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Thoughts on the Ford Transit

K

kornphlake

Golden Member
I'm in mini-van territory with my family, I need the utility of a van and 7 passenger seating. There isn't a SUV or wagon on the market that makes more sense than a van, please keep this on topic, I can not be convinced to drive a SUV. I'm not satisfied with the reliability or cost of most of the mini-vans on the market. I like the Mazda 5, but honestly it needs a lot more cargo space. I couldn't even fit a very compact stroller behind the rear bench unless I held the hatch closed with a bungee cord. I've got a Toyota Sienna and I'll never own another, I probably won't own another Toyota for at least a decade, my inlaws have a Honda Oddessey and I find it uncomfortable to drive, it's got a lot of nice features and the reliability is proven, but that doesn't make it any more comfortable, I wouldn't buy a pair of shoes that were uncomfortable and I won't buy a vehicle that is uncomfortable. Nissan Quest, Dodge Caravan, along with anything GM is uninspiring when it comes to MPG and quality of materials and workmanship. I honestly think the Chevy Astro is the best mini-van platform, but it was discontinued a couple years ago.

I've seen the new Ford Transit around town and they interest me. I know they only come with seating for 5 but I'm pretty sure I could find a way to install my own third row seating to carry 7 passengers, not sure if that would give any more cargo room than a Mazda 5 though. Fuel economy looks good, base price is very competitive and the styling actually interests me. I'm not a big fan of European vehicles, but being something different than the jellybean mini-van, it's something I could live with. My biggest concern would be reliability and cost of ownership, this vehicle is brand new to the US market I don't know if those concerns can be addressed. It was designed as a commercial vehicle so I expect that it would be more durable, although perhaps less fun to drive, than the average mini-van.

Any thoughts on the Transit?
 
Originally posted by: kornphlake
I'm in mini-van territory with my family, I need the utility of a van and 7 passenger seating. There isn't a SUV or wagon on the market that makes more sense than a van, please keep this on topic, I can not be convinced to drive a SUV. I'm not satisfied with the reliability or cost of most of the mini-vans on the market. I like the Mazda 5, but honestly it needs a lot more cargo space. I couldn't even fit a very compact stroller behind the rear bench unless I held the hatch closed with a bungee cord. I've got a Toyota Sienna and I'll never own another, I probably won't own another Toyota for at least a decade, my inlaws have a Honda Oddessey and I find it uncomfortable to drive, it's got a lot of nice features and the reliability is proven, but that doesn't make it any more comfortable, I wouldn't buy a pair of shoes that were uncomfortable and I won't buy a vehicle that is uncomfortable. Nissan Quest, Dodge Caravan, along with anything GM is uninspiring when it comes to MPG and quality of materials and workmanship. I honestly think the Chevy Astro is the best mini-van platform, but it was discontinued a couple years ago.

I've seen the new Ford Transit around town and they interest me. I know they only come with seating for 5 but I'm pretty sure I could find a way to install my own third row seating to carry 7 passengers, not sure if that would give any more cargo room than a Mazda 5 though. Fuel economy looks good, base price is very competitive and the styling actually interests me. I'm not a big fan of European vehicles, but being something different than the jellybean mini-van, it's something I could live with. My biggest concern would be reliability and cost of ownership, this vehicle is brand new to the US market I don't know if those concerns can be addressed. It was designed as a commercial vehicle so I expect that it would be more durable, although perhaps less fun to drive, than the average mini-van.

Any thoughts on the Transit?
Click to expand...

That cant be safe/good idea/legal/etc
 
funny thing is, they arrive off the boat with the 3rd row seats and remove them at port. There has to be a way to get that 3rd row seat.
 
Originally posted by: caboob
funny thing is, they arrive off the boat with the 3rd row seats and remove them at port. There has to be a way to get that 3rd row seat.
Click to expand...

Wow, that makes it sound even easier to seat 7 passengers.
 
Originally posted by: PhoKingGuy
Originally posted by: caboob
funny thing is, they arrive off the boat with the 3rd row seats and remove them at port. There has to be a way to get that 3rd row seat.
Click to expand...

Hm you're right....

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125357990638429655.html

Thats pretty ridiculous
Click to expand...

this is not uncommon at all. i was at port newark and saw some pretty big operations based around partially dismantling cars before shipping in order to beat trade laws. one thing that sticks in my mind was some new GM's having the wheels taken off and being put into crates- no idea what that was about.
 
Originally posted by: PhoKingGuy
Originally posted by: caboob
funny thing is, they arrive off the boat with the 3rd row seats and remove them at port. There has to be a way to get that 3rd row seat.
Click to expand...

Hm you're right....

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125357990638429655.html

Thats pretty ridiculous
Click to expand...

Thanks for the link. That article says that a few vans do make it through as passenger vehicles:

On a recent afternoon, a handful of vans passed through the warehouse unmolested as passenger wagons. But the vast majority were lined up to have windows pulled out, and they all had their rear seats removed.
Click to expand...
 
