 Great power from a 2.5L engine, but when I saw rear drum brakes in a 2009 I thought I was seeing things. I wasn't. This car is under-braked. It is hard to stop in hard braking. It is also a little squirrely in handling turns, the Escape tends to wallow in mountain turns at freeway speeds. Overall a peppy car to drive around town but I find it difficult to get the electric motor to turn on at low speeds, even using a very light touch.  