Talk to me about the Freestar

stayinhomewithmy6

Senior Community Member

• Mar 5, 2008

• #1

We are (used) minivan shopping right now and are looking specifically at Ford Freestars ('04). Who has one and how do you like it? We were originally looking at Ventures, but the crash tests are so scary that we have moved on to Freestars. I'd love to hear specifically about car seat related issues - which seats do you use in which location? If you have a Radian, does it install easily? How many positions have top tethers? Have you found any seats that were impossible to install? And, I'd also love to hear about ANY other good or bad things you have to say about the Freestar. TIA!

 

keri1292

Well-known member

• Mar 5, 2008

• #2

If it's anything like our '99 Windstar, it's a dream for carseats. We don't have LATCH, but I think yours will have 4 LATCH positions. We have top tethers for every seating positions and all but 1 seat (middle back) has headrests and shoulder/lap belts. :thumbsup: We really love it. We expect to replace it with a Freestar next Spring.
I'll be checking the replies here too. I hope it's as good as or better than our 99 for carseats!

 

stayinhomewithmy6

Senior Community Member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #3

keri1292 said:

If it's anything like our '99 Windstar, it's a dream for carseats. We don't have LATCH, but I think yours will have 4 LATCH positions. We have top tethers for every seating positions and all but 1 seat (middle back) has headrests and shoulder/lap belts. :thumbsup: We really love it. We expect to replace it with a Freestar next Spring.
I'll be checking the replies here too. I hope it's as good as or better than our 99 for carseats!

Click to expand...

Thanks! I will be SO SO very happy if it has 4 LATCH positions and tethers in all positions! That would be awesome! We have a '96 Windstar now and it is very easy to install seats in, but it doesn't have headrests at all in the back, which is a headache. I never even let adults ride with us in the back because there are no headrests, so they all think I'm crazy. If no one else replies here, I'll post back to let you know how we like the Freestar when we get it!

 

M

Mattypies

New member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #4

I had an 04 Freestar. It has shoulder belts and headrests in all positions. Mine had captians chairs in the middle so I had two latch positions there but the back bench only has latch in the middle seating position. So 3 latch with tethers in total not 4.

The rear bench stows away beautifully. Car seats installed great. I have had a MA, regent and a million boosters installed. I have gotten 3 across on the back bench. Overall not a bad van. I would definately choose it over a chevy based on safety ratings alone and I would not buy a dodge with gen 3 seat belts.

HTH,

Heather

 

ZephyrBlue

New member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #5

Not sure if this helps, but we just recently bought DH a used 02 Freestar SEL and it has 4 LATCH positions and 5 top tether points!! My 05 Grand Caravan SXT with Stow N Go is my favorite of the 2, but I haven't had any trouble installing any seats in the Windstar, and LOVE all of the tether spots. The headrests are a problem, but I pull them off, just like I do in my GC.

 

M

Mattypies

New member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #6

The Freestar and the Windstar are 2 different model vehicles. I believe, but could be wrong, that 04 was the first year for the Freestar. The Freestar replaced the Windstar. The Windstar did have more tether anchors, no fold flat seats and did not have a headrest in the middle rear bench and only had a lap belt in that seating position.

HTH,

Heather

 

Nisha

New member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #7

Honestly, if I had the choice, I'd choose the '03 Windstar over the '04 Freestar. We have a '00 Windstar SEL and I LOVE it. LATCH in 4 positions and tether anchors in 5, outboard (4) headrest and outboard lap/shoulder belts (bucket seats in middle row).
We drove a '05 Freestar for a few weeks while our windstar was in the shop (because of an accident) and it felt SO cheap compared to our windstar. I've installed car seats in every seating position, and have had no problems.
JMHO!

 

stayinhomewithmy6

Senior Community Member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #8

Nisha said:

Honestly, if I had the choice, I'd choose the '03 Windstar over the '04 Freestar. We have a '00 Windstar SEL and I LOVE it. LATCH in 4 positions and tether anchors in 5, outboard (4) headrest and outboard lap/shoulder belts (bucket seats in middle row).
We drove a '05 Freestar for a few weeks while our windstar was in the shop (because of an accident) and it felt SO cheap compared to our windstar. I've installed car seats in every seating position, and have had no problems.
JMHO!

Click to expand...

Thanks for your input. I am very concerned about tether anchors, actually. We have 3 seats needing tether anchors right now and do expect to have this van long enough to need at least 4 tether anchors, unless we were to move DS1 into a booster by the time baby #4 is FF, which won't be for probably 3 yrs and DS1 will be 9 1/2 by then, so I suppose that might be doable. I have just always pictured him in a Regent until he is 12! LOL! Is there any way to add tether anchors to seating positions that don't have them? I suppose this is the wrong forum to be asking about that.

 

An Aurora

Senior Community Member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #9

OP, can you link to crash information about the Venture?

 

stayinhomewithmy6

Senior Community Member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #10

Sure! I really had my heart set on a Chevy Venture or a Pontiac Montana because I really really wanted to be able to fit 6 car seats in the back. We can fit 5 in the back of our Windstar now and some days it's not enough! My grandpa even had a Montana that he was going to sell us for a good deal, but I just can't do it now. Luckily DH isn't arguing with me. He's a little disappointed that we won't be getting the good deal from Gramps, but he knows it's not worth arguing with me over it.

