Weekend Athlete: 2008 Ford Edge

The Ford Edge’s heated seats were an obvious treat, but two other features stood out: The power hatch and “power flop” seats. All I had to do was pop the fob twice and the rear was open right as I walked over to it. Once there, pushing two buttons in the cargo area flopped the seats over. I don’t know if it’s done electrically or if the seats are spring-loaded, but instead of merely releasing, the seats went all the way down. In any event, the car was open, the skis were in and I was headed out in no time.

The optional Vista Roof was also a nice touch because it let a lot of sun in the cabin. I can’t say that made it any more or less warm, but it was a nice boost psychologically.

So what’s the hitch? The power liftgate, Vista Roof and heated seats are optional, so they’ll cost you more, as will all-wheel drive. It’s your money, spend it as you wish, but I think it’s worth noting. As usual, I’d probably go for a lower trim level, open the hatch myself, be cold for a few seconds longer and have the money in my pocket. But that’s me.

Overall, it’s a nice athlete-type car. It’s not as dressy or fussy as other cars are, but it still cleans up nice if you need to go out for dinner. (I’ve always liked how it looks.) I found a slight blind spot over my left shoulder and felt I needed the rear parking assist feature more here than I did in other vehicles; the Edge is deceptively large.

As a utility vehicle, it did all I asked of it, so if the price doesn’t bother you I think it belongs on the Weekend Athlete shopping list.

Weekend Athlete scores (out of 10):

Ease of loading gear: 9 Everything fit without a lot of thought. It could probably carry four people and their gear, but three people and gear is a definite.

Ease of seat operation: 10 It’s almost unfair to compare this system to any other.

Bike hauling: 8.5 No need to remove wheels, but the bike doesn’t lay flat. I’m using a 58-cm road frame, so perhaps other sizes of bikes would fit better or worse.

Locker room cred: 7 I like that it doesn’t look all offroad macho, but it also doesn’t feel like an Elizabethan tea room with doilies. Nor does it scream “jock,” like other cars do.

All-around: 8.5 Again, if the price doesn’t bother you, you could do much worse than the Edge.