Did you spend much of your youth painting day-glow peace signs on your VW Microbus and grooving to the sounds of Jefferson Airplane?
Sorry, we meant The Grateful Dead. Or The Doors? Go ahead and pick one.
While the thousands of baby boomer hippies tried their best to keep their VW vans on the road as long as possible, most are now confined to scrap heaps across the country.
So where can an ex-hippie baby boomer do when they want to travel across state lines for a Phish concert, The Grateful Dead of modern times? We all know VW royally screwed up when execs decided against making a “new” Microbus after teasing the hippie/bond trader community with a concept a few years back. And the Volkswagen Routan? Don't make us laugh.
So what is it that could take the storied place of the storied old VW Microbus? What new vehicle could you see pimped out with curtains and a custom stove/fridge inside? Is it true? Could the Ford Flex become the new Microbus?
While the new Flex isn’t on dealer lots yet, and there is no discussion of a fridge/stove option yet, we do think it holds all the ingredients for a huge success. The Flex manages the unique task of basing itself on a retro pastiche while retaining a truly modern visage. In other words, it isn’t so retro that it will look dated in a few years like the VW New Beetle.
One thing the Ford Flex is that the VW Microbus never really was, is cutting edge, engine wise. The old Microbus had a flat four air cooled engine that dated to before World War 2. The new Flex will see the introduction of Ford’s new green direct injection and turbocharged 6 cylinder engine family. The new engines will allegedly help it to have V8 like levels of power with hybrid like emissions.
While many baby boomers are already at the age where they are grandparents, the Flex would make a perfect runabout when picking up their daughter Moonbeam’s twin 5 year olds. In addition, the Flex is cool looking enough that it won’t embarrass the pre-teen set either.
Regardless of the hippie factor, we think Ford has a big winner on its hands with the new Flex. It may just be the vehicle that saves Ford Motor Company. And that would be way groovy, man!