Hi My name is Sara. I live in Ohio and have had my SEL FreeStyle since mid March of 2005. Absolutely love it! Take care and looking forward to chatting with other FreeStyle owners!
Hello everyone: My name is Tim and I live in Minneapolis, Minnesota. I purchased my Redfire Metallic Freestyle SE in early March and think this is the best car I've owned in my 33 years of driving. I chose the SE with Convenience Group and TC because of the price and it came with all the standard features I needed. I only wish it had a better stereo system.
Hi, my name is Mark and live in Toronto, Canada. I purchased a white SEL Freestyle in May and enjoy it daily. I traded in my '02 Explorer XLT that I just loved and never let me down so I have high expectations. Expectations are being met ... plus I got a sunroof this time.
Hi - I'm Carlos and live in Boone, NC. Bought ours on Memorial Day and have about 1,200 miles on it. Like the engine/cvt combo and the way it revs up on the downhills to maintain speed. Look forward to other owner comments.
Dan here. Bought a Redfire Metallic (can I get a job thinking up names for car colors -- how much does it pay?) SE a week ago yesterday (June 8). It sounds exactly like yours, Tim. We took it on our first extended drive yesterday, putting on just over 300 miles of mostly highway driving, and all I can say is, where have you been all my life?!
The car seems the perfect blend of SUV, wagon, and minivan. I prefer the car-like, swinging rear doors like an SUV/wagon vs the sliding rear doors of van, I like the high seating position like an SUV/van vs the down-in-the-hole experience of most sedans/wagons, I like the huge amount of easily accessible (just fold down the seats) cargo room, and the ride and comfort are much more sedan/wagon-like than the more truck-like ride and noise that an SUV might give you.
I continue to love the CVT. In spite of other comments I've seen claiming that it takes getting used to, I don't find that to be the case at all. It just feels like a very smooth-shifting automatic. Mileage on the first fill-up was about 24 in combined city/highway.
When we bought, Ford was offering 0.0% financing for up to five years. We took it for five years (why would you ever not?).
Hi Mark, This is Archie with greetings from sunny Chilliwack,B.C. Wonder why guys from HogTown would buy a vehicle with sunroof. I hear it's always raining out there and in the winter you get too much snow.Hehehe.
Hi Archie. No no ... we do get nice weather here in Toronto for about three months (lol). Here we think you guys in BC get all the rain. How is your Freestyle? Nice, eh? I feel kind of concerned when I hear about some folks with those tranny problems. Mine runs just great so I'm hoping that it's just the odd one ( 1 in 500,000) thats failing. Oh .. I actually thought of you today when I put in a CD and the player gave me the artist and title. I'm wrong ... my SEL's radio has that capability to read the CD. It's just that I only have one CD that shows this (lol). Still cheesed off about the failed tire ... but will vent on Ford survey when it arrives. You got me beat on the number of cedars you packed in that other vehicle (Explorer) of yours ...
Hey Mark: How ya doing? Yeah the Freestyle Ltd AWD runs great.It's the wife's car and i use every excuse to go buy a loaf of bread at the other end of town so i can rack up a few miles of enjoyable driving.The message center is kinda cool and i want her to learn how to get used to it and watch out for any warning signs. Not very comforting to hear about some unlucky people running into CVT problems.I checked this site for recalls,etc.Fortunately none so far except for a few TSBs which I take it being a fixable thing and most likely software related.....
The only thing that bothers me is that forum members reported the dealers REPLACED the CVT , and that means more serious stuff as mechanical failure of the CVT. Although I'm guessing that some dealers are unfamiliar with the CVT, Ford is playing it safe to authorize a few replacements so they can analyse the problems and avoid a huge disastrous recall.
BTW did you buy into extended service warranty? I didn't as the dealer quoted $2300 !! Guys down south are buying it around $700+ which isn't too bad.I think we can still buy it within the first year , not sure, haven't checked it out yet.
