New owner review (disappointing I have to say)

[Mparky]

Hi,

 

I just got my 2011 Edge Limited and thought I'd share my dislikes & likes after the first week of ownership. Some of the items mentioned were known and expected, but even so, they're sticking in my mind. Yes, I'm picky, but I'm sure others have the same likes/dislikes so hopefully it'll be useful info for someone. (hey maybe even a Ford designer will get wind of these things- since to me it'll do nothing but improve things in the future)

 

Dislikes:

- only 1 CD can be loaded at a time

 

- The CD player fails to recognize many types of wma files - but the USB can read those same files. (unlike the GM & Nissan's I tried)

 

- worried the USB key won't work when it's cold out (and maybe the NAV SD card)

 

- voice recognition is frustrating. Works once and then won't understand the same command the next day. (I don't have a strong accent or anything)

 

- rain sensing wipers wouldn't turn on when the window was covered in light rain, no matter how I adjusted it. In bright clear sunny days the wipers will suddenly activate for no reason.

 

- the very first time someone sat in the front passenger seat the fake chrome plastic on the door got scratched by a bracelet. I'm surprised how cheap it is! My 2000 Explorer didn't get an interior scratch in 11 years and this gets one in less than a week :angry: It wasn't anything sharp either, it was just a regular bracelet, so if it didn't scratch her arm or the vehicle she drove in on it's pretty bad. It looks like it's very easy to ruin the interior. I'm afraid to let my dog in the vehicle now!

 

- you can't use the touch screen with gloves on, yet heated steering isn't even an option??? (The Murano limited comes with heated steering!) I know it's on the Lincoln, but the Lincoln also has worse gas millage and costs a lot more.

 

- why can't they have an FM1 + FM2 option so you can scan through all your saved stations at once without going to FM1, then switching to FM2?

 

- I just noticed there is no reflector on the door - so if you open it at night it's harder for traffic to see your door is open. (all my previous Ford vehicles had this)

 

- The Sony panel and buttons was designed to look nice, but really aren't very practical because the gear shifter is in the way. A simple rearrangement of the buttons would have made it a lot easier to use them. I mean come on.

 

- My Sable and Explorer both had dual sun visors on both front seats (ones so you could block the front and side window at the same time). This has to be a 10$ option and should be standard in all cars. They do realize you sometimes turn when the sun is low in the sky don't they?

 

- No lumbar on front passenger side. Really? You couldn't even add a manual lumbar? (maybe it's because of the folding seat, but my Explorer had it, and a folding seat).

 

- The electronic signal light (with 2 levels of pushing) drives me nuts. At first I thought it was cool, but it doesn't do what I want half the time. (Perhaps adjustable sound level too on it, so you can change the volume of the clicker if you'd like it louder when playing music).

 

- I was wondering why heads up displays and even on top of dash gauges aren't available? It seems like you have to look too far away from the road to read the instruments. (yep, I'm picky - but it is a safety issue)

 

- things like Blis and the collision braking thing should become standard now that the world has so many on dash distractions and such awful blindspots on vehicles. (remember when things like pulse wipers were options? It's cheaper if you add it to everything).

 

- I had complained that the center console was too close to my leg. It's not as bad as I thought it would be, but it's not great. Especially if you want to move or stretch during a road trip.

 

- Foot room for the driver is bad on the left foot. I mean you can't even move it a bit to the left without hitting something. This would be bad on a long trip.

 

- the power point on the front passenger side sticks out into their leg space. Very odd. There is that mystery pass through area in the center console (what's that about?), so there is plenty of room without intruding on leg space.

 

- It seems like the whole center console is larger than it needs to be - just for looks. The interior storage is surprisingly small - you can't even store a CD case sideways even though you can in Ford vehicles with much smaller center consoles.

 

- Most designers put the USB port(s) so they stick out if you use them and look like they're in danger of snapping off. Why can't they put them so they aren't sticking into empty space?

