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Be courteous, persistent and escalate. First the Ford zone rep offered to repaint our unit; then repaint and add more warranty (bogus value) and finally, they made an exchange. If you have trans problems, are they giving you new or rebuilt? If these guys are clueless, ask them to take an oil sample from each unit; engine, trans, etc. and sent it to an oil lab for analysis. They do this with big engines, planes, etc. The lab can tell which oil is being abused.
If they find the final culprit and it does affects the trans, they should exchange it AGAIN, after they fix the problem.
Push for a "discretionary replacement". This gets you a new unit. They will try to match the equipment and exchange at MSRP. We upgraded from a Freestar SE to a Merc Monterey. We had to kick in some bucks because the Merc was more, but we got a better overall deal. The Merc is sweet!
Good Luck,
Randy
Would you like to share with us what exactly do you like/dislike? What did you expected and what did you get? Why did you choose the Freestar over any other minivan?
Channel Oklahoma
Ford probably just hasn't updated the web page yet.
Steve, Host
1) Air Canopy
2) Leather Seats
3) Stability Control/AWD
4) 5 Star Crash rating
I had the following to choose from with these features:
1) Toyota Sienna
2) Ford Freestar/ Mercury Monterey
3) Nissan Quest
The 2005 Town & Country had the air canopy but
it did not have the best crash ratings.
I like the Quest exterior the best but I did not like the interior and my wife hated all of the colors, so we did not consider it after an initial test ride.
The Sienna is extremely ugly on the exterior, but it has a great luxory feel on the inside. It drove well, but I did not really get to drive it much since there wasn't many on dealer lots. I was going to have to wait for it.
The Freestar was great looking on the outside and very nice inside. With A-plan and incentives, it was around 7-8k cheaper than a Toyota. Once I figured that out, I had to go with the Ford. I considered the Monterey, but the Ford dealer is closer and we have bought there before.
So far I like the message center, which tells us our gas mileage and miles to empty, the compass and temp above the rear view mirror and the audio controls on the steering wheel.
I dislike the gas mileage the most. I have been driving mostly around town and I get about 14-15 mpg. Not that good, but ok. Acceleration is great and handling and ride are exceptional. The third row seats are small and cramped but we try to only have the kids back there. The second row is very comfortable.
The driver and passenger seats are great. Visability is exceptional as well.
to sum up:
likes:
Drive, ride and handling
Audio Controls on steering wheel
Visibility
front 4 seat comfort
acceleration
message center
dislikes:
small 3rd row seats
gas mileage
Ride:
1) Quest
2) Freestar/ Town& country
3) Sienna
Interior Space:
1) Town & Country
2) Sienna
3) Quest
4) Freestar
Comfort:
1) Town & Country
2) Sienna
3) Freestar
4) Quest
Ease of Use
1) Freestar
2) Town & Country
3) Sienna
4) Quest
Exterior Attractiveness:
1) Quest
2) Freestar
3) Town & Country
4) Sienna
Interior:
1) Sienna
2) Town & Country/Freestar
4) Quest (Distant)
Handling
1) Quest
2) Freestar
3) Town & Country
4) SIenna
At least that is the way I saw in my limited exposure to the T&C, Quest and Sienna versus the Freestar
Overall:
1) Freestar ( Pricing helps here )
2) Sienna
3) T&C
4) Quest
tjnb: Could you tell me what price you got with the A plan, e.g. a certain amount below invoice? I'm qualified for the X-plan. Don't know if they work the same but would like to have a rough idea. Is this discount on top of the regular rebates? Thanks!
Again, does anybody have a guess if the rebates will increase after this round?
Z Plan for retirees( same price as A plan )
X Plan is for suppliers and dealers/salesmen. www.foradazx.com has eligibility requirements.
Also my 4.4% below invoice is before any incentives. Plus I got an extra thousand in incentives.
you think Freestar has better handling than the Sienna? We have the Sienna LE and it turns on a dime and handles much better than the Fords we've owned (Merc Sables) which have turning radiuses like large trucks. We're getting 21-22 mpg driving around local area! we got the safety package (stability control, traction control and canopy airbag) all for $28,9. No leather but we preferred that.
Tight turning circle is only beneficial when you are making slow speed maneuvers in parking lots, parallel parking and U-turns. It has nothing to do with what people refer to as handling.
A newspaper reporter would like to talk with recent minivan buyers who live in Michigan. Please respond to jfallon@edmunds.com or swebster@freepress.com with your daytime phone number by Thursday, June 17, 2004. Thanks,
Jeannine Fallon, PR Director
Edmunds.com
Steve, Host
Second- "turning radius is only beneficial when you are making slow speed maneuvers in parking lots, parallel parking and U-turns." Since 80% of our minivan driving is done around town, this is a lot more useful than high speed turns.
Example: The new Nissan Quest - it has the best handling of all minivans (much better than Sienna, and similar to Ody), and the Quest have a very big turning circle.
I know, that's not what minivans are for, but you will feel much better in any vehicle with good handling at any turn, at any curve, etc.
And that does not include turning radius.
And the interior setup is also much better than Windstar's, though not up to Toyota standards. Everything feels smoothly, and it's kinda nice layout. Although I prefer the Windstars larger controls for many functions, and so are the gauges, much smaller typefaces than Windstar.
The only real drawback is the rear seat. It's really small, and you can't have adults on them for more than a couple of minutes. But Ford had to do it, in order to offer the folding seat. I don't want to think how bad Ford would be bashed all over for not offering a folding-into-floor seat. While actually the Windstars rear seat was very comfy.
Then you can think about poor gas mileage, and old-tech engine, but that engine is now much more reliable then ever, and that transmission is super smooth. NVH is also much better than Windstar.