Hey Archie, Thanks for the link. Looks like minor problems so far. Lots of theories on why Ford replaced the whole CVT on some problem vehicles. I have a couple. First , I have a brother who works at Ford Canada. He told me that Ford has very little tolerance with supplier quality issues. If there is a faulty part then Ford replaces it and returns the faulty part back to the supplier. So I can see the dealer wrap up the tranny and return to the supplier. This better not happen alot or you can imagine Ford's response. Second, the tranny is pretty simple, but if a software glitch caused overheating of fluids, etc. then Ford won't take a chance and replace the whole thing. Who knows. Regarding warranty ... I trade about every four years and am a low mileage guy so I don't really need extended warranty. My previous vehicle (2002 Explorer XLT) had ZERO problems in my four years of ownership and it was a new design. I expect the same with my SEL.
I 'm leasing my freestyle. I've been leasing vehicle's for the last 15 years trying to find the right vehicle, which have all been Ford pickup's. I think I might have found the one that I'll keep, I really enjoy it. I did alot of research on the internet when I first heard about it, did a few road tests on different vehicle's. I tested out all the problems that people were writing about and couldn't figure out what they were talking about. I got my vehicle in Feb and I have a little over 5000 miles on it. It gets driven all the time. It still is taking a little getting used to the CVT, but I'm not listening for the change in gears as much. I still like pickups tho,especially for hauling big items I will probably get a used one for that when needed.
After 13 years of ownership with traditional 4X4 SUVs, I finally decided to take the plunge and buy a crossover 2005 Norcea Blue Freestyle. So far, I have been quite pleased. The FS doesn't handle as well as my 2003 Explorer did (that independent rear suspension is hard to beat), but overall my gas mileage is far better than the V-8 in the Explorer with as much or more power.
I love the CVT in my AWD model and the room is simply too much. I'm looking forward to discussing the Freestyle here.
Welcome to the club! I owned a 2002 Explorer XLT (V6) before this FS so I know what you mean. My XLT was one classy vehicle and still looks good when I see one. But I followed you and went to a crossover. No regrets. My FS is a bit more comfortable to ride in and the gas prices up here make it the right way to go.
Hi my name is Jose. I'm from L A area. My wife & me just got the SEL (green platinum) less than 3 weeks ago. To test it (I just love FORD) we took it for a ride to Steamboat Springs CO. All I will say is... what a comfort, smoothness and pleasure is to be on the Freestyle. Plus before we leave. We did install a 12" Screen built in DVD/TV tuner, so the kids were happy all the way. So fa">r around 3000 miles and very HAPPY!!
Got our new Titanium Green Freestyle SEL two days ago. Primarily my wife's car but I have to admit...... the more I drive it the more I like it. That's saying alot for a guy who's considers himself a hardcore sports car guy. A couple of imperfections in the paint; will be bringing it to the dealers attention on first service. American quality? Will be taking it on a long driving vacation next week. Actually looking forward to driving the Freestyle (would prefer my RX7 but it won't fit the three of us). Much nicer to drive than her previous Dodge Caravan.
Everything is great, love it so far 3000km... Can't wait until winter to test out the AWD. Only problem I have so far is the 6CD/mp3 player is screwed, the dealer already tried to fix it once.... Has anybody else had problems with the 6CD Player?
I haven't had any serious problems with mine, yet, but several others have reported problems. Look at the other Freestyle forums for more specifics. The typical fix is to have it replaced, but when they do there is a TSB that has been posted on one of the forums that you should take to the dealer. It's TSB # 05-10-19 and was posted by "spears2" as post #3705 in the Ford Freestyle forum. Good luck
Picking up a Black AWD SEL later this week. Got the moonroof, 2nd-row bench (dealing with 2 car seats) and Cold weather group.
I had been back and forth on a Dodge GC with Stow-N-Go (my head) and the Freestyle (my heart ... or at least the part that knows what our budget was). BTW - lurking on Edmumds for owner experience was a large part of this. Employee pricing pushed us to move on it now. Wife actually was ok with Freestyle (although not the Titanium green - less optioned one I had initially driven and had priced), so that clinched it.
Congratulations!! You'll appreciate your choice even more when the snows start falling on the Canadian prairies. People who have used it the AWD Freebies in snow rave about the handling. You might even leave the Trooper at home.
