2019 22' Ford Transit vs 2019 24' Sprinter - Page 2

warpig · 05-06-2018, 04:22 PM

I agree that it is important for both front seats to swivel. I thought with the 2018 Transits that the driver's seat could swivel. I may not be correct on that though. There are after market swivel adapters available.

BBQ · 05-06-2018, 04:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wingeezer

We haven't made a purchase yet, but in my mind I ruled out anything on the transit as I don't believe you ca rotate the drivers seat due to the handbrake position.
...

Brian.

Please check again.
IIRC, this problem has been corrected on the current Transit.

Roadtrek Adventuous RS1 · 05-06-2018, 07:45 PM

A very small and confining front cabin area with the driver's seat that couldn't swivel was a deal breaker for me... the Mercedes Sprinter just felt better with easier access to the rear of the coach....I wouldn't assume that you can find a workaround for the driver's seat...

Also, the V6 3 litre diesel engine felt way more responsive than the 3.2 inline 5 cylinder...

Again, you have to pick what best works for you...I suggest you examine them closely.

<<B-Guy>> · 05-06-2018, 09:42 PM

Hi BBQ

Yes, I will check as that handbrake issue preventing rotation of the drivers seat was what stopped me lookig further at any Class B's on that platform. Seems to me I had read that unless Ford came up with a different arrangement, the RV manufacturers couldn't or wouldn't do anything about it themselves.

Are you aware of any Class B having a design on the Transit with a rotating driver's seat now? I will see what I can find.

Thx ........... Brian.

Roadtrek Adventuous RS1 · 05-07-2018, 12:12 AM

Brian, I'm not aware of any Ford Transit units with the rotating seats... but also see this comparison...I don't know.. maybe they've improved the Transit?? Still, the results are not good for 2007.

https://youtu.be/C3kN6WF5vAA

cruising7388 · 05-07-2018, 12:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wingeezer

Hi BBQ

Yes, I will check as that handbrake issue preventing rotation of the drivers seat was what stopped me lookig further at any Class B's on that platform. Seems to me I had read that unless Ford came up with a different arrangement, the RV manufacturers couldn't or wouldn't do anything about it themselves.

Are you aware of any Class B having a design on the Transit with a rotating driver's seat now? I will see what I can find.

Thx ........... Brian.

I doubt that an upfitter could legally revamp the handbrake. My guess is that it's a pencil pusher issue with Ford at this point. No question that the immobile driver seat will result in reduced sales of the Transit to upfitters because of customer resistance, but this could be such a small fraction of their total sales that it isn't worth it to Ford to underwrite the cost of the change. On the other hand, if Ford concludes that the RV segment is a burgeoning market for the Transit, they will make it happen. I hope so because I think the Transit is a better RV platform than the Sprinter or the Promaster.

avanti · 05-07-2018, 12:47 AM

Mercedes has that very clever fold-down handbrake handle for the Sprinter. I wonder how hard/expensive it would be to retrofit one to a Transit.

To be honest, we don't end up rotating our driver's seat nearly as often as the passenger's seat. In many floorpans, there is something directly behind the driver's seat that limits its usefulness.

warpig · 05-07-2018, 12:54 AM

It was done on a build by Sportsmobile:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/6302...%3A%22R0%22%7D

cruising7388 · 05-07-2018, 01:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by avanti

Mercedes has that very clever fold-down handbrake handle for the Sprinter. I wonder how hard/expensive it would be to retrofit one to a Transit.

I don't doubt that it could be done as a practical matter. I just wonder about the potential for liability in the event it subsequently fails. The worst case for making many changes in your RV is that any untoward results are fairly benign and in any event they impact only yourself. But the failure of a parking brake expands the breadth of undesired consequences and in such an event, I think that the revelation that the original brake was previously tinkered with, would make a personal injury lawyer spontaneously start drooling.

Roadtrek Adventuous RS1 · 05-07-2018, 02:48 AM

Yes, from an insurance risk management issue, any special modifications you make that would be perceived by your insurance company would NOT be good....and tampering or retrofitting the braking system and handle would be all on you...... again, doesn't sound like a good idea to me..

If the swivel seats are super important to you.. just get the Mercedes....did you see that crash video of the Mercedes Benz and Transit....?? Imagine changing the original design .... what affects would this have on a crash..? I certainly wouldn't want to find out...

Look, my advice is don't change the original design of the seats.....this is definitely not the same as putting on something like heavy duty shocks that would fit the vehicle.....The seats and the.seat belt mechanism is specifically designed for your vehicle... don't mess with that.

Davydd · 05-07-2018, 02:54 AM

Can you swivel if the parking brake is not engaged presupposing a swivel seat is installed? If so, assuming level grounding camp site you would not have to engage your parking brake.

cruising7388 · 05-07-2018, 03:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Davydd

Can you swivel if the parking brake is not engaged presupposing a swivel seat is installed? If so, assuming level grounding camp site you would not have to engage your parking brake.

