94bronco Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 http://news.pickuptrucks.com/2014/04/ford-will-continue-e-series-cutawaychassis-cab.html Good news if you ask me as I had thought there were rumors we may only see stripped chassis continue, now if only they would still offer at least 1 van model. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 Hmmm, wonder if they will get a diesel again? Will they just soldier on with the existing powertrains? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
94bronco Posted April 16, 2014 Author Share Posted April 16, 2014 I would think the V10 would be the only option starting with 15's as the 5.4 is no longer used in anything else. For one thing this is going to keep ambulance companies very happy for at least the next 5 years or so. The question now becomes what will ever someday fully be capable of replacing the e-series!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 I would think the V10 would be the only option starting with 15's as the 5.4 is no longer used in anything else. For one thing this is going to keep ambulance companies very happy for at least the next 5 years or so. The question now becomes what will ever someday fully be capable of replacing the e-series!? Does it really ever need to be fully replaced? Those buyers who rely on them now are just going to need to adapt to using something else. Not like there are other obvious choices out there for them to run to from Ford. Sounds similar to the arguments about the Panther going away. Those who relied on them adapted to other options once they were forced to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 I would think the V10 would be the only option starting with 15's as the 5.4 is no longer used in anything else. For one thing this is going to keep ambulance companies very happy for at least the next 5 years or so. Do many ambulances even come with the V10 (or any gasser)? I thought almost all came with diesels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twintornados Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 (edited) Why not drop an Ecoboost V6 in it.....or maybe if it needs a diesel, a Cummins ISB I6 will fit nicely....or even the 3.2L I5 Powerstroke.... Edited April 16, 2014 by twintornados Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blazerdude20 Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 Does it really ever need to be fully replaced? Those buyers who rely on them now are just going to need to adapt to using something else. Not like there are other obvious choices out there for them to run to from Ford. Sounds similar to the arguments about the Panther going away. Those who relied on them adapted to other options once they were forced to. I would think you could get most of the functionality of a cut away with a tall roof T series van or a box on an F series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 I would think you could get most of the functionality of a cut away with a tall roof T series van or a box on an F series. Exactly. It's not like the rest of the world has some dire shortage of a particular vehicle type because the E-series was never sold there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 The E-Series cab isn't necessary, and doesn't need to be continued. But the E-Series chassis is unique and valuable. I doubt that you'll see the Transit cab adapted to a variant of the E-Series chassis, since the Transit cab is built around a rather less robust front subframe than the E-Series is equipped with. The Transit engine bay is also ill-suited for E-Series powertrains. I expect that Ford will eventually roll the E-Series cab/chassis, cutaway and stripped chassis into a new medium 'family' that will support Classes 3-7. There is no incentive to bastardize the Transit to meet such needs, as the things that make the Transit better than the E-Series in Classes 1-"baby" 3 make it ill-adapted for higher GVWR uses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blazerdude20 Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 While I doubt it would take too much market share from Ford, if it comes to the US, it is interesting to see Hyundai make a serious move into the segment. This should only fuel Fords improvement in the T series. http://m.autoblog.com/2014/04/15/hyundai-testing-more-variants-of-top-secret-commercial-van/?post=1&icid=autoblog_river_article Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lfeg Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 Nothing new in this news. It has been common knowledge that the E Series cutaways would continue on for a while. How long that while is is still unknown. But they will eventually fade away just as the CV and Ranger did. It is now a legacy product. And I do not see more engine choices for the E Series cutaways, as the 6.7 Powerstroke does not fit. Whatever eventually replaces the E Series cutaways will have more engine choices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnm Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 The wording I've heard management use is the e cutaway will continue up to the end of the decade. I take that as model year 2018 or 19. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pffan1990 Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 Do many ambulances even come with the V10 (or any gasser)? I thought almost all came with diesels. Some ambulances here in town use the gasser V10. I have walked by an ambulance that was parked and idling and could hear that it was the gasser V10. I cringed at first just thinking of it idling long time like that. But then I remembered reading one of Ford's official media press releases off their site that the V10 engine has been updated and modified to run long-term idling like that. That's why it's a good engine for the Class A and Class C RV where it could idle all night at campgrounds. Why not drop an Ecoboost V6 in it.....or maybe if it needs a diesel, a Cummins ISB I6 will fit nicely....or even the 3.2L I5 Powerstroke.... The V10 is built to last so I'm sure it'll keep being used, though, it'll probably be updated or even redesigned of sorts. The only thing that fleets would be concerned about of course is its dismal fuel economy. As for diesel, what about the Cummins 5.0L V8 engine that Cummins wants to sell to array of manufacturers for fleets? Didn't Cummins say the V8 diesel is good for vehicles that use V8 AND V10 engines? That means in theory that the Cummins V8 could possibly fit in the Econoline Cutaway, though, it may need to be detuned to avoid overheating issues. For better fitment and usage of a Ford product, I won't be surprised if the 3.2L diesel I5 be used eventually to help offset manufacturing investment costs. For the engine to be used in the Transit AND Econoline would allow the engine's price to be lowered over time. Since the Transit will be made next to the next-gen F-150 in Missouri, it could even be possible to see the F-150 even get the I5 diesel. Imagine how much cost-reduction Ford would see as a result of that? Personally I think Ford should actually consider redesigning the Econoline Cutaway and Stripped Chassis frame platform into an all-new 'family' like someone above had suggested, for the class 3-???. This means that the Econoline Cutaway as the name lives on could continue past 2020 being all new and updated