Road Tests: Ford Transit 350LWB Dropside

The 3.5-tonne pickup/dropside market has become substantially more competitive in the past couple of years, and the arrival of Nisan's range of Cabstars is bound to make it tougher yet. With Citroën and Vauxhall also making a serious bid at the market, this Transit will not find things easy. But Ford seems to have made most of the right choices here: a capable, if not stunning, engine; a well-designed medium-duty loadbed with excellent carrying capacity; good build quality, in both chassis and body; and a supremely comfortable cab, well designed from top to bottom (apart from that wayward window frame). And one of our long-held criticisms of Ford vehicles has finally been laid to rest: the Transit now has a three-year, 100,000-mile warranty as standard. We like the Transit. It isn't cheap, but it has a lot to offer, and little to complain about. Unless you're a bodybuilder, that is.