2021 Toyota Sequoia vs 2021 Ford Escape

The 2021 Toyota Sequoia, despite its age, maintained a robust presence with its large silhouette and subtle design updates from 2018. The Nightshade Special Edition added a touch of modernity, but the overall design still reflected its 2007 origins. Inside, the Sequoia's cabin was spacious, though the front seats felt bulky, limiting headroom for taller drivers. The second-row seats, however, offered ample space and comfort. The Sequoia's trims ranged from the entry-level SR5 to the off-road-focused TRD Pro and the luxurious Platinum, each offering a variety of features and packages to suit different preferences.

In contrast, the 2021 Ford Escape presented a more contemporary look, blending SUV and hatchback elements with its sleek roofline and curved front. The Escape's design was less truck-like compared to some competitors, offering a more generic but modern appearance. The interior, however, lacked cohesion, with some design choices feeling out of place. Despite this, the Escape provided competitive interior space, especially with its sliding rear seat, which allowed for flexible legroom and cargo configurations. The Escape's trims offered various appearance packages, enhancing its visual appeal and providing additional features.

The 2021 Toyota Sequoia was powered by a 5.7-liter V8 engine, delivering 381 horsepower and 401 pound-feet of torque. This engine, paired with a six-speed automatic transmission, provided strong acceleration, though it lagged in fuel efficiency compared to modern transmissions. The Sequoia's driving dynamics were reminiscent of a truck, with a soft suspension and powerful brakes, offering a confident driving experience. Despite its capabilities, the Sequoia's towing capacity of 7,400 pounds fell short compared to some competitors in the full-size SUV segment.

The 2021 Ford Escape offered a range of powertrains, including a base 1.5-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine with 181 horsepower and 191 pound-feet of torque. An optional 2.0-liter turbo-four engine increased output to 250 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque. The Escape also featured hybrid and plug-in hybrid options, with a total system output of 200 horsepower. While the Escape's engines provided adequate performance, its chassis tuning left room for improvement, with a less engaging driving experience. The Escape's towing capacity reached up to 3,500 pounds with the 2.0-liter engine, though figures for hybrid models were not specified.

The 2021 Toyota Sequoia boasted a spacious cabin, offering nearly 19 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row and up to 120 cubic feet with all rear seats folded. This made it competitive in terms of cargo capacity, though newer SUVs offered better space utilization. The Sequoia's power-retractable rear window was a unique feature, providing convenient access to the cargo area. Despite its age, the Sequoia offered practical storage solutions, including deep door pockets and a large center console.

The 2021 Ford Escape, despite its car-like styling, provided impressive interior space, with near-top segment headroom and legroom. Its sliding rear seat allowed for flexible configurations, offering up to 40.7 inches of rear legroom in non-hybrid models. Cargo space varied, with gasoline models offering up to 37.5 cubic feet with the rear seat forward and 65.4 cubic feet with the seat folded. Hybrid models had slightly less space due to battery placement. While the Escape's cargo capacity was competitive, some rivals offered more space with their rear seats folded.

The 2021 Toyota Sequoia came standard with a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system, featuring Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Amazon Alexa, and a WiFi hotspot. Our test model included a larger 9-inch screen, though it still felt small on the expansive dash. The Sequoia's infotainment system, while dated, was user-friendly, with simple menu navigation and large hard buttons. The digital trip computer was also straightforward, though smaller compared to modern digital instrument panels.

The 2021 Ford Escape utilized Ford's older Sync 3 infotainment system, with base models featuring a 4.2-inch touchscreen. Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and a 4G LTE WiFi hotspot were standard. Upgrading to the SE trim added an 8-inch touchscreen and SiriusXM satellite radio, while the Titanium trim offered a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a 10-speaker Bang & Olufsen sound system. Sync 3 was easy to use, though it lacked some of the advanced features found in newer systems, such as wireless smartphone connectivity.

The 2021 Toyota Sequoia was equipped with the Toyota Safety Sense-P suite, including forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, pedestrian detection, adaptive cruise control, lane-departure warning, and automatic high beams. It also featured blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and parking sensors. However, the Sequoia's older platform resulted in a four-star rollover rating from the NHTSA, with no further crash test ratings available.

The 2021 Ford Escape received a "Top Safety Pick" rating from the IIHS, with top scores in crash tests and child-seat anchor ease of use. The NHTSA awarded the Escape a five-star overall safety rating, with high marks in frontal and side crash tests. Standard safety features included automatic high beams, blind-spot monitoring, lane-keep assist, and forward collision warning. The optional Co-Pilot360 Assist+ package added advanced features like adaptive cruise control and traffic-sign recognition.