2009 Ford Flex Limited: Big Scion. Hallelujah.

I have a 2008 Scion xB...I would get down with this car, like the styling. Only thing is, it's a FORD!

a $45,000 vehicle that doesn't have a telescoping steering wheel? That's ridiculous. I (wrongly) assumed that would become a standard feature on most cars, after the first-gen Focus had it. Guess not. I don't want to go back to a car without it after how much I love it on my Mazda6.

It's a Scion! A Toyota, with even poorer build quality and cheaper materials than that of the latest Camry.

We'll be looking to replace my wife's minivan in the next year or two, and I might consider the Flex. Everybody is complaining about the price, but if you go for the SEL trim level and don't go nuts on the options, you can easily get a well-appointed Flex for low 30s. Pretty comparable to an Odyssey or Sienna in terms of price...

I prefer our Sienna LE. For ~28k with all the safety options ticked at the time of purchase, it has been going strong for 70k miles, and still feels new. I actually had an argument with a relative to convince them that it was nearly 5 years old!

The true test for the Flex will be mileage and durability, in my opinion. Only then can it rival a minivan.

The Flex is super impressive, and I really applaud Ford for it...its interior materials are coming up on VW's IMO and it looks great. It's a little overpriced at MSRP but I've seen $5500 rebates on these things already and at that discount they are unbeatable.

The Flex falls in the 'Tall Wagon' class of cars.
Or the "Lowered Suburban" class.

So what if Ford slapped a sliding door on this thing, do you think people would freak out because that feature defines minivans? A few years ago I thought I would see sliding doors on SUV's at some point.

Dragonflight: The Flex's MPG compared to 2008 minivans...

FWD: Odyssey 16/23 (18 combined)
3.3 T&C 16/23 (18 combined)
Sedona 16/23 (18 combined)
Entourage 16/23 (18 combined)
Sienna 17/23 (19 combined)
3.8, 4.0 T&C 17/24 (19 combined)
Flex 17/24 (19 combined)
VCM Odyssey ($) 17/25 (20 combined)

AWD: Sienna 16/21 (18 combined)
Flex 16/22 (18 combined)

On fuel economy, at least, the Flex is amongst the minivan mileage leaders.

Note also that the Flex is the only AWD choice apart from the Sienna--and it's the more frugal of the two, as well (albiet very slightly.)

But among these, only the Flex has the potential to avoid the minivan stigma that presumably caused so many to run to Tahoes and Expeditions to avoid the "boring" label. How many folks that you know said they'd never be caught dead in a minivan? My wife was one once.

Durability? Well, no one knows what that'll be yet. We'll just have to see.

m_thrizzle: As much sense as sliding rear doors make, yes, I think product planners are a risk-averse bunch that is afraid that if they put sliding doors on a vehicle, it'll get stigmatized as a minivan. "See? It's got hinges. It's NOT a minivan!"

And the Flex has such straight lines that could easily hide those sliding tracks, too. Pity.

Nice hearse...

Drop off the kids at school, then take a casket to the graveyard. Ford's got a winner!

What to call it?

A duck is a duck;

A rose is a rose;

And this is a hearse. Not a dignified hearse like a Lincoln or Cadillac, but a Ford hearse.

Seriously, this thing looks like the mutated bastard child of an old Volvo 740 wagon and Scion that finished last in the ZZ Top video tryouts.

Off topic but I just wanted to let you guys at Edmunds know you do a really great job with the videos for the cars you test. I just got done watching the comparison test for the CR-V/Rav-4/Tiguan, and I think you guys did a great job with it. Just saying. (:

I like the styling of the Flex but for some reason it doesnt come off as "new".

cx7lover,

what are you talking about?

But what to call it?

I call it ugly.

I can chop the top down on a Chevy Astro and it'll be basically the same thing.

Then again...I'm not in the market for a box-on-wheels family mover. I just bought a used 05 Altima...so I guess I have to change my name now!

It's a box. A very stylish box. Ford really took their time with this, and got the styling spot on. If I needed 7 seats, and full size SUV capacity, this would definitely be worth a look (when I'm in the market =P)

The interior has some of the cheapest plastics, especially the horridly grained and unpadded door arm rest. The engine drinks gas, it has an outdated 4 speed automatic, and rarely sells at a substantial discount due to a snobby dealer network. The xB is nothing to brag about or put above this Ford.

I believe he misunderstood you cx7lover, as did I, I thought you were referring to the interior/build of the Flex, not an xB. Not that the Flex is without if flaws in the interior, but we thought you were saying that it had poorer materials and quality that the current Camry, which it certainly doesnt.

