Comments: 1-15, 16
Not big problems, just little problems.
Trunk light burned out.
Little stuff.
I love this car and I would recommend it to anyone.
This car has a good engine (fuel economy).
I just can't decide whether a Freestyle is a car or an SUV.
You have put quite a bit of miles on this car. Please keep me posted as you put more miles on the car. My wife is looking at a freestyle and I would like to know how reliable it is before we buy one. Thanks in advance.
Well, I went to a Ford dealer with the same question. I would have to say that if it's not a crossover, which is considered an SUV, I would have to say SUV. It's Ground clearance, vehicle size, body, shape, and style. scream SUV. Keep in mind The Subaru Forester. Because of 7.5 inches of ground clearance and all wheel drive, it's an SUV. So all in all I would have to claim SUV or SAV. Thanks.
Reply to 1st comment.
I just drove from Oregon to Vegas and have put 178.00 miles les on it.
I have Freestyle All wheel drive SE model since December
Now has 5000 miles on it
comments:
No problems at all
outstanding performance in severe winter weather including negative 20 in Minnesota and snow--best AWD I've ever had
mileage slowly improved--started at 19mpg, but by 4000 miles increased to low 20s--now consistently 22-23 mpg in mixed highway and stop and go.
Excellent room--would suggest Ford also come out with same vehicle in "mini" version for people like me in 3-5 years when kids are out of the house and I need to downsize.
I will be looking forward to reading everyone's opinion on this automobile. I have seen several around town and they are catching my eye. I will keep watching to see about their reliability, but I am almost sold based on the room I would have to take my greyhounds with me on trips.
This is a bit of Volvo Engineering. Ford has a winner. Love style.
(reply to 4th comment)
19 mpg that's pretty good for and SUV.
I would recommend this car (or SUV) to any one. I have a family of 7 kids! so I traded in my 2000 Subaru forester for a Ford Freestyle. Freestyles myself catch my eye, but I confuse them for an Escape Hybrid.
I read that you have to change the engine every 60.000 miles can you get a hybrid engine in a gas car.
You don't have to change the engine every 60,000 miles. That's ridiculous. You don't even have to change the spark plugs until 100,000 miles. Whoever told you that is very wrong. The engine is the 3.0 Duratec DOHC 24V that has been in use in the Taurus for years. Variations are also used in Jags. and Mazdas. My guess is they will drop in the 3.5 liter engine that they are working on now as soon as it's ready.
The engine is bulletproof.
It's not terribly powerful or efficient, but it'll last for years. Ford decided to use the 3.0 because the car went into production very quickly (the engineering was quick because the basic design was already there). If the Freestyle and the Five Hundred (same car) had a stronger engine, they'd be selling like hotcakes; as it is, they're talking about stopping production of the Freestyle due to slower-than-expected sales. It's actually almost tragic.
And btw - apparantly both the Freestyle and the Five Hundred are very reliable vehicles.
The engine will last longer than 60K miles. The 3.0 duratec, is not among the most reliable, but is decent for this application. The 3.0 is crude and noisy compared too many of its competitor, but ford is looking to changing it in the future. I like the body of the car, just don't like the crappy engine choice. Too many problems reported on it.
I bought a new Freestyle in February. I can't say enough good about it! I went from a huge conversion van with major head room to this; every girl in the family is close to 6 feet tall, so the men you can imagine, and none of us feel cramped in the FS. This little marvel actually seats 6 full-size adults, with space in front of the legs, even in the 3rd row - I tested it to be sure before buying. I saw too many much-larger gas-swigging SUVs where knees bang chin in the rumble section, and was starting to bum about finding a satisfactory replacement for my beloved old van. I'd kept my eye on the 500, and when I looked inside the FS, I recognized the no-knee-bump interior immediately.
I have room for a string bass plus a cello and still hold three people without trouble. The fold-down back works with almost absurd ease. I may get a net to contain my groceries; there's enough room UNDER the "way-back" seat row for things to roll away if a bag falls over.
