Quote Originally Posted by GTi View Post
The Escape is more family oriented, being American, and has a very durable chassis, spacious interior and comfortable ride, like the Suzuki Grand Vitara, it is also quite capable off road, for a CUV that is. Though I have heard of it being somewhat of a gas guzzler. I have an aunt who has the 2003 2.0XLT 4x4 and she goes to Antipolo regularly every week. The car is still alive and well after all these years (we all know how women are with cars, and my aunt has a lead foot), there are no squeaks from the suspension, the ride is really comfy and the aircon is very cool though being a 130hp 2.0 with the 4 speed AT, it is rather underpowered , and so the fuel economy suffers. I don't know much about the new Tucson, but if you can afford to stretch your budget, the diesel is the one to get. But if not, the gasoline 2.0 might also be a good buy, having the highest hp rating among the 2.0's in its class and a 6 speed AT. It would also be wise to read the reviews in motioncars.com for more information.
thanks guys! looks like Ford Escape XLT it is over the new Tucson. being a family-man, performance, spacious interiors and comfort are more important to me than the aesthetics! not to say that the Escape is not beautiful, it's just that the new Tucson is a head-turner because of its cutting edge fluidic design na kakaiba lang talaga vs the conservative and no-nonsense design of the Escape. oh well, maluluma din naman yun eh! hehehe! in terms of fuel economy, pareho namang gas (out of budget yung diesel ng Tucson) so i guess that it should be the same (around 7-8 km/L). finally, it would take 3-6 months pa daw to get the gas Tucson vs Escape na anytime pwede mo nang iuwi! That's the clincher for me! LOL

i just have to test drive both vehicles just to be sure. Thanks again, guys!