Ford delivering 50 customised Ford Transit vehicles to Romanian Border Police

Ford Romania, through its dealer Tiriac Auto, will be delivering 50 Transit All-Wheel-Drive (AWD) units to the General Inspectorate of the Romanian Border Police, according to a press statement released on Friday.

At a special event hosted by the Embassy of the United States of America in Bucharest by Ambassador Adrian Zuckerman, and in the presence of Romania's Prime Minister Ludovic Orban, three ARTEMIS-RO units based on Ford Transit from the batch currently being delivered to the General Border Police Inspectorate, part of a complex project that began almost two years ago, were presented.

The project is the result of close collaboration between Ford engineers who worked on customising the model, Ford-Transit Center Tiriac Auto dealer and Pro Optica to integrate the Ford Transit into the complex project structure for Romania's General Border Police Inspectorate.

"This project is further proof to the efficient teamwork and we are of course very proud of the way it has been managed. The Transit model has been and remains the perfect choice for its segment, being an iconic product of the Ford brand, appreciated both in Romania and elsewhere in Europe. We want to see as many Ford models as possible, not only in the fleets of private entities, but also in those of the public entities, all the more so as we manufacture in Craiova some of the most appreciated and advanced SUVs of the moment," Cristian Prichea, General Manager, Ford National Sales Company, is quoted as saying in the statement.

In turn, the US Ambassador to Romania, Adrian Zuckerman, expressed his joy that Ford, a world leader in automotive technology, has been chosen to deliver its innovative vehicles to security and law enforcement institutions in Romania.

"The Romanian Border Police are an essential partner of the United States Department of Justice in combating trafficking in persons - which as you are all aware, is one of my foremost priorities - and in fighting cross-border crime. (...) The vehicles you see here today are incredibly well equipped to increase the effectiveness of Border Police operations," Zuckerman said.

The "Thermal surveillance utility vehicle" project regards the delivery of 50 units to the General Border Police Inspectorate of Romania. A contract was signed after PRO OPTICA won an open international tender organized by the General Border Police Inspectorate.

The product was built following the requirements formulated by technical and operational specialists of the beneficiary. The design project, the optronic surveillance system with a thermal camera, the computer and the surveillance software application and working with the maps are designed and created in Romania by Pro Optica S.A. The base car and military displays are products of the American companies Ford and Vartech, respectively.

The product has passed all pre-reception checks and to date a number of 16 products have been received, which have already entered service/mission.

The 50 Ford Transit units are powered by the EcoBlue 2.0 170 hp engine and are equipped with the Intelligent All-Wheel Drive system that offers improved performance in difficult conditions. When engaged, the system automatically increases the torque transmitted to the wheels with the highest grip. The system is suitable for rescue services and companies that frequently work in rough terrain.

The Ford EcoBlue 170hp (125 kW) diesel engine develops an impressive 405Nm of torque, and the high load capacity and fuel economy make it suitable for special conditions of use.

The new Transit's improved range of Ford EcoBlue engines meets the strictest Euro 6.2 emission standards. Diesel vehicles are equipped with a particulate filter that retains more than 99% of the solid particles in the exhaust gas and with the selective catalytic reduction system used by AdBlue to convert the exhaust gas emissions into nitrogen and water.

In the first eight months of this year, according to data provided by DRPCIV, Ford continues to remain the market leader for commercial vehicles, with a market share of 14.65% and a number of 2000 registered commercial vehicles.