The All New Ford Transit Custom: A Masterclass in Practicality and Comfort
The all new Ford Transit 59 years after the original Transit van was launched, this new model is said to be more practical, comfortable, and better to drive than ever before. It's currently available only with the diesel engine, but its lighter platform and longer wheelbase make it an ideal candidate for the soon-to-be-released electric version.
A Completely Redesigned Front End
One of the most noticeable changes in this new model is the completely redesigned front end. This redesign is not just aesthetically pleasing; it's also much more efficient, boasting 133% more aerodynamic than before. The roof line has been lowered as well, which allows for better clearance when navigating through various car parks and barriers. The speaker notes that the design is drawing him in, especially with its terracotta color.
A More Practical Interior
The interior of the Transit Custom is where things really shine. With 6.8 cubic meters of load space to play with, Rory's plumber can squeeze in a dozen kitchen sinks or one double bed. The speaker fondly reminisces about his childhood spent sleeping in vans and carting kits as kids, noting that this design is reminiscent of those days.
Improved Rear Access
The rear access has been improved, with the floor lowered and the double doors featuring a 1.4 M wide opening that's incredibly tempting to Rory. He jokingly asks if he can get out there right away, while also acknowledging that there's slightly less shoulder room in the passenger seat than before.
Ergonomic Driving Position
The driving position is where things really come together for the Transit Custom. The six-speed manual transmission and eight-speed Auto are both available options, but once you're on the move, the ergonomic load of space is impressive, with a glove box on top of the dash and another one at the bottom, as well as triple-layered storage in the doors.
Triple-Layered Storage
The speaker notes that he loves the triple-layered storage in the doors because it means you don't have to put your hand all the way down to get things. There's also a cup holder up here, and keys can be stored just above it, which feels very well-spec'd. The overall sense of luxury is hard to ignore.
Handling and Driveability
One of the surprises of driving the Transit Custom is its handling, which is surprisingly good. Jason remarks that the high driving position and the fact that you push quite far forward makes driving a van like an enjoyable experience. The speaker then proceeds to chuck it around on a test track, noting that the table just "went" when he tried to mess with his driver's mode.
Comfortable Ride
The Transit Custom drives incredibly comfortably. The speaker reminisces about spending days at a test track in a Supercar and returning to his van for the ride back from Wales to London – it was just as enjoyable, if not more so. He even gets to play around with the Eco setting, which reduces power but still feels quite agile.
Fuel Efficiency
The Transit Custom is surprisingly fuel-efficient, boasting 38.7 MPG gallon with a 55 L fuel tank. The speaker notes that this should get you close to 450 miles between fill-ups. He also mentions that there's no knob-based control on the screen, which might be something to miss for some users.
Touchscreen Controls
The speaker notes that while he loves knobs in general, having everything go digital like the touchscreen controls can be a bit of a drawback. However, things like heating are made easy to access with just one click. There's also a feature that allows you to operate the control using your glove on a cold winter's day – which is quite fair play.
A Conclusion and Score
In conclusion, the all new Ford Transit Custom has won over the speaker with its practicality, comfort, and driveability. It gets an impressive score of 9.2 out of 10, making it their highest Test Drive score ever.
"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enand here's the all new Ford Transit 59 years after the original Transit van was launched this new model is said to be more practical comfortable and better to drive than ever before it's currently available only with the diesel engine it has a lighter platform and longer wheelbase to accommodate the batteries for the soon to be released electric version I love a Transit van I love a absolutely love a nice so what's new about this one well this is a completely redesigned front end how much more efficient VI this is 133% more aerodynamic than before it's also the roof line is lower it's just under 2 m in height so that you get a bit better clearance when you're going into various car pars you with all those barriers and what have you great do you know what the longer I look at it the more I'm kind of drawn to it especially in this kind of terracotta color if my plumber turned up in this i' be oh he knows his egg come and have look at this with 6.8 cubic meters of load space to play with Rory's plumber will be able to squeeze in a dozen kitchen sinks or one double bed don't worry I haven't completely lost the plot my interior design is a odd to mine and Vicki's misspent childhood you remember these days carting as a kids well we didn't sleep like that we slept AC Crossway not you and I slept just you we'll put that just straight yeah cuz that was all the carting kit for years me my momy dad and and the doberan castl this is how we lived we lived in Vans yeah yeah I remember waking up in carting Vans and the condensation of your breath overnight the dripping on the ceiling from C you would get a drip oh yeah exactly see what it's like in the back rear access has been improved the floor's been lowered and the double doors have a 1.4 M wide opening that is really tempting I'm going to oh Rory oh yes we that is genuinely brilliant yeah get out there right come on let's get out front right bagsy not sitting in the middle isn't this cozy Isn't it nice o do you think I have to say that there is a little less shoulder room in here on the passenger seat than there was before I was the jam in the Rory and Jason sandwich in in that and to be to be fair it's quite nice place to be it's pretty cool isn't it I love it yes they getting more and more carlik don't you think oh enormously this gar you got a six-speed manual there's an eight-speed Auto available as well but once you're on the move that position is so ergonomic loads of space as well so you got this glove box on the top of the dash a glove box at the bottom of the dash and I love in the doors you've got like a triple layer of storage so you don't have to put your hand all the way down to the bottom and get things look I've got a cup holder up here you have what you put in your cup holder ah keys that's pretty cool nice big screens it feels a lot more like flash and fancy feels very well speced yeah time to hit the track and see if the all new Transit custom drives as well as it looks what was that thear oh your face is falling off that's all right don't worry about that the handling in a Transit van is actually surprising any good Jason was chucking it around what's wrong with you there was a vow a water V the high driving position the fact that you push quite far forward really makes driving a van like an enjoyable experience what's it like to drive then it's quite carlike yeah that's what is so lovely about the transit the previous generation one I drove from London to Wales spent a day at a test track in a Supercar and I couldn't wait to get back in my van no way get from Wales back to London I honestly it was so comfortable I think the table's just gone is that the table I think the table's gone can I mess with your driver mod you can do what see what you're in mate you're in normal can we go into Eco and just see I mean no one will ever use that but just see what that's like it's taking all the power away from me has it sport so I didn't touch the trle really it just sped up it just did it picked up it skirt oh yes you know what it's all right isn't it yeah it does feel quite agile it's a light thing isn't it so it's good fun to drive I think the new Transit is a whopping 100 kg lighter than the previous model it's got a 55 L fuel tank which is a bit smaller than some of its Rivals but with fuel economy around 38.7 MP gallon it should be able to get close to what 450 Mi between Phillips this screen then boys has got no knobs on it yeah but things like the heating they're quite easy to get to you're almost one click away from what you actually need so that is great could have done with a few more knobs apart from the ones to my left and right can you use your glove to operate the control so if you're on a cold Winter's day getting in and out of your van you can oh oh you can all right Fair Play i' Rather Have knobs 100% if I had the option if they said look you want touchscreen everything on all knobs i' want knobs so my overall summary of the new Ford Transit custom is it's a van and a really good one and on that basis I'm going to give it a 10 it's a van in it my love for the transit van just keeps on growing and if it had a V12 engine in it I'd give it a 10 but it hasn't so it gets a very strong nine I can't go 9.5 cuz that's too much but it is better than the old one so I'm going to give it a 9.2 five which means the transit custom has a spectacular score of 28 and a quarter our highest team test score ever\n"
