Ford revamps Transit range

Ford has announced that buyers of the company's Transit commercial vehicle will benefit from standard ABS and electronic brakeforce distribution (EBD) across the entire range from next month.

The safety upgrade applies to the front-wheel drive vans with the 2.2-litre turbodiesel engine. Ford has also expanded the availability of the DSC stability control program to cover all models.

Other changes include the adoption of a front-seat passenger airbag as standard for the Transit 12-seat bus and a load area protection kit for all vans. Single and dual-cab 'extended frame' Transit cab chassis models are now rated to 4490kg, an improvement of 240kg over the previous models'.

Ford has also introduced a new variant, the long-wheelbase Transit Jumbo van with dual rear wheels. Priced at $45,990, the new variant boasts a GVM of up to 4490kg and is powered by the 2.4-litre turbodiesel four-cylinder developing 103kW of power at 3500rpm and 375Nm of torque at 2000rpm. Towing capacity is 3.0 tonnes (braked) and the GCM (Gross Combined Mass) is 6.5 tonnes.

The range is priced from $33,990 for the short-wheelbase front-wheel drive van with the 2.2-litre turbodiesel and five-speed manual transmission.

Ford offers a Professional Pack option for all Transit models, but the pack varies in content according to the vehicle ordered. The pack, priced at $2000, includes front passenger airbag, cruise control, DSC and reverse parking sensors for all vans other than the new Jumbo DRW variant. The same features can be optioned for the new model at a price of $1500, since the DSC is already standard in this level of trim.

Also priced at $1500, the Professional Pack for all cab chassis models other than the 4.5-tonne GVM variants, doesn't include the reverse parking sensors. The pack for the 4.5-tonne cab chassis variants only costs $1000, since the DSC is already fitted as standard.

In the case of the Transit bus, the pack also costs $1000 and doesn't include reverse parking sensors. The passenger airbag is fitted as standard to the bus, so that element is not factored into the price of the Transit bus's Professional Pack.

Side impact airbags are also available as an option for $500, but the vehicle must be fitted with the Professional Pack and a single passenger front seat -- a no-cost option.

"We have enhanced Transit's safety story and also improved the load carrying ability of our biggest vans. The new dual rear-wheel jumbo van is a behemoth that literally swallows a phenomenal amount of cargo", said Ford's Vice President Marketing and Sales, Mark Winslow.

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