Overview & Reviews

With its Freestar, Ford learned the hard way that in the world of automobiles, there are few segments more cutthroat than the minivan category. Moms have ruthlessly high standards when it comes to their family transportation, and only those haulers with the most compelling mix of refinement, convenience features and luxury amenities survive. The Ford Freestar's sales had been disappointing from the outset, and as a result, 2007 was its last year of production. Crossovers, Ford believes, are the future of family transportation.

Ford's minivan wasn't completely without merit. Safety is an important factor in minivans, and in this area, the Freestar didn't come up short. It earned a perfect five stars in NHTSA frontal crash tests, and mothers and their pint-sized soccer stars were protected with features like standard stability control and optional side curtain airbags. Unfortunately, its success in this area paled in the face of its litany of shortcomings, which included sluggish acceleration, dismal fuel economy, ungainly handling and an unimpressive cabin.

For these reasons, savvy used minivan shoppers will find the Ford Freestar a relatively unsatisfactory proposition. If you're looking for a minivan, you'll no doubt find your needs better served by one of its competitors.

Most Recent Ford Freestar

The Ford Freestar was a seven-passenger minivan. Three trim levels were offered: SE, SEL and Limited. The Freestar could also be had in a cargo van body style, making it ideal for contractors needing a light-duty hauler.

The base SE trim was reasonably well equipped, with air-conditioning, full power accessories, a CD player and keyless entry all standard. The SEL added tri-zone air-conditioning, a power driver seat and second-row captain's chairs. The top-of-the-line Limited included upgrades such as chrome wheels, leather upholstery and automatic climate control.

Two engines were offered. A 3.9-liter V6 for the SE provided 193 horsepower and 240 pound-feet of torque. The SEL and Limited trims got a 4.2-liter V6 that generated 201 hp and 263 lb-ft of torque. Neither engine was especially frugal, turning in real-world fuel economy numbers that were among the poorest in the segment.

At first blush, the Freestar's cabin seemed like a winner. But a closer look revealed shortcomings. Materials looked nice but to the touch became apparent as subpar for the segment. The legroom in the second row was cramped. The lack of versatility didn't help either. Those second-row seats were heavy and tough to remove. And though the third-row seat folded flat, it didn't offer a 60/40 split like virtually all others in its class. At 135.7 cubes, cargo capacity fell short relative to others in the segment.

In editorial reviews, the Ford Freestar earned praise for having reasonable around-town power and a forgiving ride. The engines didn't fare as well when pushed, though, as they ran out of breath when quick passing was attempted. Performance was exacerbated by the van's aged four-speed automatic transmission -- most competitors used more advanced five-speed units. Also, the engines had a rougher, noisier power delivery than nearly any other V6 in the minivan segment. In consumer ratings, the Freestar was panned for its poor ride quality and dismal fuel economy.

Past Ford Freestar models

Ford introduced the Freestar back in model-year 2004 to replace the aged Windstar, which was sold from 1995-2003. Although Ford touted it as an all-new vehicle, the Freestar minivan was little more than a rebadged Windstar with minor upgrades, including a freshened interior equipped with a fold-flat third-row seat. A pair of more powerful V6 engines replaced the Windstar's 3.8-liter V6. Unfortunately, Ford's minivan put on weight during the transition, so even with the larger of the V6s, it was no faster than before and slightly less fuel-efficient to boot. This made the Freestar about as appealing as, well, the Windstar. Straight off the bat, it was trampled by the competition, both import and domestic, and Ford did little to rectify the situation.

The Freestar remained pretty much unchanged for its production duration, so buyers shopping for one on the used market will find few differences between the model years.

User Reviews:

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  EXCELLENT VEHICLE - 2005 Ford Freestar
  By MAURICE - September 11 - 2:00 am

  EXCELLENT VEHICLE..COMFORTABLE, ROOMY AND AFFORDABLE

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  great car - 2005 Ford Freestar
  By bjankowski3 - August 3 - 2:00 am

  its just the best

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  Front end problems - 2005 Ford Freestar
  By truered - July 31 - 2:00 am

  The van overall is nice and very roomy... But, there is a problem with the front ends with these vheicles... It is almost like they just trew them together....

