Yep, you are right.
One bad Escape Hybrid means they are all bad. Good Logic.

By the way, what did you pay for your Highlander and what interest rate did you get? I got my 4wd Mercury Mariner Hybrid (Ford Escape Hybrid twin) for (about) 29,500 at 0% for 5 years.

My best guess calculations for a 2006 Highlander Hybrid with 4wd are

$34,000 for the Highlander. $10,000 down leaves $24,000 to finance. @ 3.9% interest about $2450.00.
$34,000 plus $2,450.00 = $36,450.

Toyota $36,450
minus Ford $29,500
is $6,950.

For me, it was not worth $7,000. I guess that there is a $7,000 question to be answered. Is the Highlander worth $7,000 more than the Ford. At this point is it a personal and financial answer.

If you read the Ford forum, you will see many happy Escape/Mariner owners.
For my own experience, the 4wd has been flawless; I have driven on icy, snowy roads without spinning the wheels or loosing control.

Joe, if you drove an Escape Hybrid across the Rockies; please tell me about your experience. I drove my Mariner to the top of Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina and had no problem keeping up with traffic. I accidentally took the back road there and it was a wild drive. The locals drive fast!

I agree that Toyota makes great cars, but that does not mean all other cars brands are junk. Ford has quality issues but they ARE improving. BUT I have seen many posts that list major issues with Toyota's quality. I hope the bean counters are not going to ruin a great car company.

The Escape is fun to drive, nimble, and costs way less than a Highlander. The Escape/Mariner can and have been driven off road. They are not Jeeps, but plenty of people have driven their Escapes offroad and have posted how well they drove.

The type of SUV to buy depends on individual needs. Do you really need 268HP to drive to work? Do you need a 7 passenger SUV to haul only yourself to work?? Do you want to drive a bigger SUV? Some people do and for them a bigger more powerful SUV is the answer.

Also, I thought buying a hybrid was about using less gas, lower emissions, and less CO2.
The 4wd get about 29 mpg (using greenhybrid data) versus 26mpg (greenhybrid data) for the Highlander 2wd. What does the 4wd Highlander average??

Why do people automatically discredit others without trying to look at the big picture? Different people have different needs.

As far as the Escape being apples and oranges, it's more like McIntosh vs Fuji.

Again just my 2 cents.