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Keeping the thieves at bay

12th February 2009
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Page 18, 12th February 2009 — Keeping the thieves at bay
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

The latest flurry of new Ford Transits go a tong way to tackling equipment security and fleet fuel consumption. CM gives them the once-over.

Words: Brian Weatherley

THERE'S NOTHING quite like a shortage of cash to create the perfect conditions for opportunistic theft. Indeed, a sticker that says "No tools left in this van overnight" is just as likely to prompt the response "We'll just see, shall we?" as it is to make a criminal give a van a wide berth.

What's needed is a secure area that can resist the 'brick and screwdriver' brigade. Fortunately, Ford's new Transit Double Cab Utility (available as an SVO option) has just made it that little bit harder for thieves to get their hands on your expensive equipment. The Double Cab Utility is an obvious extension of the existing Transit crewcab — only with no seats, glass in the second doors, or locks. For an extra £247, you can order a full-height allsteel front bulkhead (borrowed from the low-roof Transit panel van), which separates the tool storage area from the driving compartment. And for further protection, you can either delete the rear window in the rear cab wall, or rely on the full external bulkhead and ladder rack offered on the dropside or tipper body to stop anyone from breaking through. Either way, it's not hard to create your own light commercial version of Fort Knox for power tools, PPE, a small generator or anything else you want to keep away from the light-fingered brigade. The alternative? Well, you can always fit a heavy-duty aftermarket lockable box to the loadbed of your dropside. But big toolboxes tend to take up cargo space and precious payload too.

Comeback kid

Ironically, the Double Cab Utility is making a return in response to customer demand after previously being offered, then dropped, reports Transit brand manager Dave Petts.

Moreover. Petts says that fleet operators have a blank canvas within the Double Cab Utility's storage area, which can be tailored to their own needs with racking or other equipment. "And with no external door locks on the second doors, whenever you want to lock the truck you can zap it [with Transit's remote keyless entry] knowing you've not only locked the main doors — but the crew compartment, too.

Access to the storage area is easy enough, with broad steps up into the body. However, it could certainly do with a large factory-fitted overhead light in the ceiling as standard to help you find things on dark mornings. especially if you delete the rear glass for extra protection.

CM took an unladen Transit 350L Double Cab Utility, complete with the smart 'one-stop shop' Ingimex clropside body, for a brief spin around Hertfordshire as part of the new Transit 'niche' product launch. Once again, time behind the wheel reminds us why Transit holds such a dominant position in the UK light commercial market. The 3.5-tonne chassis-cab's steering and overall road manners are excellent, while the seat comfort and particularly driving position are outstanding — even without an adjustable steering column.

However, with the full bulkhead fitted we were less than impressed by the available leg room for the passenger sitting on the bench seat next to door. The nearside wheelarch intrusion into the footwell is clearly noticeable, and on long journeys with a three-man crew it could become an issue.

High gearing

The latest '200PS' (197hp) 3.2-litre Duratorq TDCi diesel needed little urging and accelerated so quickly up the six-speed manual box we were left looking for more ratios to select. Indeed with the 4.1:1 rear-axle ratio we reckon it is a touch too highgeared. No doubt with a full load in the back it will feel different, but we can't help wondering whether a more longer-legged (numerically lower) rear-axle ratio might not help, further lowering the revs in the higher gears. For the moment the 4.1:1 is the only ratio with the 3.2-litre Duratorq and six-speed box.

While we're talking about fuel economy, all Transits now come with a 'Shift Indicator Light' — basically an upward pointing green arrow built into the bottom half of the rev counter. When the engine management system thinks it's time to change up, the arrow illuminates — it only works going up the box. Rather than operate at a fixed rev point it lights up according to engine load — thus it illuminates later in lower gears when you're pulling away, and earlier halfway up the box when the engine arguably needs fewer revs before the next ratio.

Being a standard fit it's a useful reminder not to hang on to lower gears too long. However, if your drivers have to be reminded all the time when to change gear they probably need fuel economy training rather than S1L... •


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