I am experiencing skipping with my 6CD/MP3 player also. Since it never occurs at the same place on the CD it is not a defective CD. It started about 2 weeks ago. I am going to live with it to see if it worsens, if so-to the dealer we go. I am also dissapointed with the overall performance of the entire audio system. The sound feels like it is coming from the floor (which it nearly is) and the base does not seem to have any "resonance" or "presence". Considering the price of this vehicle it should have been much better.
If you have 6 CD's in the changer and you want to play a new one you must remove one of the stored CD's and then store the new one. The Chrysler Pacifica has both the 6CD changer and a single CD player. A much better set up.
Hi everyone! I'm Becca from Buffalo. Bought a white Freestyle SEL about 2 months ago. I had been a 15 year Jeep Grand Cherokee driver. I bought it because my big dog with bad legs had a hard time getting in and out of the Jeep. She has no problem getting in and out of the much lower Freestyle. I am also not happy with the sound system and the lack of adjustments to bass, treble etc. I'm thinking of replacing it but I'm not happy with that! Looking forward to seeing how the Freestyle handles in the snow.
Hi, I'm Josh from Chattanooga, TN and my wife and I bought our blue (don't know the funny color name) SEL FWD about ten days ago. We had gone to the dealer to drive a Freestar to replace our '01 Windstar, but one drive of the Freestyle was all it took. So far I love the car - I just ordered the Class II hidden hitch and am going to put it on myself since only two bolts have to be fishwired. I'll let you guys know how it goes. I crawled up under the front last night and was thrilled that the oil filter was right next to the pan - I don't think I'll even have to jack up the front to change the oil.
As for the funkiness in the CD changer setup, Ford has been that way with their changers since at least 2002 - my mother in law had an Explorer Sport Trac and it had the same setup. So far my CD/MP3 player is great, I even made a test CD with 200 MP3s and it plays them all fine.
Folks: I have reviewed all the messages in this Freestyle Forum. It appears that MOST of the owners are happy with their vehicles. I am sitting on the fence and unable to decide if I should buy the Freestyle. I have a few questions:
1) How is the "build" quality of this vehicle? Any rattles, squeaks or leaks in the first 60 days?
2) The CVT is a new/untested transmission. Ford has been selling this vehicle for almost a year now. However, only a couple of folks have reported problems with the CVT. From my viewpoint, the reliability of the CVT is still an open question. Any thoughts on this?
The "build" quality of my vehicle has been great. No quality problems at all with anything, yet in the 60 days I have had it. The only 2 things that have given me problems are getting used to the radio/cd player and the glare from the windshield.
Since the CVT is a relatively new product for Ford I don't think you'll get any information on long term reliability. I wiill say that Ford has done an excellent job of matching the engine performance and CVT. They work great as a team to keep the Freestyle running smooth and with adequate power.
After 900 miles, I can tell you that I love mine. It is as quiet on the freeway as my mother-in-law's Infiniti. I have no rattles (thus far) either. All in all, I can't believe they are not selling a lot more of them. We gave 24,795 for my SEL with leather and such, the A list prices made them too hard to pass up. I think the only things we didn't get were the DVD, AWD, Safety curtain, reverse sensor, 2nd row console and power seat/mirror memory. Limiteds were going for 28ish on the lot here but they only had black ones.
The only complaint I have is, being tall, the "conversation" mirror blocks part of the rearview mirror when it is down. I have a three year old in the back, so that mirror comes in handy. Also, I'd kind of like for the second row captain's chairs to have armrests, but maybe I should just buy a second row console.......
If you haven't done so already, search the general "Freestyle" discussion for a fix to the rear view mirror to lower it so that it is not obstructed by the conversation mirror. It pivots in a couple of places and that brings it down some to reduce the obstruction.
Man, that was a good suggestion! I ran right out and tried it and, unfortunately, I am so tall that the conversation mirror STILL obstructs about 30% of the rearview (I'm about 6'2"). I may monkey more with it later. Oh well, at least now my wife will be able to use it.
My wife and I are really happy with our Freestyle. We now have 12,000+ miles on it since buying it in Feb. We only have one baby, but we had a lot of visiting family over the past month, and took some road trips with every seat filled, luggage on the roof, and driving over the mountains in W. Virginia. We live in VA and were visiting family in OH. Zero problems with the car. We get about 24mpg hwy/20 city calculated manually.
