Ford Freestyle - Taurus X

preferbicycles · October 2005

I'm not sure what is Communist about them, but while Consumers' Report has some useful information in it, I don't think their predicted reliability for new models adds any value. As far as I can see (from their responses to letters from people asking how they can predict reliability for a new model) they base it on their perceptions of that particular manufacturer, which everyone who reads Consumer Reports knows anyway.

I don't know how representative their historical frequency-of-repair information is, but it has generally seemed in line with my own experience. And of course like all reviewers they review cars from a particular point of view--if that is similar to your own, then you are more likely to find their thoughts congenial. Nonetheless, I often find their observations interesting, even if we don't come to the same conclusions.

naffy · October 2005

Has anyone ordered floor mats for their 2006 Freestyle? I can't seem to find any to fit--Husky or otherwise.

stever · October 2005

There's also a Consumer Reports - Testing & Review Methods discussion that may be of interest.

Steve, Host

tim156 · October 2005

You are right. My driving habits had to change when I got my Freestyle. I now start off slower and pick up speed gradually. I get a very consistent 20 mpg in the city, where I do most of my driving. My mileage began to improve at around 3000 miles. I just returned from a 3536 mile trip from Minnesota to Washington state and back. I averaged 25.1 mpg overall with the best being 27.2 mpg. I found that on the interstate, if I kept the tach under 2000 rpm's or around 71 mph, my mileage improved as much as 4 mpg from 75 mph and 2300 rpm's. I battled a head wind and traveled on a two lane highway heading west, and of course the mountain hills in both directions. I am very happy with that overall gas mileage. The car ran beautifully at all altitudes and road conditions. I saw four Freestyles on the road and one from Maryland parked next to me at a motel in Cut Bank, Montana. I came out from the Visitor Center at Glacier Park and there was a fellow standing next to my car. As I approached he said he was admiring my station wagon. He was asking questions to compare it to an Outback, which they must give away in western Montana, Idaho and Washington. They're everywhere! He was impressed with the interior room but raised his eyebrows a bit when I described the transmission. Mine now has 7695 miles on it, it's been road tested and I couldn't be happier! Still glad I bought one. :shades:

barnstormer64 · October 2005

"I'm not sure what is Communist about them"

How about the fact that they hate American cars and love Japanese cars? LOL

Seriously, rating a car like the Freestyle as having worse than normal reliability is a fine example of their "methodology".

Also, they do NOT factor in things like how well a person takes care of a vehicle. (Of course, they really can't).

What I do know is that personal experience with three Tauruses vs. brothers who've owned multiple Toyotas and Hondas has led me to believe that CR car reliability indicators are worthless.

daire · October 2005

Actually, as far as CR goes, I have always thought they were good for reviewing appliances, but not so good for reviewing cars. I also think ANY car in it's first production year is going to get a lower rating than after the second production year, when things have kind of settled in. It is actually why we insisted on a 2006 instead of a 2005.

daire · October 2005

I meant to add that that I like Car and Driver reports better than CR for cars.

daire · October 2005

We purchased nice heavy duty mats in tan for our pebble interior Freestyle at Advanced Auto Parts. We looked around a few places before we found these, and they fit quite well, and are heavy duty with drip rails etc. They are made by KRACO and are called "Premium multi-season floor mat". The product number in the lower left corner of the tag is 432-638. Hope that helps. We found a lot of the others to be too long for the front.

naffy · October 2005

thanks for you help. I will look into them.

dzdncnfzd · October 2005

Thanks! If the mine takes the same amount of time I should have it in about 1 1/2 weeks!

jrtexas · October 2005

Try autoanything.com. I got a Husky cargo area mat which I really like and WeatherTech mats for 1st and 2nd rows which are pretty good. Husky also has floor mats for 1st and 2nd rows. Here are the links:

http://www.autoanything.com/products/product_fm.aspx?p_id=1456&se=husky_liners_floor_mats

http://www.autoanything.com/products/product_fm.aspx?p_id=1462&se=weathertech_floor_mats

vicenac · October 2005

That's funny! I complained about mileage here and at the dealer. People here told me to wait until I have 3.000 and the dealer told me that they would not investigate until I have 5.000.
It just seems a lot of....

