Ford has canceled a Flex production shift, and the model's chief designer suddenly left the company. Still, as Berkowitz's review points out, the Flex isn't a horrible car. It's simply fighting for market share in the remnants of a burst (SUV) bubble. The Wall Street Journal scolds the whole segment for mediocre mileage, but blames the Flex flop on crashing SUV residual values. "With gas hovering around $4 a gallon, even the crossover category continues to show signs of slowdown, as many consumers looking to replace traditional trucks are experience falling resale value of their old vehicles, freezing buyers out of the crossover market and pushing them to look at options such as compact and midsize cars," says Brian Johnson of Lehman Brothers. Even so, Ford dealers are anxious to get a Flex on the floor. "Dealers think that the product can generate showroom traffic," Ford spokesman Jay Ward tells Automotive News [sub]. "[Customers] may not buy a Flex, but they may buy a Taurus X or an Edge." So the Flex is a highly-advertised vehicle that misses the mark but entices buyers into looking at other moribund models. In other words, the GT's replacement is the Windstar replacement. How great is that?
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It’s a Scion for the family set! I am anxiously awaiting its arrival at the LGA Avis rental location. Report to follow!
I’m sure it’s a fine car with plenty of use for lots of people. But maybe they simply overestimated the size of the market. That doesn’t make the vehicle inherently bad, but it can’t help that people are knee-jerking so hard about gas prices right now.
24mpg seems to be the magic number for most of these large, three-row vehicles (eg Acadia/Outlook, Flex). That’s still substantially better than 18-20mpg in a full-sized SUV which offers roughly the same utility and space. Or maybe even less.
Right vehicle at the wrong time.
If Ford had introduced this three years earlier, it would have been a hit.
Mike – It’s not a Scion of any sort.
Scion actually has a future.
The Flex would be better off marketed as a hearse.
nudave:
I don’t think Scion’s future looks any brighter than the Flex’s. Their lineup consists of the grotesque new xB, that totally deviates from everything buyers of the original xB wanted. The aging, too-soft TC, and the xD. I have no idea what they’ve got in the pipeline, but their current lineup isn’t exactly generating a ton of excitement
There are so many things wrong with the Flex…it was destined for failure before birth.
Ford says it is an alternative to the big SUV. OK…but it cannot tow or go off road like a big SUV. However it does drive like a big SUV…but I wouldn’t call that an advantage.
Ford also says that it is their minivan replacement. OK…but it does not offer NEAR the space of a minivan nor does it have a minivan’s best, most useful feature…the sliding door.
Add to that the fact that it extremely overpriced and offers ZERO reasons to buy it over the brand new, much cheaper Taurus X…and you have a vehicle that answers a question nobody asked.
I feel sorry for Ford, this is not a bad vehicle but with gaz prices today it doesn’t cut the mustard. We are looking at replacing a 99 4Runner as the family hauler and have looked at the Freestyle (hated the CVT) and the Taurus X (good space, poor MPG)and now the Flex but the MPG is not good for us as we live in DC and the commute is killing us on fuel. We are now thinking of waiting for the VW Jetta Sportswagen TDI. Any comments? We are worried about reliability, parts prices, poor dealers and gaz/diesel price difference. Is it worth the wait for the TDI or should we just get the regular wagon?
Its Ford’s mini-van, I really don’t see the problem. Mini-van sales are down overall but they are still needed. Go to any soccer, baseball, softball etc game and what do you see, row after row of mini-vans, CUVs and SUVs.
VW Jetta Sportswagen
If you have an intimate knowledge of automotive electronics, or a back up and deep pockets, by all means. My friends Passat wagon is frikkin’ lemon.
Back to the Flex…the local Ford dealer here just got theirs in. And parked it right beside a new Taurus X. When you see that, you’ll really wonder what the point was.
I think the Flex (and all 7+ passenger cars) should be looked at as strictly niche vehicles now. As a niche vehicle, the Flex succeeds.
As a home-run company saver, the Flex is simply the right vehicle at the wrong time. However, if Ford can downside the Flex, say by building a similar vehicle on the Mazda5 platform, they may actually have a hit on their hands.