The stereo is also much improved, especially the bass is much deeper. And the tri-mode climate system is also very good.
So I also think that the Freestar isn't that bad at all, especially if it will have a better reliability rating than Windstar. But since it's not up to Toyota's or new Nissan's vans, they are rated as trash. It's definitely not true. It's the Ford name that people don't like.
You can get a Freestar SE for below $22K after all rebates, and I've seen last week at one of the dealers in my area a fully loaded Limited (MSRP at $35,500 something) for $28,400. So I think it's reasonable priced.
We got a quote from a local dealer on an SE for $20K after the $5k rebates and X-plan pricing. It's a very good deal which would look irristable if not for the competetion. It'll be hard for us to opt for the Freestar when the Quest and Odessey can be had for not much more. It'll take a killer deal for us to make the plunge. We'll wait till the end of the year after the new GM and Honda vans come out and all hell breaks loose.
Not a bad idea IMO. Maybe it's not safe or what?
When your done with that gas tank, then go back to regular. If it doesn't occur again, it was probably bad gas. If it does continue, return and we'll move on to another possibility.
Also the Nissan Dealer in Dayton is selling Quests with Side curtain airbags and more options for $21,999
http://www.beautownsendford.net/pages/present/flm/notlocalized/se- archinventory/vehicledetailsnew.asp?orgid=2283&vin=2FMDA50664- BA30197#
Parents with kids in carseats, car seats are real easy to install in the Freestar/Monterey back seat. You come in from the back door, tilt the seat back like tailgate position, throw in the car seat. Tip the seat back forward, latch it and run the belt through the carseat and tighten WITH THE REAR SEAT RECLINED. Tighten up the belt, then STRAIGHTEN UP/UN RECLINE THE SEAT BACK. Everything is nice and tight and you didn't crawl over the middle seat.
Power liftgate - only Chrysler & Toyota do have them now, and Ford Freestar also supposed to have it, it just delayed to the 2005 model year.
Split third row seat - also just Chrysler & Toyota. Most other have a single piece bench, or nothing (GM).
5-Speed auto - neither of the domestic minivans have a 5-speed, and Ford's 4-speed on the Freestar is extremely smooth - While in the early models of the Sienna most customers complained about the transmission. And let's not talk on Honda's 5-speed transmission which had a recall recently.
Refined V-6 - here you hit the nail, but still, the engine is more refined then ever, and very reliable, and much smoother & quieter than ever. The ride and quietness of the Freestar surpass the Odyssey, though the Ody has much better handling.
Upgraded stereo - The Freestar has a wonderful stereo, and they manage very well with just 4 speakers. It was even rated very good in Edmunds minivan comparison. I think it's very competitive with almost any other minivan. Especially the Ody have a very poor stereo.
Moonroof - again, just Chrysler and Sienna have them, and the new Quest beats them all with the moonroof plus sky-view roof.
AWD option - Chrysler dropped the AWD models because most people would not buy it (I have a '02 Windstar without stability control and never had a problem even in deep snow with regular all-season tires), and today, with traction and stability control and good tires, 95% people would not need AWD.
8-passenger option - would be a plus, But so far also only Toyota & GM offers it on their minivans, and GM will drop it in 2005.
Safe window buttons - maybe Toyota is safer, but Fords are illuminated and no Toyota model is. I like the illuminated controls very much. Ford have in the Freestar illuminated controls for power windows, door locks, cruise, and audio. While Toyota has audio only, and Honda nothing.
Second row windows that go down - is a plus, but people are not crazy about it. I need yet to see the person who chose the Sienna over any competitors because of the second row windows which goes down.
Good fit and finish - Only Toyota & Honda have them, and Freestar is very competitive with the rest - did you try the Freestar yourself or just reading other posts?
New looks - I prefer the looks of the Freestar much more over the new looks of the Sienna and Quest, They're both ugly, and the Freestar with the restyled nose is a simple classic minivan, just boring - same as the Ody.
Impressive horsepower - You're right, Ford is very behind in engines compared to others (although they work now on a brand new with about 250 hp which will compete well), but the Freestar do offer impressive pound-feet of torque - actually best in class.
Fuel economy is really not that good, but keep in mind that Sienna requires (OK, recommends) premium fuel, while Freestar uses regular, and also have a huge fuel tank (26 gallon vs. most others 20).
After all, most Freestar customers are very happy, especially after all these huge rebates. Very little complaints so far.
For 2 years ago, you could bash the Sienna the same way. They had nothing special to offer, besides a smooth engine. No horsepower, no power liftgate, no roll down windows in 2nd row, no seat folding in floor at all, no new looks, no 8-pass. option, poorly designed interior, no room (small model) and bla bla bla... Then they copied all the good stuff from other makes (including many from Ford, like the rearview conversation mirror, stepwell lamps at the sliding doors, and more), and now they are on top.
Just give Ford a little time and they will catch up (like always, a little late).
The 3.8L (now 3.9L) and cousin 4.2L have had their history, and it's been rectified, although lags behind other offerings.
And while we blame the engine for the pinging, there's a 5% chance it's the engine itself. As in, it's the components that supply the fuel are to blame, not the actual design of the engine.
Could be programming of the computer, fuel injection, fuel line, fuel tank. If the pinging continues, CONTINUE to pester them about it. If they say it's fuel, try different fuel stations, brands, etc. If they still can't figure it out, speak to the service manager, the dealership manager. Then you want names to you district representative that works for Ford. Call Ford's Customer service and explain the issue to them and how the dealership hasn't been able to resolve it.
BTW, keep your gasoline receipts as you will need proof as you go along.
And do not add (or admit it to them) any additives to the engine or gas, as they might use it as an excuse to void your warranty.