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  great value - 2006 Ford Freestar
  By Len Amato - March 5 - 11:48 am

  I believe the Freestar is underrated. This van is a workhorse. People hauler and item hauler love it.

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  One for the road - 2004 Ford Freestar
  By saftey - January 13 - 10:00 am

  The van has exception safety feature and i have frist hand expirecne. I was amazed at how well it protected my family.

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  My Freestar - 2004 Ford Freestar
  By GrmaSugr - December 1 - 2:00 am

  I love my Ford Freestar, so far. Have only had it for about 2 months..so far, it is great...

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  Freestar SE... give me back my windstar! - 2004 Ford Freestar
  By ThunderBay - October 25 - 2:00 am

  The seating arangements in this van are terrible. Dont buy it if you have more than two kids. The middle seats dont move fore/aft. The rear seat is only fit for small kids. Also you will never get 6 adults in this van. The rear seat folds up with great ease, but it would have been cheaper to just leave it out altogether. It is useless for anyone over 4 feet tall. This is basically a 4 passenger vehicle. Test drive this one for at least a couple of hours to make sure it works for you... beware!!!

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  Awesome Van ! - 2004 Ford Freestar
  By clare - October 19 - 2:00 am

  I love this van !! This is my 3rd Windstar/Freestar and I wouldnt drive anything else! It has lots of room, its great looking and my dealer takes care of everything I need.

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  Sad to see it go - 2006 Ford Freestar
  By Erin - July 10 - 1:30 am

  The 2006 Freestar is the best vehicle Ive owned. It was my first "real" car purchase (my first one that cost over $4k) at a time that I had young kids and Scouts to haul frequently. It was a program car with about 28k miles on it when I bought it. I got the Ford Certified warranty with it, which I later used to repair a bad wheel bearing. Other than the wheel bearing, Ive had NO problems with this car. Ive only replaced tires, brakes and plugs & wires (as prevention at 75k miles). Unfortunately, with only 92k miles on it, Im faced with having to let it go. Its begun to get some rust on the inside bottoms of the doors, which will soon come through to the front. (We live in North Dakota, and deal with salt and other melting solvents on the roads). The bigger concern, though, is that the drivers side wheel well is rusting out, which has loosened the panel that holds the ring that the third-row seat clips to inside. The ring moves, and Im certain that if I had anyone in the back row in an accident, the seat could pull loose, flipping them backwards and creating head and neck injuries or worse. Id hoped to keep the van for a few more years, and we may still -- but well have to use it as a 4-seat vehicle, instead of 7. And if we pass it down to our teenagers, we may remove the third row to eliminate the temptation of cramming friends in the unsafe third row. Ive loved having the extra space that the third row has allowed by folding flat, and how the second row bucket seats tip forward for extra cargo room. And I especially loved having that space without paying the extra $10k for Stow-n-Go in a Caravan. Mine had the leather seats -- and the drivers seat has worn quite a bit over the years. Overall, its been a great vehicle with nearly no problems. Just wish the body had held out longer. UPDATE: Shortly after posting my review, I found out there was a recall on my van -- just not on MY van. I wasnt in a state included in the recall for the rusting wheel well -- but I live 1 mile from the border of a state that was included. I called Ford and they agreed to have it checked out by the local dealer and within a few hours, Ford had agreed to replace the wheel well and it was in great shape again. Safe to use the third row seat again! There is still a bit of rust forming, but Im in N.D., with a lot of snow and salt on the roads, so its understandable. I now have about 98,000 miles on the van and its still running great, so I hope to get several more years out of it.

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  surprised - 2004 Ford Freestar
  By notavanman - June 12 - 2:00 am

  Shopped toyota and nissan, but the freestar had superior features, safety and price. suprised how much i like this van. this is my first ford but not my last.