2012 Ford Edge - Features Review

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Opt into the SEL and the Edge gets power front seats, rear parking sensors, satellite radio and 22-inch wheels, as well as SYNC, the Bluetooth-driven system that allows drivers to control audio and phone features with voice commands. Limited models add leather upholstery and a rearview camera, Sony audio and HD Radio, and MyFord Touch, undoubtedly the high-tech calling card that made its debut in the Edge.

MyFord Touch has its detractors, even among our car experts, but it's a dramatic break with the buttons and knobs of the past, and a superior setup to the knob-driven controllers like iDrive, COMAND and MMI. With MyFord Touch, the SYNC system is connected with steering-wheel controls and a large touchscreen on the dash to govern the climate controls, audio, phone, and navigation.

Some of us think MyFord Touch is the best control system on the market. It lets drivers run all these systems with voice commands, or to cycle through and run many of the functions with those steering-wheel controls. With more than 10,000 recognized voice commands, we've found it the best way to change functions without losing concentration on the road ahead. Want to hear a track? Just say "play Beyonce," and you're crazy in love in a few milliseconds.

It's also possible to control those functions on the LCD touchscreen, which can be the least satisfying way because of the screen's slow responses and its crowded layouts. However, the LCD panel lets Ford drop dozens of buttons from the dash, leaving a clean center stack with just an optical slider or two for swipe controls.

MyFord Touch also includes basic turn-by-turn navigation delivered via the satellite-radio services, as well as the ability to port in Google Maps or Mapquest instructions via a paired smartphone.

There's also a Sport model, with the largest engine in the lineup, and its own set of features. A black-finished grille, smoked headlamps and taillamps, new cladding and fascias, and aluminum cockpit trim mark the high-line model, as do special sport leather seats.

Options on the Edge include a fantastic glass Vista Roof, adaptive cruise control, leather upholstery (where it's not standard), blind-spot monitors, and on the SEL, a power tailgate.