Here's a recent thread about it:
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=36986

Here is the risk score from Informed For Life (look down at the bottom of the blue section "risk category for this vehicle":
http://www.informedforlife.org/getscore.php
compared with the risk score for the Freestar:
http://www.informedforlife.org/getscore.php
and the even better Odyssey:
http://www.informedforlife.org/getscore.php

IIHS Crash test info:
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/rating.aspx?id=67

Crash test video from IIHS testing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k01OWycYTig&feature=related

 

BudgieStew

New member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #11

We owned a 2004 very briefly...like 4 months and I cannot recall much about it at all. Sorry.
I know I had a RF Eddie Bauer and then switched it FF during the few months we had it. I can't recall any problems.

We currently own a 2007 and I love it. I love the remote controlled doors and hatch.
Our second row is two bucket seats...you go to the back through the center. The third row is smallish.
We have three latch and three tethers..two in the second row and one center of third row.
I have a FF Radian and a RF Marathon in the bucket seats.
Both installed with LATCH and even though the seats are leather the seats installed super easy.

There are lap\shoulder belts in all seating positions as well as headrests. Third row folds easy.

It has the typical plastic feel interior that almost all Fords have though but hey it meets our needs.


Do you need pictures? I am willing and able to go snap some right now.

 

Kecia

Admin - CPST Instructor

• Mar 6, 2008

• #12

I'm short on time and didn't read the previous replies but I have an '05 Freestar Limited so I wanted to comment briefly. My model has the 4.2L engine, ESC (Advance Trac) and side curtain ABs (Safety Canopy system). I have captains chairs in the middle row. There are only 3 sets of LATCH. Additional TAs cannot be added so if you need or want TAs in the 3rd row outboard positions, go with a Windstar instead.

I'm happy with my van but only because I have 2 kids. If I had more than 2, I would probably hate it. The 3rd row is narrow, very low to the floor and the seat belt in the center of the 3rd row is practically useless (for occupant protection as well as car seat installs). The only thing that 3rd row center position is good for, is installing a car seat with Latch. Adults or large teenagers would not be comfortable in the 3rd row. It's really better suited for kids under 13.

There are a lot of things that I do like about my van, but the best thing I can say about the 3rd row is that it folds flat and there is a ton of cargo room if you fold it away.

Kecia

 

An Aurora

Senior Community Member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #13

Thank you for the links! Unfortunately we are stuck with this van until we pay it off, which should be within the year. I am 100% positive that it is safer than my old car that used as a trade-in, but wow it's scary that it performed so poorly.

ETA: Holy crap I just watched the video and I want to go throw up now

ETA again: Wow my next van will be an Ody. I just watched their 40mph crash test and the difference is amazing.

 

Victorious4

Senior Community Member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #14

I owned a 2005 Freestar. Ditto Kecia about the TA info. Only 2 or 3 lower LATCH anchor sets could be used at a time in my Freestar. 1 in the 3rd row, 2 in the middle row. I had a middle row bench, though, that allowed me to use the inner hooks for a center install (thus rendering both outboard seats useless even for seatbelt because it doesn't technically have a center seat for the middle row -- only possible when using LATCH as I've described). I would have prefered an Ody or Sienna or even a Sedona, but could only get a Ford to replace my Ford.

Forgot to add that I could only tether an RF seat in the middle row on the passenger side: there was no where to use D-ring on the driver side (front passenger seat had a built-in TA underneath). In the 3rd row, I could tether 2 seats RF so long as the anchors weren't used by the middle row occupants (tethering RF isn't as important as tethering FF, though)

 

Last edited: Mar 6, 2008

A

andbabiesmake4

New member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #15

We had on 05 for about 6 months and I really did love it (DH hated having a van, that's why we got rid of it...)

The sto & go back row is so awesome... I had a FF MA and a RF MA (and also in the very beginning a snugride) and all of them installed great. I had my friend's AO in the centre of the 3rd row and it was ok too. The back row does leave a lot to be desired.. If I were on a road trip with adults they would definately get uncomfortable back there... But you can always put the carseats back there & adults in the captain chairs.

It drove like a dream & I really did love it... pretty bad on gas though.. our 07 F150 gets the same fuel mileage.

 

stayinhomewithmy6

Senior Community Member

• Mar 6, 2008

• #16

Thanks for all of your replies! You've all been very helpful. For those of you who asked, I don't need pictures because we'll probably be going to look at some this weekend, but thanks anyway! We're also going to look at some older (probably '01) Odysseys or Siennas. Why is it that no one ever talks about Siennas? Are they not as good, safety-wise, as the Odyssey and others? Or is there another reason? DH is curious about this too. We've owned several Toyota cars and have always been happy with them, so we're curious why the Sienna isn't as popular as some of the other minivans out there. We might also look at a Sedona if we can find an '03 in our price range. There is a difference in the crash ratings of Sedonas between the '03 and the '04 models (according to Informed for Life) with the '03's performing better. Did they actually change them then? IIHS has the Sedonas from '02-'05 listed as 'average', so Informed for Life must be getting some of that from NHTSA? Sorry for all the questions. This is the first time that I've ever really researched a vehicle for safety before purchasing it. Now, it has become so important to me that I want to make sure I know all that I can!

 

AdventureMom

Senior Community Member

• Mar 8, 2008

• #17

Alright. Now I just watched a dozen or so crash test videos instead of going to bed... ... and now I'll be dreaming of car crashes...