Connecting with the Ford Transit Connect

Ford dropped off a new Transit Connect at our Connecticut test track this week to let our engineers and editors try it out this week. Colleague Eric Evarts and I, both with admitted geekish gearhead tendencies and previous owners of various minivans, trekked out to the 327-acre Auto Test Center from our New York headquarters to get some seat time.

For those of you who haven’t yet connected with the Transit Connect, it is a tall, commercial version derived of the Focus and built in Turkey. It is designed for local, urban deliveries and for relatively light payloads. Ford is hoping to find a ready market with small contactors and delivery service, who find a full size van or pickup too much truck for their needs. Plans for the Transit Connect in the U.S. don’t include a diesel power plant, although European buyers do have that option.

The carmaker has displayed various incarnations of the Transit Connect at major car shows, decked out in everything from kayak outfitter gear to more traditional contractor getups and even a taxi cab. At the New York auto show, they displayed several examples, including a family friendly model.
http://onlocation.consumerreports.org/ny-auto-show/Default.asp

But the contractor-friendly van delivered to our track is pretty basic inside. There’s lots of painted metal and plain plastic—none of which is a problem. But our loaner has a back seat, which, while not necessarily a bad idea, is not something normally expected in work vans. It eats into the cargo area, and it seems to send a mixed message about who the target buyer really is. The key message here is the vehicle’s huge cargo volume and relatively high load capacity at 1600 lbs.

That said, the Transit Connect is relatively fun to drive. The 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine in our loaner provides adequate oomph, though no more. Without a load heavier than Eric and I, it handles reasonably well with a responsive steering system, making it more fun to drive than larger vans. We actually enjoyed driving it more than some new cars we have driven recently.

Time will tell how the Transit Connect does in the marketplace, but at least two of us think it’s a good idea. It might even make a decent mini motor home replacement for those VW Campers in our past.

What do you think?

—Jim Travers

Comments

[Brady Holt]

I wish they'd have done a real passenger version -- it seems they don't have any without some windows covered over. There are many family car buyers who want just a basic vehicle with lots of space.

[Ron Teljeur]

I ordered one a while back and have already taken out the first one that showed up @ the dealer (the day after it showed up). The version I took out was the 2 seater. I didn't drive far enough to really check the mileage, but $10 took me at least 70Km (probably more) and there was still more fuel in the truck when I returned it than when I took it out.
The 5 seater does have glass in the sliding doors and should have good visibilty. The only touchy point was that the mirrors are small and over shoulder check lacks visibilty.
You only need 1/2 a culdesac to turn around! Very responsive handling but don't expect any great 1/4 mile times.
I will write again once I get my truck and get some real time & miles behind the wheel. Overall a good move by Ford, too bad they left the diesel in Europe...

[Michael]

I think it's a great idea! I hope vehicles of this sort--small and efficient, but practical and roomy--gain a greater following here in North America, where I believe they could replace full-size trucks and vans a lot of the time.

[Daniel Totten]

I was pleased with the concept and have seen many with the family in mind including windows in the rear. Being a camper I think it has a lot of potential for not only the smaller family but the commercial side as well.

[Francis]

I'm glad Ford brought the Transit Connect over. Now I wish they would sell the diesel version here. I believe it gets over 40 mpg. I also wish they would sell the full-sized Transit truck here too.

[Art]

I've been waiting for years for this to show up in the US. At present I am using a 2001 F150 with a camper shell on the back as my regular vehicle and as a mini-camper. The Transit Connect would be a better substitute & I will be able to take advantage of the maximum Cash for Clunkers benefit to trade-in my F150 for its CforC scrap value, which is greater than its trade-in value.
It's a pity it isn't being offered with its regular turbo-diesel. 40-50 mpg for a small van would have been great.

[Ron Teljeur]

Francis, the full size Transits are already in Mexico and are scheduled to replace the E-Series vans in 2012.
God willing they will get on with the diesel versions.

[coolcar]

Does anybody know when it will go on sale in the U.S. and Canada?

[Keith]

What I think is really exciting is the Transit Connect will be offered as an electric vehicle in 2010. That's going to be a great vehicle for small businesses that do local deliveries.

[Jim Travers - Consumer Reports]

coolcar,

A Ford representative tells us the Transit Connect is arriving at dealer showrooms now.

