Ford Transit Custom long-term test

Ford Transit Custom long-term test - Final Report

Date: Wednesday, March 20, 2019 | Author: Tony Rock

4th Report

The Transit Custom is performing pretty consistently when it comes to fuel economy.

Trips around its usual diet of market town/country roads are producing figures of roughly 37-ish miles per gallon, while prolonged cruises on either M40/M25 or M40/M42/M6 journeys take that stat up to around 42mpg.

Those numbers take the average overall economy figure up to 39.1mpg, which is close to the official combined consumption quote of 40.9mpg.

The engine that is delivering real consumption figures close to the predicted ones is the 130hp 2.0-litre Ecoblue, the middle of a three-engine diesel range that also includes 105hp and 170hp outputs.

Our light commercial vehicle emits 167g/km, although there is also a 105hp Econetic engine that delivers 148g/km and 49.6mpg and comes with auto stop/start and low rolling-resistance tyres, among other features.

Meanwhile, if you want to go further with lowering pollutants, a low-emission plug-in hybrid (PHEV) derivative is due to launch next year that will feature a 1.0-litre petrol engine.

The Transit Custom meets the Euro6 emission standard, but requires the addition of AdBlue to do so.

For those who don’t know and are interested in the technical aspects of this, the Euro6 standard specifies a 55% reduction in nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions versus the previous Euro5 emissions standards.

Ford uses a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system to achieve this, with AdBlue (a urea/water-based fluid) helping to convert NOx in the exhaust gas into nitrogen and water.

A particulate filter then removes more than 99% of emitted solid particulates from the vehicle’s exhaust.

Out on the road, the Custom provides a comfortable drive over any distance.

It’s not particularly sharp off the starting blocks, but there’s plenty of go when up and running.

It’s good over the bumps, too, that might otherwise blight a day’s work, while the steering is light but responds well.

Remember my Bluetooth fault? When I could hear callers but they couldn’t hear me?

I contacted two dealers for friendly advice on possible, simple solutions before booking in the Transit, but Perrys kept me on hold for 10 minutes before asking me to leave a message (I’m still waiting for the call back), while SMC Ford didn’t put me through to a service engineer but did ask me to make a booking based on the fault I’d described.

Which it looks like I’ll do because despite some recent successes when I’ve managed two-way chats, on one occassion Bluetooth didn’t connect an incoming call at all, received just after setting off. I’ll keep you posted.

Transit LTT Adblue

Report Card: Driving experience = 4/5

Pre-facelift we said the Custom was in a class of its own for performance, handling and driveability – it still is.

Ford Transit Custom V362 MCA Transit Base 2.0TDCI 280SWB D/Cab In Van Low 130PS 6sp
Mileage   1,356
Official combined consumption    40.9mpg
Our average consumption        39.1mpg
Price (ex VAT)        £23,210
Price range (ex VAT)    £20,160-£31,665
Warranty        3yrs/100,000mls
Service intervals       2yrs/36,000mls
Load length        1,577mm
Load width (min/max) 1,351/1,775mm
Load bay height         1,406mm
Gross payload         804kg
Load volume         3.5m³
Engine size/power 1,995cc/130hp
Gearbox   6-spd
CO2        167g/km

Click below to see previous report

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