2010 Ford Flex

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The Flex is a beautiful crossover vehicle. It holds up to seven folks while fully loaded with technologies like voice activated communications and entertainment, plus available Active Park Assistance.

The engine that carries you and all those creative technologies is a 3.5L V6 6-speed. The Flex is also available with the 3.L EcoBoost V6 twin-turbocharged direct-injection engine allowing 350 ft-lb of torque. It is a V6, but delivers the power of a V8. The Flex with EcoBoost delivers about 16 mpg city and 22 mpg highway, which is 20 percent better than competitors with premium V-8 engines, yet there is still much room for improvement in fuel economy. The starting MSRP for the 2010 Flex is $28,495-$42,010.

I drove the wide-open glass above Flex that contrasted well with the standard Ambient lighting that brightened the front cup-holders, foot-wells, and second-row control center in any of the seven hues that fits your personality. Mellow yellow was my choice, and the Sony audio system with surround sound and Sony DSP processing made me “mellow” throughout the driving experience. This remarkable system uses the latest Dolby automotive entertainment program technology to bring you a sound venue like I have never experienced in another vehicle.

The system that I was the most interested in and curious about was the SYNC System. Now when it comes to technology, I am somewhere between the Jurassic Period and the time Neanderthals appeared on the plains of France. But Ford engineers helped to explain it to me. I’ll do my best to share that with you.

SYNC, when paired with a Bluetooth enabled phone or when you plug in a portable digital media player, makes for a wonderful experience. Once installed all I had to do was press a button on the steering wheel, speak my mind and follow the commands. I called home and talked to my wife about all this new “stuff” I was using and attempting to learn about.
 
After a few minutes of doing a poor job of explaining, she asked to speak to one of the system presenters. A few minutes later, he handed the phone back to me as my sweet wife explained all about the system, which included 911 assist, vehicle health report, up-to-the-minute weather, traffic alerts, and turn-by-turn directions. She hung up, but not before she informed me there would be a quiz on the SYNC System when I got home. I practiced for a while. I tried to get Texas Rangers Baseball, but got the weather report for Helsinki, Finland instead. I tried calling the wife back, but kept getting the emergency operator for Dearborn, Michigan. Long before the police arrived I managed to get out of the car, pretending to be just a part of the crowd. While this is mostly fabricated, the part about how easy it is to learn the system is true. Easy, that is, unless you are a Neanderthal. 

The 2010 Flex is equipped with all-wheel drive, leather trimmed seats, 20-inch bright painted aluminum wheels, six-speed SelectShift automatic transmission with Paddle Shift Activation, and has an available trailer tow package with standard trailer sway control.

One lady told me that the Flex looked like a box. And maybe it does. But it’s what’s in the box that makes it so great.

Durhl Caussey writes a car column read around the world. He may be reached at this newspaper or dcaussey@sbcglobal.net .