CX7Lover,
Thanks for clearing that up, because I did misunderstood you at first. As for your clarification, that doesn't make much sense to me either. Yes my 08 Scion xB has it's faults (as do all cars), but it's an Econobox. So it's competing against cars in the $14K-$16k. Kinda pointless comparing it to more expensive models isn't it? Yeah the interior is cheap, but guess what, I've seen just as cheap material in more expensive cars. As for MPG, I do 90 miles a day, 93% highway, and get 29-30mpgs (that's comparable to Honda/Camry 4 bangers). The tranny could use another gear, I agree, but did I mention it was a $16K Econobox? However the car is extremely reliable and safe, as to expect from Toyota, and that's all I want from a daily commuter.

As for the Flex, it seem to be one of those hate it / like it type of cars, and like I previously mention, I like it. Clearly Ford had put a lot of thought into it. However, my last two Fords (Probe and previous gen 'Stang GT Conv.) were garbage, and I can't get over that. Ford claimed that their cars are as reliable as Toyotas, maybe they are, but I still have bad memories of my Stang shaking itself apart as it drove over the streets of Philly. The car had so much body flex, rattles and squeaks, it was unbelievable.

every funeral home in the country should be buying one of these things. i wouldn't mind being carted off to my final resting place in some style.

"$45,000 vehicle that doesn't have a telescoping steering wheel? That's ridiculous"

It has adjustable power pedals. I'll take that over telescoping steering any day. Shame on Ford for doing it one better.

You could also throw the new Chevrolet Traverse into this group as well, as a minivan alternative.

It can fit 8 (compared to the Flex's 7) and offers the same (FWD) 17/24 mpg as the Flex.

tasbro, but the Traverse has run-of-the-mill styling. It is distinctly a crossover. I think the whole point of this blog/discussion was that the Flex doesn't look like anything else on the market, so how can you classify it?

The Traverse looks bloated, it's just extra mass.

brn: I'm not saying you are wrong--adjustable pedals are clearly better FOR YOU. But I can't characterize adjustable pedals as going "one better." For me, they have proven worthless in dozens of cases, and I've done back-to-back comparos in cars with and without the option.

For me, nothing but a telescopic wheel will do for my lanky frame. This is certainly the case with this Flex.

It just goes to show how wide the range of body shapes and sizes is in the USA--we've got folks from all over the world living in this country. Both features are required to accomodate everyrone, I think.

But telescopic wheels have become more and more common, of late, even on the cheapest cars in the market. The new 2009 Honda Fit now has one, to name one example. Meanwhile, adjustable pedal offerings have levelled off. I think this is because you can provide a greater range of adjustment with a wheel than with pedals.

I think the Flex has potential but it gets very expensive when you put in common options. If Ford can lower the price a bit they will have a winner.

When these first started appearing I thought it was hideous. However yours in black with matching roof is the best looking one I have seen, but it still looks pretty long and kind of akward.

actualsize writes: "adjustable pedals are clearly better FOR YOU"

Yes, for me and my gal adjustable pedals are much better than telescopic steering. With a smaller frame, bringing the pedals to me, keeps me a reasonable distance from the dashboard. I think adjustable pedals are absolutely wonderful.

I guess the only way to keep everyone happy is to offer both.

I just drove one of these for the past weekend as a courtesy car. Brand new SEL AWD.

Observations:

1. Interior is roomy and comfortable but the third row is occasional use only. My 13 and 15 yr old were comfortable enough in the city, but a long trip would probably not work very well. The seats are thinner and less padded than the 2nd row.

2. Fit and finish was very nice. Soft touch materials in many places (armrest, center console cover). Blue backlighting was nice - better than the green in other Fords. Centre stack had a lot of buttons so it took a little time to get used to. White needles on blue numbers in the gauges was very nice. Really missed the telescoping steering wheel (a definite miss on Fords part) which I needed to get a really comfortable driving position.

3. Had 6 aboard at all times. Really had to step on it to get it to accelerate quickly, but it did the job.

Overall I thought it was an excellent vehicle. The styling is quite polarizing (I liked it, nobody else in the family did). For the record, my wife has an 08 Edge AWD LTD and I have an 08 F150 Lariat Supercrew. After we got the Edge back from the dealership I much prefer driving it over the Flex, but I prefer the interior of the Flex over the Edge.

If I were in the market for a crossover that seats 7, I wouldn't discount this one as part of the test group. My biggest concern would be ground clearance as we can get some nasty snowfalls where we live and the Flex is pretty low to the ground. Others that I would look at are the usual suspects, CX9, Lambda's, Pilot, Highlander, Taurus X.