Currently in queue behind the just-released Ford Transit Connect and awaiting its debut is the next-generation Transit commercial van. The full-size Transit, built on a different platform than the smaller Transit Connect and sold overseas, is expected to replace the E-Series that Ford currently offers in the U.S. commercial van market. The Transit, which was originally supposed to enter production at Ford's Avon Lake, Ohio, plant in 2011, is now expected to start in early 2013 instead.
The main difference between the E-Series and the Transit lays in the pieces of metal underneath their respective hoods. The current E-Series feature powertrain choices including the 4.6-liter Triton V-8, 5.4-liter Triton V-8, and the 6.8-liter Triton V-10. The current-generation Transit does not offer any engine with more than five cylinders, instead relying on selections such as a 2.2-liter I-4 diesel, a 2.4-liter I-4 diesel, a 3.2-liter I-5 diesel, and a gas-powered 2.3-liter I-4. The arrival of the Transit in the U.S. would end Ford's 40-year quest to develop and offer a single global van.