Anyone own a Ford E-Wagon? UPDATE & THANK YOU!!

[airhead]

I'm looking into buying one and wanted a little feedback. My Dodge van is just not big enough. Thanks



Just wanted to thank all that gave me great feedback! It helped me a lot! I ordered my 2013 E-150 this morning! Can't wait to get it!

 

[tvguy]

Well, they are the top choice of TV stations for their live trucks. The E350 1 ton versions. We've got 4 of them here, 3 with over 200,000 miles on them, and some of our competitiors have close to 500,000 miles on theirs.
They are indestructable.

 

[airhead]

Thanks TVguy. Just what I needed to hear! I'm interested in this van to travel with dogs to dog shows. I need something with more space than a Grand Caravan.

 

[nelle]

We have a E350 van and love it! Ours is used for kid hauling and towing our camper. As the PP said they are bullet proof. My only complaint is that it's rear wheel drive and kinda sucky in snow. They do make 4x4 models but those are really pricey. There's tons of space in it with the seats removed.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Make sure you talk to your insurance company, insurance is different on minivans versus commercial style vans.

 

[arthuruscg]

The E-150 and E-350 are not automatically commercial vans.

It sounds like the E-150 would would better then the E-350 for what you are doing. We have a 92 that we used as a tow vehicle and it is still going strong.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

The E-150 and E-350 are not automatically commercial vans.

It sounds like the E-150 would would better then the E-350 for what you are doing. We have a 92 that we used as a tow vehicle and it is still going strong.

It was a broad statement, some insurance companies classify them as commercial regardless of their registration status and will not insure them per their own policies.

 

[tvguy]

It was a broad statement, some insurance companies classify them as commercial regardless of their registration status and will not insure them per their own policies.

I would guess that only applies if they were not equipped from the factory with seats in the back.

Interesting point, and one I have never heard of before.

 

[airhead]

Thanks for all the feedback. Definitely all valid points to consider. I think the E-150 will be just right for what I need. E-350 way more power than I need.

 

[manning]

Haven't kept up with power plant offering on E-150. If they are offering an Ecoboost in it take a hard look at it.

Power of a V-8, economy of a V-6.

 

[airhead]

Do you all own the ext van or regular? If regular length,do you feel its a lot more room than say, a caravan ? Were the seats hard to remove? Thanks in advance. I'm going next Thursday to shop for my new van! Pretty psyched!

 

[tvguy]

Do you all own the ext van or regular? If regular length,do you feel its a lot more room than say, a caravan ? Were the seats hard to remove? Thanks in advance. I'm going next Thursday to shop for my new van! Pretty psyched!

183 cubic feet from drivers seat to back doors in a Caravan, 237 cubic feet in a short wheelbase E-150, 278 cubic feet in the extended E150. So the short E-150 has 30% more cargo room than a Caravan.

 

[airhead]

183 cubic feet from drivers seat to back doors in a Caravan, 237 cubic feet in a short wheelbase E-150, 278 cubic feet in the extended E150. So the short E-150 has 30% more cargo room than a Caravan.

Thanks! Can't wait to get it!

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Haven't kept up with power plant offering on E-150. If they are offering an Ecoboost in it take a hard look at it.

Power of a V-8, economy of a V-6.

Ford's discontinuing the full-size van altogether, so no ecoboost option as the only ones available would be used or leftovers from last year's model.

 

[tvguy]

Ford's discontinuing the full-size van altogether, so no ecoboost option as the only ones available would be used or leftovers from last year's model.

Ford is not discontinuing the full size van. They are restyling it, and switching the name from Econoline to Transit, and it will look more like the Dodge Sprinter. And the switch isn't due until the 2014 model year.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Ford is not discontinuing the full size van. They are restyling it, and switching the name from Econoline to Transit, and it will look more like the Dodge Sprinter. And the switch isn't due until the 2014 model year.