 

- why brag about the SD slot if you must have it occupied by the Nav SD card? To me that means the slot itself is useless. Can anyone say 2 SD slots, and say 6 USB? You put power points all over the place, and really, they're a lot less useful since USB power for devices is more common now days.

 

- for the trailer connector, you almost have to lay under the bumper to plug something in. Why not an adapter or two for a better style of connector and easier access (my bros' GM truck came with one)? Those awful 4 pin things are almost useless as far as reliability.

 

- the sensitivity on the radio touch buttons is too sensitive (but better than the LCD), and the LCD isn't sensitive enough. I'm dreading winter, and although I love gadgets and the whole idea of the touch screen I'm worried that I made a mistake and should have gotten a car with buttons. People in the northern states and Canada have to deal with winter so touch buttons will be frustrating if they don't work with gloves. Oddly, Detroit is a cold weather city and they missed this.

 

- The hazard light activation is awful and way too easy to hit by accident. You're going to cause accidents by people getting distracted trying to turn the thing off while they're driving. I mean really Ford, do you just design them on paper and not actually test the vehicles for usability?

 

- Even though I got Blis it would be nice to have bubble mirrors so you can see the ground and have better overall visibility. Better mirrors can help you see how close to the curb you are when parking, and see hazards close to the vehicle in low speed maneuvers. (not to mention see rapidly approaching vehicles that Blis can't detect.

 

- Clearance at the front is pretty bad. I mean it can't even clear a standard concrete parking barrier or some curbs. It's not a car, and you can't see the front end of the vehicle so better clearance would be nice.

 

- I wish the keypad on the door was more hidden like on the Explorer. I love the idea, and have had keypads for 20 years, but why still the ugly old obvious one?

 

- What's the deal with the speedometer and the vertical position of the needle? Do they think people will really be driving way above the speed limit? It's like 1/2 the swing of the needle is through pointless speeds. And the speeds you normally use are on the lower left side of the gauge.

 

- Why no voltage level indicator? That seems like a huge oversight to me, since over the life of the car the battery or alternate will likely need to change at some point.

 

- The sound doesn't fade when you turn off the car, so when you turn it on again you're blasted by the radio. (my 2000 Explorer always turned the sound down when you turned off the car).

 

- I don't personally like it to keep playing music when I turn the car off. Mainly because with the push button ignition it seems all too easy to leave the car running by accident. In any case it should be an option to change this behavior, but isn't as far as I can tell.

 

Likes:

There are many more things I like about the vehicle (after all, I did buy it), but there are just the new ones after owning it for a week.

 

- I was worried that Blis would be distracting and a waste of money, but it's actually quite cool and barely distracting!

 

- I love all the toys and screen, but don't want to be distracted while driving so I just use them while in park. My neighbors must think I'm crazy talking to the car and giggling. Sadly, I think after a while I'll barely use any of it and fall back to the manual old buttons.

 

Wish list

(yes I know some are options on the Lincoln, but that gets worse millage and is a lot more money. I'd gladly give up the automatic hatch opener for heated steering when it's cold)

 

- a big digital speedometer! (that could be switched to analog looks if you prefer that)

 

- a customized owners manual. As a Western Canadian I don't need a French section, I don't need to read about features that are only available in the USA, I don't need to know how to operate features that aren't in my car, I don't need to know about features like THX sound that aren't even an option on the Edge, and I don't need to know how to program a garage door opener in another country.

 

- since there is an LCD, wouldn't it be cool to have your owners manual available on screen, so you could look stuff up (in park of course)?

 

- how about warranties to back up your quality claims? Domestic warranties are among the worst out there. To me a short warranty just means you don't truly believe your product will last.

 

- include all options on the limited editions so you don't have to compromise and pick the closest one they have in stock and miss or get options you don't want. (okay, make towing packages optional). Ordering takes too long, so if I could have just picked the color and known they were all the same it would have been much better.

 

- cooled seats (at least for the driver)

 

- heated rear seats and heated steering wheel (see Murano)

 

- heads up windshield speedometer

 

- fold down rear headrests so they don't block visibility when you're alone in the car.

