Spy photographers have captured the 2008 Ford Escape without any disguise during testing in Detroit. Compared to the recently-unveiled 2008 Mercury Mariner, the face of the new Escape looks more aggressively truck-like. Its chunky chrome grille eschews Ford ’s three-bar grille design, instead taking cues from Ford’s new Expedition. The Escape shares the Mariner’s cleaned-up side panels, which now are free of any side cladding except for a small lower trim strip between the wheel wells.
Around to the tail-lights, the Escape gets red lamps with a horseshoe-shaped strip of white which adds some visual interest. Comparing the ’08 with the current model parked next to it, and its immediately clear that the redesign has given the new Escape a lot
more character.
The interior shots show that the Escape’s interior is identical to its Mariner sibling, but it appears that Mercury has upped the ante a bit in the trim department. The Escape will get the same engines recently announced on the Mariner. An unveiling is expected in the near future. Gallery after the jump…
