Automatic choice: Ford Transit

Opt for rear-wheel drive in your Transit and you now have the choice of a 10-speed automatic transmission, says

Dan Gilkes

Ford has taken a while to offer its heavier Transit model with an automatic transmission, while some competitors have pushed ahead with auto boxes. There has been a sixspeed auto offered on front-wheel drive Transits for some time, but until recently, rear-drive was manual only. Now though, there is the option of a 10-speed automatic on some rear-driven models. Powertrain AUTOMATIC CHOICE Ford’s 2.0-litre EcoBlue diesel engine comes in 130, 170 an H3 roof height if desired. That L4H3 and 185hp versions, with a mild hybrid van offers 15.1m3 of load volume, while available on the 130hp model. Howev- this L2H2 delivers a 9.5m3 load space. er, while all of those engines are test- Opt for front-wheel drive and you ed to EU 6.2 Light Vehicle Emissions get an additional 0.5m3 of volume for regulations, this heavier model is test- the same vehicle size, as the load floor ed to the Heavy Duty Emissions for- sits slightly higher on rear-wheel drive mat, which is why there are no exact and all-wheel drive vans to make space fuel consumption or CO2 figures in the for the driveshaft and rear axle. specification panel. This 3.5-tonne model offers a pay-

As mentioned, all models can be load of just over 1,300kg, which should had with a six-speed manual gear- be more than enough for most users. box, while front-wheel drive vans can also be equipped with the six-speed In the cab automatic. This 10-speed auto box is Transit comes in three main trim currently only offered with the 170hp levels, of Leader, Trend and LimitHeavy Duty engine. ed. That said, you can also order the heavy Transit in the recently added Load carrying capacity Trail specification too, as a 4x4 if you Although this van is an L2H2 model, need off-road capability. that is rather confusingly the smallest This Limited trim includes manfull-size Transit van on offer. You can ual air conditioning, a heated windalso have an L3 or an L4, plus there is screen, a DAB radio with Bluetooth, AppLink and an 8” touchscreen display. You also get Bi-xenon headlights with LED daytime running lights, a body-coloured front bumper, 16” alloys and Side Park Assist. You won’t really know what ratio “ On the road The 10-speed automatic transmission is very smooth and you won’t really know what ratio is in use, though that’s no problem. You can make manual gear changes, with a thumb switch on the side of the lever, while there is a mode is in use, switch on the dash that offers Normal, though that’s Eco, Slippery and Tow settings. The box does hang onto gears a bit no problem when you are just cruising along on a light throttle and a couple of times I found myself changing up manually, to reduce engine rpm. This may be due to running unladen however, as you might want a few more revs when fully loaded. It’s a pretty accomplished box otherwise.

Ford Transit Limited 350 L2H2 10-speed auto

Basic price £40,080 Engine 1,995cc Power 170hp @ 3,500rpm Torque 390Nm @ 1,500rpm

Weights (kg) GVW 3,500 Kerb weight 2,181 Payload 1,319 Towing 3,500 Dimensions (mm) Load space length 3,044 Load space width 1,784 Width between wheel arches 1,392 Load space height 1,786 Load volume (m3) 9.5 Cost considerations Fuel consumption 37-43 mpg (for 170hp light duty version) Fuel tank capacity 70 litres CO2 170-197g/100km (for 170hp light duty version) Service interval 2 year/36,000 miles Warranty 3 years/100,000 miles

Conclusion

There are several heavy van sectors that favour an automatic transmission, none more so than the supermarket home delivery market. Not having an auto has meant that Ford has struggled to compete in this sector, though it has done little to hurt the firm’s overall sales figures.

Having the 10-speed auto will certainly put Ford back on many potential buying lists. That should please drivers as much as fleet managers.