Ford Transit Van

Arizona Kid wrote:
I going to disagree. I think Rt will have a Transit Van conversion to show before the end of the year. Plus, your forgetting about all the people like me who need a gasser, because of the generator. I, and other people living in the west, need to run the AC, also there is a lot people who just want a gas van.
I think Rt and others will be very happy not having to cut out a roof, and installing a fiberglass one. That has to save a lot of time and money, and issues with leaks.
I see the Chevy van going the way of the dinosaurs.

I hope that I am wrong, and you are right. One reason I like the Transit is exactly what you just said -- a gasoline generator is a lot cheaper than the $7000 PowerTech diesel genset, and less hassle to refill than a propane model.

However, RT seems to want the high end market. If they lose sales to Winnebago on the low end, c'est la vie. The profit from one E-Trek is a lot better than what Winnebago gets with several ERAs.

The Chevy van is going to go away, sooner or later. It provides body on frame construction and a very good tow capacity. However, both are only needed for relative niche markets, and with the ridiculously aggressive CAFE standards hounding the car companies, the pressure to move to Euro-style vans is enormous because going from 10-20 MPG saves a lot more fuel than 20-30 MPG.

Right now, (and this is opinion), I think the other RV makers are watching the Travato sales as a bellweather. If people plunk down cash for those in high volumes, then I'm sure someone else will step in with a comparable model (and not a stripped down offering like a RT Ranger.) I think when the Transit starts being mass produced, someone will make a Transit-based "B", and that will be the canary in the coal mind -- if that company's model does well, other RV makers will jump in. If it doesn't, Sportsmobile may be the only go to people.