The big story from the 2007 New York Auto Show is the 2009 Ford Flex, and the everyone’s talking about how it looks: it’s a departure for Ford, and Ford’s design team wants to make an impact.
J Mays, Ford’s Group Vice President and Chief Creative Officer, sees the challenge in building a stylish crossover” “Imbuing a seven-passenger vehicle with some emotion a tall order,” he admits, “but The Ford Flex will stand out in a sea of people movers.”
Richard Gresens, Ford’s Chief Designer, NA Design, says that the Flex is a polarizing vehicle, and he likes it that way. “People either love it or they don’t, but it grows in you. A vanilla, ‘oh, it’s nice’ reaction from everyone would be disappointing! That’s not what you want when you take a risk.”
Both Gresens and Anthony Prozzi, Flex interior design manager, were inspired by an American classic. “We took apart the iconic American woody station wagon and modernized it, because this car is for a modern person.” Prozzi says. “We thought of taking the whole family to the beach and looking at the quiet horizon—that was the overall inspiration for the interior.”
J Mays and Mark Fields have said that the Flex is a “game changer” for Ford in the crossover segment, and a big reason for that is a bolder emphasis on design. Mays wants Ford Flex to be “a family vehicle that people really want to drive.”
Prozzi and Mays are on the same page. “Without design,” Prozzi says, “It’s game over.”
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On an unrelated note, I hope that Ford has found an alternative to that cheap-looking rubbery pebble-grain material used in the interiors of their cars for the past several years. That stuff is just awful.
Having driven imports for decades prior to picking up the Windstar (used) for my job; I've been more than impressed with the durablity of the vehicle *and* the low prices of the occasional replacement part.
This new Flex entry looks my Windstar's replacement..which I doubt will happen before it hits at least 300,000 miles (it's running fine now, and it looks presentable as well.)
-Doug Hageman
Thanks for the nice read, keep up the interesting posts..
I like the old navigator better then the newest one. The front heads light are ugly in exterior have too much chrome,
Ford should redesign the lincoln towncar for 2009, because if they don't GM might get futher then them
on the cadillac dts.
VOLVO HAS THE BEST CARS FOR MY FAMILY NOW AND THE SAD PART IT THEY ARE NOT MADE BY FORD MOTOR COMPANY EMPLOYEES
Kinda like the Five Hundred.
Don't get me wrong, I love some of what the Ford Motor Company has to offer (Mazda CX-9, Ford Mustang, F-150, Volvo(all), Mercury Mariner, Montego(Sable), etc.). I could go on a long time but for me my wife and my family you have taken away the vehicle we all loved, so now when my lease is up this September I have to look somewhere else. (“It’s game over.”) Bye.