No More Econoline

[BBQ]

.

No More Econoline

To be exact, no more E-series.

How far off are the Chevy?

The Ford is replaced with the "International" Transit.
They have been on the market for more than a year now,
but I do not see many on the road.
I see quite a few Sprinters where I live,
with the occasional Dodge ProMaster.

How good are the Transit?

I guess they have to be decent; Ford sells it all over the World.
But how good, or how adaptable are they to the North American working environment?

[gregmchugh]

A lot of former Sprinter owners like the Transit vs the Sprinter, better ride, handling, and the EcoBoost powertrain. Here is a good resource...

Ford Transit USA Forum

Ford sold over 100,000 last year in the US, outselling all the others in the first year...

http://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2016/01...-year-end.html

[mumkin]

I have seen dozens of Transits on the road... in AZ, in MN... and the highways in between. They appear to be selling very well.

[jrobe]

According to this report, Ford Transits are already outselling Mercedes Sprinters by 4 times (117,000 to 30,000 in 2015).

Commercial Van Sales In America - December 2015 And 2015 Year End - GOOD CAR BAD CAR

[Ron J. Moore]

A few years back, I was checking out the RT's with the Sprinter & Mercedes engines. I have always been pro chevy, but wanted to know more about the Sprinter. My eyes got opened when I started calling around about their service - in my case, I had to travel over 100 miles to a Dealer. I am basing this on what I was told, that you have to go to the Sprinter place to get the service....what happens when your on the road in some small town and have a breakdown? There are not that many outlets available! I ask about getting the oil changed - had to have an appointment..currently two-three week wait. I took this as the hint that I can go anywhere and get my Chevy oil changed or get service done. The new Ford, I believe it would be a big hit, there again you can get it serviced by Ford. Yeah, I believe GM will be changing the Express - they are great, but they have to keep up with the competition. Just my two cents on Sprinter vs Ford.

[avanti]

Originally Posted by Ron J. Moore

I am basing this on what I was told, that you have to go to the Sprinter place to get the service

This is totally wrong--against the law.

You can get your oil changed anywhere, or do it yourself. The only time you need a dealer is for warranty repairs, and in that case, Mercedes will tow you to the nearest qualified dealer for free if you are stranded.

Also, don't assume that all Ford dealers are equipped to service a large van.

[BBQ]

.

What do you think about the Dodge ProMaster?

It has an European body/chassis,

but a North American PentaStar engine and North American dashboard.

[MsNomer]

I've driven a Promaster for nearly two years. Lots to love about it.

[mlts22]

Transits are decent. I would say that Sprinters are the leader of the pack when it comes to driving and handling, and they are the only game in town for factory 4WD (in fact, from a trade rag I read, -every- 4WD Sprinter is sold out as of now... if you want that, you have to wait and place an order for it for the next model year.)

However, Transits have the dealer network advantage. There are lots of Ford places, especially in rural areas. A Sprinter is limited to Mercedes/Freightliner places... and only M-B/FL places which have Sprinters... and there are not that many. For example, in Texas, maybe a handful. Same amount of Ford dealers can be found within a 20 mile radius of where I live.

Even though Sprinters are top dog, Transits are not far behind. With an EcoBoost model, you don't have to deal with all the stuff that can break that is jammed onto new diesels for emissions. I read that Mercedes is going to put out a gasser Sprinter in the next few model years, so the playing field might wind up level here... however, the biggest advantage of the EB is that it is turbocharged, so it doesn't lose that much power at higher elevations.

ProMasters? Europe has had a new restyling of Ducatos for several years now, making the ProMaster look dated. The biggest difference between a Ducato and ProMaster is that everywhere else in the world, the Ducato gets a manual transmission and a diesel engine. Here in the US, the ProMaster gets an auto transmission and a gasser engine, or an automated manual transmission and a diesel engine. Because of that difference, the US offering lags behind the rest of the world. Overall, they are decent vans. A lot of people are happy with them, and they have relatively few horror stories on the forums.

Here in Austin, about 2-3 years ago, Sprinters were everywhere. Now, the primary van I see when out and about are Transits. I see an occasional ProMaster, and usually an older Dodge-era Sprinter here and there, but I would say that Ford has seized the van market in this town.

I will admit I'm partial to Transits. The horror stories on the forums are low, and the EB is as close to a diesel as one can get without buying one. It would be nice if they had a model matching the 24' Sprinter in length, tow capacity, and cargo capacity, but one can't really go wrong with one.

[Davydd]

Originally Posted by mlts22

However, Transits have the dealer network advantage. There are lots of Ford places, especially in rural areas. A Sprinter is limited to Mercedes/Freightliner places... and only M-B/FL places which have Sprinters... and there are not that many. For example, in Texas, maybe a handful. Same amount of Ford dealers can be found within a 20 mile radius of where I live.

