Posted Yesterday 09:01 PM by motortrend_online
Category: Auto Shows, Ford, Chicago Auto Show, Ford , Minivans/Vans, Minivan/Van
Not all businesses need a delivery vehicle as large as a Dodge Sprinter. With the HHR Panel, Chevy realized this, but that converted compact five-door offers only 62.7 cu. ft. of cargo volume. For those who need more room, Ford presents the "just-right" 2010 Ford Transit Connect, which is making its debut in U.S.-spec trim at this week's 2009 Chicago Auto Show.
The 2010 Transit Connect, set to hit Ford dealerships this summer, offers 135 cu. ft. of space, yet it costs just $21,475 including the destination charge. To get that much covered cargo space in Ford's lineup, you'd need to step up to the Expedition.
The Transit Connect, first shown at last year's Chicago show, is new to the U.S., but not to Europe, where it won the International Van of the Year award in 2003. Ford says it has sold more than 600,000 Transit Connects to customers in 58 countries.
With a 2.0L Duratec four-cylinder delivering an estimated 136 horsepower @ 6300 rpm and 128 lb-ft of torque @ 4750 rpm mated to a four-speed automatic transmission (with overdrive), the Transit Connect takes its time. We imagine buyers might be more interested in maximizing fuel economy -- estimated by Ford to be 20 mpg city and 24 mpg highway. A final-drive ratio of 4.20 to 1 is designed to give Transit Connect additional pulling power, and it rolls on 15-in. steel rims wrapped in P205/65R-15 rubber.
Like the Ford E-Series commercial vehicle family, Transit Connects will come with the option of various bulkheads, racks, and bins. As you might expect, the Transit Connect will be available...
- With no windows in the sliding side doors
- With no windows in the side or rear cargo area
- With side and rear door windows
That last configuration can be paired with a folding second-row bench seating two or three people. Ford's Work Solutions, which debuted last year, will also be available on the Transit Connect. When properly equipped, owners benefit from a touch screen in-dash computer that has Internet access, productivity software, and optional printing capabilities. Tool Link will help owners keep track of tools and other items while Crew Chief is a telematics service that can monitor a fleet of Transit Connects.
Other cargo features of the Transit Connect include:
- A cargo payload of 1600 lbs
- Split rear cargo doors open at a standard 180 degrees, or an optionally available 255 degrees. The doors provide access to 52.1 in. of available load height when open
- Lift-over height is less than two feet when unloaded
- The cargo area opens up to 59.1 in. of floor to ceiling load height
- The load width is 47.8 inches, between the wheel arches
- Load length is just over six feet at 72.6 in.
If you like the idea of the Transit Connect but want better fuel economy, you'll want to wait for the Transit Connect BEV, a battery electric vehicle with a 100-mile range Ford says it will send to select dealerships in 2010. Otherwise, we think Ford sums up its intended audience best with this description: "...[a] small business proprietor currently over-taxing the capabilities of an aging minivan with the passenger seats removed.
As long as Ford doesn't get its hopes (and sales projections) up too high, the Transit Connect could be a success that steals more than a few Chevy HHR Panel intenders.
Stay tuned to MotorTrend.com this week for all the latest on the Transit Connect and the other stars of the 2009 Chicago Show.
-By Zach Gale
Source: Ford
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