Ford Transit Cargo Van?

F

firehawk

Veteran
I'm planning on buying a full size, long wheelbase, medium roof height Transit Cargo Van for a production vehicle. I've measured it and my jib will fit partially assembled as well as a lot of other gear for bigger jobs. Seems to be the best vehicle for what I need. Much easier to walk in than the old E-series vans. It'll have windows in the rear but solid sides. The rear windows will have metal guards so thieves can see a broken window won't get them in.
I want to mount a rammer/bullbar on the front with camera mounts. Also a spoiler on the back like the A-team. ;)

Anyone have any advice for or against such a vehicle? What do you guys use?
 
I own this vehicle. Stays packed, floor to ceiling, front to back. I keep mine in a climate controlled storage space in between productions. You'll love it. It's really a great van.
 
I own a 2015 Ford Transit for my G&E package.. Its a great small footprint production vehicle that can hold a bunch of stuff, I advertise as a 1 TON package but i can fit a lot more in there, including a full camera cart and stuff.. you can see what i have inside on my website www.coderedpicturecompany.com
 
The site looks great Matthew. Do you include lights in your van package or do the productions choose what they need as additional rentals?
 
I'm in a small market but its building here in buffalo NY. having said that i have a network of photographers and film makers i work with. the base price includes just the grip equipment, however ive been known to throw a few lights in to sweeten the deal, specially if they hire me to work! what im trying to do is bundle my camera packages with my G&E and also my other gear..

quick edit: I recently built this site on my own.. couldn't believe how easy it was.. if anyone needs help getting a site like this let me know i would be happy to help
 
another vote for the sprinter van....incredible gas (diesel) milage and more room then any other van....wins lowest cost to run every year as well as crazy resale value...
mercedes is also finally bringing the smaller brother on the market in the US...metris....great value...
 
Thanks everyone.

What engine and differential did you go with in your Transit? I'd like the 3.5 Turbo but think it best for cost to go with the 3.7 Liter. Hoping it has enough guts to pull hills on the highway
 
To be honest i got the one my friends dealer had in stock with racks and bins installed. got no windows in the rear, got the rear view camera in the mirror.. umm seems VERY reliable, I live in Buffalo so i got some decent snow tires, they really help.. Ill look into the motor tho im curious now.

Oh and we had this thing packed with 3 tons of gear on road to NYC for a week.. it was fabulous, and can fit into the same size space as a pick up truck
 
transit 2.jpgsprinter.jpgThese guys on the History channel have owned both- the Sprinter for the first few years, the Transit when Ford started sponsoring. Great for picking or production (crew and equipment are right behind the curtain when Mike and Frank are driving)
 
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Being a smaller-time producer, I've been seriously looking over the Transit Connect or a similar form factor
 
The connect is a bit too small.. The ones that have seating could be a viable crew car.. But honestly you will want the transit sprinter at least. As it is many productions want 3-5 ton packages. I can fit 3 tons in the sprinter but at that point they usally want a lift gate. The sprinter has served as a camera truck on bigger productions as well.. Fits camera carts perfectly
 
mcbob said:
Being a smaller-time producer, I've been seriously looking over the Transit Connect or a similar form factor
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I looked at it first. The extended cargo version has 6ft of cargo space. It sure would be easier to handle in traffic and park... and pay for. The guys on the Transit board really bash the Transit Connect, but I guess that's to be expected.

There is a lot of confusion given the similar names when talking to dealers and aftermarket. They tend to think you are talking about the Connect even though you say "full size Transit Van" haha.

After measuring everything I decided on the full size for those times when I need the space. I'll deal with the extra size those times I don't need it.
Be nice to have one of each - Transit Connect and Full Size Transit ;)
 
Matthew Quinn said:
The connect is a bit too small...
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Small is relative. My work tends to be one-man-band or small 2-3 person crew. I'm outgrowing my current 99 Cherokee with 300K on the clock, but a full size van would likely be serious overkill. Ideally I'd get something slightly larger with slightly better gas mileage; the Connect ticks both of those boxes, but I'm not certain a plain old passenger SUV/minivan wouldn't be wiser (if typically more expensive).
 
I've got a transit connect LWB as my production van, and it's pretty good for 80% of the jobs. I've got a shelf to hold fresnels/dana dolly etc, and can fit several 4x4s, utility cart with stands, stingers, clamps etc, kino flo package, with camera, lens, monitor, 1.2 HMI and it's pretty much filled to the brim.

With hindsight being 20/20 I wish the larger Transit van was available when I bought mine since the Transit is JUST barely big enough for most productions. For the larger stuff I'm usually hiring gaffers and crew that are bringing their own gear anyway.

But I'm still pretty happy since the Transit Connect gets great gas mileage and being in Houston I'm driving 60-80 miles daily per job.
 
mcbob said:
Small is relative. My work tends to be one-man-band or small 2-3 person crew. I'm outgrowing my current 99 Cherokee with 300K on the clock, but a full size van would likely be serious overkill. Ideally I'd get something slightly larger with slightly better gas mileage; the Connect ticks both of those boxes, but I'm not certain a plain old passenger SUV/minivan wouldn't be wiser (if typically more expensive).
Click to expand...

If you end up going with the Transit Connect make sure you get cruise control. It didn't come standard in mine, and I REALLY miss it when I'm doing shoots out of town. I would also probably purchase a different cargo floor than the one that came standard (which is a little cushy, it's got some damage from my heavy cart). I would also get the LWB version versus the regular one. The normal version has a little more vertical, but the LWB is obviously longer and I feel like it can fit much more cargo.

But all in all it's a great production van for small crew shoots.
 
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