2016 Ford Transit 150 Extended Van Test

[cortttt]

Lots to like about this van.

Pro's

• Very peppy - not a word you would think to use with a full size van but it is.
• Very responsive steering and very easy to drive. It actually feels like a front wheel drive
• Body integrity - good, very little lean even in the dirt - significantly better than Express
• Great view out the front window- the dash is lower and allows for a really good view
• Storage - the walls don't have those big cross bars in them and I think it's a bit wider
• Shifter location - nicely located right where you would reach out for it on the dash
• More gears - toggle switch lets go manual gears
• Rear view camera - standard on the 2016's

Con's

• Harsher ride on the highway....not a big deal but if you like a really soft ride this is not for you.
• Dash - laid out in an unattractive manner at least to me, radio has a small screen and is hard to read in the sunlight
• Small tires - Considerably smaller tires 235's I think - which may have lead (?) to the wheels spinning several times I didn't expect them to
• Seating position - this did not have a telescoping steering wheel - it's an accessory and the seating position is strange. I have to put the seat back because I'm tall but then the wheel is small and forward so I have to bend forward to grab it or steer it with my thumb
• Clearance - the deal breaker - none of the above are deal breakers but then there's clearance - it has excellent clearance until you get to the rear end where the driveshift actually bends down significantly to contact a really quite low rear end. It's probably six inches lower than the 4Runner...I know Quigley converts them to 4x4's. They must do something to get that rear end in the air...Unless I could get it up more it's not the van for me.  I don't want to worry about clearance.

 

[BradKW]

This is euro-version Transit, RWD, being used as a rally vehicle. Or something. Wouldn't worry about clearance too much...

 

[cortttt]

This is euro-version Transit, RWD, being used as a rally vehicle. Or something. Wouldn't worry about clearance too much...

That's great! No problems with clearance in that vehicle. 

I already dragged the rear end in the dirt on the one I'm renting, though.

 

[cortttt]

On the way out of the desert I went through a wash - a pretty darn stable wash that I never expected to have problems in and got stuck five times in two places. Luckily I was near people and was able to get pulled out. 

I've been stuck before in the 2WD 4Runner and pickup trucks but never unless I was in pretty good sand. This was not that. When I didn't get stuck the wheels spun  where I didn't expect them to spin. 

I don't know if that was particular to this van but I don't know why it would be. It seemed that the smaller passenger tires and the heavy weight of the van made getting traction really difficult at times. It was kind of a wake up call for me as I do tend to explore...

 

[LeeRevell]

I know nothing of the mechanics of these vans, but is it possible to do a moderate suspension lift and give it somewhat larger tires (moderate All-Terrain type)?
I just had four new larger SUV/Small Truck tires put on my minivan, and the traction and ride is so much better.  The performance of the standard size Firestone and Michelin (OEM) tires on wet pavement was abysmal, and to the point of being dangerous.  Of course there are limits on just how big we can go on tires.

 

[One Awesome Inch]

If clearance is your major issue and there are so many positives, just get it lifted, get bigger tires etc.

When searching for a van there are going to be lots of trade-offs. No van is perfect for everyone.

One needs to prioritize whats important. Seems like this issue has a fix, then you have a great van for your needs. If I had the money, I would definitely be looking hard at the Ford Transit.

 

[ascii_man]

If you can afford a Transit, you can probably afford the lift kit. And it would probably look cool! Getting a high top straight from the factory is really nice.

But I also couldn't get adjusted to the driving position of the Transit I rented last night. But I didn't spend much time trying to get adjusted either, and I think the seat was constrained by U-Haul's installed bulkhead.

 

[blars]

If one drive tire spins and the other doesn't, a differential locker may be the cure. Always avoid sudden stops/starts on loose sand or gravel, try and keep a steady slow speed. (I've gotten stuck when someone cut me off in loose gravel and I had to slam on my brakes.)

 

[cortttt]

I know nothing of the mechanics of these vans, but is it possible to do a moderate suspension lift and give it somewhat larger tires (moderate All-Terrain type)?
I just had four new larger SUV/Small Truck tires put on my minivan, and the traction and ride is so much better.  The performance of the standard size Firestone and Michelin (OEM) tires on wet pavement was abysmal, and to the point of being dangerous.  Of course there are limits on just how big we can go on tires.

I would definitely put something approaching all terrain tires in. I'm sure that would have made something of a difference. The passenger tires were as smooth as could be. I have no idea about the lift but I imagine Quigley must raise that baby up...

 

[cortttt]

If clearance is your major issue and there are so many positives, just get it lifted, get bigger tires etc.

When searching for a van there are going to be lots of trade-offs. No van is perfect for everyone.

One needs to prioritize whats important. Seems like this issue has a fix, then you have a great van for your needs. If I had the money, I would definitely be looking hard at the Ford Transit.

Really a nice van.  I would have to get a big loan to get a Transit though - and I would still need to lift it, put solar in, etc. It's more something for me to think of down the road when the Transits price comes down. It'll be interesting to see how reliable they end up being. So far at least in the Transit Forum I visited they look pretty good.

 

[cortttt]

If one drive tire spins and the other doesn't, a differential locker may be the cure.  Always avoid sudden stops/starts on loose sand or gravel, try and keep a steady slow speed.  (I've gotten stuck when someone cut me off in loose gravel and I had to slam on my brakes.)

Agreed. Every time I stopped or almost stopped I was in danger.

I took the van back, picked up my 4Runner and went back to where I was camping out of the wash. It was a pretty hard rocky surface but even there I was surprised to see a pit made where one wheel of the van had temporarily dug in. The 4Runner with its bigger tires and lighter weight left no marks at all.

