Our four-year-old daughter may be switching from a manual wheelchair to a power chair, so we may need to get a larger vehicle than our current Honda Odyssey. As a longtime Ford guy the Transit was first on my list of full-size alternatives, and we got to test drive one today.

I've driven E-350s with work in the past, and I have to say I'm extremely impressed with how the Transit drove. We would probably opt for an extended length regular roof van, as we need the space but also need to be able to fit into a parking garage. The one we test drove had the 3.7L V6, and it did a very impressive job moving the 6,200-lb van around. I thought with a payload of nearly 3,000 lbs it would ride like a grain truck unloaded, but it was surprisingly well mannered. What surprised me most was that my wife walked away with a positive impression of it.



We won't be doing anything for at least a month or two, as lots depends on how her chair fitting goes next week and whether or not insurance goes along with it. There are lots of sacrifices that come with upgrading to a full-size van from a minivan, but I think the Transit is easily the most civilized option. What kind of fuel economy could I expect on the highway with a low-roof extended van?

 

This is not really that relevant a question since I decided to move from an E150 to a (large) minivan, but how is the front seat passenger legroom?

I remember briefly sitting in a big Transit driver's seat and it felt very buslike...but does the passenger get a straight footwell with a naturally angled floor? (Problem with the E van is the engine cover.)

If I were to get a big Transit, it would be a short low roof version; the extended one is really long, but if you have a need for it, go for it. The 3.7 somehow seems like a small and high revving engine for a big van, but Dodge is using the same 3.6 as in my G Caravan in their big Promaster vans too. You will definitely have to rev these engines to make power but that is what they are designed for.

Thanks,
George

 

It seemed spacious to me, but I haven't been in an E-series for years so I couldn't really give you a great comparison. At 5'8" and 145 lbs I'm not really a big guy though, so taller folks may feel otherwise.

Buslike is a great descriptor for it, and I really liked that part! The visibility out the front windshield was outstanding, but it did take some getting used to. I really expected the 3.7L to feel underpowered, but it didn't feel that way at all. I'm sure it would feel a little more taxed with another 2,700 lbs to bring it to GVWR. We'd likely be looking for an EcoBoost-powered model if we went that route.

To the best of my memory the passenger footwell was straight from the seating position.

Really long is right, and I have to consider that my wife would be primarily driving it, and she's far less comfortable than I with a large vehicle. Benefit of the Transit is the long wheelbase passenger model is only about 6" longer than my truck, which means it would (barely) fit in the garage. I suspect the short, bulbous nose has something to do with that.

Biggest downside seems to be the lack of serious towing capacity. We'd like to get a camper at some point in the future, and the Transit Wagon seems to be only rated for ~4,000 lbs. The Cargo models are somehow rated for a higher GCWR, and I can't find any mechanical differences between the two, so it may work. The Chevy Express 3500 has a huge advantage in that department, as it gets the same powertain they put in the Silverado HD trucks and is rated for over 9,000 lbs of towing capacity.

How's the Grand Caravan treating you?

 

Not keen on the Big Euro vans myself ..
They are here though . Hope they stand up to our type of driving .
Much different than what they were first designed for .
I am sure that issue has been sorted .I hope .

 

I may be wrong, but I don't think the US-spec Transit has anything to do with the original euro models other than name only. The powertrain is straight out of the F150 pickup trucks from the engine all the way to the rear axle. Ford, along with the other automakers, has been shifting to global vehicle architectures for some time now, so they may share some similarities with the models sold elsewhere.

I have the 3.5L EcoBoost and 6R80 transmission in my F150, and it's rated for almost 11,000 lbs of towing. Don't see why it would be any less robust in a van, but of course there are some differences between the two.

 

The 3.7 is a good motor. I've been happy with it in my work truck

 

BTW, I wouldn't touch the promaster if I was you. They haven't been great for us...

 

They don't make a passenger variant, so they're not really in the running. Don't think I would consider one even if they did, I don't really trust FWD powertrains to the kind of use we would put it through. Not saying that it wouldn't last, but I would MUCH sooner trust a 6R80 than the 6-speed auto they use in the GC.

 

The engine and transmission have been good in them. It is everything else that has sucked.

