2005 Ford Freestyle User Reviews

Pros

comfortable, drives well, plenty of space

Cons

upholstry is awfull even water stains it not good for kids

Purchased As New

we have had this car for three years with no problems, its a little hard to get into the back seat and I was dissappointed in the apholstry

Pros

Mpg, AWD, CVT; quiet & cofortable ride; looks; roominess; luxury-feel

Cons

none yet

Much has been said about Ford's choice to use this smaller engine, but we find that it's sufficient even as it is loaded and starting on a steep grade, and is does very well on the highway. However, passing uphill isn't a "sure thing," so more power for passing would be nice. Even so, everything else about this vehicle is impressive. For our family vehicle, we shifted from a Suburban to a 1998 Oldsmobile Silhouette and drove it for until 2004. We loved it, but decided to by a Ford Freestar in December of 2004. We began to hate it in January of 2005. It was noisy, uncofortable, and drank gas worse than our Suburban did. We'd just about written off Ford. I checked out the Highlander, Durango, Pacifica, Pilot, MDX, XL7, XC90, plus various minivans, but kept being drawn back to the Freestyle. Months into research, suddenly Ford decided to announce it was getting out of the minivan business. This put us in a position where we knew we had to dump the Freestar fast so as to cut our losses with the eminent continual decline in value. My wife trusted that I had done my homework and was quite pleased that we finally were both going to test drive a couple of these vehicles I had been talking so much about. She fell in love with the Freestyle, and we took one home. Everyone stares. Strangers ask, "What is that?" Friends (even tall ones) marvel at the roominess. Luxury car drivers comment of the smoothness of the ride. This is definetly a lot of vehicle for the money and is a complete contrast to Ford's minvans. We opted for the SE (base model) with AWD and the comfort package. It's one of the most basic ones you can get, but it's a very nice ride. We'd recommend this vehicle to anyone. This is got to be one of the best vehicles ever produced by Ford - or anyone. Although I like the fact that you don't see many on the road (unique), if word gets out how great these are, we should see more and more....read morehide

Pros

Comfort, the large amounts of room, the options, the comfort again!!!

Cons

the gas mileage... I was expecting more than 20

Words can't express enough how much I love this car! I love the way it drives, the way it looks and how comfortable it is! We've had the car a little over a week and I have fallen in love already! We got the loaded model. Our son and of course my husband love the DVD player. I love the 3 CD disc changer! The fold down back seat is such a great accent to the car! It's so nice to have it up or when you load up on the groceries... just fold it down!

We drove many different types of cars before we finally bought this one. We liked the Freestyle the best! Our salesman gave us an exellent deal on it (of course after some wheelin and dealin!)

Our insurance even went down... another plus!...read morehide

Pros

spaceous, great handling, good fuel consumption, good seats

Cons

dash reflects on windscreen; no GPS

I bought the car in December 2004; it has not needed a single repair and runs like new. Getting in and out is easy, even in the third row. The car is solid, comfortable, reliable. The CVT feels somewhat different but seems to work well. Traction on icy roads is excellent thanks to the standard Pirelli tires.
My only minor complaints: the gaps around interior door panels seem too wide but are no worse than in other SUVs. The air conditioning is rather slow to cool the vehicle on hot days, but works well once the car has cooled down. The windshield picks up reflections of the dash, again a common nuisance. There is no cover for the trunk space, eventhough a mounting groove has been moulded into the side panels. There is a lot of windnoise and draft at higher speeds when the sunroof is open because the air dam across the opening is not continuous, a really dumb oversight.
Overall a great car. Would I buy another? Most likely....read morehide

Pros

easy driving, comfort, great performance,

Cons

Need the actual lumbar in seat, not just the seat that releases back.

purchased our 05' FWD SE on 12/20/2005. Could not be happier. Previously had an Escape & minivan and wanted a vehicle to fit both. The freestyle is definitely a vehicle that has many extras and you would be happy driving. The CVT does take a little getting used to at first. Very comfortable riding and very roomy, even passengers have plenty of leg room in the second row, third row is great for kids or shorter adults.

I was concerned about the accelerating issues of the CVT after reading other reviews. This was not an issue for me; I had more trouble getting used to CVT not decreasing speed quickly when you remove your foot from the accelerator. This took a few trips and I am acclimated to my Freestyle and I enjoy driving it.

