Personally, I love the idea of an MPV, which is what Europeans call this type of vehicle. But in this case, I have problem with the execution. I think the Freestyle’s far too big for anything any normal family could conceivably ever use it for. Maybe it suits North Americans’ idea of modest transport but you really pay for this vanity in road congestion and excessive fuel consumption. I got less than 15mpg in my test week of combined city and highway driving, which is neither good for the family owner nor, frankly, for national security. I’d like to have seen the Freestyle built about the size of the upcoming Mercedes-Benz B-Class, which is huge inside – with as much useful room as the Freestyle – but without the excess bulk to schlep around.
Because the Freestyle is so massive, the hoary Duratec pushrod 3.0L engine really struggles in heavy load situations, which affects both throttle response and fuel economy. It would benefit greatly from Ford’s Hybrid gasoline-electric powertrain – the one now used in the current Escape SUV – or from one of either Jaguar's or Volvo's (both owned by Ford) brilliant new commonrail diesels. Either would provide buckets of torque (ie, throttle response) and great fuel economy.
