Ford Transit Connect compact commercial vehicle aimed at Flourishing Start-up Scene

• Compact commercial vehicle ideal for small and start-up companies

• EcoBoost® and SYNC® technologies offer modern features

• Transit and Tourneo Connect arriving in 2015

PRETORIA, South Africa, 26 September 2014 – Ford’s all-new Transit Connect has everything it takes to be the backbone of the start-up businesses around South Africa. The company’s newest commercial vehicle offering will bring small and start-up businesses a compact panel van with modern features and excellent safety.

As part of Social Media Week (SMW) 2014, a theme week with events around the world, Ford will showcase the all-new Transit Connect to entrepreneurs at the Wits Theatre in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, where 115 speakers will talk about the current state of social media and digital economy.

The event will also see five start-ups pitch their business ideas to a panel of judges, with the winning start-up taking home a grand prize of R25 000, courtesy of Ford South Africa.Ford Brand Manager Kuda Takura will be on the judging panel, and the official Ford South Africa Twitter account (twitter.com/FordSouthAfrica) will be posting updates using the #SMWJHB and #StartupBattle hashtags.

“Earlier this year, at the first African Go Further event, we kicked off our campaign of African Ingenuity, and this contest captures that perfectly,” said Mark Kaufman, Vice President of Marketing Sales and Service, Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa (FMCSA). “We want to celebrate the same innovation that made us who we are today, and helping a South African start-up get off the ground is also what Transit Connect is about.”

Transit Connect, which was voted International Van of the Year 2014, will go on sale in South Africa next year, expanding the company’s commercial vehicle line-up in the country. The award-winning van will be joined by a bus variant, which will be fitted with Ford’s award-winning EcoBoost engines.

The Transit Connect bus will offer small business owners the choice of powerful, economical, and up-to-date drivetrains that will reduce fuel costs. The three-time International Engine of the Year award-winning 1.0-litre EcoBoost will be offered in the Ambiente and Trend variants, producing 74kW. Titanium models will offer a 1.6-litre petrol engine, which produces 110kW. A diesel drivetrain will also be on offer, producing 85kW.

The Transit Connect van, which also offers a 85kW diesel engine, has a payload of 1 000kg, 3.6 cubic metres of space, and a load bed that can accommodate items up to three metres long. The compact panel van is ideal for inter-city deliveries and small businesses, and also features tie-down points to keep loads safe, along with a brightly-lit cargo area for easier loading.

Behind the wheel, Transit also boasts modern technologies such as parking sensors, a reverse camera, and Ford’s award-winning SYNC voice control system for smartphones. Safety also features highly, and the Titanium model is equipped with anti-lock brakes, electronic stability control as well as driver, passenger, side, and curtain airbags.

“In Europe the Transit brand has helped build many businesses. In 2015 Africa’s flourishing entrepreneurial economy will be able to get access to a range of commercial vehicles that suit them, and bring some of Ford’s latest technologies to this segment,” ended Kaufman.