2017 Ford Escape vs Mazda CX-5

What's the difference?

Escape. Evocative, isn't it? It also seems like a bit of a metaphor for Ford's mid-sized SUV, the artist formerly known as the Kuga. The Escape's first iteration gave way to the poorly-spelt replacement a few years back, with a weird looking bonce to go with the silly name.

The changes for 2017 are minor, but as we discovered at the top of the range with the Escape Titanium, they come together to improve a car that has struggled to break through into the consciousness of Australian buyers.

The Ambiente kicks off the range with an ambitious spec level and a roomy cabin, taking the fight to Hyundai's Tucson Active and Mazda's all-conquering CX-5.

More: Check out our 2017 Ford Escape range review here

The Mazda CX-5 was a genuine phenomenon. It pretty much came out of nowhere and knocked off a few cars we previously thought had an unassailable grasp on the Australian SUV budget.

Even more extraordinary was the fact the stylish CX-5 came from a company that had given us a fairly bland decade of cars, after a flourish in the late '90s descended into a series of dull boxes (although the 3 did signal a revival).

I drove a first-gen CX-5 late in its life and found it hard to believe it needed replacing. But in 2017 that's exactly what Mazda did. Fresh sheetmetal, lots of detail work, and a new interior were all dropped on to a lightly updated chassis to give us the second-generation CX-5.

And a lot faces ended up buried in hands at other car companies because it turns out Mazda did a smashing job second time around.