Ford axes Escape SUV in Australia after decades on sale

A rival to the Toyota RAV4 and Mazda CX-5 is waving the white flag and leaving Australian roads after more than 20 years.

Ford is killing off its Escape mid-sized SUV in Australia, finally admitting defeat against the big guns in one of the biggest market segments in the country.

The five-seat competitor to the Toyota RAV4 and Mazda CX-5 will be discontinued by the end of the year, leaving Ford with another hole in its family car line-up.

It adds to a long list of Ford nameplates that have been retired locally. Others include the Laser, Falcon, Mondeo, Territory, Focus and Fiesta.

The Ford Escape was thoroughly outsold by rivals.

“The Escape nameplate will be leaving Australia by the end of the year,” said Andrew Birkic, Ford Australia president and CEO.

“We have to make a business decision, where are we going to put our chips. We’ve made a decision that’s not Escape.”

The demise of the Escape will be the end of a nameplate that first appeared in Australia in 2002 (it was rebadged as the Kuga from 2012 to 2016) and has long tried to muscle in on the big players in what is now family car heartland.

Mid-sized SUVs have grown from a relative sideshow in the late 1990s to be the biggest market segment.

It was on sale for more than 20 years.

In the first three months of 2023 sales of mid-sized SUVs were up 19 per cent and there are more than 40 models to choose from.

Relative newcomers GWM Haval and BYD are having a big impact while sales of the Escape continue to flounder; last year Ford sold just 2179, making up about 1 per cent of medium SUV sales.

The imminent axing of the Escape places more pressure on Ford’s top selling vehicle, the Ranger. Last year in Australia the Ranger accounted for 71 per cent of Ford’s sales. That’s edged up to 72 per cent for the first three months of this year.

The end of the Escape will also see death of the plug-in hybrid electric version, which was a small part of the range that only arrived last year.

Ford is shifting to electric cars.

“We don’t make the nameplate decisions and those brand decisions lightly,” said Birkic, adding that “we believe now is the right time”.

Birkic pointed to the evolution of the segment as one reason Ford has chosen to exit that portion of the market.

“Fifteen, 20 years ago, that segment where Escape plays – in terms of its price point and bandwidth – is very different than where it is today.”

The brand is also fast shifting to EVs, especially in Europe where it has committed to a wholly electric line-up by 2030.

Ford recently revealed a Europe-focused Explorer mid-sized SUV that is set to be produced in right-hand drive.

There’s a chance that car could be the yet-to-be-announced fifth electrified model to join the Ford Australia line-up by 2025.

It would neatly slot into a market segment that includes the Tesla Model Y, Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6.

Given the sales success of those three models – the Tesla in particular – there’s a chance an Explorer EV could outsell the Escape, which never really fired down under.

Originally published as Ford axes Escape SUV in Australia after decades on sale