mbedenba@bellsouth.net

I contacted my local Ford dealer ( a very large dealer) and they said they had heard of no reports of towing the Escape. The service manager said they had not received any bullentins/ He suggested I follow the instructions in the owner manual and tow. I am going to attempt to contact Ford direct. I did before I purchased to be sure it would tow 4 flat and they emailed me that it would with no problems. Unfortunatly the email got erased and I did not print it. To answer Don's question about the base plate. I installed a Demco as that is the same one I have on my explorer and already had the Demco tow bar. It was an easy install. Just remove the front end and set aside and bolt up. No holes to drill and just cut out about a 2" X 2" section of the baffle to allow the pins to come through. I had to purchase 6 10mm nuts to attach to the frame as only 4 of the holes in the frame were pre-threaded. I contacted Demco and talked with the engineer who was extremely helpful with advise and ideas. The instructions are easy to follow. Took about 2 hours. I have an SMI Stay and Play brake system I took off my previous toad. I have the Air Force one by SMI on the Explorer. That is one sweet brake system. Uses air from the motor home to activate and it is soooo smooth. I will report back after I hear from FORD. Further to the base plate I looked at Blue Ox and it required moving parts etc and also was lower to the ground by 2". I like Blue ox and have used before, also have a Blue Ox tow bar Aventa II. Personally like the Demco a little better. Seems to be more rugged although never had any problems with the BLue Ox.

This is the first I have heard about towing the 09 Escape and having these problems. I just purchased one and really like the car. Just finished installing the base plate, brakes and electrical. Have not towed it yet but from what I am hearing here I am scared to do so. I have the 4 cyl. with 6 speed transmission. It sound like an aux trans cooler may be required. This was the main reason we purchased the Escape as it was flat towable. We have an 07 Explorer with 4wd that tows great. Until I can find out more info I will tow the Explorer. I look forward to anyone's comments, suggestions or fixes.