2005 Ford Transit Connect

[sayerbloke]

We've replaced the Ford Courier vans at work with Transit Connects. They`re like a small Transit van, about the same size as a Zafira or similar. Not necessarily my first choice, but it`s what we've been given, so that`s that. We've already had to send one back after they delivered it and we found a dark patch on the wing and overspray on the inside of the engine bay where you can see they`ve attempted to touch-up a scratch or dent before it even reached us, but that`s not important right now.

It`ll only be a quick review, as I doubt anyone here is too interested in a review of a van .

Anyway, the Courier vans they are replacing were the worst vehicle I`d ever driven. They were also the worst vehicle I`ve ever been a passenger in. I cannot stress that enough. So, it`s only fair that I now praise Ford for the job they`ve done with the Transit Connect.

They aren't that much bigger than the Courier, but it`s big enough that it now feels like a small van whereas the Courier was always more like a car in terms of seating position. However, once you get used to the higher seating position, it isn't a bad place to be. The seat itself is comfortable, though quite why it has so much side shoulder support I`m not sure. Visibility out the front is good, though the A pillar is a bit restrictive. The mirrors have two sections, and appear to do a good job of removing blindspots, which the Courier was awful for. The switchgear is typical Ford and whilst some of it feels good [like the stereo controls on the wheel], some of it is very average indeed. Oh, and the door handles feel very light and weak from the inside. Feeble, almost. The "new car smell" is that of a hardware shop, which is pretty cool, probably thanks to the wooden panels in the back that are presumably used as a form of sound deadening material.

The gear lever feels nice to use, though it does feel like the lever has a couple of 45° bends in it rather than coming straight up from the floor. The pedals are quite light and springy, but it does feel like you are virtually pushing them straight down into the floor. That may be because I`m quite short so sitting further forwards than others would. The vehicle I was in also had electric windows and aircon, neither of which was fitted to the Courier vans.

The engine is a turbo diesel, but unlike previous Ford TDs I`ve driven, it does have some degree of performance across the whole revband. It isn't hugely fast, obviously, but as the Couriers have a top speed of about 80mph and it takes well over a minute to get from 70mph to 80mph [and it won't if it`s on any sort of gradient], it`s a much improved aspect. Around town it`s quick enough and on the motorways it`s fast enough to overtake with. The cabin noise, regardless of speed is less than it was in the Courier, but this is still a van, so you still emerge the other end with a ringing in your ears.

Some of the vans have sliding side doors, and they all have hooks and holes in the sides to allow you to tie things down, which is good for moving things about. One of the vans has a cage which, most of the time, is used to seperate the passengers from the things in the back, but can be configured to swing around so it boxes the driver in, much like a taxi driver. This is handy for carrying longer things and is a clever idea by Ford, but it does have one drawback...

.. the passenger seat folds flat to allow this to happen. This means that even when in the upright position, it is almost half the size of the driver seat. Even Ford's most enthusiastic marketing team would struggle to say it`s suitable for a journey of any length. I`ve been a passenger in the van for a 3 hour trip and it isn't good. However, as the Courier had normal seats and they were equally as uncomfortable, this isn't a huge disadvantage.

So, as things go so far, the vans are a considerable improvement over the old Couriers. What remains to be seen is if these Transit Connects prove to be as unreliable as the Couriers did. It`s unlikely they`ll be worse, but we will see.

Well, that`s my view of them. Hope you enjoyed it