Long Term Review
Living with a… Ford Transit Custom Trail (Part 15)
Can a van really work as an alternative to the traditional family SUV? One of the team has put his money where his mouth is to find out…
Words by: Dan Trent
Published on 21 September 2023 | 0 min read
Aspirational lifestyle posing is marketing gold for car manufacturers, which you see reflected in the overwhelming popularity of SUVs. But, applying the term literally, the people who need actual sports utility vehicles rarely buy 4x4s or crossovers. They buy vans.
Visit any car park where people do outdoorsy sports and they are pretty much all you’ll see, whether they be basic panel vans, family friendly ‘combis’ with a second row of seats or custom camper conversions. Thanks to lockdown inspired staycationing, the growing popularity of activities like mountain biking and people looking at different ways to spend that holiday budget more and more are considering vans as their next ‘car’. Indeed, in a recent Auto Trader survey 86 per cent of non-commercial ‘personal’ van customers said they are first time buyers, indicating a surge of interest. For nearly half of them hobbies or a change of circumstances are the main motivating factor, with two-thirds looking to buy new rather than used. Short version? Vans are now reaching an audience far beyond their commercial heartland and there's a significant crossover into the passenger car market as they become a more socially acceptable (or even trendy) choice for private users. Would you really want to run a commercial vehicle as a family car, though? And how is the buying and ownership experience different for those coming from passenger cars? We’re running a ‘double cab’ Ford Transit Custom to find out first hand… Skip to: Part 1 – Joining the van crowd Part 2 – Reality check Part 3 – Roadtrip! Part 4 – The facts of (van) life Part 5 – Putting the trail into Transit Trail Part 6 – Everyone loves a Transit Part 7 – Sure got the AdBlues Part 8 – Should I have bought an electric van instead? Part 9 – When is a van not a van? Part 10 – Turning up the volume Part 11 – The ultimate family road trip car? Guess what, it’s a van… Part 12 – Size anxiety Part 13 – Oil I really need Part 14 – Ford says ‘park the car’ Part 15 – Better than a van?
Visit any car park where people do outdoorsy sports and they are pretty much all you’ll see, whether they be basic panel vans, family friendly ‘combis’ with a second row of seats or custom camper conversions. Thanks to lockdown inspired staycationing, the growing popularity of activities like mountain biking and people looking at different ways to spend that holiday budget more and more are considering vans as their next ‘car’. Indeed, in a recent Auto Trader survey 86 per cent of non-commercial ‘personal’ van customers said they are first time buyers, indicating a surge of interest. For nearly half of them hobbies or a change of circumstances are the main motivating factor, with two-thirds looking to buy new rather than used. Short version? Vans are now reaching an audience far beyond their commercial heartland and there's a significant crossover into the passenger car market as they become a more socially acceptable (or even trendy) choice for private users. Would you really want to run a commercial vehicle as a family car, though? And how is the buying and ownership experience different for those coming from passenger cars? We’re running a ‘double cab’ Ford Transit Custom to find out first hand… Skip to: Part 1 – Joining the van crowd Part 2 – Reality check Part 3 – Roadtrip! Part 4 – The facts of (van) life Part 5 – Putting the trail into Transit Trail Part 6 – Everyone loves a Transit Part 7 – Sure got the AdBlues Part 8 – Should I have bought an electric van instead? Part 9 – When is a van not a van? Part 10 – Turning up the volume Part 11 – The ultimate family road trip car? Guess what, it’s a van… Part 12 – Size anxiety Part 13 – Oil I really need Part 14 – Ford says ‘park the car’ Part 15 – Better than a van?
What is it?
- Model: Ford Transit Custom
- Version: 170PS Double Cab in Van (DCiV) 300, L1 H1
- Spec level: Trail
- Options fitted: Chrome Blue paint (£780), Bi Xenon headlights (£660), dual side doors (£360), enhanced park assist (£360), Ice Pack 25 (£912), liftgate (£300), rubber floor in load bay (£120), three-pin socket (£72), rear-view camera (£300), Seat Pack 3A [heated seats] (£360), Thatcham Category 1 alarm (£300), towbar (£390), anti-pick door locks (£132) – all option prices including VAT
- Cost as tested: £43,206, including VAT (rrp)
We like
- Looks cool
- Tons of space
- All the kit you need
We don’t like
- Big to park
- Interior feels cheap compared to ‘normal’ cars
- A-road speed limits