If the Flex represents Ford’s attempt as a people mover, then they flunked the price test.
Honda’s people mover (Odyssey) is priced much less than the Flex. Further, the Flex offers nothing that cannot be found on the Odyssey other than the glass roof. Why would I pay more to get less than a comparable vehicle?
Right vehicle at the wrong time.
If Ford had introduced this three years earlier, it would have been a hit.
+1
And its overpriced by at least 25%.
@Blunozer: that would be the Taiwan-only Ford i-Max.
cdnsfan27
I’m as big a fan of tdi as you’ll find, but I’m losing my gusto for the tdi. Long-term, diesel fuel prices should stabilize lower, but too often you need to drive 15k+ miles per year just to see a payback within normal ownership. At current diesel prices, plus dealer markup, it can be almost infinite on the payback period.
Also, as I always say (having owned ONLY VW cars in my life, and from a family who has had around 20 in the last 40 years): Do NOT buy any VW if you do not intend on doing most of your own work. Parts costs aren’t terrible, but add labor and it will eat you alive.
Knock on wood, all of my family’s VWs since 1998 have been pretty great on the reliability front. In fact, I’m in the process of adding a second B5 Passat in my family right now. I’m not afraid of it, but it definitely warrants an increase in my car maintenance fund. But I still maintain they’re the best driving experience for the money you can find. As long as you value you that as a primary criterion, it shouldn’t matter much that you have an extra $200-$500 a year in unplanned repairs.
That’s the short answer. Sorry for going off-topic ;)
I really like the Flex. Of course, it helps tremendously that I’m a wagon guy. I haven’t driven one and if it drives like an SUV then it loses. I’ll find out in 3-4 years when the price has dropped to a reasonable level.
The interior is really well done. You have to give Ford a golf clap for seeing that no one is buying SUV type vehicles for the exterior styling, recognizing that women look at interiors a lot before purchasing, and then putting their money into it.
I have to think that before it’s all said and done there will be a de-contented version that will sell for lots less. That version might help the pricier (current) version survive.
@nickr: +1 on the VW Jetta Sportswagen being an expensive ownership experience. Couple people I work with have Jetta’s, even fancy ones made in Germany, and everyone has stories. These are NOT cheap cars to buy nor are they cheap to maintain.
@cdnsfan27: really good points on the $/mile payback!
I wish someone at Ford would explain why they continue to sell the Taurus X? How could you possibly need 2, 7 passenger people movers based on the D3 platform for sale under the same brand at one time? If the Taurus X didn’t exist the Flex would likely have sold 2x as many and vice versa (with advertising).
Also, speaking of advertising, I’ve yet to see a single ad for this vehicle anywhere. I’m in Boston, is this area just being excluded?
Interestingly enough, last week I saw a Flex parked as the “bait car” at the entrance to a huge Ford mega dealer in Ft. Lauderdale – and I thought to myself – why not? What else in the Ford lineup are you going to park out front to grab attention?
bevo :
If the Flex represents Ford’s attempt as a people mover, then they flunked the price test.
Honda’s people mover (Odyssey) is priced much less than the Flex. Further, the Flex offers nothing that cannot be found on the Odyssey other than the glass roof. Why would I pay more to get less than a comparable vehicle?
An excellent point. I looked at the Flex and concluded that it wouldn’t meet my family’s transportation needs as well as any of the three used Dodge Grand Caravans that I could buy for the same money. The Flex’s plush interior and non-minivan shape just aren’t worth the extra coin to me.
I’m just another crank on the Internet, but personally I feel as though Ford would be a lot farther along if they had a CUV that was a closer competitor to the Subaru Forester.
Especially now because the 2009 MY Forester is showing some significant bloating and Toyotafication.
Steve S:
Its Ford’s mini-van, I really don’t see the problem. Mini-van sales are down overall but they are still needed. Go to any soccer, baseball, softball etc game and what do you see, row after row of mini-vans, CUVs and SUVs.
