I have been thinking about downsizing from my land hippo Expedition and it's 13 mpg...the Freestyle/Taurux-X has intrigued me, but wanted input from owners on their experience. Might try to pick up a low-mi 07 Freestyle if folks have had good experience.

Major concerns are the CVT transmission, which Ford dropped in 08 with the Taurus-X and its larger engine. Also have heard about some early brake issues.

Thanks in advance for your input!

 

I have an '08 Taurus X. Basically a revamped Freestyle with a larger engine. Most people don't know that it's a Volvo in disguise!! Built on a Volvo chasis.
I don't know anything about the CTV transmission other than people don't like it because you never hear it shift gears. Gear shifting is engrained in the American mind!!! The six speed in the "X" is a honey!!!!!! With 4 trips between Memphis and Dallas under it's belt, it has consistanty averaged 24-25 MPG. That's with cruise on and not exceeding 75 MPH.
The Freestyle/"X" is a real sleeper in the Ford line up!!

 

My dad has a 05 Freestyle SEL AWD and is very happy with it. It was a demo when he bought it and currently has about 55,000 miles on the clock with no major problems. It handles great in snow, is very roomy and get between 19 and 20 around town and 25 on the highway for mileage. I have driven it many times and really like it. The CVT transmission is great IMO... I prefer the seamlessness to the feeling of changing gears. The engine has plenty of power despite what many reviewers have said. I would definetly check it out for yourself. As the case with my dad, those who own them seem to really like them. Good luck

 

Have 06 sel awd 43,000 miles the cvt takes some getting used too other than that excellent car. Only down fall with gas prices at 4.00 a gallon 24 mpg's is really not that great. I'm 6'3" 300lbs and I can sit in the 3rd row seats.

 

We had an 05 Freestyle for about 1.5 years before trading it on an Excursion. ANd I have no complaints about the car at all. It was a GREAT family car, got decent mileage and the winter weather/snow ability's were simply remarkable. The only problem were the cloth seats stained easily, and it couldn't quite pull our Desert Fox. Very much an undermarketed excellent car.

 

Bought an early 05 FWD, love the car, its handling, ride, comfort but does have common known problems many Freestyle owners experience, Too much rear brake bias so goes through rear brakes every 20k. Had 2nd row seat replaced, instrument cluster replaced, and now lost transmission input shaft and bearing at 60k. Extended warranty essential for these, CVT is over $5000 new. I do love the smoothness and accel of CVT. I would buy one again and I would get the extended warranty again.

 

I’ve got an 06 Freestyle with over 100,000 miles on it. I used to drive it daily on my 170 mile round trip commute. I now drive an 08 Ford Focus everyday with the Freestyle for weekends and for when I need to carry more people or cargo. The issue with the rear brakes was real but seems to be corrected. My original rear brakes went 21,000 miles and were replaced by Ford with a set that went 18,000 miles. I have since switched from the Ford pads and have over 60,000 on them now and they still look good. I love the CVT most of the time. My commute is on the interstate and is a bit hilly in parts. I usually drive about 60 miles with the cruise control set at about 75. It’s just a very smooth ride with the RPMs constantly changing as the terrain varies. It’s a little weird sitting there and watching the tach changing while the car maintains the same speed. I did have an issue with the CVT at 60,000 miles. There is a TSB on CVT noise which involves some improper machining on the input shaft (production defect). I noticed that aj7885 lost his input shaft at the same mileage. My service manager said that he was told by the Ford hotline that 60,000 miles was when they started seeing problems with it. My biggest problem wasn’t that the CVT wasn’t working correctly, but that no one at my local dealership knew how to work on the thing. After blindly replacing some parts in my CVT (same thing twice) and being unable to duplicate the problem, they installed a black box recorder under the seat with a button for me to push when the CEL came on. Also, the transmission tech went to CVT School (three days) and seemed to know what to do after that. All of the work and the 9 weeks of loaner cars (yes I said 9 weeks, but not all at once) were covered by my extended warranty and the service manager never charged me the $100.00 deductable. My car has at least 40,000 trouble free miles on it since the repairs. Other than the issues with the CVT, which they now seem to be able to diagnose in a single visit to the service department, I really love the car. If you’re worried about it being underpowered, just drive a new Focus before test driving the Freestyle/Taurus X and you will see what underpowered really is.


P.S. I don’t like the fact that when I accidentally hover over the word car in my post I get an add for Toyotas.

 

I really like mine (05). The 3.0 and the CVT work well together. I've driven the five speed auto and it is sluggish compared to the CVT. Make sure the brake recall has been done on the one you buy.
The problem I have is it seems the car went straight from the computer drawing board to production because the ticky tacky problems are so obvious that they could not have driven the car and not noticed the dash reflects in the windshield and if you open the rear door window alone it sound like a helicopter in your car. Also you hit empty with 4 gallons left in the tank and if your in cruise control going down hill it wants to buck with the trans searching for the correct rpm.
It sounds like a lot but in reality it runs and drives well and it is very comfortable. We've made the Sacramento to Long Beach drive quite a few times.

 

If you buy a used Freestyle and it has the Continental tires on it, I would require that they put on better tires before I would purchase it. Those tires wear out in no time. I have some General Altimax RT on my 07 now and they are supposed to be pretty darned good for the money.

 

We have a 05 Freestyle. I t has been one of the best cars that I have owned. We have 140,000kms, it has been very dependable.

 

My wife has an 06 Freestyle AWD. She'll tell you that it's the most versatile car she's ever owned (although the 03 Expedition was her favorite). She has about 40k on it and it has never so much as hiccup'd. She hauls around 4 kids in that car (5 if you count me) and we aren't short on room.

The best thing is how well it does in snow. It does a whole lot better than my F350 4X4.

 

Everyone I know who has one is happy with it. Size makes it versatile, and it does well in snow. Never heard of anyone I know complaining about lack of power.

 

My only complaint is the hard seats on long trips. But I am over 50 too so that may have something to do with it. I find it so flexible with all the fold flat seating that it almost makes my F150 unnecessary.

 

Just picked up an '08 Taurus X, and it's the same as the Freestyle, except for the tranny. I only have 200 miles experience with the new one, but I don't like that transmission already.

The Freestyle's CVT was light years ahead of this one - when I came to a hill or something, a little pressure on the loud pedal, and up we went. With this one, a little pressure gives - nothing - a little more pressure, still nothing, then a bunch of pressure and we're downshifting and revving like crazy. It feels like it's a 4-cylinder or something. Maybe a top-end run will show the 3.5's supposed extra 60 HP, but for general cruisng around, it's not impressing me.

And, while the CVT wasn't the greatest at holding you back when going down a steep'ish hill, it was a nuance I could live with. This one has an Overdrive cutout button on the side of the shifter, but even in "cutout" mode, it doesn't really hold you back very well. I think they should have kept the CVT.

 

Yep, I rented a 500 with the 5sp. auto and it was a real dog compared to my Freestyle with cvt.