mousemeat · October 2005

Enjoyed your post. The mileage info was good to hear and the information about changing your driving habits was as well. Mostly, I was thrilled to hear that you saw other Freestyles. I have had mine for a little over six weeks and have not seen another one yet and I have been looking. It is very disheartening at times. I haven't even hit 1000 miles yet so I am not getting good mileage. When the weather cools off here in North Texas, and if I can stomach the gas prices, I hope to take it on a trip to Houston. I did drive into downtown Fort Worth and was very happy with it. It handles well and we crammed as much stuff in it as my Explorer held - maybe more. I parked next to a 2002 Explorer and was comparing them side by side when the owner of the Explorer came out. She had a rental Freestyle at one time and said she really liked it. The friend who recommended I consider it had rented one too. Is that the only way Ford is promoting the Freestyle? I haven't seen an ad since the day before I bought it. Still, everyone asks me what it is, says it's beautiful and they have never heard of it. Are we all really smart or what? This forum keeps me sane. It's nice to know there are "others" out there.

vicenac · October 2005

Not true. I drive my FS very gently and I still get 14.5 city. The dealer said that the computer still tries to "figure out my strategies"!

ANT14 · October 2005

Instead of using the onboard computer, has anyone done it the traditional method, using paper, pen, calculator ?

freestylegal · October 2005

"...has anyone done it the traditional method, using paper, pen, calculator ?"
I have and I was amazed at how close my numbers were to the FWD Freestyle's numbers. One thing that I've noticed really changes the mileage is hills. On my way up to Truckee, 17mpg. On the way back, 29!

My everyday driving is up and down 280...lots of long, big hills and I average about 22-23 mpg.

naffy · October 2005

I have pebble interior. Do you know if the Husky color or the WeatherTech is a better match? I like the looks of the WeatherTech heavy duty mats, but I don't think they are made for Freestyle.

behoops · October 2005

Thanks for the info. We're looking for floor mats for the upcoming winter and the cargo liner for when we get a dog.

Do you (or anyone else) know if the WeatherTech and Husky cargo liners really are custom fitted for the Freestyle? That is, do they really fit perfectly around all the curves in the back (behind the 2nd row) or just "kinda" fit in that area?

globecanvas · October 2005

I've been a compulsive mpg-figurer my whole life ... I pass the time on drives working out mpg in my head. This has been a good discussion of mpg here.

In my opinion there are two major factors to mpg that people sometimes don't think about.

- Elevation changes have an absolutely tremendous effect ... elevation changes can make a 25-50% difference in mpg. This is true of local hills and large-scale topography changes. I recently drove from Albany to Boston in one stretch with the cruise control constant the whole way. The trip has a long, slow 2000-ft rise in the first half of the drive and a long, slow 2000-ft drop on the second half. The elevation change is gradual enough that you hardly notice it for the most part. My mpg was almost 50% higher on the downhill half.

- Short drives are mpg killers. If you get to your destination before the engine has hardly had time to warm up, you will never see anything near the advertised mpg. From a big-picture perspective, gas engines are just the wrong design for short commutes, not that there's anything most of us can do about that (short of riding a bicycle, or the bus).

I would guess that most of the worse-than-expected mpg complaints on this board are from short-commuters. It's not fair to say these people have "bad driving habits" or whatever, it's just the way it is.

bobw3 · October 2005

Makes sense. Hybrids are perfect for the short drives on battery only. And when the EPA calculates mpg it's probably on flat roads for consistency so you can compare vehicles. I guess the mistake most people make is using EPA mpg ratings and assume they'll get what the EPA did for their test. The real purpose of EPA mpg ratings is so you can compare vehicles. So if you compare a Freestyle vs a Honda Pilot and the Freestyle has better mpg ratings, then it means in general you'll get better mileage with the Freestyle. People getting less then the EPA average mpg with the Freestyle would probably get less than the EPA average mpg with any car they drive in the same manner. Of course if it's way off of the EPA average that can be a sign that there could be a problem.

bruneau1 · October 2005

I think 9th out of 29 vehicles is quite good. First year reliability is almost always not the best, and there's no way to know if the problems are big or small, although I am dismayed by some of the reports in this forum. We, like most others, bought the Freestyle because we really like it, and we are pleased with ours. We just took a long trip which involved some mountain driving and found that the powertrain handled the situation very well. Our highway mileage on flat freeways was about 27 and 23 with the combined hill climbing.

ranger2001xlt · October 2005

Yes. I have used both methods to figure my Freestyle mileage. I track them by the pencil/paper method in my mileage software on my computer. I try to go to the same fuel pump at the local station and have tried tankfuls of different brands of gas. I also have found the mpg estimator on the freestyle dash to be fairly accurate (most times within 2/10 of an mpg).

