Compare the2023 Ford EscapeVS 2023 Chevrolet Blazer

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
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 Chevrolet Blazer 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 Blazer 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.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Escape (except Base) offers an optional Reverse Brake Assist that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Blazer doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Escape has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the Blazer’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Escape has standard Cross Traffic Alert to warn the driver of approaching traffic and automatically engage the brakes to help avoid a collision. Chevrolet charges extra for Rear Cross Traffic Alert on the Blazer and the Blazer’s Rear Cross Traffic Alert does not include automatic braking.

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 Blazer doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Escape and the Blazer 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, rearview cameras, 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 Chevrolet Blazer:

	Escape	Blazer
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	143	182
Neck Compression	23 lbs.	25 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	188/315 lbs.	104/435 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	102	313
Chest Compression	.5 inches	.8 inches
Neck Injury Risk	36.3%	43%
Neck Compression	58 lbs.	140 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 Chevrolet Blazer:

	Escape	Blazer
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	240 lbs.	369 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	97	251
Spine Acceleration	43 G’s	45 G’s
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	11 inches	13 inches
Spine Acceleration	32 G’s	39 G’s
Hip Force	462 lbs.	695 lbs.

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 Blazer has not been fully tested, yet.

Warranty

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

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

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Ford vehicles are more reliable than Chevrolet vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Ford 2 places higher in reliability than Chevrolet.

Engine

The Escape’s optional 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 10 lbs.-ft. more torque (280 vs. 270) than the Blazer’s optional 3.6 DOHC V6.

Fuel Economy and Range

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

			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
Blazer
	FWD	3.6 DOHC V6	19 city/27 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/29 hwy
	AWD	3.6 DOHC V6	19 city/26 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/27 hwy

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Ford Escape higher (7 out of 10) than the Chevrolet Blazer (6 to 7). This means the Escape produces up to 1.1 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Blazer every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

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

	Escape	Blazer
Front Rotors	13 inches	12.64 inches

The Escape stops shorter than the Blazer:

	Escape	Blazer
70 to 0 MPH	161 feet	165 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	123 feet	126 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	137 feet	139 feet	Consumer Reports

Suspension and Handling

The Escape has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Blazer’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

The Escape’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (58% to 42%) than the Blazer’s (60.1% to 39.9%). This gives the Escape more stable handling and braking.

For better maneuverability, the Escape’s turning circle is 1.5 feet tighter than the Blazer’s (37.2 feet vs. 38.7 feet).

Chassis

The Ford Escape may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 600 to 750 pounds less than the Chevrolet Blazer.

The Escape is 11.7 inches shorter than the Blazer, making the Escape easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

As tested by Car and Driver while at idle, the interior of the Escape AWD is quieter than the Blazer RS 4x4 (37 vs. 38 dB).

Passenger Space

The Escape has .2 inches more front headroom, 1.4 inches more front legroom, .7 inches more rear headroom and 1.1 inches more rear legroom than the Blazer.

Cargo Capacity

The Escape has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Blazer with its rear seat up (37.5 vs. 30.5 cubic feet). The Escape has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Blazer with its rear seat folded (65.4 vs. 64.2 cubic feet).

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Escape easier. The Escape’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 28.1 inches, while the Blazer’s liftover is 30.3 inches.

Towing

The Escape’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Blazer’s (2000 vs. 1500 pounds).

Ergonomics

The Escape Elite/Platinum offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Blazer doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

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

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 Blazer’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted. The Escape Elite/Platinum’s standard wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically according to the amount of rainfall on the windshield.

The Escape Elite/Platinum’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 Blazer doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Escape owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Escape will cost $380 less than the Blazer 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 Blazer only retains 46.35% to 48.99%.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Escape is less expensive to operate than the Blazer because it costs $454 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the Escape than the Blazer, including $168 less for a water pump, $104 less for front brake pads, $118 less for fuel injection, $142 less for a fuel pump, $88 less for a timing belt/chain and $382 less for a power steering pump.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Ford Escape will be $7373 to $8672 less than for the Chevrolet Blazer.

Recommendations

The Ford Escape outsold the Chevrolet Blazer by over two to one during 2022.