My license plate says 'truck' and it's a 3/4 ton, so it's probably an SUV, BUT it's far lower and far smaller-looking than almost anything else, but the car-style models, and its space qualities rival or exceed most mini-vans. It has that truck suspension feel, with a bit of sway, but hugs the road better than an Explorer. I drove the AWD, which is fantastic, but I couldn't find a model I liked with it that didn't have other bells and whistles I wasn't willing to spring for. That's about the only change I'd make. I'd recommend the adjustable accelerator pedal for someone with long legs like mine.
Soooo... I wish Ford would advertise the FS. It seems crazy that I've not seen ads in my face for it. This is one of the absolute best things they've come up with in years, and I include the ever-popular Explorer - in which I'm not near as comfortable (spouse drives one).
I have an SE FWD with 28K miles. I've had it for a little over a year and it's been great. Many long road trips and zero problems to date. I can get 25mpg on the highways driving at 75mph. Lots of space, especially in the 2nd row. I paid $25K with side airbags, rear AC, tri-level climate control and convenience package.
I purchased a 2005 Freestyle AWD earlier this year and now have 6000 miles on it. It replaced a 1997 Chevy Tahoe 5.7l.
The AWD performed extremely well in packed snow in N. California mountains. The 3.0l Duratec and CVT tranny have suitable performance with 25-26 mpg on highway. I like the shiftless CVT (my daily driver is a manual Porsche 911, BTW).
It seems like a great combination of passengers (more than the Tahoe), space, safety, economy, and form/fit/function.
I will agree, with the fact, that Ford did a poor job with the advertising of the Freestyle. Just today I saw to commercials/advertisements about the Freestyle, but without any significant details/information about this vehicle. And they wonder why their sales numbers for the Freestyle aren't what they expected...
Anyway, I did some research (it was my wife's idea) on the Freestyle a few months ago. Actually, we want to get away from a minivan (we have a 2002 Ford Windstar Sport) and go with something that will seat 6 and be a little bit better with fuel economy. Upon doing this research about the Freestyle, we came across a 2005 Ford Freestyle Limited AWD at the dealership where we purchased our minivan. We took the Freestyle for a test drive and loved it. The CVT, moonroof, interior space, AWD, tri-climate control, DVD player, etc., is everything that we want in a vehicle. It had heated leather seats just in the front, but with our Winter temperatures sometimes hitting -40 Celsius, our children occupying the back seats (leather) would have quite cold little rear-ends. So, we will stick with cloth with seat covers.
We didn't purchase this Freestyle (they wanted $35, 000 CAD with 28, 000 kms) because it didn't fit into our budget at that time, but next year, we will have a Ford Freestyle SEL AWD.
I am still a little bit skeptical about the CVT even though it is better for fuel economy. We will be reading as much as we can about the CVT to make sure that it is getting good reviews before we make this purchase. Please feel free to give an update about your CVT.
I have to say I am disappointed in my FreeStyle. Since day 1 I have had many little annoying problems. I'm starting to think my vehicle was built on a Friday afternoon... Here's a small list of problems I've had so far.
1. Left rear window guide had to be replaced since window wasn't closing properly
2. wheel alignment had to be done
3. transmission had to be adjusted because of slipping
4. rear bumper had to be re-painted because the paint cracked
5. wheel hubs had to be replaced because the Ford emblem on them came off during the winter
6. console electrical problem. Sometimes the gauges in the console shut off during driving. Still hasn't been fixed
7. driver left side window does not operate correctly. When you push the button to shut the window the window will start closing, but then open instead?? Still hasn't been fixed
8. Rear brakes had to be changed and discs turned. Pre-mature wear.
All of this and less than 20,000 km on the vehicle. The truck could use some more horsepower and better towing capabilities. Maximum towing is 2000 LBS.