EcoBoost power allows this Ford Transit to do a little light drifting to clean up an old set of tires.
The Ford Transitdoesn’t get a whole lot of attention in the United States due to its commercial-heavy customer base, but this week’s Tire Smokin’ Tuesday video features a big van that is sure to put a smile on your face. This footage comes from the YouTube channel of Paul Rogersand it features a Transit with the EcoBoost V6 show that a big van can do a big burnout and it can even get a little sideways during the tire-slaying fun.
Ford Transit: the Unlikely Tire Slayer
The vehicle in action in the video above is a newer Ford Transit with the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6. We can see that it has the high roof option, the extended body length option and single rear wheels, and we know that the 6-speed automatic transmission is standard with the turbocharged engine. Also, we know that the Transit application of the 3.5-liter EcoBoost is one of the less-power, but with 310 horsepower and 400 lb-ft of torque, it still packs the punch needed to roast the skinny rear tires.
Ultimately, if you are looking to do smoky burnouts, the best vehicle for the job has plenty of torque and very little weight over the rear wheels, making the Ford Transit an ideal option.
Fixing the Tires
We can see in the video that this Ford Transit belongs to Rogers Athletic Equipment in Farwell, Michigan and according to the video information, the driver is looking to “true up some old tires on the van”. In other words, the two rear tires have differing levels of wear, so to fix that, the driver of the Transit will smoke off of a few layers of rubber.
At first, the burnout appears to be a dud, as the Ford Transit spins the tires just a touch before lurching forward and stopping. Fortunately, the next try is a complete success, with both rear tires spinning and smoking hard. After a few seconds of roasting the rears in place, the driver lets off of the brake and the big van smokes its way off into the distance, kicking the rear end out a bit in the process.
The Ford Transit ends up laying a good hundred feet of twin stripes on the pavement, showing that a powerful work van serves as an excellent burnout machine.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
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"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
