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SUVs Ford Freestyle Ford Freestyle - Taurus X
7456 messages, Last post on Nov 14, 2009 at 7:03 PM
You are in the Ford Freestyle Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & tidester
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Both are AWD with the TX being a Limited and the FX being a SEL. From everyone's talk on performance of the FX, I'd have thought there was going to be a significant difference - in looking at reports - I'll guess I'll keep the extra mileage the FX provides. I still think folks just are not used to hearing the RPMs of a CVT powered auto. TX 2008 - AWD Limited TRANSMISSION: 6-speed automatic DIMENSIONS: Curb weight: 4216 lb C/D TEST RESULTS: Zero to 60 mph: 7.7 sec Zero to 100 mph: 22.0 sec Street start, 5–60 mph: 7.9 sec Standing ¼-mile: 16.0 sec  88 mph Top speed (governor limited): 111 mph FUEL ECONOMY: C/D observed: 16 mpg FX 2005 - AWD SEL TRANSMISSION: continuously variable automatic with torque converter DIMENSIONS Curb weight: 4190 lb C/D TEST RESULTS Zero to 60 mph: 8.2 sec Zero to 100 mph: 24.1 sec Street start, 5-60 mph: 8.7 sec Standing 1/4-mile: 16.4 sec 86 mph Top speed (governor limited): 111 mph FUEL ECONOMY C/D-observed: 17 mpg |
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2006 SEL, leather, reverse sensing system, 16,700 miles, purchased new in May 2006. My wife thinks our Freestyle is “sporty”. While I wouldn’t go that far, it is a very competent vehicle. It handles very well in normal driving conditions around the city and on the Interstate, as well as on the twisty and hilly state highways and side roads we travel on our 50 to 100 mile jaunts to wine country, carrying 6 adults (and their stuff) in safety and comfort. Even adult passengers relegated to the third row are surprised at not being cramped, and that their comfort was not an afterthought. Some automotive journalists feel that the Freestyle is underpowered; we disagree with their reviews. After driving the Freestyle for a year and a half, we find it to have ample power and acceleration under all circumstances. The engine is noisier than we would like under hard acceleration, and it does stay higher in the RPM range than we’re used to as it maintains speed to climb hills with a full passenger load. This is an engine that lets you know when it’s working hard! As far as gas mileage, the Freestyle gets good mileage for the type of car(?) it is. We average 17.5 around town, 28-29 on the highway at legal speeds (60-70 MPH) and 25-26 MPG beyond the legal limit. Build quality is good. The Freestyle feels solid, and there have been no squeaks, rattles, or other disconcerting noises to date. The front and rear seats are comfortable (can’t vouch for the third row, as I haven’t spent any significant time back there). The drivers seat is power adjustable in all aspects, and finding the “just right” driving position is easy for all of us; me (long arms and legs), my wife (long arms and short legs), and our son (even longer arms and legs). There are a few things that we do have issues with, such as the tether on the gas cap, which gets in the way when unscrewing or screwing the gas cap on/off; and the in-dash multi CD player that makes cheap sounding noises as it loads, unloads, and switches discs. Reliability has been very good, so far. Our Freestyle has been in just for routine maintenance. At the time we bought, Ford was offering two years of free scheduled maintenance, so we have continued to bring our Freestyle back to the dealer we bought it from. This dealership has been proactive whenever we bring it in for scheduled maintenance, and replaced the rear brake pads (the current Achilles Heel of the Freestyle) at no charge to us, even though we had not experienced or commented on any brake issues. The new rear pads generate much less brake dust then the original pads. And then there’s the continuously variable transmission (CVT). Will that prove to be the future Achilles Heel of the Freebie? I hope not, at least I hope if it does fail, it does it during the extended warranty period. Overall, our Freestyle is a safe, comfortable, and handsome vehicle, capable of hauling a bunch of kids and grown-ups (and their stuff, did I mention that?) whether traveling across town or across country. In a nutshell…..a Very Competent Vehicle.