 

Thanks for all the answers, Tom. The Grand Caravan is really nice; it's a very loaded up R/T model with heated leather seats, dual climate control, and dual power seats (all of which were high priorities for passenger seat comfort). It's really smooth and quiet, and all the power stuff is amusing. It's got factory nav, which happens to be a Garmin unit, and we've been using a Garmin standalone unit for the last 6 months so there is not much of a learning curve on the nav for us. The best part is that my back seems to do really well with the seat, and that is really important. The Sienna and the Metris had lumbar humps in the seats (with the support all the way down) and caused sciatic pain inside a half hour of driving.

It's been parked in the garage during some recent snow and salt in Detroit because I'd prefer to keep it out of the salt for the rest of this winter. Not quite 300 miles on it, but as soon as we have some clearer weather I want to finish breaking it in. It's got a lot of power (283 hp) which is way more than the 4.6 in my departed E150 which had 235 hp. I feel good about the stability control and the airbags that my '02 E150 did not have. Drives tight and new.

Interestingly, the Grand Caravan has the same 3.6 engine and 62TE transmission that they use in the Promaster. I would not be confident about a Promaster, and hope the GC lasts us a while. I did not yet buy an extended warranty but I will consider it while I am in the window to get the factory warranty extension.

George

 

Glad to hear it's working well for you George, even if you've barely used it! I wouldn't opt for the extended warranty, they're generally a losing bargain.

Since we're in the van forum, what experience do you guys have with the GM full-size options? I ask because every Express 3500 is rated to tow over 9,000 lbs, and it shares the 6.0L V8 and 6L90 transmission with the Silverado HDs. You can't equip a Transit to pull that much, and everything I'm finding used has the base 3.7L engine that's only rated for 4,100 lbs. We're considering getting a camper, and the Transit doesn't really seem up to the task, but the GM vans seem downright stone-age in comparison. Any thoughts?

 

Hey Tom:

No rush to put miles on the van in the snow and salt...the deal at the end of Feb was *too* good and it will hopefully be with us for years. This week will be warm and rainy, so I will commence driving the van when the salt is rinsed off the roads.

I have bought maybe 8 extended warranties on vehicles over the years and have lost some money on 2 or 3 of them. BUT on most of them I have made out REALLY well, including my E150 which got $4200 worth of new cylinder heads (TSB re bad heads on the early Romeo PI 4.6) and some front end parts (ball joint, tie rod ends, idler arm) and a couple gaskets. On my old GMC Savana van, I got 7(!) valve bodies, 3(!) transmissions, a starter, an alternator, 2 fuel pumps, 3 oxy sensors, and numerous other repairs--basically $10-15 grand worth out of a $1000 warranty on the old Van from Hell...

Even on my Acura TL, bought off-lease, I spent a grand on a warranty and thought I'd wasted money, but by 90k miles got a new radiator, a new radiator electric fan, a new exhaust manifold, and new rear brake calipers (e brake was rusted)...so about $4k worth of stuff.

My Subaru got new head gaskets and a new clutch release bearing under warranty--about 3 grand worth of work. Like my Acura, it's a rock solid car at 104k miles but needed a couple things. Gaskets and a throwout bearing are not expensive--but the labor sure as heck is.

So despite what Consumer Reports and a lot of other publications say, I have more than made out on warranties and lean hard in favor of them I have a metric ton of fancy etronics in the G Caravan, and I don't trust Chrysler like I trust Honda with etronics...

Maybe I'm just lucky, but extended warranties have worked well for me...fortunately I have wasted all of the money that my old employers and I spent on life insurance for me.
George

 

I thought your were considering the ecoboost van? What about a powerstroke?

 

Yep, if I can find one! Full-size vans depreciate FAST, so we're only really looking at used vans about a year old. They can be had about $15,000 under what you can get them for new. A used diesel Transit is at the top of my list, but I can't find a single example for sale.

Even so, none of the passenger models are rated to pull more than 5,000 lbs regardless of engine. I wouldn't be opposed to putting something heavier than that behind a van with adequate power and gauges, but I have to find one first! And the 3.7L engine probably wouldn't cut it for that.

 

Tom,

If you can source a Transit with the 3.5L EB and the 3.73 axle, you can achieve a 7100 pound tow rating with an amazing 3600 pound payload. It seems that the regular length low roof still weighs in at a hefty 6200 lbs.