Hi, J in just west of Minneapolis. Bought the AWD SE in December--has been a great vehicle--nice tight feel to drive with good control, good mileage (getting 23 in mixed driving), was wonderful in the snow, passengers say is comfortable. Well built. 9500 miles knock on wood no probs! Go for it!
Hi Just curious about your winter driving because I have yet to experience my SEL AWD in snow up here in Canada. Did you drive on Continental original equipment tires in winter or have something different? I keep looking at these Continentals and wonder if they can carry me thru the snow.
FWIW - I was out of town over the weekend and ended up hauling family around in a rented 05 Grand Caravan (brand new, only had 50km's when I pulled out of the lot).
I'm really glad I went with the Freestyle for both the comfort of city driving and for the longer road trips we plan to take. The GC drives very much like a van (like it's supposed to - just not my preference) and it's noisy on the highway.
I thought you guys would enjoy this story. I had to take my two Basset Hounds to the vet this morning in the back of my Freestyle. I folded the 3rd row seats down and very carefully put down and tucked in a sheet to keep the back clean. Noticing the gap between the two 2nd row seats I figured they'd try to worm their way into the middle row and stink and dirty up that area, so I wedged a large piece of plywood into the gap to dissuade them.
Here's the funny part - getting the dogs into the car. The rear seems a lot higher when you are lifting one 63 lb dog followed by a 68 lb dog. They were just too dang short to climb in! So I got to get my work clothes covered in dog hair and hound stink. The plywood worked great and they were too short to climb over the 2nd row seat backs.
Anybody remember Jerry Reed picking up Fred in Smokey and the Bandit? It was a lot like that. I'll post a follow up once I find something that gets dog snot off of Freestyle windows - I love my dogs, but man they are messy!
We purchased out AWD LTD in November and found it to be great in snowy conditions. We had several snowfalls in Toronto las winter and we travelled to the cottage 2.5 hrs north many times (lots of snow). The LTD comes with Pirelli's so I cannot comment on the Continental's. No matter what I did to try and get the wheels to spin the grip of the tires and the AWD defeated me every time. I now have 15,900 KM on our Freestyle so the tread will likely not be as great as the just new condition but the tread pattern is pretty coarse on these tires so I think they should perform well this winter (not that I wish for any snow at this point).
Yeah I did see your message about the windshield glare. I agree with your take on the interior colours.My wife's pebble interior in the Ltd AWD has quite a pronounced glare. We originally wanted the SEL with the shale leather interior because that was what she wanted as a first choice but we dropped that because you don't get the heated seats as an option and she wasn't keen about her cold butt in the winter.
We both love the Freebie very much and I got to admit the 18" Pirellis really holds the road very well and IMHO has a slight edge in handling than the 17" Contis.I also notice when I put on my polarized fishing glasses it eliminates almost all the glare.The downside of our light interior is also the carpets tend to look dirty awfully fast. should have taken your advice.
BTW those Air France passengers were sure lucky to survive the crash landing at Pearson Intl. Airport during a fierce thunderstorm.
I'm Jackie, one day old owner of a Merlot Limited AWD, pebble int.
Like Willie above, my first choice int was the shale, bummer it doesn't come on the Limited. And I came "thiiis close" to buying a silver/shale SEL till I realized the no heated seats. My trade-in volvo xc had the heated seats, as does dh's Acura MDX, so although I felt petty, we decided we had to confine our search to the Limiteds. I wear polarized glasses and haven't had a problem with the glare. I would rather have that than the black, too hot in the summer, that was the only color in or out I put on the definitely do not want list.
The interior isn't as upscale as the xc or the mdx, the carpet is pretty cheap, but I'm getting about 1 mile less per gallon than the volvo in my two days of driving so far and assume it will rise after break in. That plus no longer needing premium gas and (knock on wood) lower maintainance costs with ford caused us to pick this over another xc. My requirements in a new car were:
-drives like a car (the mdx is too far from a car like experience for me) -decent MPG, low 20's goal, 18-19 ok, most of my driving is highway -awd -capacity of a wagon
The incentives pushed us into action. The '99 volvo had 143k and was needing expensive repairs every time I brought it in for service. Some wear and tear items, some not. There had been close to $1500 worth of non-urgent things I had postponed. So it was time.
