And hated by every fleet manager and mechanic that saw them replace their substantially more ignorance and abuse proof old E-series.
I completely understand why Europe loves them though. They don't expect to play truck with their vans and of the Euro vans it's arguably the best one (I hope the Mercedes fanboys take offense to that statement).
Funny how a completely ordinary and incredibly useful vehicle ends up with such a skewed image in the US.
In Europe, a Ford Transit is just what the local plumber or electrician drives. It's a no-nonsense work tool. In America, thanks to what I assume is decades of media tropes, the same van is portrayed as the getaway car in a heist or the “creepy unmarked van” parents warn their kids about.
It’s as if a hammer were seen as suspicious because it could be used in a crime.
> Forget your modern high-tech nicknacks like satnavs and touchscreens. All you get here is a steering wheel, a big chrome-lined speedometer dial and a chunky heater control. There isn't even a radio.
> Out on the road, it rattles and bangs and occasionally jumps out of gear.
> Disconcertingly, there's no seatbelt, the seat itself has an alarming tendency to move around, and the brakes don't seem to do very much at all.
I have a friend who collects and restores classic cars, and it is mindblowing how polished modern vehicles are (despite attempts by Ford et al to fill them with the world's shittest software so that you sometimes have to pull over and power cycle (restart) your car just to fix the GD radio). If you haven't ridden in a vehicle 50 years or older in a while, and you get a chance to, take it!
>I have a friend who collects and restores classic cars, and it is mindblowing how polished modern vehicles are (despite attempts by Ford et al to fill them with the world's shittest software so that you sometimes have to pull over and power cycle (restart) your car just to fix the GD radio). If you haven't ridden in a vehicle 50 years or older in a while, and you get a chance to, take it!
Exactly. The progress just keeps adding up and for far enough comparison points it's a categorical difference.
Always gives me a chuckle when you get some geniuses in the comments screeching about how their 70s/80s/90s Camry (or whatever, but let's be real here it's usually a Toyota product) was hot shit when even showroom new it was incredibly rough by modern standards.
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[ 3.7 ms ] story [ 26.5 ms ] threadI completely understand why Europe loves them though. They don't expect to play truck with their vans and of the Euro vans it's arguably the best one (I hope the Mercedes fanboys take offense to that statement).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQJKQjXpGQA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KiC03_wVjc
In Europe, a Ford Transit is just what the local plumber or electrician drives. It's a no-nonsense work tool. In America, thanks to what I assume is decades of media tropes, the same van is portrayed as the getaway car in a heist or the “creepy unmarked van” parents warn their kids about.
It’s as if a hammer were seen as suspicious because it could be used in a crime.
Ford.com says that the 2025 base model Transit "starts at" $47,400.00.
From a quick search, the average "take" in a bank robbery is about 10% of that.
Average gigs for starting bands pay far less. But on the upside, "facing the music" is not as bad in that line of work.
Suggestion for current-day bands and bank robbers:
https://www.carfax.com/Used-Cars-Under-1000_f1
> Out on the road, it rattles and bangs and occasionally jumps out of gear.
> Disconcertingly, there's no seatbelt, the seat itself has an alarming tendency to move around, and the brakes don't seem to do very much at all.
I have a friend who collects and restores classic cars, and it is mindblowing how polished modern vehicles are (despite attempts by Ford et al to fill them with the world's shittest software so that you sometimes have to pull over and power cycle (restart) your car just to fix the GD radio). If you haven't ridden in a vehicle 50 years or older in a while, and you get a chance to, take it!
Exactly. The progress just keeps adding up and for far enough comparison points it's a categorical difference.
Always gives me a chuckle when you get some geniuses in the comments screeching about how their 70s/80s/90s Camry (or whatever, but let's be real here it's usually a Toyota product) was hot shit when even showroom new it was incredibly rough by modern standards.