Another thing I realized with this extended van - a really long van - is that it's really long out there and that limits or at least complicates turnarounds. There's nothing like taking a vehicle out there for a test run...,.

 

[johnny b]

The aftermarket will catch up with solutions on the horizon.

 

[BradKW]

oooh, I want that! I priced that roof rack awhile back though thru Aluminess and comes out to around $4k :/

 

[cortttt]

The aftermarket will catch up with solutions on the horizon.

Yes, indeed. I guess one concern is the suspension. I talked to Bob at the Rendevous about the Transit.  He said it has a totally different type of suspension. In fact, the people who towed me out had trouble finding a good place to attach the toe rope to - there's no cross member in the front or the back. The manual said, from what I understood of it, that Ford had not determined a good place to attach a tow rope to.

Quigley is making 4WD versions though and they say they believe the Transit will be tough enough.

 

[cortttt]

so 29Chico - I'm dying to hear what you thought of the Fort Transit. You drove both the Chevy Express and Transit and could afford both and came down clearly it seems on the side of the Chevy.....what did you think of the Transit?

 

[29chico]

so 29Chico - I'm dying to hear what you thought of the Fort Transit. You drove both the Chevy Express and Transit and could afford both and came down clearly it seems on the side of the Chevy.....what did you think of the Transit?

The Express to me seems much more truck like.  The motor and suspension seemed much more geared to doing work.  The Transit seems way more car based.  A bunch less torque available, had to rev the hell out of the base motor to get good thrust.  This was from the base engine.  No way I want an Ecoboost turbo gas motor and the emissions junk foisted on the current crop of diesel engines has taken all the joy out of them.

Re-engineering the suspension and raising it enough to have anywhere near as much clearance as the Express/Savana would likely cause it to be what I call a"high leaner" and very possibly cause it to be a real chore to drive in crosswinds.  Giant swaybars front and rear would help with that at the expense of causing lots less traction to be available on dirt roads.  Very slim choices in tires for the Transit also.  The stock tire size is lame.  The 245/75-16 tires on the GM vans is an excellent tire.

The current full size GM vans have been in production since 1996 and have become a highly refined and reliable example of what they are:  truck based vans.  Those who complain about the lack of refinement in them are in denial of what they are as far as I am concerned.  

The base V6 engine in the Transit first saw the light of day in the Mustang a few years back.  Ford detuned it in an attempt to get a more appropriate torque band.  In the Mustang it was a big success with it's 305hp.  In my opinion the Transit version of that motor does not hit the mark.

The lack of a removable doghouse in the Transit is an issue as repairs on the engine would probably require the engine to be removed more often than engine repairs on the GM vans.

 

[ascii_man]

If one drive tire spins and the other doesn't, a differential locker may be the cure.  Always avoid sudden stops/starts on loose sand or gravel, try and keep a steady slow speed.  (I've gotten stuck when someone cut me off in loose gravel and I had to slam on my brakes.)

The Transit 250 that U-Haul rented me was probably a base model, but it had an electronic Traction Control System, which I assume would do a pretty good job of maximizing the available grip and obsoleting a mechanical diff locker. So the money would probably be better spent "making the pie higher" with better tires.

 

[BradKW]

Giant swaybars front and rear would help with that at the expense of causing lots less traction to be available on dirt roads. 

There's been a thread in the Transit forums concerning additional sway bars...the people who've added them seem pleased with the results. But I remember seeing a statement similar to what you're saying about traction and I couldn't grasp the reasoning. Got a good analogy for why this would be true?

 

[cortttt]

The Express to me seems much more truck like.  The motor and suspension seemed much more geared to doing work.  The Transit seems way more car based.  A bunch less torque available, had to rev the hell out of the base motor to get good thrust.  This was from the base engine.  No way I want an Ecoboost turbo gas motor and the emissions junk foisted on the current crop of diesel engines has taken all the joy out of them.

Re-engineering the suspension and raising it enough to have anywhere near as much clearance as the Express/Savana would likely cause it to be what I call a"high leaner" and very possibly cause it to be a real chore to drive in crosswinds.  Giant swaybars front and rear would help with that at the expense of causing lots less traction to be available on dirt roads.  Very slim choices in tires for the Transit also.  The stock tire size is lame.  The 245/75-16 tires on the GM vans is an excellent tire.

The current full size GM vans have been in production since 1996 and have become a highly refined and reliable example of what they are:  truck based vans.  Those who complain about the lack of refinement in them are in denial of what they are as far as I am concerned.  

The base V6 engine in the Transit first saw the light of day in the Mustang a few years back.  Ford detuned it in an attempt to get a more appropriate torque band.  In the Mustang it was a big success with it's 305hp.  In my opinion the Transit version of that motor does not hit the mark.

The lack of a removable doghouse in the Transit is an issue as repairs on the engine would probably require the engine to be removed more often than engine repairs on the GM vans.

Those tires - 235's look dinky on that big van - and traction was a real problem on the dirt. 

The engine sounded harsher than the Express engine - I did like it though. 

Thanks for offering your assessment. 

What about those Nissan Vans - very trucklike - ladder and frame suspension - did you drive one?

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

There's been a thread in the Transit forums concerning additional sway bars...the people who've added them seem pleased with the results. But I remember seeing a statement similar to what you're saying about traction and I couldn't grasp the reasoning. Got a good analogy for why this would be true?

People in the serious 4X4 world usually remove any rear anti-sway bar from their rig, and mod the front bar so both sides attach with quick disconnects.  These bars are actually springs that tie both sides together.  In extreme conditions, they can hold one wheel up in the air so it doesn't make contact with the ground.  without the bars, you get better articulation.

[video=youtube]

Understand that you NEED the sway bar on the highway for safety.

Regards
John