Don’t be surprised if, while looking closely at the Ford Flex, you catch a glimpse of something beyond a uniquely styled, highly versatile crossover. You just might be looking through a window back in time.

Ford’s leadership as a family vehicle innovator has touched many lives over the years. The Flex continues that tradition for a new generation. This time, you and your passengers will benefit from safety, comfort and onboard entertainment not possible in decades past.

If you grew up in the 1980s or before, chances are pretty good that the family vehicle you remember was a station wagon. There’s one wagon name that likely springs to mind before others: Country Squire. That was the full-size Ford, the big, roomy wagon with the faux wood trim outside and space for the whole family inside.

If yours was not a “Ford family,” maybe you had a friend with a Country Squire and rode in it from time to time. Ford offered “Squire” versions of all its wagon models, from compact to full-size. The “Squire” badge meant more than the faux wood paneling; it also brought a feeling of value, style and comfort.

High tech? For the times, yes. Ford revolutionized wagon versatility in 1966 with the Magic Door Tailgate. With innovative side and bottom hinges, it could be lowered like a conventional tailgate or opened like a door. Nobody else offered it, and it was still on the last Country Squire in 1991.

If you were a child in the 60s or 70s, you might today look enviously at the onboard entertainment features available in the Flex. In a Country Squire, the side-facing third-row seats were a favorite with kids, but entertainment was the magnetic checkerboard set that Ford offered for the fold-down table between them.

Who would have dreamed of watching movies in the car back then? Today, the Flex offers two different DVD entertainment systems.

You were lucky if your old family wagon had an AM/FM stereo or a “tape deck.” The Flex offers a Sony premium audio system that rocks out with 390 watts playing through 10 speakers, plus an in-dash six-disc CD changer, MP3 capability, and SIRIUS Satellite Radio with a complimentary six-month subscription.

Don’t forget SYNC®, Ford’s in-car voice-activated communications system that allows you to operate most popular MP3 players, Bluetooth-enabled phones and flash drives by using simple voice commands. Now SYNC includes 911 Assist™ and a Vehicle Health Report feature.

Some old wagons did have an in-car voice-activated communications system - a dad assuring the kids that, yes, “We’re almost there.” Maybe he wasn’t always inclined to want to pull over and ask for directions. In the Flex, the available navigation system takes care of that.

The family wagon might not have been the car you wanted to cruise around in when you first got your driver’s license, but it did take you on all those family vacations. Maybe it hauled a dorm room’s worth of your “stuff” to college.

The Flex continues that tradition with ample room and comfort for seven and, with the second and third seat rows folded, up to 83 cubic feet of cargo space. That old Country Squire was big, but the Flex offers more flexibility…and more luxury.

Heading out for any destination is more convenient with the Flex’s available class-exclusive fridge, which cools and freezes; and SIRIUS Travel Link™, which among other things allows you to get real-time traffic and weather and check gas prices at 120,000 gas stations across the country. Now that’s a feature the old Country Squire could have really used! Achieving the Flex’s 24 mpg highway fuel economy was simply not possible in one of the classic wagons.

With standard Advance Trac® traction control or available all-wheel drive, Flex keeps going in weather that might have sidelined the old wagon. Plus, with a smooth V6, six-speed automatic transmission and four-wheel independent suspension, it’s far much more enjoyable to drive. That’s one reason the Flex landed on Automobile magazine’s 2009 All-Stars list.

So, go ahead, take a long look at the Flex. You just might catch a glimpse of some great memories – including those yet to come.