Well, I had posted in another thread that the wife and I bought a new '05 Ford Five Hundred SE last weekend. The wife picked it up last Monday and today I finally got my first chance to drive it.
Little background on how we ended up with this vehicle. My wife has been driving a 2000 Dodge Durango SLT with the 4.7 V8 for the last 2 years and absolutely loved it. Problem is, it has 77,000 miles on it and gets an average of 12-14 mpg in combined driving. With a new kid on the way (due in June), we have been looking for ways to save money where we can. So, the wife thought she would look for something used, trade in the Durango, roll in the pay off difference and get something that was still a 4-door, decent gas mileage, decent insurance, and safe.
Well, last Saturday we spent most of the day driving around looking at cars. We looked at the Chevy Impala LS, Dodge Stratus/Chrysler Sebring, and Chrysler 300 (non-C). Nothing really was working. Oh, as you can see, we ended up looking at new cars instead of used as every where we went was more willing to deal with the payoff/trade-in difference on a new car and get the payments around what we wanted. So, it hit me to look at the Tauras and Ford Five Hundred. So, we stopped at a local, large Ford dealership and never made it to the Tauras - stopped at the Five Hundred and the wife liked it. Based on numbers we had been seeing all day, the SE (base model) was going to be what we could get. At this point I had to go to work and since we were in one car at that point, the wife dropped me off and went back to look at the car and work with the saleswoman on numbers.
The wife ended up calling me about 5 or 6 times to talk numbers, options, test drive impressions, etc. The numbers all ended up working out, they gave us $2000 more on the Durango trade-in as any one else (or discount off the sticker, how ever you want to look at it) and she signed paper work for an '05 Black/shale cloth interior. We got the 6-speed automatic, not the CVT. It has the standard 17" wheels, large 4-wheel disc brakes, AM/FM/CD, traction control, power windows, locks, mirrors, and seats, and a huge trunk. Pretty nice options for a "base" model. And it worked out as the wife did not want leather.
So, today I finally got to drive it. Actually, I got to drive it to the car wash to wash it last night so it was clean for our Easter plans today. After washing it, I will say this: my daily driver replacement for my Accord (either a MM or CV LX Sport) will NOT be black. Most likely silver with the dark grey interior. I will not take care of 2 black cars, especially when the one I will drive will get around 500 miles per week. And the paint on this thing does not seem the greatest - has a number of little scratches in it from the day it was brought home. I need it to warm up some so I can do a Zaino treatment to it.
Other than that, the car is quite nice. I really like the interior layout, the seats are comfortable, everything is in reach and nothing in the way. One thing I did not like about the weekend test drive of a Marauder last fall is that the cup holders are right behind the shifter and drinks can get in the way. With the 500, they are set off to the passenger side of the shifter - easily accessable and out of the way of shifting or rest your hand on the shifter. The center console area is very big and the cup holders have nice depth. Rear seating room is excellent and the trunk is huge (did I metion that already?).
As for the drive, it is very quiet, very controlled without being harsh - almost compare it to my friend's 300C (and the 500 is 4 inches longer than the 300C, but the 300C has a longer wheel base). Handling is decent, brakes are good, no weird noises, and quiet motor. Now, just like everything I have read, the motor is lacking in power. It goes down the road just fine, even with the A/C on (which we actually had to use in Iowa today). But as for off the line power, it is definitely lacking. I did not try, but I am pretty sure it probably wouldn't chirp the tires from a stand still. But it will go at highway speeds and cruised quite nicely at 80mph today - and still did not need to raise voices to have a conversation, even with the radio on - which has speed sensitive volume control, but the way. And the 6-speed automatic shifts quite nicely without hunting around for gears.
All in all, we are very happy with the car. Especially the wife. It does fit a purpose for Ford. The car is definitely not for everyone, but neither is the Marauder or a Mustang. It could use more power, but other than that you get a lot of car even in the base model which has a sticker price of around $22,000. I definitely like it more than a similiarly equiped and priced Chevy Impala, Honda Accord (and I am a long time Honda fan), or any of the Chrysler/Dodge products (the 300 and Magnum, to me, are not worth it unless they have the Hemi). Granted, all the above models have other options, but that drives the price up. Then again, the 500/Montego have the SEL and Limited that offer pretty much everything one might want but Navigation or HUD. Also, the car has achieved 5 star crash ratings even in the non-side air bag equiped models which is important to me with wife, kid, and new baby on the way.
So, thanks for reading and ask questions if you have any. I would be glad to answer. And anyone looking for more information on these cars, check out:
www.myford500.com
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~ -Matt-
Originally Posted by Eric91Z
"Aarrrrr Type"
Bluerauder's Garage -- Pics and Other Info 
