TheSamba.com :: View topic - Will this Turkish-built van be the new camper of today ?

Sat Mar 08, 2008 2:32 pm

Hey Dudes,

Looks like Ford is bringing the Transit Connect (smaller version of the Transit) to the U.S. Of course, they are eliminating the diesel engine the rest of the world gets and it will be available only in an automatic in North America, but I wonder..... could it be the next camper for the masses? I'm thinking long-wheelbase version with a high top....

:-k :-k :-k

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2008/02/ford-introducin.html

Who knows,

Chester

Sat Mar 08, 2008 2:43 pm

and they are bringing a GAS version, paleeeze.

I can only imagine the discussion at Ford. so guy we can bring a 40mpg version or a 20mpg version, wadyathink?... Well sir Americans arent ready for diesels so lets bring a gaz guzzler and then wonder why it didnt sell well later...

Sometimes i think that the US automakers are being dumb on purpuse that what they can get more concessions out of the unions,
hey boys, look we are losing sooooo much money, wanna keep your jobs?

A forty MPG delivery van is a godsend to many small business (and larger ones too), just look at the success of these things in europe. Ford could have been the first one to do it here but missed another golden opportunity.

Sat Mar 08, 2008 3:43 pm

New?
Renault:

and
Citroën

have been making those for years. Even VW has one:

Sat Mar 08, 2008 3:54 pm

Pascaa wrote: and they are bringing a GAS version, paleeeze.

I can only imagine the discussion at Ford. so guy we can bring a 40mpg version or a 20mpg version, wadyathink?... Well sir Americans arent ready for diesels so lets bring a gaz guzzler and then wonder why it didnt sell well later...

It really isn't up to Ford, the grand USofA government says what engine can come into the country, and most diesel engines just don't pass their requirements.

Sat Mar 08, 2008 4:14 pm

levi wrote: Pascaa wrote: and they are bringing a GAS version, paleeeze.

I can only imagine the discussion at Ford. so guy we can bring a 40mpg version or a 20mpg version, wadyathink?... Well sir Americans arent ready for diesels so lets bring a gaz guzzler and then wonder why it didnt sell well later...

It really isn't up to Ford, the grand USofA government says what engine can come into the country, and most diesel engines just don't pass their requirements.

Yes and no. The Government decides what it takes to make an engine legal in the US not which engine is legal. Ford decided not to invest in the diesel technology that is needed to meet the rules. Ford will miss the boat once again.

I rented a Ford C-Max diesel in Italy, thats the kind of car that would have a chance against the imports. But no, let everyone else come with good diesel family cars and then wonder why the Fusions and Tauruses cant compete.

Sat Mar 08, 2008 5:34 pm

OK, I confess, I have dreams about this vehicle :oops:
I would LOVE to have one!!!!

Sat Mar 08, 2008 5:57 pm

If your vertically challanged it would make a great camper-If not Westfalia now make a camper called the Nugget based on the standard Transit. I saw a few of these at a large show last year, but they lack the soul of the Vanagon.

http://www.westfalia-ford.co.uk/index.html

Sat Mar 08, 2008 6:05 pm

Those are a big hit in Europe, especially with young people, young families, all the sport and outdoor people.

It's a station, but compact, lots of room, very cheap, low taxes, good mpg.

It's bit like the scion Xb, the Cube, etc.

They used to be commercial vehicles, for small merchants and such. Small business. They really are the pick-ups of Europe. Having them in passenger car is pretty recent now. I have seen pick-ups in Europe in the past years, they are the new fashion item, like 4x4s.

Renault Berlingo. Citroen Kangoo. VW Caddy I think. All brands have their own version

Citroen Berlingo
Vauxhall Combo
Nissan Cubistar
Renault Kangoo
Peugeot Partner
Ford Transit Connect
Volkswagen Caddy
Seat Inca
Fiat Doblo Cargo
http://images.google.ca/images?um=1&hl=en&...rch+Images

Some exist as cargo, some as passenger (which is new), the names are more or less specific depending on brands.

JP

Sat Mar 08, 2008 7:23 pm

I kinda like it...