Originally posted by: PhoKingGuy
Originally posted by: caboob
funny thing is, they arrive off the boat with the 3rd row seats and remove them at port. There has to be a way to get that 3rd row seat.
Click to expand...

Hm you're right....

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125357990638429655.html

Thats pretty ridiculous
Click to expand...

I wonder if they didn't pass US crash tests with the third row? I remember reading a story about how the Honda Element would have cost an extra $1000 or so to have seating for 5 versus seating for 4 because of the extra structural components they would have had to use.
 
Originally posted by: sdifox
how big are the 7? If there is at least 2 kids, you could get away with a used MB R350.
Click to expand...

My biggest concern would be reliability and cost of ownershipAnd you recommend him a used mercedes benz?

 
Originally posted by: Skoorb
Originally posted by: sdifox
how big are the 7? If there is at least 2 kids, you could get away with a used MB R350.
Click to expand...

My biggest concern would be reliability and cost of ownershipAnd you recommend him a used mercedes benz?
Click to expand...

My brother has an 06 R350 4Mtaic, so far so good. My wife's 06 E350 4Matic only showed the stupid steeling wheel airbag bad contact error once. We got the E350 at the end of 08 (Dec 28 or something like that) and we put about 24k km on it already.

 
Originally posted by: sdifox
Originally posted by: Skoorb
Originally posted by: sdifox
how big are the 7? If there is at least 2 kids, you could get away with a used MB R350.
Click to expand...

My biggest concern would be reliability and cost of ownershipAnd you recommend him a used mercedes benz?
Click to expand...

My brother has an 06 R350 4Mtaic, so far so good. My wife's 06 E350 4Matic only showed the stupid steeling wheel airbag bad contact error once. We got the E350 at the end of 08 (Dec 28 or something like that) and we put about 24k km on it already.
Click to expand...

Reliability doesn't come into play on most vehicles until they're up to the 80-120k mile mark. I would say there are a lot of vehicles that are reliable for the first 80k miles but turn to crap after that. Whereas others are reliable to 150-200k miles.
 
Originally posted by: sdifox
how big are the 7? If there is at least 2 kids, you could get away with a used MB R350.
Click to expand...

Will you stop recommending that ugly whale POS cruiser to people? That has got to have been the ugliest, worst thought out biggest flop MBZ has ever created. The local dealer around me was offering some stupid 10k off sticker on all of them because they could not sell them.
 
Originally posted by: sdifox
how big are the 7? If there is at least 2 kids, you could get away with a used MB R350.
Click to expand...

Originally posted by: kornphlake
There isn't a SUV or wagon on the market that makes more sense than a van, please keep this on topic, I can not be convinced to drive a SUV.
Click to expand...

Reliability to me means drivable without having to rebuild the engine or transmission before 200k miles, few if any emissions related problems that should cost less than $500 to repair and average or better construction and materials so it doesn't look like a jalopy after 5 years. I expect any new vehicle that costs $20k or more to last well upward of 150k miles. There's a lot of vehicles that I'd never own, including several of the mini-vans on the market, for that reason. I'm drawn to the Transit because it's supposedly designed as a commercial vehicle, which means the designers should have thought about the materials used durable materials that will tolerate commercial use. If I'm going to be financing a vehicle I want something that will run trouble free until it's paid off, then at least that much longer so I can save enough to pay cash for a replacement.

I also like the fact that the Transit doesn't have all the bells and whistles any other base model mini-van would have. Cup holders are most often used as mini-garbage cans, power sliding doors become heavy difficult to open manual doors when they quit working and cost way too much to be repaired, rear seat entertainment in my opinion is singing bingo or playing slug bug, not watching Hanna Montana. I'd rather my children spend a minimum of time in the back seat of the van anyway, but when they do have to sit for more than 20 minutes I'd like the experience to be something memorable, even if it's just discomfort or boredom it's memorable.
 
Originally posted by: PhoKingGuy
Originally posted by: sdifox
how big are the 7? If there is at least 2 kids, you could get away with a used MB R350.
Click to expand...

Will you stop recommending that ugly whale POS cruiser to people? That has got to have been the ugliest, worst thought out biggest flop MBZ has ever created. The local dealer around me was offering some stupid 10k off sticker on all of them because they could not sell them.
Click to expand...

Chill, you don't like it, fine. They are doing fine with the R class now that people are getting into this crossover dohickey. Your reason for calling it a POS?
 
Originally posted by: kornphlake
Originally posted by: sdifox
how big are the 7? If there is at least 2 kids, you could get away with a used MB R350.
Click to expand...

Originally posted by: kornphlake
There isn't a SUV or wagon on the market that makes more sense than a van, please keep this on topic, I can not be convinced to drive a SUV.
Click to expand...

