HI All,

I am in the process of purchasing a 2006 FEH and am having trouble picking what options to have, so I am looking for opinions from owners (and hoping that someone from Ford reads this and sees that their limited choices on configuration may cost them clients). Forgive me if my first post is more of a rant. When I get my FEH, I will contribute my positive experences as well, I promise!

This is the first time I am getting a North American built car. I've owned 2 Volkwagens (old Scirocco and now a Golf GTI VR6) and loved them both. I also owned a Mazda 323 which worked for 12 years. Before each purchase I examined the North Americal offerings and could not find anything comparable at the time. Now that I want a Hybrid and a 4WD, I was happy to find that a North American company might actually have what I wanted!

The options that I want in my 4WD FEH are the following:

*Safety package (side air bags etc...)

*2 tone paint (titanium green w. silver bumbers since black is impossible to get for the hybrid).

*Moon roof

*Heated leather seats and mirrors called "Canadian winter package" for the non hybrid Escape.

I went to my local Ford dealer, test drove the FEH and tried to price it with them given the options that I wanted, which is where I ran into trouble. There is no Canadian winter package for the hybrid so the heated seats/mirrors are only available as part of a "premium package". The premium package also includes the nav computer AND reverse sensor system AND the A-gloss body cladding. None of these appeal to me and the package costs $5000 Canadian! So I would have to pay 5K for heated heats!

I asked to get the 2 tone paint as described in the "Appearance" package. They said that I cannot get the appearance package with the premium package. I said I only wanted the premium package to get the heated leather seats (as described in the Canadian winter package) and really, really did not like the A-gloss body cladding!

They said I could not choose what I wanted but to pick from what they offered (they were appologetic but did not have the ability to change the option configuration).

Giving up on the heat, I then said I wanted the moon roof. They said I HAD to get the premium package to be able to get the moon roof. I said The moon roof does not come with the premium package and is in no way related to any items in the premium package. It is available for the non-hybrid without pairing it with another premium package.

They said that the "computer" which takes the order from the customer does not allow us to pick the moon roof without the premium package.

What the heck is this? All I want is the 2 tone paint with the heated seats and the moon roof. Why is this too much to ask? These are all available options for the Escape, but for the hybrid, they group the options in stupid ways for no good reason. I don't accept making Ford's assembly planning easier for them as a reason.

Did most of you have to make simiar choices? I am prepared to pay more for a hybrid (and accept lower towing capability), but I'd like to purchase what I want and not what random bits they felt like offering. This is not the way to encourage us to go green. I remember now why I have never purchased a Ford. I'll probably "hold my nose" and get the FEH for the reason that it is the only 4WD hybrid in the size I want. If the Tribute were available or Honda or Toyota had a 4WD smaller than the Highlander, Ford would probably be out of the game again.

Thanks for any opinions on the matter.

Regards,

Roch Comeau

The only "consolation" I can offer is that yes, we all had to choose from the same lame "packages", and not only with the FEH (I bought mine in April and basically got a "stripper", but I took what the local dealer had and paid $1,000 less than MSRP for it) - I'm currently waiting delivery of my '06 Prius, and I had to take (and pay for) all sorts of options I will NEVER use, just to get the VSC (Vehicle Stability Control) that I consider necessary up here in snow/ice country. I will be getting some kind of "Homelink" garage door opener thing, and I don't even HAVE an electric garage door (not to mention that there's no room in the garage for a car!). And I had to pay for premium sound, Bluetooth capability, and extra air bags that I didn't want (OK, maybe I'll change my mind about those if I have a crash). It's driving me crazy, but I'm doing it. I hope Toyota is listening here, as well as Ford!

It's not just for garage doors. Have it turn on your driveway/porch lights when you get home and it's dark out! I know it can be done; I just haven't found the kit for it yet.

<Best Tank Economy!><Best Tank Endurance!>

If you go to http://www50.forddirect.fordvehicles...id&sBrand=Ford, are you able to build a truck with the options you want?

<Best Tank Economy!><Best Tank Endurance!>

Gee, I never thought of that, probably more energy efficient (and reliable...) than my current solution - having my husband do it!

HI All,

I went to a second Ford dealer and got some better news. I went in hoping to see the titanium green and get a second quote to be sure the first place was OK and got a different result.

I went in with printouts from the Ford web site and asked a few questions to see if the guy knew what he was talking about. I asked about the Canadian winter group, which are the heated seats & side mirrors. He said that the heated seats/mirrors were not available on the hybrid. I replied (with a bit of "I know more than you" tone of voice which I soon regretted) that they were available with the premium package which came along with a bunch of other stuff. "Yeah," he said. "You've been looking at the web site, have you?" glancing towards the printouts in my hand. "The site is old" he said. "They discontinued the premium package on the hybrid recently".