This comes up all the time about Ford dealers being plenty. Has Ford ever said all dealers could service Transits? One of the biggest problems with Sprinter and all Mercedes Benz dealers not servicing them was because of facilities and equipment. I recently had my Sprinter serviced at an MB dealer that only had 9'-6" garage doors (RV Sprinters are typically slightly taller). Another MB dealer did not have the proper lifts for a Sprinter. 10 years ago with my first Sprinter I took it in to a so called Sprinter Dodge dealer for a valve stem recall. They couldn't lift it and had to jack up each wheel individually. Ford dealers never had tall vans before. Do they all have the doors, lifts, diagnostics equipment, tools and service techs to accommodate them? Also, RVs have rooftop equipment that might make it impossible to lift full height even if the lifts were capable. That too has been a problem with dealers. So, are all those small rural Ford dealers capable? The issue of dealing with tall Euro style unibody vans would be similar.

Just about any good auto mechanic can lift a hood and trouble shoot engines. The old T1N Sprinters had the turbo resonator fear yet to replace one was an extremely simple procedure that could be done by any auto mechanic in the country.

[Hein]

We built out a 2010 Sprinter 3500 and recently purchased a 130WB medium roof Transit. We just completed a 3000 mile road trip with both vehicles. They served us well and performed flawlessly. We like them both.

[mkguitar]

I spent a week in a rented transit pass van

cruised fine at 75 until there is a hill, then slowed way down. not great in canyons.

uncomfortable driver seat for more than a couple of hours, poor pedal positioning

rental version- lots of drivetrain noise....probably better with carpet instead of mats

drove fine, pretty good fuel economy, good nav, stereo and really good rear camera

mike

[BBQ]

.

the end is near for the Detroit big irons.

[Ron J. Moore]

I went into town today, and I seen a Ford Transit, my first. It was white with windows down the side. I have to say, that was a very pleasing looking van. I complemented the drive and we started talking. He said it was very pleasant to drive, and he is averaging 18mpg. Ford will probably make plenty of improvements as time goes on, and have a winner on their hands.

[skagitstan]

Originally Posted by Davydd

This comes up all the time about Ford dealers being plenty. Has Ford ever said all dealers could service Transits? One of the biggest problems with Sprinter and all Mercedes Benz dealers not servicing them was because of facilities and equipment. I recently had my Sprinter serviced at an MB dealer that only had 9'-6" garage doors (RV Sprinters are typically slightly taller). Another MB dealer did not have the proper lifts for a Sprinter. 10 years ago with my first Sprinter I took it in to a so called Sprinter Dodge dealer for a valve stem recall. They couldn't lift it and had to jack up each wheel individually. Ford dealers never had tall vans before. Do they all have the doors, lifts, diagnostics equipment, tools and service techs to accommodate them? Also, RVs have rooftop equipment that might make it impossible to lift full height even if the lifts were capable. That too has been a problem with dealers. So, are all those small rural Ford dealers capable? The issue of dealing with tall Euro style unibody vans would be similar.

Just about any good auto mechanic can lift a hood and trouble shoot engines. The old T1N Sprinters had the turbo resonator fear yet to replace one was an extremely simple procedure that could be done by any auto mechanic in the country.

Outside of height, there's nothing particularly unique about Transits compared to other Fords, especially the F150 powertrain. So it shouldn't be hard to find a servicing dealer (or independent).
As far as height goes, all I can say is that our rural small town dealer has tall bays. So does the small city dealership 30 minutes away.

[SiennaGuy]

I'd bet that if I bought a Transit, it would break down right near the Ford dealer that couldn't service it.

[mumkin]

Originally Posted by SiennaGuy

I'd bet that if I bought a Transit, it would break down right near the Ford dealer that couldn't service it.

The power of positive thinking... LOL

When I was considering a Promaster conversion, I took the time to drive over to the nearest dealer to ask the service manager if they could service a conversion. They said no problem as their lifts and roof could handle it.

[jrobe]

One big advantage of a RV purchase like a Sportsmobile conversion is that you can buy the van from your local dealer yourself and establish a local service and repair relationship that will last the life of the vehicle.

[gregmchugh]

Never a problem getting service at my local Freightliner Sprinter dealer for my Roadtrek Freightliner Sprinter. They work on any Mercedes or Freightliner Sprinter and treat everyone great whether they sold the van themselves or not. Had a repair done at the Dodge dealer in Prince George BC a few years ago and they didn't care that I was not a regular customer.

Many RV dealers are another story in terms of treating you like crap if you didn't buy from them, many won't do warranty work or will give you low priority and a long wait for service if they will work on it.

[Davydd]

Warranty work or any work by RV dealers is a pain in the A. Just recently Mike Wendland had a air conditioning failure on the road and he couldn't get service right away.

I had a macerator failure the week before Memorial Day in North Carolina. I called around to all the Camping Worlds between NC and Indianapolis (my next destination) and couldn't get an appointment. I ended up going to Advanced RV.

Then in June I had a suspension air bag leak in Louisiana. Advanced RV overnighted a replacement and made arrangements for a Shreveport Mercedes Benz dealer install it immediately after it arrived and I was in and out in 1-1/2 hours.