WITH one in four CVs sold in Britain a Ford Transit van, the launch of the all-new version is a highly significant event.
The new vehicle bristles with improved load-carrying ability, lower running costs, better performance, and lots of car-derived technology.
So here are ten things you need to know about the new Transit…
1. Global, yet still a Brit
It’s a global van, but still very British. Ford attracted controversy last year when it closed the Transit plant in Southampton, and the new vans will be assembled in Turkey as part of the brand’s ‘Global Ford’ philosophy that sees the Transit being sold in North America for the first time.
But the newcomer was designed and engineered at Ford’s technical centre in Dunton, Essex, and uses 2.2-litre Duratorq diesel engines that were created and are manufactured at Dagenham, just down the road from Dunton.
2. 4WD, FWD and RWD
The new Ford Transit is available in front-wheel-drive, rear-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive variants – Ford says only its van can be bought in all three drivetrain options. The blue oval expects big growth in sales of 4×4 versions from the 300 shifted last year – especially with the extreme weather that seems to be happening rather more often these days.
3. 450 variants!
Ford will eventually offer 450 different varieties of the new Transit. The vans stretch across two wheelbases, three body lengths and two roof heights, as do the minibus versions, while the chassis cab offers four wheelbases and five chassis frame lengths.
4. Load volumes are up
Load volumes have been improved on average by 10 per cent.
The medium van can now carry four Europallets instead of three and items three metres long. Go for the largest Jumbo van and you can squeeze in more than 15 cubic metres of cargo – its predecessor only managed 14.3 cubic metres.
And a host of gross vehicle weights are on offer ranging from 2.9 to 4.7 tonnes.
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