2009 Ford Flex
By J.P. Vettraino
On Sale: Summer 2008
Expected Pricing: $28,500-$40,000
If Ford's next big intro goes as the company predicts, the 2009 Ford Flex will do for so-called crossover vehicles what the first Explorer did at the start of the SUV boom or the original Taurus did for sedans.
When it goes on sale around the middle of 2008, the seven-passenger Ford Flex will be the largest in Ford's expanding line of crossovers, which now includes the Taurus X (formerly known as the Freestyle) and the Edge, a crossover nearly as big as the Explorer.
The family oriented Flex is a big vehicle, measuring more than 202 inches long on a 117.9-inch wheelbase. That makes it longer than a full-size, truck-based sport-utility vehicle like the Chevrolet Tahoe, and longer than some of the biggest minivans ever, including the recently canceled Freestar.
Ford insists the 2009 Flex is not a minivan replacement, and that might be true in spirit. Yet it will be built at the same Canadian plant that built the Freestar, and it replaces that minivan in Ford's model line-up.
Measured by features, seating and passenger/cargo options, the Flex will function very much like a good minivan, and it will be available with front-wheel drive (like the typical minivan). The key difference? Like many crossovers, the Flex is supposed to serve a family's needs with more sex appeal than a minivan, and without branding its driver as a soccer mom or dad.
To that end, styling is a key part of the Flex equation, and in our view it's one of the more interesting vehicles Ford has launched in some time. The production Flex is based on the Fairlane concept vehicle that toured the auto-show circuit in 2005, and it's a close copy, right down to the strakes along its flat sides. There's a hint of Range Rover in the Flex, but also a hint of panel wagons from another era. Its roof pillars are blacked out and its side windows are dark, and it will be available with a white or silver roof, like a Mini Cooper, regardless of its lower-body paint color.
While it's certainly retrogressive in theme, the Flex is also fresh and forward looking. Standard wheels will be a substantial 18 inches in diameter, with 19-inch wheels offered as an option.
One key difference between the production Flex and the Fairlane concept: no suicide doors for the Flex, or rear doors that hinge in back and open from the center. The Flex won't have minivan-style sliding rear doors, either. With conventional swing out doors, and access required for the third seat, we expect those rear doors will be some of the longest on any vehicle in production.
If the Flex is going to sway family buyers, it will need the right interior features. Its body design essentially eliminates raised rocker panels under the doors, which means there's nothing to step over to climb in and out. Ford promises best-in-class second-row legroom, with optional adjustable foot rests. The Flex will be offered with separate second-row buckets or a three-place bench. In either case, the second-row seats will tumble forward for access to the third row, or fold flat into the floor to maximize cargo space. A power fold feature will be optional. Leather upholstery will come standard on the high-trim Flex Limited. Ford claims it has devoted much of its engineering effort toward making the Flex the quietest vehicle in its class, with extra thick glass and high-tech sound-deadening materials in the dash panel, headliner and under the carpeting.
Unique interior features will include programmable lighting that allows the owner to decide which interior LED lights illuminate, and when. The Flex will also offer Ford Sync, a voice-activated communications and entertainment system developed with Microsoft. It integrates mobile phones and digital media players and can include a hard drive with space for up to 2300 songs. The multi-panel Vista Roof extends a glass skylight over all three rows of seats. Also available is a real refrigerator that can chill drinks rather than simply keep them cold. Ford claims its cool box will chill seven 12-ounce cans, four half-liter bottles or two 20-ounce bottles from room temperature to 41 degrees in two-and-one-half hours, or 40 percent faster than a conventional home refrigerator.
Safety features in the Flex will surpass most minivans. All variants will come with front-impact airbags, side-impact airbags for front passengers and curtain-style head-protection airbags for all three rows of seats. The curtain bags will deploy in the event of a rollover, and the Edge will also feature an electronic system available on most higher-priced sport-utilities. Roll Stability Control, or RSC, intervenes to try to prevent a rollover when the electronics sense that one might occur.
Our guess it that the Flex won't be a screamer, but it should have more than enough guts to get out of its own way. It will be powered by the new 3.5-liter V6 appearing in lots of Ford products, including the Edge crossover and Lincoln MKZ sedan, generating 260 horsepower and 245 pound-feet of torque in the Flex. All models will feature a six-speed automatic transmission, and Ford promises some of the best EPA mileage ratings among larger, seven-passenger vehicles. The Flex will also feature a capless fuel-filler. Simply open the cover door, insert the pump nozzle and squeeze.
Fulltime automatic all-wheel drive will be optional. Unlike most truck-based SUVs, and some minivans, the Flex has a sedan-style, fully independent rear suspension. It was designed to limit the intrusion of shock-absorber mounts and other components into interior space and maximize the size of the rear load floor. Properly equipped, the Flex will tow up to 4,000 pounds, enough for personal watercraft, camping trailers and snowmobiles.
When the Flex goes on sale sometime during the summer of 2008, trim levels should match Ford's existing sedans and crossovers. The SE, SEL and Limited will be distinguished by interior appointments and the level of standard equipment. A more luxurious Lincoln variant is expected to debut roughly a year after the Flex.
All indicators suggest the 2009 Flex could make a bigger splash than any new Ford launched in some time.
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