jroden
buffalo
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I was looking at the specs on the Freestar and the Toyota Seinna and noticed that the toyota gives you one more gear and about 60 more horsepower when compared to the Ford, yet I see people rave about the Ford being the best minivan for towing stuff.
Is this respect for the Ford out of date given some of the newer minivans out there? Is there a new king of minivans for towing? On paper, the Seinna sure looks stout with the new engine, I see a lot of people opting for air springs, even with the WD hitch, which is interesting.
Just curious.
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Caddywhompus
Southeast WI
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When Ford halted production of the Freestar, it was probably the best-towing FWD minivan (arguably the best anywheel drive minivan) in production at that time.
Now that the Freestar is no longer, and the Sienna has been updated with more power and a nicer transmission, I've been telling people it has the crown and the blue ribbon. I've never actually driven a Sienna with a trailer hitched, but on paper it has everything the Freestar had and a little more.
All that said, I didn't buy a Sienna when I was shopping because the Toyota dealers get a premium for them. If someone was looking for a great towing minivan at the lowest cost, a used Freestar is probably still the best deal out there.
Another note, the new Chrysler minivans with the 4.0 liter motor and 6-speed transmission are very promising, time will tell if they hold up. Also, the latest gen Kia Sedona is extremely solid and tows very well. Honda minivans can pull pretty well, but they don't get the trophy because their transmission can't be set to hold 4th gear, forcing people to run in 3rd and waste gas, or put it into 5th and have it shifting all the time.
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jroden
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Thanks, I was hoping you would reply. I know with our Quest the 4 speed transmission was less than perfect, so the 5 speed on the Toyota looks slick.
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Fast Mopar
Houston, TX
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jroden wrote:I was looking at the specs on the Freestar and the Toyota Seinna and noticed that the toyota gives you one more gear and about 60 more horsepower when compared to the Ford, yet I see people rave about the Ford being the best minivan for towing stuff.
For a new van today, the Sienna and the 4.0 6 speed Chrysler vans are probably the best. I bought my Freestar when it was 1 year old, and thankfully they have low resale value so I got it cheap. It has been exceptional, and I would definitely do it again. But, as Caddy said, the Sienna and the 4.0 Mopar vans are the way to go if you need a new one. I actually like my 4 speed auto for towing - third gear is around 2800 RPM at 60 mph loaded down with 4 bikes on the trailer tongue rack, and no transmission hunting.
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fla-gypsy
North Florida
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I bought a new Freestar dirt cheap and it has been a great vehicle. Seems like being a good vehicle is not enough anymore. BTW it gets 18 city and 24 hiway and can carry 7 people.
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Caddywhompus
Southeast WI
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fla-gypsy wrote:I bought a new Freestar dirt cheap and it has been a great vehicle. Seems like being a good vehicle is not enough anymore. BTW it gets 18 city and 24 hiway and can carry 7 people. Interesting, I recently was called a liar by another forum member who believed the van was only capable of 11mpg city and 18 highway. He based his opinions on the EPA and CR published numbers. 
By the way, I get about 2mpg higher than you city and highway. Do you have the 4.2 or the smaller 3.9 like me?
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jroden
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I met someone this weekend at a campground towing my exact trailer (kodiak 16 foot hybrid, maybe 3200 wet) with a new model sienna. He had towed up from ohio w/ a class 1 hitch, no wdh and no air bags and reported it towed great and got 15 mpg towing along the turnpike at 65. He said it was a great combination and could not be happier.
Speaking of something unconventional, how's about the new Taurus-X w/ the 266 hp and 6 speeds right out of the Edge? Seems like it would tow a camper like mine perfectly...
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Exocet
Central NY, USA
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The advantage of the Freestar was the 4.2L V-6 produced 265 ft-lbs of torque. Great for towing. The downside is that Freestars are notorious for shredding torque converters. Been there, done that.
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fla-gypsy
North Florida
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Caddywhompus wrote:fla-gypsy wrote:I bought a new Freestar dirt cheap and it has been a great vehicle. Seems like being a good vehicle is not enough anymore. BTW it gets 18 city and 24 hiway and can carry 7 people. Interesting, I recently was called a liar by another forum member who believed the van was only capable of 11mpg city and 18 highway. He based his opinions on the EPA and CR published numbers.
By the way, I get about 2mpg higher than you city and highway. Do you have the 4.2 or the smaller 3.9 like me?
3.9L
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Caddywhompus
Southeast WI
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Exocet wrote:The advantage of the Freestar was the 4.2L V-6 produced 265 ft-lbs of torque. Great for towing. The downside is that Freestars are notorious for shredding torque converters. Been there, done that. Interesting, I keep my ear pretty tuned to the automotive industry even though I don't turn a wrench for a living anymore. This is the first comment I've heard of this problem. A quick check of the internet does not confirm your statement.
Freestar reliability ratings
A lot of people STILL confuse the Freestar with the earlier generation Windstars, which DID have transmission problems. Those vans had a different transmission, yanked from the Taurus, that was undersized for minivan duty from the beginning.
Windstar reliability rating
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