In the 2010 Ford Escape, Ford is focusing on new safety technologies, which builds on the vehicles leading crash test ratings and rollover protection. The new 2010 Ford Escape and the 2010 Ford Escape Hybrid will have five new safety features and technologies that will aid the driver, including Integrated Spotter Mirrors, MyKey(TM), Rear View Camera System and Active Park Assist.

The Ford Escape is one of the first Ford vehicles to feature SYNC with Traffic, Directions and Information, which helps reduce distractions while accessing route and safety information. These technologies build on the Ford Escape’s 5-star and top pick crash-testing ratings, including the highest ratings from the government and Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

The new 2010 Ford Escape, available this summer, will add MyKey(TM) teen-safety technology, Integrated Spotter Mirrors – both offered standard (MyKey on XLT and above models) – optional Rear View Camera System and SYNC with real-time Traffic, Directions and Information.

The new model also will be the North America’s first SUV to offer Active Park Assist, which uses an ultrasonic-based sensing system and Electric Power Assisted Steering (EPAS) to position the vehicle for parallel parking, calculate the optimal steering angle and quickly steer the vehicle into a parking spot.

The Ford Escape is the only small SUV to offer advanced roll stability control and side curtain air bag technologies with rollover protection.

“The Ford Escape is one of few vehicles that earned both full 5-star crash ratings and a ‘Top Safety Pick’ in the small SUV segment,” said Susan Cischke, Ford’s group vice president of Sustainability, Environment and Safety Engineering. “These new technologies will help to take the new Escape to the next level of safety and driver satisfaction.”

According to 2008 Ford market research data, nearly nine out of 10 Escape and Escape Hybrid buyers rank safety features – including the road-holding capability delivered by roll stability control – as one of their top purchase reasons.

The 2010 Ford Escape will feature:

Integrated Spotter Mirror (standard) – a consumer-friendly, affordable blind spot technology that consists of an outside rearview mirror designed with a secondary convex spotter in the top outer corner, which is aimed exclusively at the driver’s blind spot. When traffic enters the driver’s blind spot on either side of the vehicle, it is visible in the secondary convex mirror, helping provide the driver broader peripheral view.

MyKey (standard) - allows owners to program a key that can limit the vehicle’s top speed and audio volume. MyKey also encourages safety-belt usage, provides earlier low-fuel warnings and can be programmed to sound chimes at 45, 55 and 65 miles per hour. This feature is standard on Escape models featuring a message center cluster, including XLT and above.

Rear View Camera System - uses an exterior camera embedded in the rear of the vehicle that sends images to a video display in the rearview mirror or the navigation system screen to help enhance visibility directly behind the vehicle when it is in reverse. Ford is leveraging the affordability of high-quality video cameras to widely offer the technology with navigation systems.

Active Park Assist - uses an ultrasonic-based sensing system and Electric Power Assisted Steering (EPAS) to position the vehicle for parallel parking, calculate the optimal steering angle and quickly steer the vehicle into a parking spot. The technology is a major leap forward in speed and ease of use compared with the camera-reliant systems offered by competitors. Ford’s system requires less driver interaction and reduces the risk of selecting a parking spot that is too tight. Ford’s Active Park Assist also works in downhill parking situations, unlike competing systems.

SYNC - Ford is expanding its connectivity leadership by introducing exclusive new SYNC real-time information features. The new Escape is one of the first vehicles to introduce this innovation – SYNC with Traffic, Directions and Information – which leverages industry-leading voice-recognition software, integrated GPS technology, and a customer’s Bluetooth-capable mobile phone. SYNC’s new services provide simple hands-free access to personalized traffic reports, precise turn-by-turn driving directions and up-to-date information including business listings, news, sports, and weather.

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