#FordEscape

The Ford Escape pace vehicle that will lead the way on June 30 at Kentucky Speedway was unveiled today at the Louisville Assembly Plant.

The new 2013 Ford Escape has lost some weight and gained some increased aerodynamics, and the official mpg ratings from the EPA show an improvement, but are still not quite the best among Escape’s competitors. 

With high oil prices upon us once again, automakers are looking to new sources of materials when it comes to vehicle component manufacture.

In Ford‘s case, we’ve seen developments like soybeans used in seat covers, recycled denim jeans for sound deadening, even wheat straw for plastic bins and Kenaf (a tropical, cotton derived plant) used for interior door panels.

The Ford Escape saw a major overhaul for the 2013 model year, ditching its traditional SUV styling for something more in line with the European Kuga offering.

Despite an all-new look, platform, new engines and technology, the 2013 Ford Escape is priced lower than its predecessor. Starting at $23,295 (including $895 shipping), the Escape S, which comes with a 168 hp 2.5-liter 4-cylinder, is a slight $200 less than the 2012 model.

Ford has just announced the 2013 Escape will get an official tow rating of 3,500 lbs., which makes it best-in-class out of all small turbocharged SUVs – an rather obscure statistic.

Social media is the newest venue which car manufacturers debut upcoming vehicles, and Ford is using prime time television to sell its new 2013 Ford Escape, with the challenge adventure based show, “Escape Routes.”

Ford is making some impressive headway in its use of green materials. Earlier this year, the automaker announced that it would be using recycled bottles for making the seating material found in the Escape’s interior. Now, Ford will be using a south Asian plant in the construction of the Escape’s doors.

New details on the 2013 Ford Escape are available thanks to a consumer survey page posted on the company’s website.

It seems this is the first major recall of the year, and it comes from the Ford Motor Company. Ford is recalling 450,426 vehicles consisting of three different models for two separate reasons which they announced all together this morning.

The Ford Kuga based 2013 Ford Escape will be available next year, promising to be a significant improvement to the outgoing model. However, Ford has announced that it will drop the Escape hybrid powertrain.

Ford has been enjoying great success this year with their sales of small SUVs, reporting that 206,896 Escapes have sold in the US through October, a 31-percent increase from last year’s sales to date. They’re also expecting November’s figures to be on the rise, not just for themselves for but for the auto industry as a whole.