2010 Ford Escape Hybrid
Serial Number: 1FMCU5K39AKA96198
Exterior Color: Steel Blue Metallic
Interior Color: Stone
Assembly Plant: Kansas City, MO
Assembly Date: October 23, 2009
Dealership: Buerge Ford, West Los Angeles, CA
Original Order Date: August 18, 2009
Delivery Date: November 5, 2009
Original Owner: James M. Kennedy, Malibu, CA
Backstory
In 2009, as the American automobile industry grappled with the effects of the “Great Recession,” I decided I needed a new ride; or, to be honest, an additional ride. I would like to claim my decision was driven by a burst of patriotism and a desire to support the U.S. economy, but the truth was more mundane: I was preparing to relocate from Southern California to the Bay Area, and needed transportation more practical than the two-seater sports car then parked in my carport.
With car manufacturers only assembling vehicles in response to orders paid for in advance, and late-model used vehicles commanding exorbitant prices as a result, I splurged on a new 2010 Ford Escape Hybrid ordered from a local dealership with the help of a coworker who knew the right people in the Sales Department.
The SUV arrived in early November 2009, just in time to ferry me and most of my material possessions from Malibu to Marin County. Adjusting to hybrid technology presented more challenges than I had anticipated; being unfamiliar with the technology (and, apparently, the basic concept of electric engines), I was initially convinced the vehicle wasn’t starting because it failed to produce the satisfying sensation of internal combustion when I turned the ignition key. Nevertheless, we slowly grew to understand, if not fully truly appreciate, each other.
Despite my grudging acceptance of the benefits of hybrid driving, both to the environment and my budget, a lack of dependable available parking at my new residence required a reconsideration of my personal motor pool. After approximately 18 months of ownership, I transferred title to my sister, and drove the Escape out to her home in East Tennessee. For the next 10 years, it provided over 200,000 miles of dependable service as a second family workhorse, shuttling kids to soccer matches and school plays; transporting people, dogs, luggage, and kayaks on vacations and assorted adventures; delivering meals to homebound seniors; and eventually providing transport to distant weddings and funerals. By the time my sister and her husband decided to shed possessions as part of their own relocation in 2021, the Ford had become part of our extended family, and none of us relished the prospect of a parting (either figuratively—as in saying “goodbye”—or literally—as in dismantling the thing for parts). Fortunately, the intervening decade had witnessed an easing of my parking constraints, and I offered to re-establish guardianship. Since that time, the Escape has journeyed cross country at least thrice. In all, since November 2009, it has visited 40 states and one Canadian province (Ontario, for a pilgrimage to the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto). The once-baffling hybrid technology has proven resilient and dependable, and has outlasted at least one set of seat covers.