2020 Ford Escape vs 2019 Toyota RAV4

In the 2019 Toyota RAV4, the first noticeable feature was its commanding presence, drawing clear inspiration from the robust Toyota Tacoma pickup. Its big, chunky design with sharp edges revealed an assertive, futuristic style that emanated strength. The aggressive exterior was harmonized across the side-profile and rear, where the taillights bore hints of Toyota's luxury brand, Lexus.

The RAV4's design was broken up at the rear C-pillar by a character line—common among new vehicles but not universally appealing. Around half of RAV4's color choices matched the body to the roof, while seven options featured a contrasting-color roof (gray or black). The contrasting black strip on the rear pillar worked for two-tone options but appeared as superfluous design clutter in monotone schemes.

Inside, the RAV4 contrasted its exterior with a simplistic and elegant cabin. A floating touch screen centralized various controls, simplifying the dash. It offered trims like LE, XLE, XLE Premium, Adventure, and Limited, with the LE featuring basics like 17-inch steel wheels, LED lighting, power side mirrors, and privacy-tinted windows.

CarGurus recommended the XLE trim, highlighting added features like 17-inch 5-spoke alloy wheels, integrated fog lights, color-keyed mirrors, a power moonroof, push-button start, sport bucket seats, and dual-zone climate control. The XLE Premium further enhanced the offering with 19-inch alloy wheels, a power rear liftgate, and SofTex leatherette upholstery.

The Adventure trim took a more rugged approach with AWD, unique 19-inch wheels, a split-bar front grille, black fender cladding, and orange interior accents. The range-topping Limited trim leaned into luxury with 19-inch chrome-finished alloy wheels, heated front seats, dark brown interior accents, and available high-end options, adding a panoramic moonroof, ventilated seats, rear heated seats, and a windshield de-icer for colder climates.

The 2020 Ford Escape, meanwhile, presented an attractive compact crossover look, borrowing its large grille from the Ford Fiesta and Focus hatchbacks, with headlights inspired by the Ford GT supercar. It moved away from the upright rear end of its predecessor, adopting a more curvaceous design, which, while stylish, led to trade-offs we’ll discuss later. Despite this, it remained one of the more aesthetically pleasing SUVs, trailing perhaps only the Mazda CX-5 and Jeep Cherokee.

Inside, the Escape showcased a modern yet practical cabin, keeping key controls logically placed. Our test model featured a fully digital instrument panel, a floating infotainment screen, and an overall sleek design.

The Escape was available in S, SE, SE Sport, SEL, and Titanium trims. The base S included 17-inch steel wheels, a 4.2-inch instrument-panel screen, three 12-volt outlets, manually adjustable front seats, and the Sync infotainment system. The SE trim—CarGurus’ recommended choice—upgraded to an 8-inch Sync 3 screen, automatic climate control, heated front seats, and a power driver's seat. The SE Sport trim introduced sporty elements like black-painted wheels and a hybrid drivetrain. The SEL included fog lamps, a foot-activated liftgate, and synthetic upholstery, while the Titanium boasted unique 19-inch wheels, a dual-panel moonroof, and premium B&O audio.

The 2019 RAV4’s performance revolved around a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine producing 203 horsepower and 184 pound-feet of torque, paired with an 8-speed automatic transmission. Buyers could opt for front-wheel drive or available all-wheel drive (AWD), with Adventure and Limited trims offering advanced torque-vectoring AWD.

Our XLE test model featured the base AWD setup, which provided drive modes like Snow, Sand & Mud, and Rock & Dirt, reviving some of the rugged capability Toyota had moved away from over the years. The torque-vectoring AWD further enhanced off-road capability by distributing power to the wheels needing it most in real time.

Despite its power, the engine felt sluggish in stop-and-go situations due to its lack of low-end torque, making it noisy under strain. Ride quality was generally good, though the steering felt twitchy and the body rolled quite a bit, leading to an awkward experience in fast corners.

Fuel efficiency for the RAV4 was impressive. The front-wheel-drive model returned 26 mpg city, 35 highway, and 30 combined. Our AWD test car earned 27 mpg city and 34 highway, with an observed combined fuel economy of 29.3 mpg. The torque-vectoring AWD variant returned 25 mpg city, 33 highway, and 28 combined.

The 2020 Ford Escape offered a more diverse lineup of engines, standing out from rivals like the Honda CR-V and Subaru Forester, which typically had just one or two powertrain options. The Escape’s base engine was a 1.5-liter 3-cylinder producing 180 horsepower and 177 pound-feet of torque, standard in the S, SE, and SEL trims.

