Compare the2023 Ford EscapeVS 2023 Buick Envision

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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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 Buick Envision doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Escape has standard Post-Collision Braking, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Envision doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Both the Escape and Envision have rear cross-traffic warning, but the Escape (except Base) offers optional Cross Traffic Braking (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The Envision’s Rear Cross Traffic Alert doesn’t automatically brake.

The Escape’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Envision doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

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

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 Buick Envision:

	Escape	Envision
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	143	175
Neck Stress	185 lbs.	195 lbs.
Neck Compression	23 lbs.	25 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	188/315 lbs.	153/386 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	102	223
Chest Compression	.5 inches	.6 inches
Neck Compression	58 lbs.	61 lbs.

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

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Ford Escape is safer than the Buick Envision:

	Escape	Envision
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	240 lbs.	261 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	97	311
Spine Acceleration	43 G’s	52 G’s
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	11 inches	15 inches
Spine Acceleration	32 G’s	36 G’s

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

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its available headlight’s “Acceptable” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Escape the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2022, a rating granted to only 177 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Envision has not been tested, yet.

Warranty

The Escape’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Envision’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

There are over 52 percent more Ford dealers than there are Buick dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Escape’s warranty.

Reliability

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 Envision doesn’t offer a lost coolant limp home mode, so a coolant leak could strand you or seriously damage the truck’s engine.

Engine

The Escape’s optional 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 22 more horsepower (250 vs. 228) and 22 lbs.-ft. more torque (280 vs. 258) than the Envision’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Escape gets better mileage than the Envision:

			MPG
Escape
	FWD	1.5 turbo 3-cyl.	27 city/34 hwy
	AWD	1.5 turbo 3-cyl.	26 city/32 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	23 city/31 hwy
Envision
	FWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	23 city/31 hwy
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/29 hwy

Brakes and Stopping

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

	Escape	Envision
Front Rotors	13 inches	12.6 inches

Suspension and Handling

The Escape has vehicle speed sensitive 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 Envision doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For better maneuverability, the Escape’s turning circle is .8 feet tighter than the Envision’s (37.2 feet vs. 38 feet).

Chassis

The Ford Escape may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 350 to 400 pounds less than the Buick Envision.

The front grille of the Escape uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Envision doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

Passenger Space

The Escape has 3.6 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Envision (104 vs. 100.4).

The Escape has .4 inches more front headroom, 2 inches more front legroom, .1 inches more front hip room, .9 inches more front shoulder room, .4 inches more rear headroom, 1.4 inches more rear legroom, 5.9 inches more rear hip room and .1 inches more rear shoulder room than the Envision.

Cargo Capacity

The Escape has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Envision with its rear seat up (37.5 vs. 25.2 cubic feet). The Escape has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Envision with its rear seat folded (65.4 vs. 52.7 cubic feet).

An optional locking center console keeps your small valuables safer in the Escape. The Envision doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

Towing

The Escape’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Envision’s (2000 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Buick Envision is only 1500 pounds. The Escape offers up to a 3500 lbs. towing capacity.

Ergonomics

The Escape Select/Elite/Platinum’s front and rear power windows all open or close with one touch of the switches. The Envision’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to close them fully.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Escape’s available exterior PIN entry system (not available on Escape Base). The Envision doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its OnStar® can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

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 Envision’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Consumer Reports rated the Escape’s headlight performance “Good,” a higher rating than the Envision’s headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Escape owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Escape will cost $230 less than the Envision over a five-year period.

The Escape will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Escape will retain 49.35% to 49.88% of its original price after five years, while the Envision only retains 43.87% to 43.96%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Ford Escape will be $7077 to $7466 less than for the Buick Envision.

Recommendations

The Ford Escape outsold the Buick Envision by over five to one during 2022.