Ford Edge Review

Ford has been on a roll of late in creating appealing cars, such as the Focus, Fusion, and Mustang. Its latest vehicle launch—the redesigned Edge five-seat crossover—displays refinement and sophistication in its driving dynamics and its upscale cabin that befits a prestige-branded model. With its newfound handling agility, ride comfort, quietness, and overall premium feel, the Edge catapults to the upper ranks of our Ratings of midsized SUVs.

Who doesn't love a tale of a downtrodden team coming up from the doldrums to become a champion?

Today's turnaround tale: the Ford Edge. Although widely sold, it was an anonymous, underwhelming crossover that stirred few souls.

But clearly the Edge has been transformed with the redesign, which bows grandly with significant improvements. As a result, it is one of our top-rated midsized crossovers.

The secret sauce for the Edge's new success lies in the platform it shares with the Ford Fusion sedan—another model that punches above its weight class. The Fusion's chassis provides sublime handling and cornering feel and a class-above ride. Those points carry over to the Edge.

The Edge's handling is reminiscent of an Audi Q5, while also providing ride comfort approaching a Lexus RX. For those unfamiliar with suspension engineering, this is an almost impossible feat.

The Edge feels taut and sporty, with a steering feel that is athletic on a country road and yet light and easy to operate when parking or maneuvering through tight quarters. On the open road, the suspension delivers ride comfort that isolates you from the worst of the road's jostles and bumps. Throughout, the Edge remains solid and steady.

Underhood is a turbo 2.0-liter four-­cylinder that produces straight-line acceleration without the hesitation found in many turbos. By the stopwatch, the Edge is a bit slower than its rivals, but by the seat of the pants, its response and smoothness is on par with a V6. But the turbo has a greater thirst for fuel than expected—given its EcoBoost tech and related marketing—at 21 mpg overall in our tests.

A traditional 3.5-liter V6 is available, but its rough character and similar gulping of gasoline make it the least desirable of the Edge's optional engines. A twin-turbo 2.7-liter V6 brings some serious hustle, but it can be had only with the Sport trim line. A capable six-speed transmission is paired with all three engines.

Inside, our SEL trim's styling is restrained and formal, with soft-touch surfaces, chrome door latches, and clever conveniences. The Titanium version is more plush and has more supportive seats.

The broad hood, deep dashboard, and thick, steeply raked windshield pillars give the Edge some larger-than-life proportions from behind the wheel. Shorter drivers struggled to get the proper seat settings to reach the pedals, and large drivers felt restricted by the seat bolsters. Thick roof pillars challenge rearward visibility, so you'll want the optional blind-spot monitor and rear cross-traffic alert systems.

The generous second row offers abundant leg, knee, and head room, and the seats provide good support. The power liftgate whirs open to expose ample cargo space, with a flat load floor. Roomy quarters, front to back, provide family-sized accommodations.

The Edge has bright, easy-to-read gauges. But the climate controls are tightly packed and mounted inconveniently low. The MyFord Touch infotainment system is frustrating, with small fonts, tightly clustered touch-screen buttons, and unintuitive functions. The next-gen Sync 3 infotainment system is due to arrive in the 2016 model year, and it promises more intuitive operation without sacrificing features.

If you want surface-level glitz, this businesslike Ford SUV might appear less impressive than its main competitor, the showy Nissan Murano, which has flashier exterior styling. But if you want a more rewarding driving experience from a crossover, in this case Ford has the, ahem, advantage.

Read the complete Ford Edge road test.