There’s so much to like about Ford Transit Connect, but speed isn’t one of them – it’s designed to carry people and equipment rather than, you know. A weird and wonderful exception to this rule is Now listed on Cars & Bid with the engine and transmission from the Focus ST.
On the surface, the main sign that this is no ordinary van is the 18-inch alloy wheels from a ST focus. Open the hood and the whole scope of this construction comes to light: This 2014 Transit connection XLT is equipped with a 4-cylinder, turbocharged, 2.0-liter engine, combined with a 6-speed manual transmission. Both are from the same year 2014 ST focusfollow auction description. The engine makes 252 horsepower and 270 pound-feet of torque in the standard configuration, but this van benefits from a “Stage 2” Cobb Tuning tune for extra power.
For context, the unmodified 2014 Transit Connect XLT uses a naturally aspirated 2.5-liter four-cylinder making 169 horsepower and 171 pound-feet of torque. It is linked to a six-speed automatic transmission; Ford offered the city-friendly van with manuals in Europe, but the three-pedal setup was never offered in the United States. The people who built this truck don’t stop at swaps: This Transit Connect also features a Mishimoto continuous cooler, a Cobb Tuning exhaust system and Eibach lowering springs, among other modifications.
Inside, it’s kind of a fish in reverse: partying in the front, with leather-wrapped Recaro seats powered by the same Focus ST that donated its engine and business in the rear, with cloth-backed seats Folds and tilts to clear a large amount of trunk space.
While completing an engine swap is never easy, it sounds relatively straightforward (“relative” is the key word here) since the Transit Connect and Focus run on the same platform. Basic C-Car. This also partly explains why everything seems to fit so surprisingly well; It’s almost as if this truck was factory built with a Focus ST drivetrain and we think the styling of the bed makes for an interesting element.
If you want the coolest truck in the Home Depot parking lot, it’s probably the only truck on the local tow strip and one of the most unique at car and coffee gathering spots. Next coffee, go to Cars & Bids to bid on this hot-rodded transit connection. Bid is at $10,200 at the time of writing, there are about six days left until the hammer drops and this is a no-reservation auction so the highest bidder will take it home.
