Roadrunner Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Roadrunner: If Ford made a swoopy Nissan Murano, that would be great to name that the Flex. They do it is called the Edge. No, the Edge is too blocky for what I'm thinking. Edge is a good name for that car. I'm talking something really swoopy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Is it sill produced without sliding doors? Actually....yeah, just not in the US....(where people want sliding doors on their minivans). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harley Lover Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 It does NOT have suicide doors.I work at oac paint and we have some of the bodys here. no suicide doors! Alright, several posters who seem to know have stated this. Now, instead of telling us what kind of doors is does not have, tell us what kind of door it does have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igor Posted March 23, 2007 Author Share Posted March 23, 2007 Alright, several posters who seem to know have stated this. Now, instead of telling us what kind of doors is does not have, tell us what kind of door it does have. regular front-hinged door. However, Fields went on TV yesterday in Detroit talking about a crossover with rear-hinged doors ... and how Ford spent countless time making this car superior to anything else on the road in terms of getting in and out of the second and third row. Since the Flex is now officially without any extravagant doors, this could only mean that the Lincoln version will have them, and thus Lincoln is reviving suicide doors. Igor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Made the jump from Autoblog. Good job guys getting credited for "Reliable Information". My 2 cents: Don't know about the name and not sure about no sliding rear doors which are popular for minivan/people mover customers. The suicide doors look cool for a idea. Either way, I look forward to seeing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NLPRacing Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 regular front-hinged door. However, Fields went on TV yesterday in Detroit talking about a crossover with rear-hinged doors ... and how Ford spent countless time making this car superior to anything else on the road in terms of getting in and out of the second and third row. Since the Flex is now officially without any extravagant doors, this could only mean that the Lincoln version will have them, and thus Lincoln is reviving suicide doors. Igor Maybe it will get the 6 door design that Ford has a patent on. It will need something to allow easier 3rd row access, besides a single big'ol huge door. Maybe that's where this "French Door" verbage is coming from. These "French Doors" could be Ford's replacement for the sliding door. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 So, does this thing have suicide doors? :poke: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NLPRacing Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 So, does this thing have suicide doors? :poke: Apparently not... It does NOT have suicide doors. I work at oac paint and we have some of the bodies here. No suicide doors! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Apparently not... It's so difficult to effectively portray sarcasm over the Internet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BORG Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 (edited) Here are some pics of the production Flex. http://www.mikekukielka.com/gallery/v/2009+Ford+Fairlane/ Notice the interior doesn't have the new Ford switchgear from the Escape and Focus. The "Flex" name doesn't quite fit the cosmopolitan design language. This is as artsy-fartsy as people movers get . Edited March 23, 2007 by BORG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Notice the interior doesn't have the new Ford switchgear from the Escape and Focus. I wouldn't say these VERY early pictures are a good indicator of the final details of the Flex. These pics are from last year, likely before the newer switchgear was in production and ready for mockup in prototype vehicles. Changing around switchgear can be a pretty last-minute thing in the design process. I'd expect the Flex to get the new switchgear, Sync, and Ice Blue ambient lighting for its official introduction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igor Posted March 23, 2007 Author Share Posted March 23, 2007 Here are some pics of the production Flex. http://www.mikekukielka.com/gallery/v/2009+Ford+Fairlane/ Notice the interior doesn't have the new Ford switchgear from the Escape and Focus. The "Flex" name doesn't quite fit the cosmopolitan design language. This is as artsy-fartsy as people movers get . I Think it goes well with recently successful names like MINI, SCION, etc ... short non-pretentious names unlike Charger and Avenger. I think GM and Hyu/Kia are doing a good job just having the non-descript traditional names like Acadia, Outlook, Aura, Entourage etc ... but I think the future is in clever names that are quick to say (shout) and make you easily associate the names with actual qualities .. do you think BMW could have called the MINI a BMW018 and sell half as many? The product does need to stand on its own, but I think the name can help with this one .. I really like the Flex name. Igor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igor Posted March 23, 2007 Author Share Posted March 23, 2007 I wouldn't say these VERY early pictures are a good indicator of the final details of the Flex. These pics are from last year, likely before the newer switchgear was in production and ready for mockup in prototype vehicles. Changing around switchgear can be a pretty last-minute thing in the design process. I'd expect the Flex to get the new switchgear, Sync, and Ice Blue ambient lighting for its official introduction. Nick remember - Fairlane was approved UNDER Fields ... the Escape and Focus switchgear WAS NOT approved under Fields. actually the Focus.Escape were done about 2005 .. a lot has changed since then .. and the Focus/Escape type of "peek through" switchgear might be just a flash quickly replaced by the kind seen here on the Flex.... Yes, there is a chance things have changed since the documentary, but I would not count on ANYTHING major .. the most, I could see is them removing the different-color-roof option, adding select shift and other details ... the rest was set ... after all this was shot around the summer - the final production approval was announced September 15th - not enough time for major changes. Igor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Nick remember - Fairlane was approved UNDER Fields ... the Escape and Focus switchgear WAS NOT approved under Fields. actually the Focus.Escape were done about 2005 .. a lot has changed since