Fuel mileage was about 19 mpg when we purchased the car brand new. The car now has about 2800 miles and it is getting about 21 mpg. The dealership stated at about 10,000 you will get your actual stated mileage that Ford stated, if you have good driving habits. Well, I have a heavy foot, so I figure if I am getting 21 mpg I am doing pretty good for now.

Seats fold easily for storage/cargo and sit upright to carry passengers with ease. My son who is 10 can easily store the seats when I am loading cargo.

Our specificied request was for side curtain airbags and we received this for the extra protection. Traction control is standard on all vehicles and after driving both vehicles, there was little difference between the AWD & FWD, except price. Save yourself $$, and go for the FWD.

Two negative remarks I would state about the Freestyle would be:

1. Comfort level of the driver seat and front passenger seat. Ford should have offered the actual lumbar in seats as they do with all other vehicles. This is one option that should be offered as the vehicle is awesome and most customers want the lumbar seats for the driver and front passenger. The second and third row seats are comfortable without lumbar.

2. Freestyle does not come with floor mats. For the price, you would think they would have floor mats for the vehicle as do other car manufacturer with their minivans & suvs....read morehide

Pros

Smooth ride, lots of room, and good fuel mileage. All of the positives of an suv but cheaper.

Cons

Should not have bought a white car, gets dirty in a hurry.

This is a great family vehicle. Smooth ride and all kinds of room, Ford and Volvo did a joint effort to produce one fantastic machine. We were looking for a bigger car with more room and the Freestyle delivered. Cheaper than most Suv's with better gas mileage and just about as much room. Could not be happier with the Freestyle....read morehide

Pros

Lots of room, great for families with 2+ kids, feels solid, handles well in snow

Cons

Not for towing, upholstry not kid friendly, electronic problems with door locks

Went to buy Focus Wagon and realized no way to get 3 child seats in it so looked at Freestyle instead. We have a 8 passenger GMC Safari for big trips. We find Freestyle has enought room that we use it most of the time with three kids and all their stuff. Gas milage better than mini van but less than Fords specs so far.
Upholstry is definetly not kid friendly, light tones seem to hold the stains. Our last car was 9 years old and the upholstry looked better when traded in than this after 4 months.
Bad design of second row seating make it hard to install child safety seats in second row. The plastic coverings for the pivoting points make it impossible to pull infant seats tight to the back of the seat when rear facing. Plus no LATCH attachments for the middle of the second row for child seats (safest place for infant seat in vehicle?)
Electronic door locks work intermittent and on occasions unlatch door so you can not close it. Ford says first time they heard of it, still trying to find the loose connection or bad chip? Alittle concerned that Ford may stop production in 2007.
Nice to see someone designing cars for families again other than mini vans. I still consider it a station wagon.
Overal would probably buy again if Ford is still making them, great for young 2+ kid families....read morehide

Pros

great handling, great features

Cons

none as of yet

I have only had this vehicle for a little over a week, but I love the way it handles in snow. The day after I made the final purchase, we had a snow fall of 8" (Pennsylvania). The vehicle was parked on the road in front of my house, and of course the snow plow came along and added to that eight inches around my car. I cleaned off my car, got in and pulled out of the 10+ inches as if it was only 1. I have had four-wheel drives most of my driving days and was a little worried about changing to AWD. This gets around even better than my Rodeo that I traded. Of course, the kids love the DVD, the fact that they have their own air/heat control (something I insisted on as an option), and the bucket seats and console to store their DVDs, etc. We are getting ready to take a 12 hour trip to Illinois for Christmas, we will see how comfortable everyone is for the long trip and let you know....read morehide

Pros

roomy inside, rides like a car

Cons

dash board reflects into windsheild on sunny days / no power under hood

e.p.a. gas milage on this car is 20city- 29 highway / well its more like 17 in the city 23 on the highway.

Pros

Very good fuel economy, both city and highway

Cons

Some interior fit and finish, door storage space too narrow

Very enjoyable vehicle to drive. Very good mileage on highway. Driving position is excellent. Traded in Windstar and never regretted switch, much more versatility.