2005 Ford Five Hundred SEL review from North America
"Comfortable, easy to drive, but questionable quality/reliability"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Several TSBs performed, rear suspension and transmission.
Suspension is terrible in winter; rough, harsh, noisy, bottomed out once over speed bump in car park. Improved now temperature is above 0C. Suspension not good enough for such a heavy, large car.
Transmission is sluggish when cold in winter, unresponsive, slow, flares (high revs).
Driver's window goes down when push button to close it.
CD player and stereo cheap; won't play MP3 CD and sound quality is terrible.
Knock in steering re-appeared although fixed once.
Trunk doesn't automatically open up when requested. Unlatched, but have to manually lift. Difficult for those with big fingers; painful/dirty in winter.
General comments?
Comfortable, excellent visibility, needs more power, but can live with the 3.0L V6.
Easy to drive; relaxing good turning circle.
Dash displays (inc. radio) impossible to read in bright sunlight.
Would question quality and reliability.
Wiper blades are non-standard, can't use typical after market blades.
Mixed results with dealers; one bad, one average and one reasonable.
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| 2005 - Five Hundred SE AWD 6 cylinder An affordably comfortable car |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | No |
| Model year | 2005 |
| Year of manufacture | 2005 |
| First year of ownership | 2006 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2007 |
| Engine and transmission | 3.0L V6 Automatic |
| Performance marks | 4 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 6 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 8 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 5 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 5 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 16000 kilometres |
| Most recent distance | 25000 kilometres |
| Previous car | Ford Taunus |
| Date of Entry | 23rd March, 2007 |