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The endless stretch of straight highway and characterless scenery made for a boring drive. It wasn’t helped by the Freestar’s well-weighted, but vague steering. Still, I give Ford some credit for minimizing drag resistance and intrusive noise. However, I couldn’t say the same with the Freestar’s ride. Despite it’s rather large profile 70-series tires, it chopped its way through road joints and several ruts, thanks mainly to the Freestar’s solid beam rear axle. Still, it performed reasonably well absorbing most major bumps with minimal fuss. After four hours of continuous characterless scenery, I was greeted by large neon ‘Welcome to Chicago’ signs that wouldn’t look out of place in Dick Tracy. After paying road toll to an attendant who looked like a McDonald’s take-out clerk, I pushed to the downtown area. Here, the Freestar’s ability as a city car really shone. It’s right size and quick steering made it easy to slice through traffic. The excellent visibility and SUV-like ride height are great bonuses. On the flipside, despite more than 400 miles on the highway and just 30 odd ones in Chicago’s city streets, the Freestar managed a measly 7.69 km/l--a figure that could have environmental activists chain up the car. Now, to the main question: will the Ford Freestar do well here if offered? With the emergence of luxury minivans, the answer maybe a yes. If the success of the Chevorlet Venture and Toyota Previa if any indication, Ford might as well put the Freestar in this frey. With the blue oval’s reputation of offering luxury family automobiles as well as the Freestar’s unparalleled safety, good on-road ability, clean looks and excellent interior, it may mean a good chunk of the minivan market here. ● |
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