for the 21st century, along with the modern and all-new Stripped Chassis for the Class A markets. Fleet markets would surely be happy and the Transit can be marketed towards the retail market and light-duty businesses. I can see Class B or Class B+ market rising with the Transit van body. So why would Ford consider killing the Econoline Cutaway when the market is still there for it? Simply merge the whole thing into one framed platform family and build it in Ohio along with the next F-650 and F-750 Medium Duty trucks. Think about the increase of jobs needed for this to provide the local economy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hwyman3 Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 No one around us has purchased an E-Series gasser since the diesel was dropped. One squad was all Fords and they have been rechassising units on Chevy 4500 diesel chassis. Many in neighboring counties have switched to F-Series chassis. In my county, no one has bought a Ford chassised Ambulance in years. Most have been either International TerraStars or in the case of my station, Freightliner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theoldwizard Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 Nothing new in this news. It has been common knowledge that the E Series cutaways would continue on for a while. How long that while is is still unknown. But they will eventually fade away just as the CV and Ranger did. It is now a legacy product. And I do not see more engine choices for the E Series cutaways, as the 6.7 Powerstroke does not fit. Whatever eventually replaces the E Series cutaways will have more engine choices. 100% accurate ! Sadly, the E-Series will not even get the 3 valve V10 like they have in the F-Series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lfeg Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 As the Transit comes online, there will be variants of it coming out. Within the next 5 years or so I would expect to see chassis cab and cutaway versions.And I think they will be well accepted. And on the E Series cutaways, in some states minibusses for school and public transport are not permitted to use gasoline as a fuel by law. And in some jurisdictions gasoline powered ambulances are also not permitted (goes back to that horrible bus wreck in KY back in the 80s). Around here the only E Series based busses that I see are private airport shuttles and old age home transport. All public agencies have dropped the E cutaways for the Chevys with the Duramax. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 As the Transit comes online, there will be variants of it coming out. Within the next 5 years or so I would expect to see chassis cab and cutaway versions.And I think they will be well accepted. They will not come close to the E-Series GCWRs. Not even close. Remember, the most powerful engine those things are coming with is the 3.5L EB. And Ford is not going to screw up the EU Transit by trying to cover the full E-Series range with that model. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 Not even close. Remember, the most powerful engine those things are coming with is the 3.5L EB. Which is much more powerful (365 vs 310) and nearly as much torque (420 vs 425) as the 2V V10 that is currently in the cutaways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7Mary3 Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 Story I was told (maybe the oldwizard can back this up?) was that the 3 valve 5.4/6.8, Boss, and 6.7L Powerstroke are all too big to fit through the hole in the E series floor. Can't do the body drop during assembly, no way to build it. I have not seen a new Ford E series ambulance in years. Around my area, all you see are Ram 5500's and Freightliner M2's. Still see a lot of new E series cutaways built as minibuses, box vans, and motorhomes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lfeg Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 They will not come close to the E-Series GCWRs. Not even close. Remember, the most powerful engine those things are coming with is the 3.5L EB. And Ford is not going to screw up the EU Transit by trying to cover the full E-Series range with that model. I still see a number of old E350 cutaway based box trucks running around with the 235 hp 5.4 engine. Commercial is not about speed, it is about uptime and low cost of operation. And with the DRW option on the Transit it will easily cover 90% of the E Series range based on sales. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 (edited) Which is much more powerful (365 vs 310) and nearly as much torque (420 vs 425) as the 2V V10 that is currently in the cutaways. I still see a number of old E350 cutaway based box trucks running around with the 235 hp 5.4 engine. Commercial is not about speed, it is about uptime and low cost of operation. And with the DRW option on the Transit it will easily cover 90% of the E Series range based on sales. Right. The problem is the chassis, not the engine. My mistake. The Transit chassis is significantly less sturdy than the E-Series. The max GVWR on the EU DRW Transit is ~10.5k. The max GVWR on the E450 is 14.5k, with a GCWR of 22k. (note that the "New Transit" pages report a max 4,700kg GVM, from which I derived the 10.5k lb figure) Edited April 17, 2014 by RichardJensen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 Commercial is not about speed, it is about uptime and low cost of operation. I agree, I was just addressing the comment about the power. I would imagine the 3.5EB would cost considerably lest to operate than the V10 as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 Right. The problem is the chassis, not the engine. The Transit chassis is significantly less sturdy than the E-Series. The max GVWR on the EU DRW Transit is ~10.5k. The max GVWR on the E450 is 14.5k, with a GCWR of 22k. (note that the "New Transit" pages report a max 4,700kg GVM, from which I derived the 10.5k lb figure) We are in agreement there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
351cid Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 I agree, I was just addressing the comment about the power. I would imagine the 3.5EB would cost considerably lest to operate than the V10 as well. Wonder about the durability of the 3.5 vs the 6.8? I'm a fan of turbo's, but I also know that the V-10 in my F-250 gets the crap worked out of it and keeps coming back for more. Out of 109K miles, probably 80K of that has been pulling a sizable load (8K-10K lbs). There is a significant difference between a 6K pick up pulling/hauling 5K every other weekend, and a Van hauling that everyday. Not doubting the EB 3.5, just wondering out loud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 Wonder about the durability of the 3.5 vs the 6.8? I'm a fan of turbo's, but I also know that the V-10 in my F-250 gets the crap worked out of it and keeps coming back for more. Out of 109K miles, probably 80K of that has been pulling a sizable load (8K-10K lbs). There is a significant difference between a 6K pick up pulling/hauling 5K every other weekend, and a Van hauling that everyday. Not doubting the EB 3.5, just wondering out loud. I think you are wondering the same thing a lot of people (myself included) are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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