[Ron Teljeur]

So far so good. Picked mine up Aug 11, now have 1600 km on the clock. Averaging 400 km on $40-45 of fuel (@ C$1.10/litre). Very easy to drive all day. Handles extremely well on highway and city with or without a load. I have the stabilty package so that may make mine more stable in curves etc.

Tons of people ask me about my truck especially for passenger/wagon use.

[Byron Horn]

This really sounds like a vehicle to fill a long time void in the U.S. I too would prefer it with a diesel rather than a gasoline engine. There's no doubt people resist change and so a huge education program on television is needed in order to persuade Americans to want diesels. The new European developed diesels are as quiet as our gasoline engines and still have the power and high mileage of the former designs.
One other thought is diesels are "oil burners" and so with our huge coal deposits they'd run nicely on high grade coal oil.
Our air force has successfully ran such coal oil in jet engines!
Maybe Consumer Reports could recommend, if so inclined, diesels?

[Peter Formiller]

Headroom is a necessity for me. I am 6'5" and my legs are only 33" long, so I need about 44" of headroom. I often walk into dealerships to "try on some cars" and walk out disappointed--there's nothing in the dealership I can drive comfortably. Often I can't even get into the new ones.

51.1" of headroom is a dream come true! I plan to see the Transit Connect tomorrow, though I may wait a bit before I buy to see if a family model will be offered. After the Transit Connect, the next head-roomiest is the Honda Element (43.3"), and even that is cramped for me.

fyi: my last three vehicles: 1993 Pontiac TransPort, 1999 New Beetle (!), and 2003 Buick Rendezvous. The VW was the only one where my head didn't actually touch the ceiling. I'm trying to buy American, but Detroit makes it tough!

[Peter Formiller]

I "tried on" the Transit Connect today. It has headroom galore, but two problems for a tall-bodied driver like me.

First, the driver-side front seat is mounted too close to the dashboard. In fact, it is slightly closer than the passenger-side front seat. I would have to remount the seat back at least an inch or two to be able to move my right leg at all.

Second, the standard overhead shelf is a safety hazard in two ways:
a) it obstructs my forward view, and
b) in a crash, I would catch the edge of the shelf right about at the top of my forehead.

So the shelf would have to go. Unfortunately, this would involve the mounting of the visors and the center light & switches.

Both modifications are probably do-able, and I may be forced to do them when my Rendezvous wears out, if the present trend of downsizing the cockpit continues.

What would it cost for a car company to make just ONE vehicle per year scaled for a really big guy? We have to drive, too, you know.

[soulsurferusa]

I am, and probably many fellow (wind)surfers too, interested in the transit connect for many reasons:

1) scaling down from gas guzzling E150+ vans and or pickup trucks to a zippy compact fun to drive vehicle; windsurf gear is not heavy or big, modern windsurf-boards are max 8ft long and ~2ft wide, weighing in at max 15lbs; sails and 2-part mast are often 6-8ft long too and weigh no more than a few lbs each. In total we're hauling only a few hundred pounds at the most (say an extra passenger), so no need for loads of HP, V8s etc. Most windsurfers simply need smart space! Which the transit seems to provide.
2) not having to buy a real (family) minivan with luxury, fancy interiors that don't like wet and salty gear. Often minivans have unfavorable seating options too.
3) moving up from compact hatch backs with all gear on roof racks that constantly requires putting gear on and taking off, reduced gas mileage, increased theft risk etc

My plan is to have 2 boards on the inside of the van. Bottoms up, nose sticking into the compartment above the front seats, on a custom build rack. With 50+ inches of head space, a 5 inch thick board can easily fit overhead without any space restrictions. The width of the transit connect allows to have easily 2 boards side by side, with room to spare (2 part masts can fit easily up there too). By having the boards inside, time consuming roof-rack placement can be avoided and gas-mileage is not deteriorated. (Roof racks easily decrease overall-mpg by 10-15% on average). Sails, booms, wetsuits etc all easily fit in the 6ft long cargo space; without having to worry about ruining any fancy leather upholstery. Finally, having a family off 4; the connect XL or XLT are perfect; leaving plenty of space for all equipment even with the boards against the inside of the roof. At least, these are my ideas. Will have to see how it all works out in reality.

Can't wait to try it out. Too bad most dealers on have the contractor version with 2 seats in plain-white...