"Oh, so there is no way to get the heated seats then? That's a drag" I said. Wait, there might be a silver lining here I thought. "Hey, then what about the moon roof?" I asked. "You HAD to order the premium package before being able to get the moon roof". "That's changed too. " he answered. "We have an order code for it now".

Wow, now I realized that I could configure it how I wanted, with the 2 tone paint job, safety package, moon roof and the leather package (alas, without the heated seats/mirrors). What I expected would have been a 2 minute visit was turning serious... I asked for a quote for the truck and talked about trade-in values. His price for the configuratoin I wanted was better than the other guy's quote and it included the moon roof the other guy said was not available. His trade in offer was better as well...

Anyway, I was too tired to actually go throught the purchase at the time, and it was 10 minutes to closing (that did not seem to be a problem with him) so we agreed that I would call him Monday and get a "final" price and see if I go for it.

I have to say that I am excited about the prospect again and really only have to decide between titanium green/silver bumpers and the blue with silver bumpers. I'm not sure if I have a choice or leather colours.

Finally, what about the nav computer? I'm sure there is a few threads about that so I'll have a look at the opinions. If anyone wants to share them here, I would welcome it.

I look forward to being among the hybrid owners here!

Cheers,

Roch

I'm late to the party a lot lately, maybe I need a vacation.

Doing the research is always going to help with stuff like this, and shopping around is always wise. Sounds like you've done well.

Outside of a few people who have local nav gripes (and those are very few; only 1 that I can think of), everyone who got the A/N system is rather glad they got it, it's far more than a simple navigation system.

The Energy diagram is the only way to see the energy flow systems, to see your battery charge level, how much power is going out and coming in to the system at every moment.

The FE shows a graph of your MPGs, with a average bar (that's resettable), and an instant MPG bar.

You have a mapping system, to show you the area you're in, and Canada falls under 1 disk, and you have a six CD changer under the passenger seat.

There's a home button, which you can set by just being home and setting it as the location. Anytime you need/want to, you can hit home and it plots and tells you how to get home.

The Nav system itself you can enter addresses in a few different ways, it has a points of interest system with locations already in it, and you can choose how you want to get there (use freeways, avoid them, avoid toll roads, shortest distance, shortest time, etc.) There's a detour system to allow you to avoid a road, and if you miss a turn it replots for you. It's very clear cut instructions to get you to your destination.

Really, the only reason not to get it is because you can't afford it. IMHO, it's almost as cool as the hybrid technology itself.

First 4WD Hypermiler

Have you read the FEH FAQ?

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I don't regret buying the computer. It is probably not as good for NAV as a stand alone TomTom Go or a DVD based navigation system, but it still isn't too bad. And the sound system that comes with it is great. I even found out it had a six disk CD changer with it once I got it home.

However living here in Indianapolis and parking outside, I wish I would have waited three months to be able to buy the 2006 with heated seats and mirrors instead of the just then released 2005.

It is interestinng to hear those are no longer available as that is the only option I regret not being able to get in my fully loaded 2005.

But I would say buy the Hybrid Energy NAV system if for no other reason for the total button pushing geek nirvana that it brings to the already cool package.

I kind of wish I'd sprung for the Nav system, not for the "nav" part but for the enhanced information about the energy system. But being perfectly happy with my handheld GPS when I need help finding or mapping something, I just couldn't justify the cost. If you can afford it, I'd go for it.

i don't know where you are in canada, but would it be worth searching for an already built 06 FEH in the northern states that has all your specs? i've gotten the impression that a lot of dealerships are ordering them for the lot to pick up impulse shoppers. i ordered mine custom, and the dealership had three others come in shortly before mine that were up for grabs. and in metro detroit at least (and i'm sure in some other northern states) the dealership might be willing to work with CDN$$.

i didn't really want everything in the premium package either (specifically the leather seats) but i love the heated seats and the nav system. i think at the time i placed my order (late june for the 06) the moonroof was still a separate item, so it's a bummer if they've lumped it in the premium package. i think it's about a $700 option (US$) but it's something you can always add later. the nav screen has definitely helped me learn how to efficiently drive the FEH...it's kinda like peeking into the car's brain every time i hit the gas. plus, i think the FEH built after october has sirius radio and mp3 capabilities built in the nav system (someone chime in if i'm wrong on this).

lastly, i think the two-tone body was only on the 05 models. i don't know why they changed it...and i still can't figure out why the sonic blue is the only color *not* available with the premium package. that's the color i wanted and ordered dark silver instead.

courtney | cork@bluemarble.net