Price: $29,995
Fuel economy: 17 mpg city/24 mpg highway
With exterior styling that gives a nod to the woodie wagons of the 1940s, the 2011 Ford Flex delivers a top-notch passenger experience.
With seating for up to seven, it has plenty of space for all but the largest of families. Legroom for the reclining second-row seat is a generous 44.3 inches; third-row passengers have 33.3 inches of legroom.
Behind the third-row seat is 20 cubic feet of cargo space. With the third-row seat folded down, cargo capacity swells to 43.2 cubic feet.
Output from a 262 horsepower, 3.5-liter V-6 engine rotates the front wheels via a six-speed automatic transmission.
Standard safety equipment includes six air bags, stability control and rear parking sensors. Flex received top marks in frontal and side-impact government crash tests.
The SE has the entry-level trim package, but still provides a long list of included features, such as full power accessories, remote keyless entry, tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel, trip computer, cruise control, automatic climate control, and a six-speaker audio system with CD player and auxiliary input jack.