Got a decent trade-in value, decent salesperson considering they have buyers clamoring at their doors and don't have to go the extra step for you.
I thought you had black interior in your LTD and searched WAY back in this forum to discover that you mentioned it was pebble. I'm sure that somebody in this forum will find a "mat" to cover the dash and mention it. In the meantime, your sunglasses seem to work. The neighbour has a Volvo with a glare problem too and they mentioned the sunglasses trick.
Ya ... the Air France folks sure got lucky. I live near the airport and saw the smoke from the plane in my back yard, The airport guys are starting to clean up today.
Thanks. I'll be sure to report here if Continentals do not perform in snow. I had a '02 Explorer previously with big Michelins that worked just great in snow and so when I look at these Continentals they look like a summer tire. With this weather lately ... winter seems a ways off.
When deciding on purchasing a Freestyle we actually took a tape measure to the dealer to measure the dimensions for our dog. We cannot really lift him since he is a 190lb Irish Wolfhound. We will have to see whether he likes the back of the Freestyle better than the old Dodge Durango.
jackief, how do find the Freestyle, compared to the MDX, in terms of in-town maneuvreability? The Freestyle is only slightly narrower than the MDX but substantially longer. Getting in/out of parking spaces a problem?
I am the main driver of the Freestyle, my husband the MDX. I am coming from a volvo xc wagon, so that is what I can compare it better against. I don't do much parallel parking but for regular parking, with the freestyle if the parking lot is on the narrow side and has a tight turn, I have had a few occasions where I need to back out a bit and readjust. I am also still being extra careful with the new baby and sometimes passing up a tighter space so I can avoid dings. I haven't had to drive into "the city" yet and subject my nerves to those parking issues.
I actually went out and rented a Freestyle just to see what it's like. It wasn't too bad, but it would definitely help if it had those reverse-tilt mirrors for parallel parking. And of course, a rearview monitor, or even just sensors, would be a great help.
Another question is for the life of me, I couldn't determine whether the rental was the AWD model. I think it had the CVT. Does that mean it has to be the AWD? I couldn't see any "AWD" badge, so I wonder..... How else can you tell?
Overall, I can see its appeal. It could definitely use more motor though, which begs the question, why would someone buy it over, say, a Honda Pilot, which has similar capacity, but way more motor.
The Freestyle has reverse sensors as an option. They beep as you get closer to an object backing up and have a switch to turn them off if you want. Your rental was not AWD if it did not have an AWD symbol on the back liftgate. All Freestyles have CVT, but only AWD Ford Five hundreds have the CVT. The FWD 500 has a 6 speed AT. Instead of comparing horsepower of the Pilot to the Freestyle, compare 0-60 times and passing times. They are remarkably close. Ford has done a remarkable job of getting everything out of the engine it can. It's acceleration, while not great, is much better than it appears to those not used to driving a CVT.
My name is John; I live in Allentown, PA. I just found this forum while searching the internet for Freestyle accessories. I replaced a 2002 XLT Explorer V8, was my third Explorer. I was planning on another Explorer, but decided to test the Freestyle. I purchased a Dark Shadow Grey SEL, FWD, Sunroof. I love driving the Freestyle and the gas milage is great. I have almost 10,000 miles on the vehicle - the only trouble was the auto window switch for the driver window. Would not work on hot days. I don't think the interior is a well put together as the XLT Explorer, but I can live with it. I would like to have the back window open on the tailgate like the explorer.
Whatever the clearance though, it could use a bit more. I went over a bigger-than-normal speed bump, and the car bottomed out on some component under the front axle. And we didn't have a big load in the vehicle.
One thing I do have to say is the CVT seems to be a good marriage with the engine. Very smooth, and seems to put power to the ground very well, in view of the engine's moderate power output.
Best 3rd row I've seen in an SUV/crossover.
As others have complained, the auto-locking feature is annoying (in that it doesn't automatically unlock all doors).
