[Drivesthebeast]

That car has the Cylinder deactivation on it...switches to 4 cyl on the highway, or below 1/2 throttle application. It will yeild the same fuel economy as the 3.5L SXT's, but have the HUGE gain in torque you get with the 5.7.

The AWD system is actually a Mercedes-Benz 4Matic, and is quite high-tech, and is rated very highly in the bad weather.

I was going to buy one of these cars before I bought my Escape, but the wife felt it was too much like driving/riding in an oversized Mustang (Low roof, high beltline, long hood, etc).

In terms of your other comment about the Ford Family having a high horsepower wagon, they actually have 2 of them. The Flex Ecoboost, and the Lincoln MKT Ecoboost. Duratec 35 with twin watercooled turbos, direct injection, with 350 hp, and 355 ft lbs and a 6-spd auto with paddle shifters. It's actually the same driveline as the Taurus SHO (mind you, with 10hp less), but compared to standard FWD Flexes, they have larger rims, higher spring rates, larger brakes, and better shocks/struts.

Nice score, and I'm quite jealous actually. I'd be even more Jealous if it was a Steel Blue or Black model...