I don't think the concerns over actual vs real world mileage estimates can be answered anymore by two or three reasons (elevation, driving style, breakin period). There are two many other variances; passenger weight, road surfaces traveled, number of stop lights/signs during egress to your house, roof rack cargo, brands of gasoline used, etc.

What is important is Ford willing to stand behind the average user getting close to the EPA estimates over a period of several thousand miles traveled. I think a customer getting less than 20% of the lower of the EPA estimates should be a flag to Ford to look at the issue closer. After all a consumer should expect to get at least the city rating if they do 20% highway driving, shouldn't they? This is the reason that 'two' mpg numbers are provided for comparison. Don't just have the dealers put it off and ask the customer to wait to turnover 5000 miles. They are basically just waiting for the customer to forget about it or accept the condition.

jrtexas · October 2005

The Husky cargo liner fits great - it is specifically contoured to fit in the cargo space when the 3rd seats are folded flat. The liner has a 2" lip around the perimeter to trap accidental spills so should be good protection for carrying pets.

The front row WeatherTech mats fit fine but, IMHO, the 2nd row seats are a bit oversized. They can be trimmed but I'm not going to cut them.

I have the Pueblo Gold with the tan interior. The Husky liner is a closer match to the interior color. The WeatherTech are a little darker but they look fine.

stmss · October 2005

Yes, a lot of the question of 'reliability' is subjective and whether the problem is big or small can depend on expectations. Also, on how the dealer or manufacturer deal with any problems - this can also affect perception of reliability. If a brand gets a bad rap over the years (deserved or otherwise) as many domestics it is very difficult to turn the tide.

The Freestyle was the first vehicle for me in a long time where I did not read the comparisons, reports, reliability numbers etc. I simply compared the competitors and this vehicle just felt right.

I think if you take all the 'reliability' information posted on this and other boards, you would probably not buy any car. All brands have their problems.

skovatch · October 2005

The Freestyle was the first vehicle for me in a long time where I did not read the comparisons, reports, reliability numbers etc. I simply compared the competitors and this vehicle just felt right.

Same here, though I did drive a Highlander, and decided that even if it was rated higher I still preferred the Freestyle, mainly on driving position and comfort. It's worth nothing that throwing out the hybrids at the top of the list, numbers 3-9 scored about two points apart, which isn't that significant. They also tested the AWD version, for what it's worth. Oh, and X-plan pricing helped, too.

stmss · October 2005

I did drive others - pilot, xc90 but not ones that didn't meet the standard requirements - highlander - too small, endeavour - no 3rd seat, rendevouz - too small - Envoy - too big, Freestyle - just right!.

Reliability reports or journalistic comparisons didn't matter and didn't affect the decision.

joemilx · October 2005

Ditto on changing driving habits. I migrated from an F-150 with a 5.4 liter V8, so I was used to a heavy throttle foot ( and 13 mpg avg.). Light and easy gets me 18-19 mpg around town and 25-27 on road trips. Since I live in northern New Mexico at 7,000 feet, the road trips include a lot of ups and downs.

I love the CVT engine braking on the downhills. With the F-150 auto, I had to constantly brake on long downgrades: now I just stab the brake once in a while to maintain a reasonable speed.

n_a_c · October 2005

My dealer can give me a great deal on a 2005 with the 2nd row captain chairs. Problem is - we really want the bench seat for the occasional trip with 7 people. Im contemplating getting the car with the bench seats, and try to trade with someone else, or just buy the bench seat separately and install it. What do people think? :confuse:

Does anyone want to trade? It is a cloth shale interior.

northlakes · October 2005

I found this note on BlueOvalNews.com about September 05 Ford sales.

*******************************************
"Sales of crossover utilities (Ford Escape, Ford Freestyle, Mercury Mariner, and Volvo XC70 and XC90) climbed 39 percent in September. The Ford Escape Hybrid set a new monthly sales record (1,808) in September. Almost 15,000 Escapes equipped with hybrid engine technology have been sold so far.