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Replying to: tpmstl56 (Nov 17, 2007 6:17 pm) |
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According to the Ford website, I see that Sync is now a standard feature on the Limited and Eddie Bauer trim lines (http://www.fordvehicles.com/crossovers/taurusx/features/). However, I see from searching dealer inventory, that Sync is only listed on some of the stickers. I am guessing (although somebody "in the know" can confirm this) that since Sync was "released" in the middle of the model year that there are still pre-Sync 2008's on dealer's lots. If this is in fact that case, I am wondering how dealers are going to handle this situation. If something is being advertised as being "standard" on a vehicle, and yet it is missing from some vehicles, I know that I might not be too happy once I discovered that fact. The optimist in me hopes that salespeople are going to disclose this fact, but the cynic in my suggests that this could be an area which might lead to a "poor customer experience". Let's hope that Ford dealers take the high road on this one and be up front about this issue.
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Replying to: humblecoder (Nov 23, 2007 4:46 pm) The price of the TX Limited when the Sync was automatically included went up by $400, coincidentally the price of Sync. So as a practical matter, you now have that option as mandatory. But you can choose not to have Sync and save money just by getting one of the older models. Anyone who really wants Sync will notice it's missing on the car (it's listed on the Invoice) and chose the newer models as needed. I suspect it won't be too hard to handle at the dealers.
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I am just about at 36,000 and 3 years on the '05 Freestyle.. I can purchase additional warranty for about 1,500 to take it out 4 more years and I believe another 40,000 miles taking it to 76,000 total.. with a 100.00 per occurance deductible. Full coverage.. is this something I should consider. basically I would be more concerned regarding the CVT transmission.. What do the freestyle folks say that have close to 70,000 miles on theirs now? Thanks Jim
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Replying to: larryqw (Nov 23, 2007 6:24 pm) Thanks for the info. I didn't notice that the MSRP went up, but that makes sense. At least you are getting what you pay for, or not getting what you didn't pay for, as the case may be! I finally had a chance to check our the TX at the local dealership. They had a fully loaded one sitting in front of the showroom for demos. I didn't have time for a test drive, so my impressions are limited to just sitting in the car. Things I liked: 1. Plenty of room in all seats. I am 6'2" and I was able to sit in the third row without much trouble. Same with the second row. 2. The "command seating" was very nice. Basically, the second and third rows sit up a couple of inches higher than the previous row, giving a stadium seating effect. I am surprised that more vehicles don't do it, because it is a great idea. 3. There seemed to be a lot of cargo space for a station wagon/CUV. Even will all of the rows in use, there was a good amount of space behind the third row. Most other CUV's have the third row seats practically against the liftgate, so there is barely any room back there, so the TX was nice in this regard. Plus with the seats folded down, you get a good amount of space for hauling stuff. 4. The fold flat seats are very easy to operate. 5. I mentioned to the salesperson that I am eligible for X-Plan pricing. The salesperson said that they accept X-Plan customers, but that they would be able to do "even better than X-Plan". I wonder if this is because TX sales are weak, as I had suspected.  Things I didn't like: 1. When flipped down, the DVD player greatly restricted rear visibility, but I am sure this is true of most vehicles with roof mounted players. 2. Rear visibility in general seemed fair, but it was hard to really judge not actually being on the road. 3. The second row seats tumble forward to allow third row access, but with a carseat installed, they would be impossible to operate. I couldn't judge if you could fit between the second row captain chairs, since there was a big center console in the second row. 4. The roofline seemed very low to the point of being claustrophobic. 5. While cargo room was decent, it still doesn't compare to the room you get in a minivan. My overall impressions were positive based upon my walkaround. I even liked the styling of it. One thing that I dont' like about the current CUV styling is how they try to hide the fact that they are really just minivans with their high clearance and aggressive stances, while sacrificing true family utility. The TX is an unapologetic family vehicle with its station wagon appearance, and there is something to be admired for that type of courage. I am not sure if I will end up buying a TX though. I am still thinking that a minivan might be a better choice as a family vehicle.
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Replying to: jimcat11 (Nov 24, 2007 2:04 pm) Carsten
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Replying to: humblecoder (Nov 24, 2007 4:02 pm)
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Replying to: carstenb (Nov 24, 2007 9:15 pm)
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