2005款福特Freestyle

????Freestyle基于沃爾沃（Volvo）的平臺生產出來時，酷越車才剛開始流行，但梅斯錯過了這個市場。對絕大多數購買者來說，作為開路先鋒的Freestyle太像一輛旅行車，而SUV的元素太少。他們想要的是更高的駕駛坐姿，更粗獷的外觀。2004年，Freestyle首次推出，此后2008款更名為“金牛X”（Taurus X），但2009年就停產了。2012年接受《汽車新聞》（Automotive News）采訪時，梅斯承認這是他的一大敗筆。他說：“我沒認為‘五百’（Five Hundred，金牛車的改稱——譯注）或Freestyle是我在福特最輝煌的代表作之一。”

2005 Ford Freestyle

????Crossovers were just catching on when the Freestyle was engineered from a Volvo platform, but Mays missed the market. The ground-hugging Freestyle had too much station wagon in it and too little SUV for most buyers, who wanted a higher seating position and a more rugged exterior. Introduced in 2004, the Freestyle was renamed the Taurus X for the 2008 model year but was discontinued in 2009. In a 2012 interview with Automotive News, Mays acknowledged the missteps. "I don't think the Five Hundred (see next slide) or Freestyle was one of my brighter moments in Ford," he said.