Click for the Ford Transit Custom full review
The Transit Custom is a two-time overall winner of our Van of the Year Award and nothing has changed to dim our appreciation for the UK’s best-selling van. There is a phenomenal strength and breadth to the range, with an array of different sizes, engines and bodystyles to choose from.
There are basic versions, designed to be bought in bulk by businesses needing a hardworking tool, and high-spec models aimed at the sort of lifestyle buyer heading out into the wilds with the family at the weekend.
The Ford Transit Custom is the only van on the market with a conventional plug-in hybrid model. Add to this fact the comprehensive dealer network, the excellent driving experience and the high-quality cabin and it is easy to see why Ford sells so many of them. Further support from the Ford Pro team working to keeping drivers and fleets on the road sweetens the deal.
With an all-new model due to arrive in 2023, we’re surely not alone in hoping that the engineers charged with creating the new version carry on the excellent work that has been done with this perennial and deserved favourite.
RUNNERS UP
Click for the Volkswagen Transporter full review
The Volkswagen Transporter’s appeal endures and has done for many decades now. This version offers the kind of attributes that appeal across the buyer spectrum. It manages to balance practicality and a strong range of engines with an appealing image to appeal to those who want a van to fit with their lifestyle. This desirability is boosted by features such as a high-tech infotainment system and a car-like cabin, all of which helps with future resale values.
You can get the Transporter in two heights, two lengths, as a Kombi model with two rows of seats and as a chassis cab or dropside, straight from the factory. Its payload and lack of electric model count against it, but the basic formula is one that is strong enough to keep buyers coming back for more.
Click for the Toyota Proace full review
Toyota’s Proace is part of a large group of vans in the medium van category all using the same basic platform and technology – the Citroen Dispatch, Fiat Scudo, Peugeot Expert and Vauxhall Vivaro. The Proace manages to stand out nonetheless. Quite simply, it is down to the support you get from the brand through the form of a 10-year warranty. Given that the others only get a three-year warranty this is quite some distance ahead of its closest competition.
It shares the positive attributes of the others, too, with high payloads, good fuel economy and an electric version that has an impressive range. It’s not perfect – the Proace doesn’t get as many models as the other vans – and there’s only one height on offer but it is a strong all-rounder even so.
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