Ceej Posted October 27, 2010 Share Posted October 27, 2010 I took delivery of my new Transit Connect company vehicle yesterday. The TC is definitely what I needed! The old company pickup hand-me-down had a hard tonnau cover.. I was constantly out of space for job materials. Now I've got gobs of space! The best economy I got out of the pickup was just over 21 mpg empty. I hope to beat that by a bit. Most of the time the pickup got closer to 18 or 19. Today was my first day on a job site with the TC. It was a lot easier to get in and out of places, handling and ride are much better, and power is quite adequate for what I need to do. Road noise is comparable with the V6 pickup. The only time I heard the engine was while merging onto the Interstate, and only then it was a tad noisier. The cup holder is actually in a better location than was the pickup. My coffee cup would tip over onto the floor going around corners. :rolleyes: There are lots of nooks and crannys to stow things. It's like a nice set of coveralls festooned with pockets. I need to hide the cup holder-ash tray insert before a coworker decides that means its OK to light up though. It'll take a while to get used to the visibility issues. I've had cargo vans without windows before, so scrutinizing blind spots shouldn't be too much of a hassle. The mirrors are limited, but do the job. The backup sensors work pretty well. I did some testing when I got home this evening. The backup alarm will have me backing into the driveway at night so I don't wake up my neighbors when I roll out at O'dark-thirty every morning. As we get a lot of fog around here, I was pleased with the operation of the Fog setting for the tail lights. I'll use it when the valley's socked in. First Impression: I like it! CJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ceej Posted October 31, 2010 Author Share Posted October 31, 2010 (edited) Friday I dropped a load of valves off at a project site while on my way to the one I was working. Eight valves for ~600# in addition to my normal tool load. No significant change in vehicle performance was noted. (Of course, I don't drive fast and am pretty patient merging with traffic.) Loading and unloading was a snap. I still had plenty of room for more. The Ranger wouldn't have carried all of them without a bungee holding the Toneau cover down with one of the boxes on the passenger seat. With all this rain, that would have been miserable. The location of the Document holder is horrible. Right behind the driver's seat. I'd wondered about that when I added it to the upfit. Moving it to a centered position on the partition makes more sense. I had to move the seat to put my submittal papers in it. My comfort zone places the seat up against the steel partition. This morning the sun was out so I washed the van for the first time. It's been raining pretty much continously, so the van had turned road grime gray. Getting the side door sills clean was the only part that took any time to speak of. Once it's dry I'll get to waxing.B) The driver's side carpet is getting pretty dirty, so I'll pull that out and clean it next. Time to get some rubber floor mats! Job sites run the gammit from Dry concrete to clay mud mixed with gravel. The lights work slick. I only had one day that was thick fog, so haven't used the rear fog function but the one time. They are very noticeable in the rear view on the fog line, so should give an added measure of safety for drivers approaching from behind. The stereo is serviceable enough, though sound quality is limited except for moderate levels using the CD player. Since political adds will be running for a few more days, I'm using CD's for all my travel audio. We received new ruggedized cell phones recently, so once I get the new one activated, I'll synch the blue tooth up to the Van, and stop using the blue tooth ear bud. Dang thing makes me feel like I've been assimilated into the Borg collective. :lol: CJ Edited October 31, 2010 by Ceej Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncranchero Posted November 1, 2010 Share Posted November 1, 2010 Get one of these for the left side. http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/auxiliary-mirror/17255 They help a LOT with the terrible left quarter blind spot. Don't waste your $$ for another one for the right side as they do not help there. A simple small stick-on convex works best there. The 2011's are being offered with front fogs, they're needed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ceej Posted November 6, 2010 Author Share Posted November 6, 2010 (edited) We took delivery of new "Ruggedized" cell phones. The Blue Tooth in the TC works well. My contacts list imported without a hitch to the System. I've used it several times now, and it beats the heck out of my Plantronics ear bud. :D Depending on road surface, the noise can be an issue. I'm going to investigate increasing sound proofing the cargo area. Most of the road noise comes from the rear. CJ Edited November 21, 2010 by Ceej Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ceej Posted November 21, 2010 Author Share Posted November 21, 2010 The more I drive it, the more I like it! It turned 1500 miles on the way home tonight. (Six day weeks are likely through the end of the year.) The van is affected by high cross winds more than the pickup was, but it does fine with a bit of attention. Nothing like the old days of bias ply tires. :rolleyes: We have ice coming, so I'll see how things go in the slippery stuff. Economy is right where it should be, and I've been hauling all sorts of stuff to and from the job site. Since I'm on flat land, I haven't run into any issues with power. I'm not going to win any top gear drag races out on the freeway, but that's not what this little van is for. It merges onto the freeway just fine, even with a load. CJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ceej Posted March 29, 2012 Author Share Posted March 29, 2012 I'm over 30k miles, and this little van hasn't stepped wrong yet. My mileage tanked with the ladder rack. I get about 20 sometimes as high as 21mpg now with an 8' and a 16' extension up there. It screwed up the aerodynamics something fierce. Wouldn't take them off though. I need ladders. Works fine on ice and snow. So far no issues with brakes or tires. Tried out the snow mode; 2nd gear select for starting out. Worked the same as the Transmission in my '65 Galaxy XL500 convertible. Start out in 2nd, with minimal wheel spin. The Transit is better though. The Galaxy didn't have heated mirrors! Great little rig. Lot's of room. When they make me turn this one in, I'll be asking for a new one as a replacement. I don't see anything else on the market that comes close to meeting my needs. I'm hoping the Ecoboost finds it's way into the Transit. It would be an excellent choice for those of us plying the freeway and periodic mountain driving. I'm not sure if it would be available as a corporate lease option for us though. Did I mention I really like my Transit? CJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrtn Posted April 23, 2012 Share Posted April 23, 2012 Did I mention I really like my Transit? No, how about it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PapillonHeroes Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 I get about 20 sometimes as high as 21mpg now with an 8' and a 16' extension up there. It screwed up the aerodynamics something fierce. Wouldn't take them off though. I need ladders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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