Intermittent wiper switch is awkward to use.
Quality of interior is average at best. Too much plastic, with even metal showing at spots. Maybe Limited version is better.
Something else you may want to consider in your comparison of Pilot/Freestyle is that the Freestyle gets appreciably better gas mileage, even in it's AWD version. I'd rather visit the gas station less often than brag about horsepower.
After shopping around for quite awhile for an economical vehicle to replace or Windstar with, we finally settled on the Freestyle after I drove one and fell in love with the way it handled and it's smooth ride. I first thought I wanted an Escape for the economy, but it just felt too small for our purposes, and not quite versatile enough. We show dogs, and I wanted something like the mini van that would work for traveling with a couple of dogs and thier equipment as well as a few people. I am amazed at how versatile the interior of this vehicle seems to be. Hopefully, the gas mileage will be as good as it is rated. We ordered a FWD LIMITED for the fuel economy. It will go to production on September 12, and should be delivered a couple of weeks after that. I can hardly wait!
Comments
My name is Sara. I live in Ohio and have had my SEL FreeStyle since mid March of 2005. Absolutely love it!
Take care and looking forward to chatting with other FreeStyle owners!
My name is Tim and I live in Minneapolis, Minnesota. I purchased my Redfire Metallic Freestyle SE in early March and think this is the best car I've owned in my 33 years of driving. I chose the SE with Convenience Group and TC because of the price and it came with all the standard features I needed. I only wish it had a better stereo system.
The car seems the perfect blend of SUV, wagon, and minivan. I prefer the car-like, swinging rear doors like an SUV/wagon vs the sliding rear doors of van, I like the high seating position like an SUV/van vs the down-in-the-hole experience of most sedans/wagons, I like the huge amount of easily accessible (just fold down the seats) cargo room, and the ride and comfort are much more sedan/wagon-like than the more truck-like ride and noise that an SUV might give you.
I continue to love the CVT. In spite of other comments I've seen claiming that it takes getting used to, I don't find that to be the case at all. It just feels like a very smooth-shifting automatic. Mileage on the first fill-up was about 24 in combined city/highway.
When we bought, Ford was offering 0.0% financing for up to five years. We took it for five years (why would you ever not?).
We made one long trip to SC and the car was great to travel in, very comfortable to drive and entertaining (DVD) for the passengers.
This is Archie with greetings from sunny Chilliwack,B.C. Wonder why guys from HogTown would buy a vehicle with sunroof. I hear it's always raining out there and in the winter you get too much snow.Hehehe.
No no ... we do get nice weather here in Toronto for about three months (lol). Here we think you guys in BC get all the rain.
How is your Freestyle? Nice, eh? I feel kind of concerned when I hear about some folks with those tranny problems. Mine runs just great so I'm hoping that it's just the odd one ( 1 in 500,000) thats failing.
Oh .. I actually thought of you today when I put in a CD and the player gave me the artist and title. I'm wrong ... my SEL's radio has that capability to read the CD. It's just that I only have one CD that shows this (lol).
Still cheesed off about the failed tire ... but will vent on Ford survey when it arrives.
You got me beat on the number of cedars you packed in that other vehicle (Explorer) of yours ...
How ya doing? Yeah the Freestyle Ltd AWD runs great.It's the wife's car and i use every excuse to go buy a loaf of bread at the other end of town so i can rack up a few miles of enjoyable driving.The message center is kinda cool and i want her to learn how to get used to it and watch out for any warning signs.
Not very comforting to hear about some unlucky people running into CVT problems.I checked this site for recalls,etc.Fortunately none so far except for a few TSBs which I take it being a fixable thing and most likely software related.....
http://alldata.com/TSB/20/052088eh.html
The only thing that bothers me is that forum members reported the dealers REPLACED the CVT , and that means more serious stuff as mechanical failure of the CVT.
Although I'm guessing that some dealers are unfamiliar with the CVT, Ford is playing it safe to authorize a few replacements so they can analyse the problems and avoid a
huge disastrous recall.
BTW did you buy into extended service warranty? I didn't as the dealer quoted $2300 !!