Reliability to me means drivable without having to rebuild the engine or transmission before 200k miles, few if any emissions related problems that should cost less than $500 to repair and average or better construction and materials so it doesn't look like a jalopy after 5 years. I expect any new vehicle that costs $20k or more to last well upward of 150k miles. There's a lot of vehicles that I'd never own, including several of the mini-vans on the market, for that reason. I'm drawn to the Transit because it's supposedly designed as a commercial vehicle, which means the designers should have thought about the materials used durable materials that will tolerate commercial use. If I'm going to be financing a vehicle I want something that will run trouble free until it's paid off, then at least that much longer so I can save enough to pay cash for a replacement.

I also like the fact that the Transit doesn't have all the bells and whistles any other base model mini-van would have. Cup holders are most often used as mini-garbage cans, power sliding doors become heavy difficult to open manual doors when they quit working and cost way too much to be repaired, rear seat entertainment in my opinion is singing bingo or playing slug bug, not watching Hanna Montana. I'd rather my children spend a minimum of time in the back seat of the van anyway, but when they do have to sit for more than 20 minutes I'd like the experience to be something memorable, even if it's just discomfort or boredom it's memorable.
Click to expand...

So get one of the various cubevans and get seats for them? For that kind of duty cycle, I would say Diesel is the answer. The R350 is definitely not an SUV...but it probably doesn't match what you are looking for anyway.

Problems with cubevans is they are not built for passenger duty, so the cage is not that strongly built. But then again, get t-boned by a BMW at 200kmph will pulverise everything.

http://forums.anandtech.com/me...id=85&threadid=2343643
 
Originally posted by: kornphlake
Originally posted by: sdifox
how big are the 7? If there is at least 2 kids, you could get away with a used MB R350.
Click to expand...

Originally posted by: kornphlake
There isn't a SUV or wagon on the market that makes more sense than a van, please keep this on topic, I can not be convinced to drive a SUV.
Click to expand...

Reliability to me means drivable without having to rebuild the engine or transmission before 200k miles, few if any emissions related problems that should cost less than $500 to repair and average or better construction and materials so it doesn't look like a jalopy after 5 years. I expect any new vehicle that costs $20k or more to last well upward of 150k miles. There's a lot of vehicles that I'd never own, including several of the mini-vans on the market, for that reason. I'm drawn to the Transit because it's supposedly designed as a commercial vehicle, which means the designers should have thought about the materials used durable materials that will tolerate commercial use. If I'm going to be financing a vehicle I want something that will run trouble free until it's paid off, then at least that much longer so I can save enough to pay cash for a replacement.

I also like the fact that the Transit doesn't have all the bells and whistles any other base model mini-van would have. Cup holders are most often used as mini-garbage cans, power sliding doors become heavy difficult to open manual doors when they quit working and cost way too much to be repaired, rear seat entertainment in my opinion is singing bingo or playing slug bug, not watching Hanna Montana. I'd rather my children spend a minimum of time in the back seat of the van anyway, but when they do have to sit for more than 20 minutes I'd like the experience to be something memorable, even if it's just discomfort or boredom it's memorable.
Click to expand...

Get a dodge Sprinter and call it a day
 
Originally posted by: kalrith
Originally posted by: sdifox
Originally posted by: Skoorb
Originally posted by: sdifox
how big are the 7? If there is at least 2 kids, you could get away with a used MB R350.
Click to expand...

My biggest concern would be reliability and cost of ownershipAnd you recommend him a used mercedes benz?
Click to expand...

My brother has an 06 R350 4Mtaic, so far so good. My wife's 06 E350 4Matic only showed the stupid steeling wheel airbag bad contact error once. We got the E350 at the end of 08 (Dec 28 or something like that) and we put about 24k km on it already.
Click to expand...

Reliability doesn't come into play on most vehicles until they're up to the 80-120k mile mark. I would say there are a lot of vehicles that are reliable for the first 80k miles but turn to crap after that. Whereas others are reliable to 150-200k miles.
Click to expand...

I don't think I care to drive a car more than 200K Km anyway. Which cars are good for 200k mi? Just wanted to know.
 
Doesn't a base-model Sienna/Odyssey fit those needs aside from all the cupholders? I'm sure its a hell of a lot safer than a tin-can transit van as well.

Last I checked, power sliding doors and dvd entertainment aren't standard on base models anyway.....

Not to mention the transit is pretty slow even empty and I can't imagine it being at all comfortable, especially for those in the back.
 
Originally posted by: PhoKingGuy

Get a dodge Sprinter and call it a day
Click to expand...

ironically, that's a mercedes, isn't it? the drivetrain is, at least, i dunno who makes the rest of it.
 
Originally posted by: brblx
Originally posted by: PhoKingGuy

Get a dodge Sprinter and call it a day
Click to expand...

ironically, that's a mercedes, isn't it? the drivetrain is, at least, i dunno who makes the rest of it.
Click to expand...

They are converted into ambulances in most of the world, and they're starting to do the same here. A bud of mine who worked for a local ambulance company is that they ride extremely well and are near bulletproof. His rig had 100k miles on it and still rode perfectly.
 
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