Used 2006 Ford Freestar for Sale Near Me
Describe what you’re looking for
BETA
Skip to FiltersReport abuse
41 listings
Consumer Reviews for the Ford Freestar
Read recent reviews for the Ford Freestar
A Sad Goodbye @ 237K Miles - Update & Final Review
Bill Adams, 10/13/2015
2006 Ford Freestar SEL 4dr Minivan (4.2L 6cyl 4A)
(Prior Review: Update Below)
By now a 2006 model year vehicle is considered old technology, but there still seem to be enough old Freestars out and about that someone might be interested in one for a hauler or local area utility vehicle, so for the curious, I will review it once more. IMO, in good condition they're still the best looking minivan out there. (If you like minivans, of … course.)
Overall, and partly due to good maintenance and reasonable driving practices, this has turned out to be an excellent vehicle for us. Our only real complaint has been that it rates worse than average for road noise. Our other vehicles are a 2012 Ford Focus and a 2017 Kia Sorento, and both of those are considerably quieter on the road.
Generally, everything is still working as it should. The engine still runs well, and neither burns nor leaks oil. It has had one major repair for a leaking front cover gasket. It still starts right up, even when parked outside overnight in very cold weather.
The transmission still works properly and is leak free, although initial gear engagement from park or neutral is more abrupt than it used to be. That may be a sign of things to come; it's not harsh, but different than what we're used to. Other than frequent fluid flushes averaging around 20,000 miles, the transmission has never been worked on, and no additives have been used. (I might try one now to see if it will help with the initial engagement abruptness.)
The body rust hasn't advanced much in the last year or so, but up here in the North Country......................
It still rides and drives very nicely down the road (except for the higher road noise level). I think a small exhaust leak has formed recently, so that needs to be fixed. Otherwise, we plan to keep driving it at long as we can keep it going reliably and safely for reasonable cost. However, at this mileage, any repairs or damage requiring over a few hundred dollars will probably mean the end of it. And we will miss it; it's taken us many good miles, from the Rockies to D.C. Before we got it, it started life as a Hertz rental unit in Hawaii before going to the D.C area, then up to the Twin Cities for a few years before we got it. It had 94,000 miles on it, and still felt and looked as tight and solid as new.
Update: We longer have the Freestar. We had kept it as a grocery-getter/hauler when we bought the Sorento, but by around 237,000 miles it needed repairs including exhaust work and a small coolant leak from somewhere on the engine, and the rust was finally moving into areas that made it more serious than just a cosmetic issue. There was no way to justify the repairs on a vehicle that old with that many miles, so we donated it to Habitat for Humanity. Although it had little remaining cash value, I hope Habitat will get some benefit from the salvage yard.