 

I'd comment on the NAV system, but I don't have it yet. They forgot to ship it with the vehicle and for some reason it takes more than a week to ship.

 

- option to set phone for 911 use only when the car is in motion (I personally think you lose too much situational awareness to phone and drive, even hands free)

 

- I'd like to be able to change the voice in the car. (how cool would it be to use the star trek computer voice for us fans)

 

- An in dash DVD for music. Yes, there is no reason you couldn't write music to a DVD and play it in your car. DVD's hold a lot more data, so if you're going to be cheap and only have 1 CD, make it a DVD, since the price now days is only a couple more dollars.

Sorry about the length of this, I didn't expect to write so much. But things like this might be helpful to someone researching a new vehicle. I know I was frustrated reading review after review and them all talking about the same details you can see in the brochure.

 

Any thoughts or comments about my crazy list? (I'm sure I missed some things lol)

[akirby]

Is that all?

[mrdave]

Why did you buy it if so may things bother you about it?

[marcw]

you should have bought the MKX

[Waldo]

You can't complain about the cost of the MKX and then ask for all these things on the Edge. If the Edge came with everything you wanted, the cost would be more than the MKX and the mileage would be worse from all the extra weight!

[Mazz]

My, you are picky.

[radicon]

should have bought the MKX them

[TXEdgeMike]

I guess it's all relative? I hop out of my 04 F250 FX4 and into my wife's 2011 Edge SEL, and it might as well be an exotic European super-car.

 

About the only thing I agree with you on is the digital speedometer. Seems like that would have been pretty easy to integrate given all the LCD panels in the cluster. I hope you enjoy it, despite your issues with it.

[carbonedge+]

you should have bought the MKX

or the Murano; or maybe he should have just kept the Explorer...

[tneison]

wow - i just bought one and have just about the most complete opposite thoughts you have. about the only thing i would tweak is the sunroof open/close button should have an auto option so you don't have to hold it. i find the 11 edge to be a fantastic vehicle. it isn't cheap when you deck it out completely loaded, but it is sweet.

[Jock]

NEW LINCOLN Experience.

I traded in my EDGE after three years of relatively trouble free driving for a new LINCOLN MKX. Paid the extra dollars for all the bells a& whistles.

The first thing I noticed after taking delivery was that the "daylight running lights" which are described in the Manuel as "headlights at a reduced

intensity" were not working. After a visit to the dealership and some research I learned that the running lights which are now being installed are not

the Headlights but the FRONT Turn Signal Lights programed to switch on when the car is running and activated to blink OFF when a turn is indicated.

I find this a bit disconcerting given Ford's claim to "Advanced Safety Features". Nowhere have I found any mention of this in automobile articles or

specifications. I called the Provincial Police Traffic Division to ask if highway driving with "parking lights" on was a recognized procedure and their response

was an unqualified NO. They didn't think it advisable and suggested that in the alternative I switch to full headlights for daylight driving. So much for that

"convenience" feature..

 

AND If you are a Canadian owner driving in the USA and think you will be covered by "Roadside Assistance" .. FORGET IT. At least if you are driving

a LINCOLN and suffer a breakdown. After calling and going through a routine to provide your VIN Number, License Plate (TAG) Number etc you will be redirected

to the USA provider where you will be told that.. "they only service automobiles built and REGISTERED in the USA".. and if you insist on speaking to a Supervisor you

may be told, as I was, that.. "LINCOLN is a Chevvy product and we only deal with Ford customers.." No Kidding Folks.. truth is stranger than fiction.

Oh Yes.. Then try using your "Bluetooth" with "Intuitive Voice Recognition Technology" to connect you with a Ford Dealer / Any Dealer/ OK a Gypsy tow-truck operator.

Good luck if your car is disabled / switched off, and eighteen wheelers are whizzing by as you sit helpless / terrified at the side of the freeway looking for "Connectivity".