easily the best looking of the small SUVs, it gets good reviews, the 240 HP 3.0L & 6-speed tranny appear to be a good combo, it's rated to tow 3500 lbs, it has reasonable interior space, and can be well optioned. I don't dislike the Escape, but in my perusing of ads, it appears I can get a loaded 09 Mariner Premier V6 FWD w/ 30-45k for the same or less than a XLT Escape w/ similar mileage but fewer amenities. Given the choice, I prefer the Mariner's appearance over the Escape, with the exception of the stock wheels that most Premier models seem to have (the ones with what looks like 20 spokes…hate those, I love simple 5-spoke wheels).
The Mariner would replace the F-150 as my DD, and would be driven quite a bit; I'm currently driving ~130 miles a day, 5 days a week, so this is why the mileage is important. 25-26 MPG highway would be a whole lot better than 17-18…My F-150 has the 4.2L V6 & 5-speed tranny, so it doesn't have a whole lot of power; I expect a V6 Mariner would be much quicker and nicer to drive in normal conditions, but I do have some concern over how well it will control a trailer, since it will be shorter, lighter, and have less braking ability when compared to the F-150. I feel that the interior space will adequately replace the bed of my F-150; while I use the bed regularly, I mostly use the rear 2' of it, and rarely haul anything in the bed that requires removing the soft cover. My thought is that, with a small SUV, on the rare occasion where I would have needed the truck bed, I can simply use my utility trailer…inevitably, I'm sure there would be some situation where I wished I had a truck bed, but presently, those are few and far between. I've read through several threads regarding towing, and it appears quite a few people have done some substantial towing of boats and smaller travel trailers, which I'm glad to see.
Anyway, I'd like to get some feedback from current owners of V6 Escapes/Mariners regarding MPG, ability to haul/tow, how well the SUV holds up, how the 6-speed auto performs, etc. If you switched from a full-size truck to this SUV, what's your experience been? Have you missed the truck bed? Have you found the Escape/Mariner to be a confident tow vehicle?
Additionally, I'd like to get the opinions of others regarding my intended use and expectations of a 09+ Mariner V6, FWD: are my fuel mileage expectations too ambitious? Even though I don't plan to tow anything that exceeds the 3500 lb capacity, will the frequency of towing and/or the long trips I take be asking too much? Or perhaps I'm concerned over nothing, and with aftermarket coolers for oil & trans, the Mariner would tow just as well as my low end F-150.
Sorry for the book, I'm a detailed guy, and want to see the full picture. I appreciate any and all feedback!
So, I'm interested in replacing the F-150 (XL, 4.2L V6, manual, regular cab, 6.5' bed, quite a few upgrades) for a number of reasons: the F-150 is my current DD, I've owned it since new and it was exactly what I wanted when I was 23…4 years later, I'm interested in more interior space/seating, better gas mileage than the ~17-18 that the F-150 gets, and more interior amenities (the Mustang, and the Pontiac G8 GT my fiancé drives, have spoiled me).
However, I can't go with a small, more efficient car, as I still need a vehicle that can haul/tow reasonably; I have an open 5x8 utility trailer that I use regularly to transport motorcycles & my riding mower, to move stuff around, haul brush and trash, etc. I also occasionally tow a 6'x12' enclosed trailer to move some stuff around, and during the summers, I tow a small powerboat, a 1978 Fabuglas w/ a 2-stroke outboard (total weight is in the neighborhood of 2500 lbs when loaded & headed to the lake). None of these trailers have their own brakes, since they're smaller and relatively lightweight. Most of the towing is relatively local, 100 or less total miles each time, but in the summer, I take a couple long trips: 1 trip to Knoxville w/ 3 sportbikes on the 5x8 (roughly 2000 lbs total and 750 miles round trip, through the mountains), 2-3 trips to Michigan w/ the boat (roughly 420 miles round trip each, mostly flat), and 1 long trip to Minneapolis w/ the boat in tow (roughly 1800 miles round trip).
I'm most interested in an 09+ Mariner, for the following reasons: I prefer FoMoCo vehicles, I think the Escape/Mariner are easily the best looking of the small SUVs, it gets good reviews, the 240 HP 3.0L & 6-speed tranny appear to be a good combo, it's rated to tow 3500 lbs, it has reasonable interior space, and can be well optioned. I don't dislike the Escape, but in my perusing of ads, it appears I can get a loaded 09 Mariner Premier V6 FWD w/ 30-45k for the same or less than a XLT Escape w/ similar mileage but fewer amenities. Given the choice, I prefer the Mariner's appearance over the Escape, with the exception of the stock wheels that most Premier models seem to have (the ones with what looks like 20 spokes…hate those, I love simple 5-spoke wheels).
The Mariner would replace the F-150 as my DD, and would be driven quite a bit; I'm currently driving ~130 miles a day, 5 days a week, so this is why the mileage is important. 25-26 MPG highway would be a whole lot better than 17-18…My F-150 has the 4.2L V6 & 5-speed tranny, so it doesn't have a whole lot of power; I expect a V6 Mariner would be much quicker and nicer to drive in normal conditions, but I do have some concern over how well it will control a trailer, since it will be shorter, lighter, and have less braking ability when compared to the F-150. I feel that the interior space will adequately replace the bed of my F-150; while I use the bed regularly, I mostly use the rear 2' of it, and rarely haul anything in the bed that requires removing the soft cover. My thought is that, with a small SUV, on the rare occasion where I would have needed the truck bed, I can simply use my utility trailer…inevitably, I'm sure there would be some situation where I wished I had a truck bed, but presently, those are few and far between. I've read through several threads regarding towing, and it appears quite a few people have done some substantial towing of boats and smaller travel trailers, which I'm glad to see.
Anyway, I'd like to get some feedback from current owners of V6 Escapes/Mariners regarding MPG, ability to haul/tow, how well the SUV holds up, how the 6-speed auto performs, etc. If you switched from a full-size truck to this SUV, what's your experience been? Have you missed the truck bed? Have you found the Escape/Mariner to be a confident tow vehicle?
Additionally, I'd like to get the opinions of others regarding my intended use and expectations of a 09+ Mariner V6, FWD: are my fuel mileage expectations too ambitious? Even though I don't plan to tow anything that exceeds the 3500 lb capacity, will the frequency of towing and/or the long trips I take be asking too much? Or perhaps I'm concerned over nothing, and with aftermarket coolers for oil & trans, the Mariner would tow just as well as my low end F-150.
Sorry for the book, I'm a detailed guy, and want to see the full picture. I appreciate any and all feedback!