Then Ford failed big time because their so-called “minivan replacement” is an extremely hard to use minivan. It does not have the space of a minivan nor does it have the sliding doors of a minivan. On top of that, it is WAY overpriced ($760 for a stupid fridge??? A cooler costs $29.95). You also cannot lay a standard sheet of plywood flat in it like you can in a real minivan…or GM’s Lambdas. In fact…according to http://www.fordvehicles.com, the Taurus X has more max cargo room than the Flex.
As I have maintained all along, Ford could have saved A TON of money and just simply advertised the Taurus X. Remember, the Taurus X was “all new” for 2008, and Ford changed almost all of the complaints people had with the Freestyle…namely looks and engine options…all while not hurting the MPGs much.
I still say that Ford should send some guys to steal the plans and build that ACTUAL original Scion xB. Solve two boneheaded carmaker decisions at one time!
NYT confirmed that Richard Gresen’s departure was indeed involuntary.
I checked out the Flex and it is a beautiful vehicle, the materials are first rate and it feels much more expensive than it is. There is plenty of space for folks and lots of useful cubbies for stuff. It is also very quiet. I will not buy a new one because it doesn’t get the MPG I need. Maybe in a year or two I will buy a greatly depreciated used one (or Taurus X)and use the savings to buy gas.
guyincognito :
I wish someone at Ford would explain why they continue to sell the Taurus X? How could you possibly need 2, 7 passenger people movers based on the D3 platform for sale under the same brand at one time?
One is built in Chicago, one is built in Oakville Canada. Gotta give the UAW/CAW something to do!
Richard Gresen’s departure looks like rats leaving a sinking ship!
P71_CrownVic :
August 4th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
Then Ford failed big time because their so-called “minivan replacement” is an extremely hard to use minivan. It does not have the space of a minivan nor does it have the sliding doors of a minivan. On top of that, it is WAY overpriced ($760 for a stupid fridge??? A cooler costs $29.95). You also cannot lay a standard sheet of plywood flat in it like you can in a real minivan…or GM’s Lambdas. In fact…according to http://www.fordvehicles.com, the Taurus X has more max cargo room than the Flex.
As I have maintained all along, Ford could have saved A TON of money and just simply advertised the Taurus X. Remember, the Taurus X was “all new” for 2008, and Ford changed almost all of the complaints people had with the Freestyle…namely looks and engine options…all while not hurting the MPGs much.
A few things to address –
Utility – The Flex can tow over 4000 lbs, more than enough to handle most people’s needs. No, it won’t haul a 20′ boat or a horse trailer, but people with those needs buy trucks anyway. I looked up cargo space on a few different sites, and while it does look like the numbers show the Flex is less than a Taurus X or a Honda Odyssey, looking at them side by side, I can’t figure out where those numbers are coming from. The Flex has a huge volume of space inside, and with the seats all being fold flat, you don’t have lug out heavy assemblies and stick them somewhere to access the space.
Price – Base price for an SE is only around $28K, which while a bit higher than some other 7 passenger CUVs and minivans, does come with a ton of standard features, and overall high quality materials. There is no stripper version of the Flex, even the base model has power everything, alloy wheels, high quality seat materials, high quality interior materials, six speed auto, anti lock brakes, etc. As far as the options go, they are just that, options. The fridge (which by the way is actually compressor driven and can refridgerate or freeze things very quickly, it is not just a cooler), the power fold second row seats, the big glass roof, etc, can all be had as stand alone options, not locked up in packages, so a customer can decide which they want and are willing to pay for.
vs. Taurus X –
While I like the Taurus X, anyone who can’t see the point of the Flex over the Taurus X hasn’t driven them both nor seen them side by side. The Flex has an interior leaps and bounds superior to that of the X, it has a lot more interior passenger space (again, not sure how the numbers don’t show it, but sit in the second or third rows of each and compare for yourself), better city fuel economy, a quieter and more refined ride, tons of options not availible with the X, and possibly most importantly – it doesn’t look like a station wagon on steroids, at least not a modern station wagon.