Search Inventory

[jackandnora]

Hi,

I'm looking for a Transit Connect Wagon and I want to search the inventory. When I go to that portion of the site, I don't have the options I want to select (barn doors, roof rack etc.).

The Build & Price section has all of the options, but when I get to step 5 ("Next Steps") and click search inventory, the search results don't match up to my criteria.

Is there any way I can search to find out if the model with my requirements exists or do I have to go to the dealer to have them do these kind of searches?

thanks,

Jack

[Slonie]

I suggest searching on cars.com and using keywords. Edmunds and CarGurus.com also lets you search by trim including barn doors vs. liftgate. All of these are handy considering that Ford's inventory search only covers your local area.

(okay, the dealer can search everything too, but if you're trying to figure out which dealer to go to, this is the ticket)

[jackandnora]

Thanks for the info Slonie I'm trying to figure out which dealer to go to. After some preliminary searching though, I may need to go there to make an order anyway. Ugh

[G B L]

If you look for dealers with that have Transit Connects in stock. Look in the listing for the Window Sticker view, Most dealer listings have it . this will give you a complete list of what the car listed has for options and Equipment .

[Slonie]

If you look for dealers with that have Transit Connects in stock. Look in the listing for the Window Sticker view, Most dealer listings have it . this will give you a complete list of what the car listed has for options and Equipment .

And even if they don't, you can copy and paste the VIN into a URL to a windowsticker. I used this extensively to see what was really on the cars I was searching for.

Just take a URL like this: http://www.inventory.ford.com/services/inventory/WindowSticker.pdf?vin=NM0AE8FX5F1202163

And edit the part after vin= to correspond to the VIN you see on any of the car search or dealership sites. Boom, window sticker!

Also, if you have a VIN from Ford's "extended inventory" search results and want to know which dealership it's at, just google the VIN and you'll likely find your answer.

Edited January 6, 2016 by Slonie

[G B L]

Thanks for the useful info

[jackandnora]

The VIN trick is just what I need. There are lots of features that don't get listed in the descriptions. The best would be if the window sticker pdfs were fully searchable, but that may be too much to ask.

thanks again guys.

[G B L]

Most of the Cars Have a window sticker that you can view and print. That's how I found mine.

Good Luck

Edited January 7, 2016 by G B L

[williaty]

Ok, so I'm confused as to what path to take to try to find my van. I have a very specific setup I want, but I can't figure out how to search for it.

Wagon XLT

SWB

EcoBoost Engine

Swing out rear dorrs doors, not tail gate

Engine block heater

Tow package

16" Wheels (alloy)

No SYNC (not a deal breaker)

Charcoal black seats

Either of the two blue colors for exterior paint

So what's the best way to go search for that set of features?

[G B L]

You Can go to Ford.com and they have two types of searches one is of dealer inventory's and the other is you put in the features and they try and find out which dealer has the closest vehicle to what you ask .

The Seats and the Wheels and the Barn doors should not be a problem. A lot of the wagon's tend to be the long wheel base. The Turbo is an 800.00 dollar option so it will be harder to find. The hitch is a non issue because the Aftermarket hitches are Cheap and work very well. If you cannot give any thing up then you might have to make sure and order one built.

[Spooner]

You can also use sites like autotrader but I found it frustrating that the dealers wouldn't actually fill out what options the van had. I literally had to just look at every single van posting to find what I wanted.

[DonShockley]

You Can go to Ford.com and they have two types of searches one is of dealer inventory's and the other is you put in the features and they try and find out which dealer has the closest vehicle to what you ask .

The Seats and the Wheels and the Barn doors should not be a problem. A lot of the wagon's tend to be the long wheel base. The Turbo is an 800.00 dollar option so it will be harder to find. The hitch is a non issue because the Aftermarket hitches are Cheap and work very well. If you cannot give any thing up then you might have to make sure and order one built.

I tried that feature when I was looking for my TC and found it to be useless. The results looked like it didn't go beyond anything basic model info like van/wagon and SWB/LWB. When I looked at the actual vehicles in the search results, none of the other features on the vehicles bore any relation to my search query. I finally just gave up and looked at individual window stickers of all the TCs at dealers within a reasonable distance. Not too bad given the low number of TCs at each dealer, but it would be too cumbersome once inventory quantities get better.

The Ford website design is horrendous for trying to find a vehicle with the features you want, even when it comes to picking a model. You have to select the model first, then see what features it has. It was only once I found a 2016 new build order sheet on this forum that I was able to see a list of features and which models contained each one. The manufacturers need to have a "which model is right for you" type feature where you can discover a model you may never have heard of before that will do what you want. If I hadn't seen a TC in a Lowe's parking lot and turned around to see what it was, I would have had no idea to even look at it to see how perfect it was for my needs.

[G B L]

Thanks for the education. I had not used the ford site.
I have had several International Harvester vehicles over the years. The reason this is important is
for them if you do not get a Line ticket (AKA) Window sticker you are lost. After dealing with them I always go by the Window sticker.
I never have ordered a vehicle. So when I find one that I am interested in there are always one or two things that I wished I had but end up not getting.
The finish line for me is does the vehicle fit the transportation need and the options are secondary.
If you are looking at the SWB Wagon make sure you fold the second seat and open the side door. When I saw how much of the opening the folded seat took up I realized that the LWB was the only Choice, for me

Edited January 10, 2016 by G B L