Slow Sales and Early Retirement
The Freestar and Monterey were criticized for poor interior quality, large transmission and brake problems, and their overall lack of refinement compared to the competition. Sales of the Freestar in 2006 were down 20 percent from 2005, and its Mercury sibling, the Monterey, had seen sales slump 40 percent from 2005. The last Freestar rolled off the assembly line in Oakville on November 17, 2006.
When the Windstar was first introduced, it was a strong seller that had beat Chrysler to an aerodynamically styled minivan. While the styling had barely changed, the "all-new" (as Ford advertised) Freestar has several key improvements over the Windstar it replaced. While it used the same V-platform, which dates back to 1999, the 3.9/4.2 engines were upgrades over the Windstar's 3.8, and the transmission and driveline received much needed strengthening. Improvements to the driveline included larger wheel bearings, and heavier drive axles. Four-wheel disc brakes were also now standard. The 4F50N transmission received upgrades for improved shifting and reliability. All these changes were in addition to the front fascia, the dashboard/center console, and the rear portion of the floorpan.
The Freestar's main innovation, a fold-flat third row bench seat, had already been adopted by competitors, and it placed last in many reviews. It was no longer competitive as Japanese makes had finally adopted the layout and size of the class-defining Chrysler minivans, and its early retirement also contributed to Ford's financial problems, as they had also discontinued the Taurus, Thunderbird, Ford GT and renamed the Ford Five Hundred back to "Taurus", a name more familiar to the buying public, reversing the "F" naming strategy which had failed.
The Freestar used the code A5 in the 5th and 6th positions of the VIN.
For the 2009 model year, the Flex replaced the Freestar in the United States and Canada, while in Mexico, the Ford Transit replaced it. In Mexico, the Transit is still sold alongside the E-Series.
Ford announced its return to the minivan market with the 2010 Transit Connect, a compact MPV but marketed as a delivery rather than a family passenger van. General Motors replaced Ford as the only American automaker with no minivans after the 2009 model year in the United States & Canada, although Ford had only two years of no minivans in the United States & Canada. Ford plans to sell the Ford C-Max in the United States starting in 2011, making it the first time they have sold an MPV meant for non-fleet use since the Freestar.
Read more about this topic: Ford Freestar
Famous quotes containing the words slow, sales, early and/or retirement:
“Lords and Commoners of England, consider what nation it is whereof ye are, and whereof ye are the governors; a nation not slow and dull, but of a quick, ingenious and piercing spirit, acute to invent, subtle and sinewy to discourse, not beneath the reach of any point the highest that human capacity can soar to.”
—John Milton (1608–1674)
“Make friends with the angels, who though invisible are always with you.... Often invoke them, constantly praise them, and make good use of their help and assistance in all your temporal and spiritual affairs.”
—St. Francis De Sales (1567–1622)
“In early days, I tried not to give librarians any trouble, which was where I made my primary mistake. Librarians like to be given trouble; they exist for it, they are geared to it. For the location of a mislaid volume, an uncatalogued item, your good librarian has a ferret’s nose. Give her a scent and she jumps the leash, her eye bright with battle.”
—Catherine Drinker Bowen (1897–1973)
“He who comes into Assemblies only to gratifie his Curiosity, and not to make a Figure, enjoys the Pleasures of Retirement in a[n] ...exquisite Degree.”
—Richard Steele (1672–1729)