mike 202 Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 I have just been told by a Marquis salesman that Ford are stopping the production of rear wheel Transits and that Autosleeper will stop using Ford transit because their A/S range is built on Rear Wheel Drive. FWD is of no use to them. Is the salesman correct ?. I was going to change my current A/S to a larger model again A/S based on Transit RWD, but was told that I would have to buy on Mercedes chassis if I refused to consider Fiat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duetto owner Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 just got a duetto from marquis they said next delivery of fords to A/S was not till late autumn due to a large demand for ford transits. would be surprised if ford dropped such a popular RWD. is it sales pitch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike 202 Posted June 14, 2009 Author Share Posted June 14, 2009 That's what I wondered, price rise imminent, can sell all the Merc based units we can get, so minimal discount. So I suggested that he had better sell to someone else. Nice cup of coffee though ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duetto owner Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 just read about some poor soul made the mistake of getting a mercedes MH and the piston blew wrecking the engine on route to spain result cost of new engine £11,000 had only done 50,000 miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Jones Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Hope this isn't true. Roxie is FWD, but when I retire in 8yrs time, and no longer need my MH to be a "car," I want to buy a small coachbuilt, possible circa 2010, on a RWD Ford. I'd be very disappointed if they stopped making them in the meantime! :'( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duetto owner Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Is there any advantage to a front wheel drive? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 I think you'll find it's because of the long lead time for the Ford. Burstner are dropping Ford for this same reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duetto owner Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 lost whats the "long lead time " mean Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malc d Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 duetto owner - 2009-06-14 5:53 PM just got a duetto from marquis they said next delivery of fords to A/S was not till late autumn due to a large demand for ford transits. would be surprised if ford dropped such a popular RWD. is it sales pitch The Transit plant (Southampton) has been on a shorter working week due to lack of demand. I'd be surprised if Marquis don't know that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazza454 Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 duetto owner - 2009-06-14 10:28 PM lost whats the "long lead time " mean"Lead time" is the time between you (the customer) placing the order and the manufacturer being able to supply and deliver to your specification.If you order a product that is already built to your spec, then the "lead time" will be a couple of weeks whereas if you order a product with all "bells and whistles" as extras then the lead time could be a matter of months.At the moment the Transit is on a long "lead time" due to a combination of high demand and manufacturers reducing production due to the current economic climate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duetto owner Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Bazza454 thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike 202 Posted June 15, 2009 Author Share Posted June 15, 2009 Seems that stories do not match up, on one hand Ford production has been reduced due to lack of demand, on the other hand converters cannot get enough Transits so will be dropping them. I am confused, maybee it is the magic of lead times ??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nowtelse2do Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 mike 202 - 2009-06-14 4:35 PM I have just been told by a Marquis salesman that Ford are stopping the production of rear wheel Transits and that Autosleeper will stop using Ford transit because their A/S range is built on Rear Wheel Drive. FWD is of no use to them. Is the salesman correct ?. I was going to change my current A/S to a larger model again A/S based on Transit RWD, but was told that I would have to buy on Mercedes chassis if I refused to consider Fiat. What doe's A/Sleeper say, Anyone know. (!) Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
messerschmitt owner Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 Phone them and ask to speak to David Scott Beddard, the Sales & marketing manager - say Campbell says hello and he hears Nomadic is coming along well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcob Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 Hi In April I talked to A/S Rep. re. delivery of Ford chassis, was told it takes 3 months from ordering the chassis from Ford to be delivered to them, then they have to build the motorhome onto it. They (A/S) don't keep chassis's in stock because of the capital involved. Regards Marcob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flicka Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 mike 202 - 2009-06-14 4:35 PM Is the salesman correct ?. I was going to change my current A/S to a larger model again A/S based on Transit RWD, but was told that I would have to buy on Mercedes chassis if I refused to consider Fiat. Might it just be that the "Marquis" badged Autosleepers are on the Mercedes chassis. It may be that they have stock of their models, they would prefer to shift today rather than wait for a possible sale in XX weeks time. Much better for their cash flow and reduces committed stock of this years models. Also it's likely they have a bigger margin on their own badged models. Flicka Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 "Is there any advantage to a front wheel drive?" YES, its cheaper to build as all the powered moving bits are in one place. BUT .......... (and there,s lots of them) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
messerschmitt owner Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 I went from a FWD talbot Elddis Autoquest 400 to a rwd Mercedes 416cdi - those lovely double wheels where all the weight is are great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeyb Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 malc d - 2009-06-14 10:39 PM duetto owner - 2009-06-14 5:53 PM just got a duetto from marquis they said next delivery of fords to A/S was not till late autumn due to a large demand for ford transits. would be surprised if ford dropped such a popular RWD. is it sales pitch The Transit plant (Southampton) has been on a shorter working week due to lack of demand. I'd be surprised if Marquis don't know that. Transits not only made in Southampton, mine was made in Genk. Also made in Turkey I believe. Mike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeyb Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 One advantage is a lower living area floor. But I'm with Clive on this.....a big BUT regarding FWD as far as I'm concerned. V. pleased with our RWD Tranny. Mike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
euroserv Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 That is quite correct, all Transit production has now moved from Southampton to Turkey and there have been delays with getting the production up to speed because no-one knows what speed that will be at the moment. Also many fleet buyers are quite bitter about the change because the prices keep going up due to the ex-works price being changed to euros instead of pounds and has been out of control of late. All european makers have had to increase prices because of the euro/pound but what is the betting that the prices are not going to follow the lower euro any time soon? Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duetto owner Posted June 20, 2009 Share Posted June 20, 2009 clive thanks for feedback on FWD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duetto owner Posted June 20, 2009 Share Posted June 20, 2009 clive thanks for feedback on FWD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huckleberry Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 According to a thread on another forum A/S are the subject of a management buy out. Maybe this could change the base vehicle purchasing policy ? Lets hope so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldlowie Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 My FWD tranny has done over 10000 hard miles (heavy boot on right foot!) in 3 and a half years without skipping a beat. Clive, please tell me what's wrong with it so I can worry about it as I bowl along. Should I replace it tomorrow to be on the safe side? :-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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