There have to be some Transit owners aboard that can clarify this but I don't the seat can be swiveled regardless of the position of the brake handle because the housing itself interferes with swiveling.

Phoebe3 · 05-07-2018, 02:44 PM

I have a 2017 Transit chassis. Although the passenger seat swivels, the driver's seat does not have a swivel mechanism and even if it did, it would not clear the emergency brake housing.

It is my understanding that the 2019 model year Transit will have a lower housing so that the driver's seat can be swiveled.

RonR · 05-07-2018, 09:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phoebe3

I have a 2017 Transit chassis. Although the passenger seat swivels, the driver's seat does not have a swivel mechanism and even if it did, it would not clear the emergency brake housing.

It is my understanding that the 2019 model year Transit will have a lower housing so that the driver's seat can be swiveled.

I have a 2017 with a power seat and swivel. I lowered the Brake (not too hard) and it swivels just fine.

Ron

cruising7388 · 05-08-2018, 12:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RonR

I have a 2017 with a power seat and swivel. I lowered the Brake (not too hard) and it swivels just fine.

Ron

To be sure everyone is on the same page, something needs clarifying. You say that your 2017 Transit driver seat swivels. Phoebe3's 2017 Transit driver seat does not swivel. Is your driver seat the original factory one? Is it possible that your driver seat is higher and provides more clearance? Also, how were you able to lower the height of the housing?

RonR · 05-08-2018, 02:57 AM

I added the swivel (swivels R us). You do need to raise the power seat for it to swivel. If you take apart the E-brake, you can see that you can reduce the height of the bracket and re-install. I have heard that some people just added spacers under the seat but I'm 5'8" and it fits just right at it's lowest setting.

I think a search on the fordtransitusaforum.com will find several posts and some pics. It wasn't a big deal.
Ron

LosAngeles · 05-21-2018, 03:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phoebe3

I have a 2017 Transit chassis. Although the passenger seat swivels, the driver's seat does not have a swivel mechanism and even if it did, it would not clear the emergency brake housing.

It is my understanding that the 2019 model year Transit will have a lower housing so that the driver's seat can be swiveled.

If the 22' 2019 Transit came in AWD (i heard rumors it might) plus the drivers seat could be swiveled... as well as passenger seat... then with a 3.5 Eco Boost... if somehow all those things happen together - that would be awesome.

john

Bud · 05-21-2018, 04:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LosAngeles

If the 22' 2019 Transit came in AWD (i heard rumors it might) plus the drivers seat could be swiveled... as well as passenger seat... then with a 3.5 Eco Boost... if somehow all those things happen together - that would be awesome.

john

I suppose John. But I'm still wondering why someone would choose the present sprinter engine/transmission vs the present 3.5 Eco Boost engine/transmission in terms of overall value?

Ok, yes the 24+ foot is only with the sprinter engine/transmission. Still, the same question?

Bud

dhectorg · 05-21-2018, 10:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bud

I suppose John. But I'm still wondering why someone would choose the present sprinter engine/transmission vs the present 3.5 Eco Boost engine/transmission in terms of overall value?

Ok, yes the 24+ foot is only with the sprinter engine/transmission. Still, the same question?

Bud

It's all about preferences. We all have our own preferences that may not be shared by anyone else, and they don't need to be. The only person that your RV needs to please is you. That said, I tend to prefer diesel in heavy vehicle applications, mainly for the superior fuel economy and oodles of torque. The 3.5 EcoBoost also has plenty of power/torque, but at a cost to consumption. The difference in fuel economy between the MB 3.0 diesel and Ford's 3.5 EcoBoost is substantial, all else being equal. In any case, whatever powertrain you choose only needs to make sense to you, since you're the one who has to live with it day to day.

Phoebe3 · 05-21-2018, 01:25 PM

Agree completely that your RV has to please you and you alone. Also, we all have different budgets and priorities.

However, respectfully, mileage is not a good reason to choose diesel over gas.

Here are my back-of-the-envelope calculations. Note that in the RV world a new Transit can be had for about $15K less than a new Sprinter. In fact most of the Sprinter conversions are more than $15K higher than the Transit conversions, but I don't want to pad the data so we will go with a conservative number.

Assuming (just for estimating purposes):
Gas and diesel prices are both $3/gallon (where I live diesel is higher).
Average use is 10,000 miles per year.
Ecoboost gets 15 mpg and Sprinter diesel gets 22 MPG.

Turns out that it would take 23 years to save enough money in fuel to cover the additional $15K up-front cost. Of course, if fuel prices are higher, you travel more, or if the cost of diesel is less than the cost of gas, you would recoup your up-front cost sooner. Conversely, if you paid more for your Sprinter conversion, it would take longer.

I am not including costs associated with maintenance and repair, additional insurance for a more expensive vehicle, savings associated with the longer life of a diesel engine, opportunity cost for the $15K you could have invested, etc. because those are too hard to estimate.

We began our search with Sprinter conversions, but after we looked at all of these things carefully, and considering our age, we didn't think we would be RVing long enough to make a Sprinter worthwhile.

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