Ford South Africa has introduced the new transit custom commercial vehicle range with the launch of the base long wheelbase van initially, with additi
Ford South Africa has introduced the new transit custom commercial vehicle range with the launch of the base long wheelbase van initially, with additional derivatives to follow later this year.
The next generation of five-time winner of the International Van of the Year is designed to help businesses such as building contractors and construction material suppliers to reduce cost of ownership, work more effectively and achieve new levels of productivity. Ford engineers developed a new platform designed to optimise load carrying and access, improve driver comfort and convenience and deliver outstanding performance and handling, while delivering uncompromised cargo space.
“The Transit Custom is designed and developed in Europe, where it is the top-selling van and was the best-selling vehicle overall in the UK in 2021 and 2022, so it has a proven pedigree of being trusted by business owners to enhance their productivity,” says Doreen Mashinini, general manager for marketing at Ford South Africa.
“Ford pulled out all the stops to deliver another huge leap forward for our customers,” Mashinini says. “The new generation Transit Custom’s ground-up customer-led design will set a new benchmark for what small and medium businesses can expect from a commercial vehicle.”
New platform
Before Ford designers began sketching the new Transit Custom, the company’s D-Ford in-house human-centred design lab spent years engaging with business customers to research their needs and pain points and identify innovative solutions to help improve productivity.
Underpinning the Transit Custom is a new platform designed around optimum load carrying, access, performance and powertrain flexibility. The clean-sheet design is stiffer and 100 kg lighter than that of the previous-generation vehicle and features a lengthened wheelbase for optimum cargo capacity.
To maximise fuel efficiency, the new model’s body design was developed using extensive aerodynamic simulation. Together with a reduced frontal area, this has resulted in a 13 percent lower coefficient of aerodynamic drag (CdA) compared to the previous-generation model. The vehicle architecture was optimised to help achieve an overall height of under two metres, to improve access in height-restricted areas such as multi-storey car parks, garages and underground loading bays.
A larger side load door aperture enhances loading and the side door features a new integrated access step to make entering the load compartment even easier. Optimised packaging of the chassis and body structure enable the vehicle’s load floor to be lower than that of the outgoing model to facilitate loading cargo and cab access.
As a large-capacity panel van, Transit Custom offers a total load volume of 5.8m3 with the standard roof height, along with a payload up to 1269kg and a maximum load length of 3050mm using the load-through feature.
Practical features are found throughout the load compartment, including eight load area tie-down loops, partial rubber floor covering, twin 180-degree opening rear barn doors and ultra-bright LED interior lighting. Buyers can select a range of optional features to suit their requirements, including dual sliding side doors, a close assist function for the side doors, a full-width metal bulkhead with a window, as well as a load area protection kit with full height walls and a moulded floor. Also available are an integrated and foldable roof rack, heavy duty battery, Mobile Office Pack, lockable glovebox lid, pre-fitted Trailer Tow Electrics, automatic dual-zone climate control, heated and power-folding mirrors and the standard 55-litre fuel capacity can be extended to 70 litres.
The voluminous load compartment can accommodate up to three standard Euro pallets, while the vehicle’s maximum braked trailer weight is rated at 1500kg should owners need to tow additional cargo.
Pricing starts from R692 200 including a four-year/120000km Ford warranty, four-year/unlimited distance Roadside Assistance and five-year/unlimited distance corrosion warranty.
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