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Found 2 results

  1. OK, 1200 miles or so on my van now. My opinion? In spite of a few issues that are less-than-ideal, I have no regrets. Actually, I love this thing! In other threads I talk about some mods I've made, and there will probably be others. But so far.... The Good: The pleasant driving characteristics. In an online review the driver said this vehicle felt a bit top heavy. Really? Have you ever driven a pick-up? This thing feels like a sports car to me after my last 3 Nissan 2WD 4-cyl. Frontiers. I whip around corners and on-ramps at speed (no cargo). It feels like a go cart. Once you learn where the back axle is located (so you can avoid dragging the rear wheels up over curbs when cornering) you can shoehorn this tight-turning bug into just about any space that's wide enough to contain it. You feel like you can execute 90 degree turns from a standstill. And I never would have imagined that a tiny-screened back-up camera would have had much real-world usefulness, but once you learn how to use it, and begin trusting it, you can back out of parking spots with confidence. The doors! Oh the doors! Doors everywhere. You don't even have to bend over to place or remove common cargo like groceries. And you will be the envy of many who watch as you pull open one of the sliders in a tight parking lot, while they are manhandling their massive hinged doors to avoid crashing into the vehicle next to them. Never before have I felt like I was showing off just by opening a door! It also reveals it's commercial intent every time you open the door and just stand up to exit. There's no denying the massive view...you feel like you've booked a tour on a Rocky Mountain Vista-Liner! (you WILL pay for it when you try to clean the inside windshield). I also like to drive around town with both front windows down. It's surprisingly pleasant until you get up near 50 MPH. The sliding Sun visors. Yes, I didn't know they did it in the first week. I was accustomed to a slide-out tab in my Frontiers. I thought the visors just swung over. One morning I was driving with the early Sun coming into the driver's side and was shielding my eyes with my hand. I was imagining how I was going to have to live with this shortcoming and I reached up and grabbed the visor, accompanied with the thought, "If only these things would slide back..........." tugging at it at that moment. It was like my thoughts had manifested in reality. The visor slide back to the rear and blocked out the Sun! For the next mile I laughed at how ignorant I was, and how I had just been saved from a life of annoyance and discomfort. Watch out though. There are those who have whacked themselves in the head with these huge paddles, and those who are going to whack themselves in the head with them. For a man...having that massive cargo area behind the front seats is akin to a woman toting around a massive Prada handbag. You can put just about everything you can think of in it (I'm using it like a pickup, not as a commercial vehicle). The tiny digital readout panel above the gauges and speedometer. At first you think it's an inane idea that is silly and necessary. Then you discover that it's really hard to see the actual steam gauge speedo except at night when the lights are on, and you really do need it. You think it was an afterthought to remedy the poorly readable steam gauges. Then you begin to realize that reading your speed off the digital readout is actually quicker and better than a dial and you begin to prefer it. The Bad: The bare-boned interior does leave much to be desired in terms of both climate control and road noise. Without question, I feel it's the biggest price to pay. It can be ameliorated to some degree, but not with ease, and at some cost. The noise from rough surfaces can be pretty intrusive. I HAVE forgotten about my wife's rude comments about having bought a hearse...or HALF a truck. I now imagine I'm driving around in one of the Enterprise's shuttle craft. I HAVE been heard to say that I now have the capacity to not only deliver bodies to the funeral parlor - I also have space to deliver the flowers too. The unfortunate lack of rear ventilation, sometimes forcing use of the AC when you wouldn't need it otherwise. Some sort of simple exhaust vent in the rear could at least offer some flow-through air movement when on the move, even when parked, but I have not found a minimal and aerodynamic solution I could accept, that doesn't look and act like a camper accessory. Ford really dropped the ball by not fitting opening second row windows. The unfortunate Sync system. But what would you expect from Microsoft, who developed it? It's voice control works half the time due to background noise interference, or inability to distinguish your speech. The menu system is unintuitive and sometimes lacking in it's ability to utilize the features of your phone. Bluetooth and hard-wired connectivity is actually very good, but I cannot get the Bluetooth system to connect to any Bluetooth equipped device except my iPhone. It refuses to recognize a Bluetooth-equipped Nano for example. All-in-all the shortcomings in this vehicle are acceptable for the daily driver if you recognize that it's really built for commerce. If you like the utility of a pickup and are willing to accept a lesser comfort and trim level, you might find this van to be surprisingly capable, and in many respects a much more convenient universal hauler.
  2. 2800 miles in. Have been enjoying my van. Hauling capability is every guy's dream. At least two other people I know want one after seeing mine. Mileage is good. Very pleasant to drive, with excellent handling, even in strong crosswinds. Because of the streamlined shape and the steering geometry buffeting is minimal, and is far steadier than a 2016 Nissan Altima rental car I have recently driven in high winds. With all the doors for loading, it's versatility is amazing. I'm the envy of many in crowded parking lots. The turn radius is so small I can park in places my Nissan pickups regularly passed up. I can literally swing it 90 degrees into a small slot. The grand view spoils a ride in anything else. Bad stuff? unfortunately. The Sync system is tragic, often failing to understand simple responses like "yes." I have had the complete system fail, leaving only the radio operational. Five vehicle restarts were necessary over a period of an hour or so to get it to boot up again. Then there's the rattling sliding door on the drivers side. The noise presents right beside my head and is quite loud. Perfectly mimics the sound a window rattling in the frame of an old car. The dealer I bought it from was unable to fix it, claiming I would just have to live with it, "BECAUSE IT WAS A VAN." Really? Is this what they mean by "Ford Tough?" While they had it in their possession they discovered that daylight was showing at the bottom rear of both sliders, and a wiring harness going to the backup lights had been pinched by structures within the mid-line channel which the sliding doors move in. I had no backup lights and was unaware as I drive very little at night. Frustrated that the dealer tried to put me off about the door issue, I contacted Corporate. They suggested a second opinion. I took the van to a dealership five times the size of the one I purchased from, a hundred miles away. A week later I am still renting a car, do not have my van for work, and get daily calls from the service department telling me they haven't been able to fix it yet. I now believe I know as much about it as they do, and am wondering If I will get stuck with this lemon or if there is a way to demand a replacement vehicle, which I'm sure must be a nightmare procedure. So here I am, This may be the most versatile, all-around-useful, and interesting vehicle I have ever owned, It's Everyman's dream truck.....and mechanically it's junk. Even certified Ford mechanics can't fix it. I am now deeply regretting my decision to buy my first new American vehicle. As things presently stand, I will be trading off this sled relatively soon and going back to the imports. Maybe you'll have better luck, but at this point I wouldn't recommend one.
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