Work bounces me around the globe and it' affords me the opportunity to drive some more interesting cars we don't get in the states.
A few weeks ago I headed out to the rental lot at Dusseldorf airport to find that I was driving a Ford Escape...I mean Kuga. Things got a little more interesting when I sat down inside of it and realized it was a 6spd manual. One more level if interesting when I realized it was a diesel.
Fit and finish is standard Escape...can't tell a difference. It took me a few stops and starts to get used to the clutch because it has 0 pedal feel...I mean nothing. Aside from 1st gear feeling like it was too short, the power felt good. I had no problems cursing down the autobahn doing 150-160kph. I ran around 75kpg on fuel consumption and I was beating on it pretty good. Love those high mileage euro cars with the little diesels. All in all, not a bad combo for an "appliance" type of vehicle.
I didn't like the autostart/off on feature with a manual. My wife's BMW has it with the auto and I've gotten used to it so I hardly notice it, but if you come off the clutch quickly and the car has to start during the process, it's really annoying. The brakes weren't as good as I would have hoped either. The pedal felt a little spongy, although I did get used to it after a few days.
Would I own one? Probably not. The autostart feature with the manual is enough to make me say no way. I wouldn't hesitate to have another one as a rental however.