Traditional sport utilities experienced the largest declines. Sales in this category were off 51 percent compared with last September. A strong showing last year, when the company offered 0 percent financing for 72 months, exacerbated the magnitude of the decline. Still, sales of these models have experienced declines in 2005 as gas prices have risen."
**********************************************

Encouraging news. If you were curious, Ford sold 7,146 Freestyles in September, and 59,648 over 12 months. They sold 9094 Five Hundreds in September, and 84,240 over 12 months. If I plug a few numbers into my trust Crayculator, it says that Ford sold 41% more 500s than Freestyles over the course of a year, but in September, the gap was down to 27%, indicating that Freestyle sales have been growing at a faster rate than the 500 recently. :shades:

vgumbatz · October 2005

I just bought an SEL about a week ago. Didn't go with a Limited since I kinda like the two tone appearance.

Anyway, I traded in an '04 Pilot for the Freestyle. One of the main reasons I orginally went for the Pilot was that it was at the top (at the time) of Consumer Reports midsize SUV's. Plus CR displayed high marks on the reliability. Well, I didn't have any mechanical problems with the Pilot (heck, it's a Honda). But, over the course of a year, the interior developed too many sqeaks and rattles for my liking. I had taken it in to the dealer 3 times to deal with a rattling driver's side window. The dealer didn't really do anything until I pointed out the pilot.org website. There are scores of complaints about the same issue. Regarding the other squeaks, the dealer told me they couldn't do anything about them unless they happened all the time. Thank you very much.

Aside from the squeaks, gas mileage really sucked (13 -14 mpg around town). My wife couldn't use it since she couldn't lift our baby over the high step in. Finally, the styling has a lot to be desired.

Long story short, I'm quite pleased with the Freestyle since it's more comfortable, quieter, looks better and get's better mileage. The reliability issue doesn't really bother me since even supposedly reliable cars can have issues. It's really a throw of the dice.

Let me point out that the Ford is my first American car I've every purchased. I've bought nothing but Hondas since 1984. So, I'm normally a proponent of Hondas. Also, I'm a lifetime member of Consumer Reports, so I always respect what they say. It's just that, in this case, Ford has come out with a really good car . . .
-

deasun · October 2005

Got car Thursday night last week.
Went on a trip to middle of New York state on Saturday, from down here in central NJ.
Got a average of 26.4 miles for the whole trip. Handled the hills and overtaking nicely.
The sweat spot is definatly around the 70mph/2000rpm.

Wife and me love it and our Dog, Gromit, didnt know what to do in the back with all the space she has now.

Very happy with it so far. And surprised with the milage so soon. Get average of 25.5 on my commute to work, 45 miles, 70% highway/30% town.
First Ford in a long time. Last was a Explorer 2 dr that rolled over on me.

SEL AWD 2006

Deasun, NJ, USA

stmss · October 2005

This is a problem with trying to get the perfect fit on late 2005 models. Selection may be limited. I also found the perfect Limited but alas, only two buckets in row two. This was a non starter for us regardless of the deal.

I asked the dealer if these seats could be switched out to bench with another car on the lot. He said no, they had already tried that before - it is a different bolt up. I do not know if this is the true or just a line to try an get me to take as is. I didnt pursue it much further as I found another Freestyle as I wanted it. But I would check out a few other sources before trying the conversion.

stmss · October 2005

It good to hear from an owner of both vehicles - especially a loyal Honda owner. I tested the pilot and really could not say if it was noisier or less comfortable than Freestyle - there is only so much time during a test drive and of course over different roads etc. I did find the some of the interior squeaks you may be describing, even on a new one. The interior layout, space and functionality are far superior in the Freestyle - the 3rd seat is a real one and the step into the vehicle is nice.

I found the acceleration better in the pilot but even this may be misleading as I tested the pilot with only a salesman but the Freestyle with the whole family (5 of us) so weight may not be comparable.

Yes, I think reliability is a roll of the dice and you often will get one owner with lots of problems and one with none with the same model of vehicle regardless of brand.

bruneau1 · October 2005

I sometimes have problems with what CR reports, but they are useful. Let's remember than there are very few "American" cars any more. In most cases, it's just the names that remain. The Freestyle, for example, is a Swedish, German, American vehicle put together in Chicago. Some Chevrolets have Chinese engines, Japanese transmissions and are assembled in Canada or Mexico. But yes, CR does seem to have its own bias from time to time.

jschreiber · October 2005

well I just received my November issue and also saw the black dot
It's hard to believe there are any data based on newness and volume
I must admit I actually wrote a letter to the editor protesting this--they really should have had a "new" listing under predicted reliability!

