Vellum Venom Vignette: We’re Never Leaving the Escape Room

Car design is much like fashion, as what was popular two or three decades ago comes back into vogue with a new generation of buyers. Often that rebirth takes the original idea and jacks it up with an ample dose of steroids. Consider the resurgence of shoulder pads, which made a statement in the 1930s-40s, turning into a bold proclamation in the 1980s when paired with an icon like Grace Jones.

The shoulder-pad-equipped, upright Ford Bronco Sport is the reincarnation of the good old days of the original Ford Escape. It uses Ford’s C2 platform just like the current Ford Escape, but targets the same cosplay-outdoorsy-mall crawling demographic of the Mazda-derived original. Automotive News reported the Escape will die in 2025, focusing (as it were) production on the more appealing Bronco Sport.

(SEO-savvy Ford dealers are already spinning this into a benefit for used car shoppers, as that’s a space where car design plays second fiddle to value.)

When refreshing an icon, product planners and designers often amp up the rhetoric, and slapping on the Bronco Sport name a fashionable 20 years late seems like a brilliant move. Not just because there’s also a new Bronco that draws from the original design, but because said Bronco ensures the “new Escape” has built-in retro DNA they can graft on a body similar to Ford’s original cute crossover.

Looking at a concept Escape from back in the day proves the similarities. The overtly knobby tires (with Escape lettering on the sidewalls) suggest this tall vehicle with upright pillars could go on the same trails where you’d find body-on-frame trucks. But the stylized, plasti-chrome front skid plate and beefy, unfinished bumper is clearly aimed at the new era of SUV consumers in the suburbs. To this concept’s credit, the original 4×4 Escape did have a locking center differential. Trail-worthy style from designers was indeed matched with a modicum of substance by engineers, but reality quickly transitioned into fantasy for the little Ford trucklet.

And the proof is in the pudding roof pillars, as the original Escape had a truck-like D-pillar, able to carry tall boxes like the popular Explorer, Cherokee, and Suburbans before it. The C-pillar is raked appropriately for a CUV, suggesting this was a softer, more car-like cabin than those other vehicles with school-bus-like frames and sketchy handling to boot. The recipe was delicious, and clearly re-used for the Bronco Sport.

Sadly, back then we also needed excessive side cladding (to the point that negative area was needed so the doors could open) to prove we were cooler than people in a Taurus or Impala. The Bronco Sport avoids that trap, with slimmer cladding and negative area stamped into the body as a styling feature, not a stop gap repair.

Then there’s the current Escape, with its swollen nose, low belt line, and a D-pillar that shows how pointless most modern CUVs are in terms of cargo-carrying practicality. The styling is far from a bad design (though reviews for the whole car are disparaging), but it is clear the Bronco Sport has far more curb appeal as a small Ford utility.

Then and now, the 2001 Ford Escape’s quintessentially crossover body rules the roost. Ford likely needed to flee from the mistakes made over the last 20 years, so the Bronco Sport naturally absorbed the Escape’s territory. Doing so ensured the baggage of the Escape name will be erased. Forever.

Which is a shame, because the parallels between Bronco Sport and the 2001 Escape prove the well of creativity ebbs and flows, just like fashion trends. I’ve driven several first-generation Escapes from showroom fresh to fully depreciated with 200,000 miles and broken engine mounts. They all left me feeling that Ford nailed the pillars of sport (gutsy Duratec V-6, stellar Mazda platform), and utility (upright D-pillar, adequate room) for a vehicle that needed to haul five passengers in any weather. If I could get my hands on another, I’m sure a back-to-back Vellum Venom-ing with it and a new Bronco Sport would draw even more parallels than the roof pillars. It was just that timeless.

RIP Escape: You won’t get the credit, but we’re glad the Bronco Sport put you back on your perch.