In late 2004 the Ford Motor Company introduced the 2005 model of the Ford Freestyle, which is a crossover SUV. The Freestyle fits into the Ford SUV lineup well because it falls between the smaller
Escape and the midsize
Explorer. Assembled in the Chicago, Illinois plant the Freestyle uses the Ford D3 platform that is shared with the
Ford Five Hundred, Mercury Montego, as well as the
Volvo XC90. Attractive to a wide variety of consumers, the Freestyle offers three rows of seats with room for seven. Ford names its passenger cars with names starting with the letter F, which means the company consider the Freestyle more of a passenger car than a truck, which typically means a more comfortable ride.
The Freestyle is one of the first American Ford vehicles to use a continuously variable transmission. A surprising number of Freestyle buyers are choosing to equip their Freestyle with all wheel drive. While sales of the Freestyle are increasing every month, it has not done as well as Ford originally predicted it would do. To help boost sales, Ford has given the Freestyle a makeover for the 2006 model, though many speculate the 2006 or 2007 model will be the last year for the Freestyle since Ford has two crossovers in their current lineup.
