This new version is the UK’s best-selling vehicle, but is there joy to be found in a van?
Autocar doesn’t dip into the world of light commercial vehicles very often, but when a staple of British roads like the Ford Transit Custom gets renewed for a new generation, we must take note.Don’t worry: we shall leave bin lorries and London buses to the odd Christmas road test. However, for the past few years, the best-selling vehicle in the UK hasn’t been the Vauxhall Corsa or Nissan Qashqai but the Ford Transit Custom.They are everywhere, not just as a work van but also as a leisure vehicle that effortlessly swallows bikes, camping equipment or – in the right specification – up to nine people. So it’s more than worth an extended look by way of a full road test.Our test van was very much a van: a long-wheelbase, high-load-capacity panel van with a single row of seats and a fixed bulkhead. And while it is possible to kit out a modern Transit with most of the luxuries and features available on passenger cars, this one was relatively sparse, so it should give us a good idea of what all those people are really getting.The range at a glanceModelsPowerFrom2.0 EcoBlue108-169bhp£40,9682.0 EcoBlue AWD134-168bhp£48,5042.5 PHEV229bhp£47,904E-Transit Custom134bhp£53,869Tourneo Custom108-229bhp£45,994*Price are OTR, inc VAT  Van model ranges are very different from those of cars, and will set even a Porsche 911 devotee’s head spinning.The 2.0-litre EcoBlue diesel engine is available with four different power outputs, and there’s a plug-in hybrid and an electric version too.There’s a choice of weight ratings, two wheelbase lengths and four bodystyles: the standard panel van, the ‘double cab in van’ (two rows of seats and a bulkhead), the Kombi (three rows of seats and windows all round) and the multicab (an L-shaped bulkhead that allows for both two rear seats and a full-length load space behind the driver).Finally, the Tourneo is the passenger version of the Transit and as such is quite a lot like the Kombi but with a nicer interior. It is available with all the same powertrains.
