Ford Transit Custom (2013 – current) six month review

WE’VE put 5,000 miles on the Transit Custom since Van Trader first drove it on the British launch. 

Let’s start with a criticism, not of the van, but of the company which originally injected a bit of pizzazz into vehicle advertising and promotion. They missed out on doing something special with the Transit Custom. That’s because, ii the past six months I have lost count of the number of times I have had to explain to people what this van is.  The opening comment runs something like this,

“So this is the new Transit then?”

Experience has demonstrated that a simple short answer will not suffice, requiring an explanation along the following lines,

“No, it isn’t. It’s another Transit. It’s an addition to the Transit range.”

“So it’s not a ‘proper’ Transit?” they say.

“Well yes it is, this brand new van sits between the Transit Connect and the current Transit. The brand new ‘proper’ Transit will be coming in September. This isn’t it. This is an extra Transit to offer LCV buyers even more choice!”

 “Oh! Can I have a look? Can I sit in it?” and that is almost universally followed by appreciation and praise. 

Pitched against the Transporter and Vito, the Transit Custom is an altogether more stylish van compared to its boxy, more muscular bigger brother. It’s still a one tonne van, but it’s not quite as wide as a ‘standard’ Transit. 

As for good looks. I’m not sure. Friends and colleagues reckon it is good looking for a van. I’m still not sure, but six months down the line, either I’m getting used to it, or I am genuinely starting to like it. What really swayed my opinion was the joiner in the next village. He’s just a bought a Transit Custom and it’s bright red. It looks seriously smart.

I picked up my Transit Custom after the UK launch and drove it back home to Scotland. I was getting 31.3 miles to the gallon, which I thought was pretty good for a 153 bhp 2.2 litre TDCi engine. Six months down the line and with a few more miles on the clock, average fuel consumption has risen to 33.9mpg and this is from normal everyday, sensible, working driving, not eco-friendly crawling. That makes it even more impressive and I reckon it will improve with more miles. 

If there is one criticism of the engine then it is the same fault I find with all other modern Euro-5 high performance diesels. They don’t have the same torque as previous generation diesel engines. Where normally you might use second gear just to pick up the pace when accelerating from near-rest at a junction or roundabout, in this you really have to change down to first gear, or you will stall. 

Tackling long hills with a load also requires more downshifts, but that is a fact of life these days. However, Ford has countered this with a real sweetie of a gearbox. My granny would like it.

It was no accident that Ford announced the Tourneo version (extra seats and windows) first because the target market is people-moving and for that they needed something rather more svelte and stylish than the box. On that basis, Ford has succeeded very well. Buyers can choose from standard or long wheelbase with seating for up to nine people. That means it will be of interest to hotels, taxi firms, airport shuttles and for use as crew-buses.

The bonus from that for the ordinary commercial user is that Ford now has a rather more stylish one tonne van which is also available as a double-cab-in-van (our test vehicle) to seat six people and still have enough room in the back for tools and materials.

A lot of thought has gone into this van. In addition to the lockable rear door opening-stays, the loadbox is illuminated by (optional) bright LED lamps. The result is a van whose doors won’t slam shut on you when the wind gets up, and if they did, at least you would be able to see what you were doing in the back, even in the dead of night. And there’s another thoughtful touch. The interior handles are bright yellow plastic and easy to find, unlike the ‘real’ Transit which has a hole in the metal for a finger to poke through and release the door catch from inside.

Given its design brief, the commercial user gets an altogether more luxurious cab, although a little bit more padding on the seats would be appreciated by the high mileage runners. The seats are well shaped though with the driver’s seat adjustable in all directions. Coupled with the adjustable steering column it makes working life so much easier. There is plenty of head and shoulder room for three up front too. I’ve now driven a couple of round trips from Glasgow to Birmingham and they’ve proved that the driving position is extremely comfortable and the firmly cushioned seats are acceptable.

Both front doors open really wide which eases the climb you have up into the cab. The sliding side doors are a decent size for accessing the second row of seats. And it has another trick up its sleeve. On the floor between the front seats is a three-pin 230v electrical socket. This van has the optional £36 quid inverter fitted – and it’s a boon for laptops and mobile phones and all the other electronic gubbins that we have to carry around these days and well worth the extra money to have it fitted.

As far as the Transit Custom DCiV is concerned, this is not just a van, this is an M&S van for every day transport. It’s an estate car at weekends, it’s a comfy business cruiser on the motorways and it’s a load lugger when there is work to be done. And the clincher? That deliciously tasty, leather rimmed steering wheel – in a van.

In other words, this van could make estate cars an endangered species. It really is that good.

By John Fife

Ford Transit Custom DCiV Limited

Price: £25,166

Options on this test model:

Engine: 155 PS, 2.2 litre TDCi

Gearbox: 6 speed manual

Power Converter £ 36.00

LED loadbox lights £ 96.00

See Transit Custom vans for sale in our classifieds