Good day, I am currently looking into buying my first ford escape. i prefer the 2nd gen boxy shape so I looked around and found 2 examples that still looks nice. A 2008 v6 with 128k miles and a 2012 4cyl with 140k miles. Now my question is which is a better buy asssuming both were well maintained by their owners? An older v6 with lower miles or a newer 4cyl with higher miles? Your opinions would greatly affect my decision. Thanks.

 

If your not going to tow i would get the 2012, the 2.5 is a very durable and basic engine, only issue with them is the EGR valve gets clogged, not very often and fairly easy to remove, clean, reinstall. The 3.0 is a good engine but the timing cover and oil pan leak on almost all of them with labor around 8-9 hours it easily runs over $1000 at a shop.
It is also easier to work on a 4 cylinder for general maintenance work cause you only have one bank so don't have to deal with the intake manifold of the 3.0 covering the rear bank.