Driving Sports

It’s hard to know what to say about the Ford Flex - it’s not quite an SUV, certainly not a diminutive passenger car, and nothing at all like a minivan. In a week of driving it around, it reminded me most strongly of those big station wagons of the 1960s and early 70s that so many of us recall from endless family vacations. How many hours did I spend pleading with my dad to turn on the A/C as mile after mile of desert highway rolled away?

Yet even the comparison to the old family wagon falls short, until I realized just what the Ford Flex really is - it’s the reincarnation of the classic Ford Woodie Wagon. It’s tall, like a 40’s Woodie, it’s capable of hauling a tremendous amount of stuff inside or a trailer with its optional class III trailer hitch, and it’s just all-around big. On the outside, it looks like the Scion XB, the Nissan Cube, and the Kia Soul, but it’s at least twice as big as any of those.

The Flex comes with All Wheel Drive, which may be the single best safety feature to come along for cars in the last ten years. Traction control is nice, a dozen or more airbags are great, but the best safety comes when the accident or skid never even happens. I give Ford great credit for gifting the Flex with AWD.

Inside, the Flex is nicely put together - leather trimmed heated front seats, three rows of seating, and every modern convenience you could ask for. It’s got 2 sunroofs, zone climate controls, navigation, backup camera (another great safety item there), and it’s got Ford’s “SYNC” voice-activated control system. Of course, it also includes a hands-free phone system perfect for the growing number of states and cities that have limited cell phone use while driving.

Driving the Flex is also a nice experience. Let’s be clear, this is no little funky-cool urban box. It’s gigantic and made to haul the whole soccer team. But on a long highway trip, the Flex is comfortable for everyone (unlike Dad’s old ’71 Country Squire) and it gets 16/22 MPG out of its 3.5-liter V6. Not dazzling, but not bad considering the size and capability of the vehicle. Towing capacity is 4500 pounds - enough to pull a boat or a travel trailer with ease.

The base price on the Flex is $36,555, and with navigation, backup cam, tow package, two-tone paint, zone climate control - all the stuff you really want in a family wagon - the Flex prices out at  $43,820.  Though I’m betting your friendly local Ford dealer is making much better deals than that this summer.

The bottom line on the Ford Flex is that it’s a good choice if you need the functionality that families have needed for decades - to haul the people, the dog, the luggage, and the trailer to get where you’re going.