But that's for an entirely different chore than what OP needs. That said, thanks for the correction on the 2013's. I was under the impression last year was it. Personally I prefer the GMCs over the Fords in this segment right now. They ride and drive much nicer IMO.

 

[tvguy]

But that's for an entirely different chore than what OP needs. That said, thanks for the correction on the 2013's. I was under the impression last year was it. Personally I prefer the GMCs over the Fords in this segment right now. They ride and drive much nicer IMO.

Not sure how it's for a different chore, they are just restyling and renaming the Econoline. You can get it with seats, and without just like you can now.

GMC/Chevy van reliablity is so poor, none of the coach builders that make TV live truck will even modify one. That happened about a decade ago. They stopped using Dodges 20 years ago, but since Dodge/Freightliner/Mercedes models hit the market, they have resumed using them. Some will build on Suburbans, but if you could get on my FB page I could direct you to the photo of 3 of our competitors Suburbans in getting new trannies (2) and a new engine, all under 50,000 miles. Oh, full disclosure, my family car is a Suburban, one of the least reliable vehicles I have ever owned.....great layout, lousy mechanical parts.

 

[airhead]

Ford is not discontinuing the full size van. They are restyling it, and switching the name from Econoline to Transit, and it will look more like the Dodge Sprinter. And the switch isn't due until the 2014 model year.

Oh boy... glad I'm buying now lol

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Not sure how it's for a different chore, they are just restyling and renaming the Econoline. You can get it with seats, and without just like you can now.

It's a tall van now, much more suited to cargo - as is the case with the Sprinter.

GMC/Chevy van reliablity is so poor, none of the coach builders that make TV live truck will even modify one. That happened about a decade ago. They stopped using Dodges 20 years ago, but since Dodge/Freightliner/Mercedes models hit the market, they have resumed using them. Some will build on Suburbans, but if you could get on my FB page I could direct you to the photo of 3 of our competitors Suburbans in getting new trannies (2) and a new engine, all under 50,000 miles. Oh, full disclosure, my family car is a Suburban, one of the least reliable vehicles I have ever owned.....great layout, lousy mechanical parts.

Not sure where you get that info, the GM vans are actually rated higher than the Fords. GM however does not build as many van chassis (dual rear wheels) as does Ford. So, it's probably more a case of what's available. That said, the Conversion Van industry is absolutely dominated by GM with probably 10 of them built for every 1 Ford. Sorry you've had issues with *your* Sub & with those of competitors. Every manufacturer has their share of lemons. That said, the general consensus on all the truck forums I frequent however is that Ford is at the very bottom of reliability when it comes to late-model truck/van engines (Dodge for transmissions) and it's not even a contest. The 4.6/5.4 tendancy to spit spark plugs is well known and the 6.0 diesel (now discontinued) is considered a complete failure in every respect.

 

[tvguy]

It's a tall van now, much more suited to cargo - as is the case with the Sprinter.



Not sure where you get that info, the GM vans are actually rated higher than the Fords. GM however does not build as many van chassis (dual rear wheels) as does Ford. So, it's probably more a case of what's available. That said, the Conversion Van industry is absolutely dominated by GM with probably 10 of them built for every 1 Ford. Sorry you've had issues with *your* Sub & with those of competitors. Every manufacturer has their share of lemons. That said, the general consensus on all the truck forums I frequent however is that Ford is at the very bottom of reliability when it comes to late-model truck/van engines (Dodge for transmissions) and it's not even a contest. The 4.6/5.4 tendancy to spit spark plugs is well known and the 6.0 diesel (now discontinued) is considered a complete failure in every respect.

Going to bed, but will look up and post sales figures and reliabiliy rankings later. We run V-10s in E350 1 tons. I'm not talking heavy duty chassis models, talking vans bodies. Only issue we had was with the sliding doors, which is why Ford only offers them now on the E150, you have to get side by side doors on the E250 and E350, they just don't hold up in commerical use.