Welly 1:43 2010 Ford Transit Connect

While i'm on the subject of Ford cargo, let me get into another recent find this Welly 1:43 2010 Ford Transit Connect.  I've seen many at Rite-aid in black with Auto Shop letters (some badly mutilated), but this red one is far less common and unique: how many cargo vans do you see driving around in red or sold at dealerships in red?

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As I mentioned in the Hot Wheels and Matchbox Ford Transit Connect post the Transit Connect was sent over to the U.S. in 2010 after success in Europe since 2002 as the new smaller cargo van for smaller urban cities.  So far companies have taken advantage of this nice offer from Ford and now the smaller vans are more common across the nation adorned with company logo's and sometimes a roof rack to mount ladder's.  However, thanks to the Chicken Tax in order for Ford to sell the Transit Connect the vans were sent as passenger wagon's from Turkey, then converted in the U.S. to cargo vans by removing the rear seats and rear side windows (thankfully Ford has corrected this issue with the new 2013 Transit Connect with production in North America as well).  The base on this casting shows off the nice details (I added the silver accents myself) of the front strut and rear solid axle with leaf springs, exhaust system, spare tire, and the 2.0L Duratec DOHC I-4 that produces 120 (est.) hp through a 4-speed automatic.  The wheels are nicely done, and while they look like alloys they are actually plastic wheel covers over the steel wheels.

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It's not common to see a red panel van and this is what makes this one unique.  The front has the detailed stacked headlights with black grille with Ford logo, lower black grille, and I added black to the foglight covers.  The lower spoiler even has the little air vents as well.  The sides have the flared fenders that are part of the interior plastic, black door handles, side mirrors, trim, ribbed doors, XLT badge on the front fenders, and dual sliding rear doors (they really do not slide open).  Out back the rear has dual panel doors with dual wipers, detailed taillights, badges, ASC traction control badge, reverse sensors in the bumpers, and the black dots on the doors and side corners that are the magnets to hold the doors open.  I added details to the side magnets, front wiper spray nozzles on the hood, and to the bolts on the ribbed roof that are used to mount the roof rack.

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The interior has seating for five with the rear seat taken over by the pullback motor.  The front has a car-like look with a dashboard that has cheap plastic.  The seats are nicely done, as are the door panel details.  The dashboard has the 4-spoke steering wheel, dual pod gauges, radio and HVAC controls, and a console with the shifter and cupholders.  Even the pedals are a separate piece that stand out.  Unfortunately, due to the nature of commercial panel van's coal black interiors I could not add any accent details myself to the interior.

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While not as exciting as a typical classic or exotic car, this Transit Connect has the usual good details from Welly and a unique look of a modern panel van in red, which is not as common.