MSN.com says the 2005 Ford Freestyle I just sold had fuel economy of 19-20 city / 24-27 mpg highway.

It says the 2010 Ford Flex (which replaced the Taurus X, that replaced the Freestyle), get 16-17 city and 22-24 mpg highway.

Could any of this difference be due to changes in how car manufacturers are required to report actual mpg? It is the 'same car' sort of. It is about 3 inches longer and uses a 6 speed automatic transmission instead of the CVT.

Thoughts? I have a really short 2 mile commute to work, but this is our recreation car and I hate to lose mileage.

 

The differences is pretty close to what I would expect from a vehicle that is ~3" longer and has the newer emmissions equipment and other safety gear.

I had 2 neons a number of years ago. One was a 95 (first generation) and the other was a 2001 (second generation). Same engines and transmissions.
The 95 weighed 2850lb with a full tank of fuel and the 2001 weighed 3160lb with a full tank. Fuel milage was also night and day between the two.
I would suspect the same effect in the two vehicles you are looking at.

 

Here's a link to convert your old cars mileage to the new specs...very little difference over what the new vehicle is rated

About the Ratings

 

Thanks for the link. Great information.