Up to 16,000 miles on my AWD SE -- No problems, is a great car.
mileage dipped a bit recently--fully restored to 20 city and 26 hiway by using fuel injector cleaner.
FYI my wife just purchased a Hybrid Ford Escape--unreal mileage (good) running around 31 miles per gallon in mixed driving!! with very little noticable difference in performance (silent and electric under 20 miles per hour--takes getting used to)

kelru2000 · October 2005

Just as an addendum, I was over the CR discussion boards and one of the CR guys mentioned that only the AWD had below average reliability. The FWD received an average rating.

I didn't see that information reflected anywhere else, but it does raise some interesting questions.

oldgwth · October 2005

I have seen this asked before but could not find it with a search. My radio was replaced and I just noticed that none of the controls on the radio has working back lights. The dial lights up when in use and the clock all the time but that is it. Normal?? I don't remember for sure. :confuse: Thanks

nitromax · October 2005

No, it's not normal. Once again, the service technicians are giving Ford a bad name.
Bring it back and tell them to do it right.

message #4565 might be what you were looking for.

spears2 · October 2005

Not normal. The radio needs to be programmed to work with your vehicle.

I have another question regarding the radio. In my SEL, the rear door speakers are little more than tweeters. They're considerably weaker than the front door speakers. Is this normal for the model or do I need my radio replaced yet again?

volfangary · October 2005

Not Normal! I have an SEL and have had radio replaced. Rear speakers sound no different than front speakers. Sounds like your new radio is a dud. :sick:

passat_2002 · October 2005

Rear speakers are accent speakers only. Lower volume from them is normal. You can somewhat adjust this bias by going through the radio's menu.

bobw3 · October 2005

Mine seem the same from all speakers. Maybe obvious, but are you judging from the driver's seat, or did you set the front-rear balance equally and sit in all of the seats to verify the sound?

passat_2002 · October 2005

I set the F-R balance to neutral. The volume from the rear-door speakers is noticeably less than the front, regardless of where I place my ears. I believe this to be normal. It may not be what you want... but it's how it was designed to be.

dzdncnfzd · October 2005

Daire,

Did the dealer give you updates while you were waiting or did you find this information out after picking it up?

Based on your information your car was built a little over a week after it was ordered. I ordered mine almost three weeks ago now and I haven't heard a thing. Should I call the dealer or wouldn't they know anything until it is received?

volfangary · October 2005

I spoke with A Ford service tech this afternoon and he checked specs for me and the rear speakers are no different than front speakers. He stated the sound should be the same out of all four speakers and if not, it is due to a defect in the radio. He stated they have had at least four Freestyles in with this exact same problem. Better have it checked out while its still covered.

bobw3 · October 2005

I just went to the garage to check and they all sound the same to me.

nitromax · October 2005

What's up with this RADIO!!!?

Even though I haven't had anything wrong with mine, I'm considering getting a REAL radio to replace it before it follows the path of others.
All right , it does have issues with recorded CDs (which play fine on two previous cars)

The only downfall to that idea is I'm going to lose the controls on the steering wheel.

grrrrr....
(nitro simmers)

bobw3 · October 2005

I have no problems with mine. I have an SE with the standard single CD player. For those that are having problems, which radio/CD player do you have?

nitromax · October 2005

We have an SEL with the CD changer. I would think that the head unit would be the same on all though....maybe not?

spears2 · October 2005

While I don't doubt that the specs on the speakers themselves are the same, I'm wondering if the head unit is designed to not put as much power to the rears or cross them over.

To answer another question, I didn't just test from the driver's seat. I isolated each speaker by using the radio's menu and the rears are noticably weaker from every position in the car. I'd hazard a guess that they're aren't putting out any frequencies below 100 hz. This is the first time I've run into this on a Ford product, having owned or driven an Explorer, a Sport Trac, a Mustang, a Focus, and a Taurus.

Looks like another trip to the dealer.

Ford Freestyle - Taurus X

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