then .. and the Focus/Escape type of "peek through" switchgear might be just a flash quickly replaced by the kind seen here on the Flex.... Yes, there is a chance things have changed since the documentary, but I would not count on ANYTHING major .. the most, I could see is them removing the different-color-roof option, adding select shift and other details ... the rest was set ... after all this was shot around the summer - the final production approval was announced September 15th - not enough time for major changes. Igor It's not like changing a switch requires 10 months of re-engineering you know (although sometimes it seems that way with the way Ford does things). It's hardly what I would call a "major change". The center stacks are all pretty modular in their design, even the " peek through" designs like the Escape and Focus use and can likely be interchanged with little more than a redesigned faceplate. If the Flex debuts with the same old crap HVAC/audio controls as their current crop of vehicles, they can pretty much kiss any positive reviews goodbye. The Focus/Escape setup is brand new and seems to be pretty tactile and nice-looking. I seriously doubt Fields would throw it all out the window and start from scratch again just because it wasn't initially designed under his watch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igor Posted March 23, 2007 Author Share Posted March 23, 2007 (edited) It's not like changing a switch requires 10 months of re-engineering you know (although sometimes it seems that way with the way Ford does things). It's hardly what I would call a "major change". The center stacks are all pretty modular in their design, even the " peek through" designs like the Escape and Focus use and can likely be interchanged with little more than a redesigned faceplate. If the Flex debuts with the same old crap HVAC/audio controls as their current crop of vehicles, they can pretty much kiss any positive reviews goodbye. The Focus/Escape setup is brand new and seems to be pretty tactile and nice-looking. I seriously doubt Fields would throw it all out the window and start from scratch again just because it wasn't initially designed under his watch. my point is .. the Escape/Focus switches are from 2005. the Flex in the movie has an interior developed AFTER the Focus/Escape (the concept had different interior). This means that I am more likely to believe that what we saw in the move will be the new Ford switchgear .. not the one from the 08 Focus/Escape - because it was developed later. The Flex will not have D3/CD3 crappy switchgear - even the Fusion is shedding that next year, but I am almost willing to bet it will also not have the Escape/Focus switchgear. I do not think Fields simply had the designers replace anything - they simply took the Focus/Escape idea to the next level .. I think the center console from the movie looks sleek and elegant .. a lot of buttons, but it looks very upscale .. especially if the shiny stuff is real aluminum, or a good looking plastic aluminum-lookalike (not just silver plastic like the Focus/Escape). I think we ARE looking at the new level of the Ford switchgear. But we will have to wait 2 weeks to know for sure. (or maybe BlueII, Swizco etc could chime in with an insight). Igor Edited March 23, 2007 by igor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 I've to agree, looks decent and would be a nice, silent public apology from Ford after the Edge/Fusion disasters. sorry...but so far one of the main selling points of the Fusion, and moreso the Edge...IS the interior...people LOVE it....the only complaint is the brushed Alum bezel looks a little cheap...but aftermarket fixes that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LincolnFan Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 The huge slabs of wood are making it to production...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 (edited) The huge slabs of wood are making it to production...? think what you are seeing is clay right? or perhaps the wood inserts on the interior door panels?....hopefully the semi- production model will be at the show.... Edited March 23, 2007 by Deanh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LincolnFan Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 think what you are seeing is clay right? maybe some wood in the inside....hopefully the semi- production model will be at the show.... No I meant the interior huge wood slabs. Even Lincoln doesn't have wood slabs that big. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 think what you are seeing is clay right? maybe some wood in the inside....hopefully the semi- production model will be at the show.... I think he's referring to the mostly-wood dash of the Fairlane concept. Pretty much nothing of the Fairlane's interior design was carried over to the Flex, it would appear from the Bold Moves video clips. Here's another name suggestion they could have gone with: With rumors than the C-Max and possibly B-Max may be headed to our shores, why not name it D-Max? It sounds masculine and somewhat sporting at the same time, and also suggests "MAXimum capability". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 No I meant the interior huge wood slabs. Even Lincoln doesn't have wood slabs that big. sorry...realised my error when I posted...no Lincoln doesn't have wood slabs that big...but they do have acres of chrome.....eeeeek....imagine THAT! It will be a plastic "lookalike" I guess.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 I think he's referring to the mostly-wood dash of the Fairlane concept. Pretty much nothing of the Fairlane's interior design was carried over to the Flex, it would appear from the Bold Moves video clips. Here's another name suggestion they could have gone with: With rumors than the C-Max and possibly B-Max may be headed to our shores, why not name it D-Max? It sounds masculine and somewhat sporting at the same time, and also suggests "MAXimum capability". Bold moves video clips????...link please..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igor Posted March 23, 2007 Author Share Posted March 23, 2007 (edited) The huge slabs of wood are making it to production...? there wood slabs inside the doors are making it to production: - it might be fake wood, but I surely hope not. Igor Edited March 23, 2007 by igor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 there wood slabs inside the doors are making it to production: Igor Trust me ...there is NO potential of splinters from THAT wood.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Bold moves video clips????...link please..... See BORG's post above. I believe that's a link to the pics extracted from the video. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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