Guys down south are buying it around $700+ which isn't too bad.I think we can still buy it within the first year , not sure, haven't checked it out yet.
Thanks for the link. Looks like minor problems so far. Lots of theories on why Ford replaced the whole CVT on some problem vehicles. I have a couple.
First , I have a brother who works at Ford Canada. He told me that Ford has very little tolerance with supplier quality issues. If there is a faulty part then Ford replaces it and returns the faulty part back to the supplier. So I can see the dealer wrap up the tranny and return to the supplier. This better not happen alot or you can imagine Ford's response.
Second, the tranny is pretty simple, but if a software glitch caused overheating of fluids, etc. then Ford won't take a chance and replace the whole thing. Who knows.
Regarding warranty ... I trade about every four years and am a low mileage guy so I don't really need extended warranty. My previous vehicle (2002 Explorer XLT) had ZERO problems in my four years of ownership and it was a new design. I expect the same with my SEL.
I love the CVT in my AWD model and the room is simply too much. I'm looking forward to discussing the Freestyle here.
Ron
I owned a 2002 Explorer XLT (V6) before this FS so I know what you mean. My XLT was one classy vehicle and still looks good when I see one. But I followed you and went to a crossover. No regrets. My FS is a bit more comfortable to ride in and the gas prices up here make it the right way to go.
Mark
I'm from L A area. My wife & me just got the SEL (green platinum) less than 3 weeks ago. To test it (I just love FORD) we took it for a ride to Steamboat Springs CO. All I will say is... what a comfort, smoothness and pleasure is to be on the Freestyle.
Plus before we leave. We did install a 12" Screen built in DVD/TV tuner, so the kids were happy all the way.
So fa">r around 3000 miles and very HAPPY!!
Will be taking it on a long driving vacation next week. Actually looking forward to driving the Freestyle (would prefer my RX7 but it won't fit the three of us). Much nicer to drive than her previous Dodge Caravan.
Picking up a Black AWD SEL later this week. Got the moonroof, 2nd-row bench (dealing with 2 car seats) and Cold weather group.
I had been back and forth on a Dodge GC with Stow-N-Go (my head) and the Freestyle (my heart ... or at least the part that knows what our budget was). BTW - lurking on Edmumds for owner experience was a large part of this. Employee pricing pushed us to move on it now. Wife actually was ok with Freestyle (although not the Titanium green - less optioned one I had initially driven and had priced), so that clinched it.
Cheers.
I am also dissapointed with the overall performance of the entire audio system. The sound feels like it is coming from the floor (which it nearly is) and the base does not seem to have any "resonance" or "presence". Considering the price of this vehicle it should have been much better.
If you have 6 CD's in the changer and you want to play a new one you must remove one of the stored CD's and then store the new one. The Chrysler Pacifica has both the 6CD changer and a single CD player. A much better set up.
There is adjustment in the bass and treble. Also fade and balance.
As for the funkiness in the CD changer setup, Ford has been that way with their changers since at least 2002 - my mother in law had an Explorer Sport Trac and it had the same setup. So far my CD/MP3 player is great, I even made a test CD with 200 MP3s and it plays them all fine.
I have reviewed all the messages in this Freestyle Forum. It appears that MOST of the owners are happy with their vehicles. I am sitting on the fence and unable to decide if I should buy the Freestyle. I have a few questions:
1) How is the "build" quality of this vehicle? Any rattles, squeaks or leaks in the first 60 days?
2) The CVT is a new/untested transmission. Ford has been selling this vehicle for almost a year now. However, only a couple of folks have reported problems with the CVT. From my viewpoint, the reliability of the CVT is still an open question. Any thoughts on this?
Thanks!
Since the CVT is a relatively new product for Ford I don't think you'll get any information on long term reliability. I wiill say that Ford has done an excellent job of matching the engine performance and CVT. They work great as a team to keep the Freestyle running smooth and with adequate power.
The only complaint I have is, being tall, the "conversation" mirror blocks part of the rearview mirror when it is down. I have a three year old in the back, so that mirror comes in handy. Also, I'd kind of like for the second row captain's chairs to have armrests, but maybe I should just buy a second row console.......
