Towing with a Ford Flex

As the title says.... do any of you tow with one? How much weight do you think your pulling, and is it AWD or FWD?
Thanks

Fords websited says 4500 lbs with class III hitch. Didn't see a differentiation between AWD & FWD.

I like the Flex but the Traverse and Acadia are rated slightly higher for pulling. About 5,200 lbs.

I think they get about the same mileage too. The Flex or Acadia will be my wife's next car.

If I was choosing between the Flex or Acadia, and ONLY those two...I'd go with the Flex. It looks like a station wagon that has been updated for the 21st century and almost leaves folks wondering if it really is FWD. I also like that it is one of the few vehicles you can get from the factory with a two-tone paint treatment....just not sure about that HUGE metal panel on the tailgate.

I half expect to see a Flex "re-modelled" to resemble that famous car The Family Truckster.

In reply to integraguy:

I have seen a Flex "woody" before on the road. It was red though. I thought it looked good.

integraguy wrote: If I was choosing between the Flex or Acadia, and ONLY those two...I'd go with the Flex. It looks like a station wagon that has been updated for the 21st century and almost leaves folks wondering if it really is FWD. I also like that it is one of the few vehicles you can get from the factory with a two-tone paint treatment....

This is why I like it. My wife's car is a Scion Xb, so we like square things !

I loved the Flex when shopping, but with all bells and whistles they are $55,000+. Even base models are not cheap, but then, my idea of affordable seems to be about $10K less than what is now considered a bargain. Still, a used Flex with EcoBoost is the top of my list in a few years.

I've seen a couple listed for $19 to $20 K locally. 40-50,000 miles. I assume they're the more basic models. Both were listed as FWD. The AWD ones are$26K and up.

I think there are a number of Flexes in the current Hertz rental fleet. This is the type of vehicle that I might consider buying as former rental. If you can find one year old models with about 20k miles on them they are typically rental vehicles. If they are about 1 year old with less that 10k miles they are typically rental cars that have gotten into accidents. Places like Hertz often will sell damaged car before repairing them rather then have them out of service (and not gernerating revenue) while sitting in the repair shop. Especially on new models that have longer wait times for replacement parts.

DeadSkunk wrote: As the title says.... do any of you tow with one? How much weight do you think your pulling, and is it AWD or FWD? Thanks

I tow with it's cousin, the Edge, FWD, and the total package is 3500lb. No issues.

Which Flex were you thinking of?

As for a former rental- I'd never do that, regardless of the car. They don't change oil, just keep adding it. Rentals are generally treated like total garbage. I sometimes wonder if some of the bad rap we got over years were based on issues of former rental cars, which were very high numbers of.....

Eric, I haven't looked at any to see the differences. I've assumed (probably shouldn't do that) that they all have the same engine, and differences are the number of driven wheels and trim levels. What else should I be looking for? FWIW, my trailer,tire rack, and an IT car/Miata would probably be 4000-4500lb.

In reply to integraguy:

I sorta like the styling of the Flex, because it is a bit different than other SUV type vehicles, but the reason I think it is two toned and box like is because it is designed to look like a 1.5x scale MINI. The way things are going over at BMW with their MINI line, in a few years a MINI and a Flex will be indistinguishable.

I like the look of the Edge as well. Why does Ford make so many models that to me seem to compete with each other? Flex, Edge, Explorer, Excursion, that Taurus based thing. I really don't get it, but other automakers do the same thing. Of course other than towing, I'm one who sees no reason to ever buy/own an SUV like these in the first place. 95% of the people driving SUV's should be driving Minivans or station wagons IMHO.

I wash cars part time and all I can say is the Traverse is huge, just a monster on the outside. At my other job we have a ford flex as a company vehicle so to speak, just a very nice vehicle, very enjoyable, comfortable and roomy, I'd probably go with the flex if I had a choice.

DeadSkunk wrote: Eric, I haven't looked at any to see the differences. I've assumed (probably shouldn't do that) that they all have the same engine, and differences are the number of driven wheels and trim levels. What else should I be looking for? FWIW, my trailer,tire rack, and an IT car/Miata would probably be 4000-4500lb.

Yea, they are the same powertrain. The only exception is if you find a turbo DI aka EcoBoost Flex. Instead of 265hp, you get 350hp. But since the cooling pacakge is the same, the tow rating is still only 4500lb.

The only important trim package is the tow package- that gets you just a little more cooling (the actual important part in tow ratings) as well as the hitch (and maybe a trailer brake connector). Trim wise, I would try to find the one you like the most- Limited being the most loaded, SE being the least. I personally like the leather seats, as well as the nav system. But that's not for everybody, I know.

I really like the Flexes I had to work with.

