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Paired with the six-speed automatic transmission, the Five Hundred's 3.0-liter V6 provides more than sufficient power to propel this good-sized sedan, even with four adults on board. You can squeal the tires and race away from a stoplight, or push down your right foot and the transmission quickly downshifts as the engine responds with the power you need for passing, or for accelerating onto a freeway.
The engine lets you know it's there when you put your foot down, but the car is very quiet when cruising along, and we never had to raise our voices to carry on a conversation with those sitting beside, behind or in front of us. We did a stint in the back seat as well as the driver's and front passenger's seats. All seats were comfortable and supportive even after several hours in the car.
The Five Hundred's long wheelbase, independent front and rear suspension and stiff chassis work well together. Steering is nicely weighted and provides good feedback. The disc brakes are impressively effective. The Ford Five Hundred comes standard with anti-lock brakes with electronic brake-force distribution, which optimizes front/rear brake bias to shorten stopping distances. Also helping to reduce stopping distances is the size of the brakes: 12.5-inch discs with double-piston calipers on the front wheels and 12.0-inch discs in the rear.
While we spent most our time in the front-wheel-drive version, we did take time to try an all-wheel-drive Five Hundred on a dirt hill in a rock quarry, where Ford had set up a comparison demonstration between its Freestyle crossover and some of its competitors. While one of the competitor crossovers spun its wheels and struggled mightily to climb the slippery hill, the all-wheel-drive Five Hundred sedan went right up and over. While you may not need to tear through rock quarries, you may need to drive through snow, and the Five Hundred should handle winter travel well. All-wheel-drive also helps in the rain, where it stabilizes the handling of the car.
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