Compare the2022 Ford EscapeVS 2021 Toyota Venza

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Ford Escape have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Toyota Venza doesn’t offer pretensioners for the rear seat belts.

Both the Escape and the Venza have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and front and rear parking sensors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Ford Escape is safer than the Toyota Venza:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

There are over 2 times as many Ford dealers as there are Toyota dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Escape’s warranty.

The Escape has a standard “limp home system” to keep drivers from being stranded if most or all of the engine’s coolant is lost. The engine will run on only half of its cylinders at a time, reduce its power and light a warning lamp on the dashboard so the driver can get to a service station for repairs. The Venza doesn’t offer a lost coolant limp home mode, so a coolant leak could strand you or seriously damage the truck’s engine.

The Escape’s optional 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 31 more horsepower (250 vs. 219) than the Venza’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Motor Trend the Ford Escape turbo 4 cyl. is faster than the Toyota Venza:

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the Escape 1.5 Turbo’s fuel efficiency. The Venza doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

Both the Escape and the Venza have a standard automatic start/stop engine feature to stop unnecessary fuel waste and pollution at stop lights and heavy traffic. All Escapes have a standard disable switch for the system, so a driver can keep the engine from shutting off when the vehicle stops temporarily.

The Escape AWD’s standard fuel tank has 1.2 gallons more fuel capacity than the Venza (15.7 vs. 14.5 gallons).

The Escape has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Venza doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

For better stopping power the Escape’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Venza:

The Escape stops much shorter than the Venza:

The Escape has variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Venza doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Escape SE AWD handles at .87 G’s, while the Venza Limited pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Ford Escape may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 350 to 550 pounds less than the Toyota Venza.

The Escape is 6.1 inches shorter than the Venza, making the Escape easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Escape has 5.7 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Venza (104 vs. 98.3).

The Escape has 1.4 inches more front headroom, 1.5 inches more front legroom, .8 inches more front hip room, .2 inches more front shoulder room, .3 inches more rear headroom, 2.9 inches more rear legroom and 8.1 inches more rear hip room than the Venza.

The Escape has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Venza with its rear seat up (37.5 vs. 28.8 cubic feet). The Escape has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Venza with its rear seat folded (65.4 vs. 55.1 cubic feet).

The Escape has a 2000 lbs. towing capacity. The Venza has no towing capacity.

Standard Trailer Sway Control on the Escape uses the AdvanceTrac® sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The Venza doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

The Escape offers a remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The Venza doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Escape SEL/Titanium’s exterior PIN entry system. The Venza doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

The Escape’s standard speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Venza’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Escape Titanium’s optional Active Park Assist 2.0 can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Venza doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

The Escape is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Venza doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Insurance will cost less for the Escape owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Escape will cost $490 to $2200 less than the Venza over a five-year period.

The Ford Escape outsold the Toyota Venza by over six to one during the 2021 model year.