T.J. wrote: In reply to integraguy: I like the look of the Edge as well. Why does Ford make so many models that to me seem to compete with each other? Flex, Edge, Explorer, Excursion, that Taurus based thing. I really don't get it, but other automakers do the same thing. Of course other than towing, I'm one who sees no reason to ever buy/own an SUV like these in the first place. 95% of the people driving SUV's should be driving Minivans or station wagons IMHO.

Because they don't actually compete with each other. Oh, and the TuarusX/Freestyle was out of production for a year before the Explorer came out.

So the only CUV/SUV's are the Edge, Flex, and Explorer (as well as L MKX and MKT's). Excursion is a truck, and has been out of production for a long time. Expedition is based off of an Fseries truck.

Size and layouts differentiate the customers pretty well.

So, there are currently 6 FoMoCo SUV type vehicles. Edge, Flex, Explorer, MKX, MKT and a truck based Expedition. Just seems like a lot to me, but I guess Ford knows what they are doing as they make money and don't ask for bailouts. I guess a fan of SUVs might try to say there is not enough difference between the Fiesta and the Focus to matter, but too bad they don't make 6 versions of small cars and 2 versions of SUVs.

T.J., go over to a Toyota dealer and count small cars and SUVs. By my definitions 1 small car (Yaris) and 6 or 7 SUVs. It's a common problem, but maybe we're seeing the dawn of a new small car revolution. Seems most compnanies are bringing out something small that interests me.Nissan and Honda/Acura need to take note.

T.J. wrote: So, there are currently 6 FoMoCo SUV type vehicles. Edge, Flex, Explorer, MKX, MKT and a truck based Expedition. Just seems like a lot to me, but I guess Ford knows what they are doing as they make money and don't ask for bailouts. I guess a fan of SUVs might try to say there is not enough difference between the Fiesta and the Focus to matter, but too bad they don't make 6 versions of small cars and 2 versions of SUVs.

Considering June sales were 68.5k cars vs. 47.8k utilities, there's plenty of market for both.

And of the cars that all share the same platform: Explorer 10.4k Edge 9.6k Taurus 6.7k Flex 2.3k

So in terms of large vehicles, Crossovers and SUV's rule.

To make you feel better, the new focus sold 21.3k in June, leading all cars, trailing the Escape and F series overall. (on the flip side, we only sold 5.5k Fiestas, being outsold by 3/4 large vehicles, so while you want a small car, well....)

They sure do seem to pump out a lot of Escapes per month. I notice at my local ford dealer around the corner from my house that they seem to regularly have more Escapes on the lot than the other vehicles.

alfadriver wrote: (on the flip side, we only sold 5.5k Fiestas, being outsold by 3/4 large vehicles, so while you want a small car, well....)

Doesn't the new Focus basically get the same gas mileage as the Fiesta? I actually just answered my own question by looking at fueleconomy.gov, yes, the Fiesta gets 1mpg in the city cycle or highway cycle than the Focus.

Uh, I know which one I'd go with. More power, more room, basically, everything about the Focus is probably better than the Fiesta, AND it appears to get the same gas mileage. How that translates into real world I have no idea.

In reply to DeadSkunk:

I didn't list all the various Toyota SUVs because I've given up hope in Toyota. Ford on the other hand may someday build a car I want to buy. I also knew Eric was here to answer with some hard data and as far as I know there is no one else here to speak for the other manufacturers. I only picked on Ford here because I think they are on the right track in a lot of ways. (The only other company I put in the running is Korean).

I realize that they will build whatever they can make the most money from selling so if the public will buy all sorts of SUVs they really have no choice but to build them or lose out on sales.

In reply to HiTempguy and alfadriver:

I think the new Focus looks good. Only looked a few on the lot, but they seem like a decent car. I think I'd buy one over the Fiesta.

In reply to T.J.:

I'd rather have a Miata than either.

That's actually my choice of 3- the new ND (if it ever comes), a Fiesta, or a Focus. And when push comes to shove, I prefer the Fiesta since it's smaller (my first real car was a CRX HF).

A friend told me she's getting 45 with her Fiesta on the highway. These decisions are hard.

But, thought all of my preferences, as much as I wanted a Miata based Mercury, and now Lincoln, I have to understand that my personal market isn't big enough to really go after. So it's not as if I don't get what this board wants- that's for sure.

And I have to hope my '99 Miata lasts until I can even make that choice.

DeadSkunk wrote: As the title says.... do any of you tow with one? How much weight do you think your pulling, and is it AWD or FWD? Thanks

I have a AWD Ecoboost Flex and occasionally tow ~3500 lb with it - no issues at all.

Thanks eastpark, that's what I was waiting to hear.