Mon Oct 26, 2009 3:26 pm

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/reviews/healey/2009-07-30-ford-transit-connect_N.htm

Well, having seen one of these in the flesh all I can say is that it emphasizes VW's stupidity in getting reasonably-priced vehicles to the US market. They're insisting upon going head-to-head with the competition (Routan, pleh) when they could do far better by addressing niches in the market that are not being served.

To avoid the "chicken tax" Ford builds these things in Turkey with rear windows and seats and then tears them back out after the vehicle is in the US! Even after this waste Ford sells these things in the low 20K range.

VW wouldn't sell a small van in the US for much less than 30K, and that was in 1990 dollars! In the meantime, they were selling the same vehicles in Europe with fewer bells and whistles for much better prices.

Of course, Ford might still shoot themselves in the foot. They aren't selling the Diesel version of the Transit that is standard in the rest of the world so the mileage will be in the mid 20s, not the low 30s. It's not because of some EPA regulation either, because European standards are pretty tight these days.

It is somewhat ironic that Ford, one of the companies that pressured President Johnson into approving the "chicken tax" to protect its domestic truck market, is now forced to go through such gyrations to circumvent it to bring in their own imports.

Now I'm waiting to see the Weekender version! :)

Mon Oct 26, 2009 3:41 pm

ChesterKV wrote: I kinda like it...

Except this is the full size Transit, not the micro version, the Connect. :wink:

Mon Oct 26, 2009 9:28 pm

I'm looking forward to seeing someone make a westy out of one.

That being said, don't expect this thread to last much longer, I think mine got deleted in less than an hour.

Mon Oct 26, 2009 9:51 pm

Very european! I'm starting to see a lot of them driving around town.

Too bad we don't get a TDI version though. :?

Mon Oct 26, 2009 10:04 pm

Perales wrote: OK, I confess, I have dreams about this vehicle :oops:
I would LOVE to have one!!!!

I used to drive one!

Sat Oct 31, 2009 5:16 am

love at first sight :D i cant say that about any small vanish looking car in a very long time. :idea: ford, they do have a better idea :lol: but face it, vw does not care about the usa market. everywhere but us, gets the fun stuff. i'm at the point i could care less what vw does anymore. the transit will end up in my driveway at some point.

Sat Oct 31, 2009 6:12 am

I think that U.S. laws relating to small diesels are just more "chicken tax" so automakers don't have to look so bad offering low-mpg vehicles.
Don't forget the venerable Citroen H ...
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Sat Oct 31, 2009 8:27 am

Correct me if I am wrong, but what does the "chicken tax" have to do with not equipping imports with a Diesel engine? Who came up with the idea that Diesel engines won't sell here. Just because Mercedes have traditionally cost a lot and Chevrolet made a junker a couple of decades back doesn't mean that Diesels won't sell today.

Sat Oct 31, 2009 8:30 am

Any TDI equipped vw is a great seller. Also has great resale. When I was a local vw dealership he didn't have any on the lot. I asked about it. He said they don't keep them for long usually gone within a few days.

Sat Oct 31, 2009 10:13 am

allsierra123 wrote: Any TDI equipped vw is a great seller. Also has great resale. When I was a local vw dealership he didn't have any on the lot. I asked about it. He said they don't keep them for long usually gone within a few days. thats because the trick is keep the stock low on the lot and make it look like its a great seller duh thats why you will never get a great deal on one (a diesel that is) i ended up with a 02 pt cruiser in oct 01 with $900 off sticker and 4.9 financing. what i wanted was a new diesel beetle fully loaded with $1500 below sticker all :vw: wanted to sell me at sticker was demos with like 3000+ miles thats every vw in a 100 mile radius of wash dc. the claim was they are rare. this whole thing about vw diesel's is there is more bulls***t than truth.

Sat Oct 31, 2009 10:33 am

I kind of figured that. But isn't that what marketing is about limiting supply to create more demand? Even on used models they are hard to get a good deal on the resale is high as well as the demand. It just seems to me that most of the TDI models sell well. We are still shopping for a TDI toureg and have yet to find one I dont have to go 2500 miles to get.