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The Ford Transit Custom is Britain's favourite van and it's easy to see why builders and delivery drivers hold it in such high regard. All versions are easy to drive, comfortable, efficient and practical.
The space between the wheel arches is best in class, allowing for 8x4ft board to be loaded flat to the floor. There are double cab versions available and a useful Kombi minibus variant which can carry nine people. It's a good alternative to the more expensive Ford Tourneo Custom.
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The Mk4 Ford Transit was replaced by not just the Transit Custom, but the larger standard Transit as well. The move makes some sense when you consider the breadth of models and drivetrains its predecessor offered, the Transit Custom coming exclusively in front-wheel drive, with a 2.2-litre turbodiesel at launch, with payload weights between 675kg and 1474kg.
Transit Custom buyers are limited to a regular panel van, double cab (in van) and a passenger-carrying Kombi model seating nine, including the driver. Ford also offers the Transit Custom as a Tourneo, for buyers looking to carry passengers in slightly plusher surroundings. There are plenty of camper conversions by specialists, too. Long and regular wheelbases dubbed L1 (short) and L2 (long) being 4.97m and 5.34m respectively.
Both wheelbases are offered in H1 and H2 (standard and high roof) the load capacities spanning 6.0 cubic meters for the regular roofed L1, that increasing to 7.2 cubic metres in H2 guise, the L2 having standard and H2 capacities of 6.8 cubic metres and 8.3 cubic metres.
All can take three standard Euro pallets, Ford also usefully allowing access through the lower bulkhead to allow longer loads of up to 3m (3.4m L2) to slot under the passenger seat. Trim choices include Base, Trend, Limited and Sport.
At launch the Transit Custom came with a 2.2-litre TDCI ‘Duratorq’ turbodiesel with 100PS, 125PS or 155PS. The 100PS version has 310Nm of torque, growing to 350Nm with the 125PS model and 385Nm with the 155PS flagship unit. The 2.2-litre TDCI unit is widely referred to in Transit Custom circles as the Euro5 engine.
In addition to the core models Ford added a ECOnetic 5 shortly after the Custom’s launch which, thanks to standard start/stop technology, improved emissions and economy slightly over the 162-189g/km of CO2 - depending on engine/body type - and 41-46mpg advertised economy.
From mid-2016 Ford replaced the 2.2-litre Euro5 engine with a smaller, but more powerful Euro6 compliant 2.0-litre unit. The 'EcoBlue' turbodiesel, like the 2.2-litre before it, is offered with three differing outputs. Up slightly, the range includes 105PS, 130PS and 170PS choices, these having 310Nm, 350Nm and 405Nm of torque respectively. A six-speed manual is standard, but from 2017 Ford offered the choice of a SelectShift automatic with either the 130PS and 170PS models.
The very oldest 2013 examples can be had from around the £6000 mark. For that you’ll be buying a relatively high mileage example, but you shouldn’t necessarily be put off by that. That’s a basic panel van, Crew Cabs and Kombi models adding to that.
If you want rich pickings then up your budget to around £9000. For that you’ll be able to get pretty much any Transit Custom you wish, though, as ever, you’ll be doing well to find anything other than white. Given the paint finish on optional metallic finishes leaves a lot to be desired then that’s no issue. As ever, look for a full service history, with vehicles still as young as the Transit Custom there’s no excuse for any skipped servicing or scrimping on maintenance.
Specification in all is decent, but if we were buying we’d be looking for Trend and upwards, Limited being the real pick, and Base exactly that. Don’t assume that stripes on the bonnet mean it’s a genuine Sport, either, as many owners add them to lesser trims.
With a three-year 100,000 mile warranty and only having been on sale from 2013, the majority of Transit Customs are still being cared for by Ford’s official service centres. All require an annual or 12,000 mile service, whichever comes sooner. Don’t skip services on low mileage vehicles, as urban based short drop work is tougher mechanically than vehicles doing larger, sustained mileages.
Take your Transit Custom to an independent specialist and you’ll pay around £120 for a standard service. If the brakes need work you’ll be looking at a bill of £120 for the front ones and the same again at the rear.
The Transit Custom is susceptible to rusting rear hinges, but it's easy to fix with regular checks and a spray-on rust inhibitor. The intercooler pipe is also known to split where it rubs against a nut on the alternator; however, this is quick to fix with a whistling sound during the gearchange indicating that the pipe is on the verge of breaking.
With a three-year 100,000 mile warranty and only having been on sale from 2013, the majority of Transit Customs are still being cared for by Ford’s official service centres. All require an annual or 15,000 mile service, whichever comes sooner. Don’t skip services on low mileage vehicles, as urban based short drop work is tougher mechanically than vehicles doing larger, sustained mileages.
Take your Transit Custom to an independent like The Transit Centre and you’ll pay around £120 for a standard service. If the brakes need work you’ll be looking at a bill of £120 for the front ones and the same again at the rear.
The Transit Custom is susceptible to rusting rear hinges, but it's easy to fix with regular checks and a spray-on rust inhibitor. The intercooler pipe is also known to split where it rubs against a nut on the alternator; however, this is quick to fix with a whistling sound during the gearchange indicating that the pipe is on the verge of breaking.
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