There were also a 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine and two hybrids. The 2.0-liter turbo, available on the SEL and standard on the Titanium, delivered 250 horsepower and 275 pound-feet of torque, providing brisk acceleration. The hybrids included a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder with 198 horsepower, standard on the SE Sport, and a plug-in variant available on the SE, SEL, and Titanium.

The 3-cylinder and non-plug-in hybrid were offered with FWD or AWD, while the turbocharged engine and plug-in hybrid came standard with AWD. The conventional engines used an 8-speed automatic transmission, whereas the hybrids employed a CVT.

Our Titanium test model—with its 2.0-liter turbo engine—offered ample power, though the transmission’s delayed downshifts could be frustrating. This engine excelled on the highway, providing robust acceleration and overtaking capability.

Steering in the Escape was direct and taut, accompanied by responsive brakes, lending it a sporty feel. It was akin to the Mazda CX-5, appealing to buyers looking for athletic handling in their daily drive.

The Escape’s most efficient model, the non-Sport hybrid, achieved 44 mpg city, 37 highway, and 41 combined. The SE Sport returned 43/37/40, the 1.5-liter turbo 27/33/30 (FWD) or 26/31/26 (AWD), and the 2.0-liter turbo with AWD offered 23/31/26.

The 2019 RAV4 had a clean, upscale cabin with practical design elements like a central stack containing climate controls, a large tray, drive-mode controls, and a shifter. Additional storage included a deep center console bin and a passenger-side tray. The RAV4 provided 37.6 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seats up, expanding to 69.8 cubic feet when folded. Though slightly down from its 2018 model, it surpassed competitors like the Mazda CX-5 and Jeep Cherokee, though the Honda CR-V and Subaru Forester offered around 75 cubic feet.

The cabin prioritized functionality with numerous compartments, including deep center trays and bins in the doors. Our test model also featured a rear armrest with integrated cupholders.

The 2020 Escape, however, sacrificed some cargo space for its sleek design. It offered 37.5 cubic feet behind the second row, which dropped to 34.4 cubic feet in hybrid models. With the rear seats folded, the Escape provided 65.4 cubic feet or 60.8 cubic feet in upper trims, compared to 68 cubic feet in the outgoing model. This reduction placed it behind class leaders like the Honda CR-V and Volkswagen Tiguan but still ahead of the stylish Mazda CX-5, which had 59.6 cubic feet.

The Escape emphasized passenger space, delivering ample headroom and legroom for second-row occupants. Front passengers enjoyed commanding seating positions with good visibility. The cabin featured practical storage solutions like deep bottle holders and multiple trays and compartments, focusing on real-world usability.

The 2019 RAV4's LE trim came equipped with a 7-inch touchscreen running Toyota’s Entune 3.0 infotainment system, offering Apple CarPlay (though not Android Auto), Bluetooth, a USB port, and a WiFi hotspot. The XLE added five USB ports, and the Adventure trim featured an upgraded 8-inch screen and panoramic rear camera. The Limited offered optional JBL premium audio.

Entune’s layout was user-friendly, with hard dials for essential functions alongside touchscreen controls. The inclusion of Apple CarPlay marked a significant update, though Android Auto was still absent.

By contrast, the base 2020 Escape had only a 4.2-inch audio control screen, which seemed particularly outdated against the "floating screen" design. However, the SE trim upgraded to an 8-inch Sync 3 screen with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, highly recommended by CarGurus. The new look and multitasking functionality of Apple CarPlay’s updated interface were noteworthy.

The Titanium trim included a head-up display (HUD), though it was a flip-up screen rather than a windshield projection, limiting its utility for taller drivers.

The 2019 RAV4 came standard with a comprehensive suite of safety features, including front- and side-impact airbags, a reversing camera, traction control, a tire-pressure monitoring system, and Toyota Safety Sense 2.0. This included forward-collision warning, lane-departure warning, automatic high-beams, dynamic radar cruise control, traffic-sign detection, and Lane-Tracing Assist.

The 2020 Escape matched this with front- and side-impact airbags, a reversing camera, traction control, and a tire-pressure monitoring system. Although untested by NHTSA, it received a "Good" rating in all IIHS phases. Standard Ford Co-Pilot360 provided forward-collision warning, lane-keeping assist, adaptive cruise control, and automatic high-beams, along with often-optional features such as blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and a driver drowsiness monitor.