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Further building its strength in the rapidly growing crossover vehicle market, Ford Motor Company today announced the production launch of the 2009 Ford Flex at the Ford Oakville Assembly Complex (OAC).
“Today, we’re providing still more evidence that Ford is committed to delivering more products people want, further building on our crossover leadership,” Mark Fields, Ford’s President of The Americas told more than 1,000 employees, government officials and Canadian Auto Workers representatives at the launch celebration. “Flex drives as good as it looks, and the Oakville team is going to deliver another high-quality crossover for customers.”
The Oakville plant has increased production and is adding 500 jobs in an effort to keep up with the demand for its hot-selling crossovers including the Lincoln MKX, Ford Edge and Ford Flex, which starts arriving in dealership showrooms this summer.
Flex is powered by Ford’s award-winning 3.5-liter V-6 engine and is mated to a fuel-efficient 6-speed transmission. The powertrain is expected to deliver more than 260 horsepower, 245 lb.-ft. of torque and good fuel economy.
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Ford launched the 2009 Flex at the New York Auto Show in 2007 and the company has big expectation for the crossover: they expect to sell around 100.000 units a year!
The 100,000 threshold " absolutely" is possible for the 2009 Flex, said Jim Farley, Ford group vice president of marketing and communications. " That’s what we’re looking at production wise," Farley told reporters at a press event here.
The Flex goes on sale this summer. Ford is counting on new products such as the Flex, the 2009 Lincoln MKS sedan and the revamped 2009 Ford F-150 pickup to help lift sales in the second half of this year.
Industry sales are shaping up to be toughest of the year during the ongoing second quarter, Farley said. Flex will benefit the natural traffic historically generated by Ford’s Explorer and Expedition SUVs, he said.
" Flex will find a lot of full-size SUV customers, and a lot of people who haven’t bought Fords are going to buy it," Farley said. " So I think that will really help us in the third quarter."
Flex is powered by Ford’s award-winning 3.5-liter V-6 engine and is mated to a fuel-efficient 6-speed transmission. The powertrain is expected to deliver more than 260 horsepower, 245 lb.-ft. of torque and good fuel economy.
Ford announced today that the 2009 Flex will go on sale this summer at a price starting at $28,995, including shipping charges. The three-row Flex is being offered in three trim series and in front-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive versions.
While the base model, a fwd Flex SE, comes in under $30,000, the rest of the series carry prices well over that threshold. The most expensive model, an awd Flex Limited, is priced at $37,255, including shipping, and before options.
The Flex slots immediately above the Taurus X crossover, which starts at $27,605 including shipping for 2008, according to Ford.
Flex is powered by Ford’s award-winning 3.5-liter V-6 engine and is mated to a fuel-efficient 6-speed transmission. The powertrain is expected to deliver more than 260 horsepower, 245 lb.-ft. of torque and good fuel economy.
The Flex will be Ford’s largest and most luxurious crossover. It replaces the defunct Freestar minivan as the brand’s big people mover. The Flex, built with conventional rear doors instead of sliding doors, will be available in six- or seven-passenger versions.
Ford released a mini-site for the 2009 Flex announcing that the crossover will be available on the market starting summer of this year. If you will go to http://www.fordvehicles.com/flex you will have the chance to learn more about the new crossover, build your dream car and have a little experience driving the car on-line.
The 2009 Ford Flex was unveiled last year at the New York Auto Show. It is powered by a 3.5-liter V-6 engine that delivers 260 horsepower, 245 lb.-ft. of torque and good fuel economy. The engine is mated to a fuel-efficient 6-speed transmission.
Flex’s available intelligent all-wheel-drive system is tuned to provide confident driving in all weather conditions. Intelligent AWD uses an active, on-demand electronic center coupler to allocate a precise amount of torque from front to rear – up to 100 percent to either axle. The system also can anticipate wheel slip before it happens.
