My brother drives a 2002 Ford Explorer and now he's shopping for a new mid-sized SUV. He called me for some advice and I asked he what he was considering. He said, "We were going to look at that new boxy thing but we're done with Ford."
I said, "Hold on a second."
I bought the 2009 Ford Flex Limited for our long term fleet about two months ago but I hadn't driven it until just recently. On the freeway I noticed it had a very pleasant ride, like a big, heavy luxury car, and it was extremely well insulated. I liked the wide leather seats and loved the feel of the wood and leather steering wheel.
The surprise came when I reached my exit and swung into the spiraling off ramp.
Suddenly, this heavyweight showed it could be level, stable and composed through a tight corner. The only thing that kept it from being downright fun was the light steering.
It's a surprise how big this vehicle is inside. The backseat legroom is amazing! For a big vehicle it gets about 18 mpg in a mix of city and highway conditions which is nothing to write home about.
But could I really recommend this vehicle? Would I buy it? The only thing that puts me off is that, after 12,264 miles I feel a hard upshift from the transmission. That, coupled with the fact that my brother is car shopping because his Explorer's transmission is has a degenerative illness, kept me from being more enthusiastic about this new Ford.
Still, I like the edgy styling, and love the way it drives. So I took the ultimate definitive stance: "It's worth a test drive."
Philip Reed, Senior Consumer Advice Editor @ 12,264 miles
compliance says:
08:35 AM, 12/16/08
Transmission problems always show up just past 100k in my experience. Get it rebuilt and drive another hundred. I don't think it's worth swearing off Ford for something that's so common. If that is the only big issue of course.
brn says:
09:10 AM, 12/16/08
Never had a tranny problem in any Ford (and I've had a lot of them). Ford has a better record than Honda in that respect.
However, this may be first year jitters. The tranny is relatively new and the Flex is very new. I never buy first year anything, from any manufacturer.
jdub53084 says:
10:01 AM, 12/16/08
SoCal must be really hard on transmissions...
The Silverado, the Fit, the Civic, now the Flex!
Brahmco says:
10:31 AM, 12/16/08
I have an 84 Bronco II and it has over 150,000 miles on the original transmission and it still works great. This is my daily driver and my weekend 4x4 warrior. I would say that ford for the most part builds good transmissions.
1487 says:
11:00 AM, 12/16/08
Plus Ford has a better powertrain warranty than they did in 2002. I would spend a few hundred bucks and get an extended warranty through the dealer if I was that paranoid.
billt9 says:
11:07 AM, 12/16/08
Only Ford I would buy is a Lincoln MKS. Boy is that car plush.
bankerdanny says:
12:35 PM, 12/16/08
The 5-speed on my 87 Mustang LX 5.0 lost the 4-5 synchro at about 80k.
The auto on my 96 SHO bit it at just over 100k.
The EAOD on my 86 535i started acting up at abt 80k and had to be replaced at about 85k.
On the other hand, my 84 Dodge Charger 2.2 was going strong when I sold is with 130k on it as was the auto box in my 84 Saab 900 Turbo when the rest of the car died at over 100k.
I forgot what I was getting at, but I think is was that 100k for a normal family type vehicle should be expected, beyond that significant repair or replacement is not unreasonable.
dragonflight says:
01:16 PM, 12/16/08
I don't think I've had a tranny die in recent memory, at least not on our '91 Toyota Previa (200-210k miles, or therabouts) or '89 Camry (140k). Both were pretty trashed but just wouldn't die (10+ years and still running with no necessary repairs).
carfreak8394 says:
05:48 PM, 12/16/08
My dad's '91 Camry has 190,000 miles, and it's been as reliable as can be. No major problems.
MS3lvr92 says:
07:37 PM, 12/16/08
I second that recommendation to test drive the Flex. Older body-on-frame SUV drivers who want to trade in their dinasaur bone old SUVs should really consider newer better CUVs. These cars are so much better at family hauling, with more space and better fuel economy are huge pluses. Unless you're offroading or live in Greenland where the landscape is just snow upon snow feet deep, you should defidently get a CUV in these times.
MS3lvr92 says:
07:41 PM, 12/16/08
And as for the tranny issue... that's odd. We had a 1996 Mitsubishi Montero LS for 9 years and 110,000 miles. It had its brakes replaced twice and the rise up antenna would go up when you turn the radio on and the antenna's motor would make a loud roar for the next minute as if it were still rising up the antenna. The sunroof was screwed up and wouldn't open. Also, the 4WD system was never used so it wasn't in its prime condition when it was needed. Plus, it was slow and all the plastic interior and exterior bits were falling off. I loved that car...
firstwagon says:
05:19 PM, 12/17/08
"Unless you're offroading or live in Greenland where the landscape is just snow upon snow feet deep, you should defidently get a CUV in these times. "
Or if you want to tow something bigger then a pop up trailer