I'm really glad I went with the Freestyle for both the comfort of city driving and for the longer road trips we plan to take. The GC drives very much like a van (like it's supposed to - just not my preference) and it's noisy on the highway.
Here's the funny part - getting the dogs into the car. The rear seems a lot higher when you are lifting one 63 lb dog followed by a 68 lb dog. They were just too dang short to climb in! So I got to get my work clothes covered in dog hair and hound stink. The plywood worked great and they were too short to climb over the 2nd row seat backs.
Anybody remember Jerry Reed picking up Fred in Smokey and the Bandit? It was a lot like that. I'll post a follow up once I find something that gets dog snot off of Freestyle windows - I love my dogs, but man they are messy!
We both love the Freebie very much and I got to admit the 18" Pirellis really holds the road very well and IMHO has a slight edge in handling than the 17" Contis.I also notice when I put on my polarized fishing glasses it eliminates almost all the glare.The downside of our light interior is also the carpets tend to look dirty awfully fast. should have taken your advice.
BTW those Air France passengers were sure lucky to survive the crash landing at Pearson Intl. Airport during a fierce thunderstorm.
Like Willie above, my first choice int was the shale, bummer it doesn't come on the Limited. And I came "thiiis close" to buying a silver/shale SEL till I realized the no heated seats. My trade-in volvo xc had the heated seats, as does dh's Acura MDX, so although I felt petty, we decided we had to confine our search to the Limiteds. I wear polarized glasses and haven't had a problem with the glare. I would rather have that than the black, too hot in the summer, that was the only color in or out I put on the definitely do not want list.
The interior isn't as upscale as the xc or the mdx, the carpet is pretty cheap, but I'm getting about 1 mile less per gallon than the volvo in my two days of driving so far and assume it will rise after break in. That plus no longer needing premium gas and (knock on wood) lower maintainance costs with ford caused us to pick this over another xc. My requirements in a new car were:
-drives like a car (the mdx is too far from a car like experience for me)
-decent MPG, low 20's goal, 18-19 ok, most of my driving is highway
-awd
-capacity of a wagon
The incentives pushed us into action. The '99 volvo had 143k and was needing expensive repairs every time I brought it in for service. Some wear and tear items, some not. There had been close to $1500 worth of non-urgent things I had postponed. So it was time.
Got a decent trade-in value, decent salesperson considering they have buyers clamoring at their doors and don't have to go the extra step for you.
Jackie
Ya ... the Air France folks sure got lucky. I live near the airport and saw the smoke from the plane in my back yard, The airport guys are starting to clean up today.
With this weather lately ... winter seems a ways off.
Jackie
Another question is for the life of me, I couldn't determine whether the rental was the AWD model. I think it had the CVT. Does that mean it has to be the AWD? I couldn't see any "AWD" badge, so I wonder..... How else can you tell?
Overall, I can see its appeal. It could definitely use more motor though, which begs the question, why would someone buy it over, say, a Honda Pilot, which has similar capacity, but way more motor.
My name is John; I live in Allentown, PA. I just found this forum while searching the internet for Freestyle accessories. I replaced a 2002 XLT Explorer V8, was my third Explorer. I was planning on another Explorer, but decided to test the Freestyle. I purchased a Dark Shadow Grey SEL, FWD, Sunroof. I love driving the Freestyle and the gas milage is great. I have almost 10,000 miles on the vehicle - the only trouble was the auto window switch for the driver window. Would not work on hot days. I don't think the interior is a well put together as the XLT Explorer, but I can live with it. I would like to have the back window open on the tailgate like the explorer.
John
Whatever the clearance though, it could use a bit more. I went over a bigger-than-normal speed bump, and the car bottomed out on some component under the front axle. And we didn't have a big load in the vehicle.
One thing I do have to say is the CVT seems to be a good marriage with the engine. Very smooth, and seems to put power to the ground very well, in view of the engine's moderate power output.
Best 3rd row I've seen in an SUV/crossover.
As others have complained, the auto-locking feature is annoying (in that it doesn't automatically unlock all doors).
Intermittent wiper switch is awkward to use.
Quality of interior is average at best. Too much plastic, with even metal showing at spots. Maybe Limited version is better.