New Podder

Originally posted by Don&Amy Stephen...Thanks so much for all of the helpful advice!

My pleasure. I'm glad to be able to help.

Hello Don,

First, we USED to have an Escape. In December, we had an accident that put it out of commission for about 3 months. We purchased a 2010 Nissan Frontier so we could continue our trip. When the Escape was finally repaired, our daughter and son-in-law picked it up and took it over to CarMax, where we sold it. However, since we did have some extensive towing experience with it, I can let you know what I thought of it.

First, the 2L Ecoboost engine is pretty amazing. I would not have thought such a small engine could have sufficient power for towing. The turbocharger makes it possible. By specifications, it has nearly the horsepower and torque of the 4L V6 in the Frontier. At any altitude, it actually has more power since the turbocharger compensates for altitude. Naturally aspirated engines lose about 4% power for every 1,000 ft in elevation. So, at 6,000 ft, the Escape had significantly more power than the Frontier. The cost of that is you will need to use Premium while you are towing. That is per Ford.

Your Escape does not come with a wiring harness for a brake controller. You will need to get the universal kit and run the wires to connect it. You will definitely need to install the brake controller before you go to pick up your 178. It would neither safe nor legal to tow without a brake controller. I chose the Hopkins InSIGHT Flex-Mount controller from etrailer.com. Along with that, I got the ETBC7 Universal Installation Kit. I also got the No-Drill Bracket to hold the round connector as I wanted it a little lower to clear the bumper. I modified it by bending the long tab with the mounting holes 90 degrees, leaving the other tab to hook over the frame and lock in with the worm-drive clamp.

As for tow mirrors, I initially got a set of inexpensive strap-on mirrors at Camping World. Although the box said that they were safe for paint, they were rubbing the paint on the mirror housing. I would wrap the mirrors with plastic to try to protect the finish. After a while I saw the Dual Head XLR Ratchet Clip-On Mirror. I purchased two of them, again at Camping World. Overall, I have been pleased with them. The ratchet system seems to hold very securely. Just be sure the L-shaped tabs are hooked around the mirror housing. They might prevent the Escape's mirror from adjusting. That is okay. You will be using the towing mirrors. Once you get them adjusted, they stay that way. When you remove and reinstall them, you may need to adjust them again as it does not seem to fit exactly in the same place twice. The adjustment will be minor though.

Other things are that you will need a good, weight distribution hitch with sway control. We use the Equal-i-zer 4-point sway control hitch. It is very good, but will not prevent all situations such as the ice with crosswind that we experienced in December. For any other situation, a properly adjusted WD/Sway Control hitch will be essential. If I had not gotten the Equal-i-zer, I would have looked at the Andersen No-Sway as it would have been easier to deal with due to it being much lighter. Some people choose the Fastway E2 hitch. All three have integrated sway control so you don't need a separate sway bar. After the accident in December, I was looking to see what could have helped in that situation. I found the Hayes Sway-Master Electronic Sway Control. I had it mounted briefly, but removed it so our RP-179 could go to the factory for repair. It will go back on once repairs are complete. I think that in a situation like we encountered, it would have been helpful since it would have reacted to the sway situation much faster than I could have.

There have been some discussions in the forum about tow vehicles. At best, the Escape is adequate. The short wheelbase is not so good. However, the short distance between the rear axle centerline and the hitch ball (about 3') means that the trailer does not exert quite as much force as with the 5' distance that the Frontier has between axle centerline and hitch ball. I notice the trailer more with the Frontier. What would be a gentle nudge when we are passed by a tractor trailer is a little stronger with the Nissan. Eventually, you will want to upgrade the Escape. Unless yours is an AWD setup, the FWD like we had is not ideal. Even with a WD hitch, the front wheels would spin when starting out too easily. AWD would be much better. The Frontier is 4WD, so the rear wheels are the primary drive with the front wheels able to be engaged as needed. While the Escape is adequate, a larger, heavier vehicle with a tow rating of at least 5,000 lbs would be better. If that is not an option, your Escape will perform quite well. We towed from NC to NV and AZ, then NC to NYS, NC to NYS and Vermont via western NC and part of the Blue Ridge Parkway. We were on our second trip out west when the accident happened on I80 in western Wyoming. We did not beat the weather on our way to see our daughter and her family as they had moved from Las Vegas to South Jordan, Utah. We would have arrived that afternoon if we did not have the accident.  I mention the accident to say that you need to be careful. Even with the ideal tow vehicle, the ice would have probably been too much.

One last thing. When you tow, limit your speed to 60 mph. You will arrive much more relaxed and your mileage will not suffer as much. The first trip, I was trying to hit 65-70 mph and we got as low as 8 mpg. After that, I purchased a wind deflector (AeroPlus from purplelineusa.com) and installed it on the rear crossbar for the roof rack. I had to make additional shims to make it work. Between it and limiting my speed to 60 mph, we were getting much better mileage, as high as 16 mpg in flat terrain. Headwinds, with or without the wind deflector, will also impact your mileage. You will be filling the small gas tank in the Escape much more often than you would expect. That is part of towing. If you look at other message threads in the forum, 11-13 mpg seems to be a good working average unless the person has a Diesel engine vehicle. I hope to get one of those in a couple of years.

As StephenH stated above, "this forum is a great resource."  Agree 100%  A lot of good ideas are shared here.  Welcome.  So when are you going to pick up your 178 and what are your plans for the first 'shakedown' outing?