Ford Ranger vs Ford Transit Custom

What's the difference?

The Ford Ranger XL 4x2 Double Cab combines strong performance with a one-tonne-plus payload rating, 3500kg towing ability, spacious cabin and excellent ride/handling.

However, it could be even better without the penny-pinching evident in the lack of rear passenger air-vents/USB etc found in some 4x2 rivals. Even so, for workhorse buyers, there’s plenty to like here.

The Sport, like all Transit Customs we’ve tested, is a capable one-tonner and all-around workhorse even though it's not quite as sporty these days due to engine revisions. With an all-new Transit Custom range due later this year, we’re not sure if a Sport will be part of the model mix. So, if you like the look of this rebel, we’re sure run-out deals will soon be available.

All Ranger XL 4x2s are called ‘Hi-Riders’ as they share the same ride height as their 4x4 siblings. As a result, they also benefit from the same ground clearance/approach/departure angles, which can be handy if there's some rugged terrain in your line of work.

Braking is a front disc/rear drum combination but you’d struggle to feel the difference between this and the four-wheel discs of higher-grade models, given how well Ford has refined the set-up over the years.

The Ranger XL is a chrome-free zone as you'd expect, with the interior featuring many shades of grey and a conspicuous number of plastic caps in places where buttons/switches are found in more luxurious variants.

Even so, the cabin is neat and functional for this role. Rear seat space is excellent, even for tall people like me (186cm). There’s also ample headroom, which contributes to the spacious feel.

Our only gripes are the absence of air-vents and a USB port in the rear of the centre console, which come standard in rivals like Isuzu’s D-Max SX.

The Sport enhances the purposeful styling of the Transit Custom, which, with its wedge-shaped character lines, trapezoidal grille and swept-back headlights, is still arguably Australia’s best-looking commercial van after more than a decade in local showrooms.

Although some may find the twin racing stripes too in-ya-face, the overall effect of the Sport’s unique body enhancements and larger 17-inch alloys with lower profile tyres is one of cheeky rebellion against commercial van conservatism.

Only the Transit Custom’s handsome lines could get away with this. Can you imagine how a HiAce would respond to this treatment?

Even so, the Sport retains the excellent design features that make it such a good workhorse, including the sealed steel bulkhead that separates the cargo bay and cabin. This not only serves as a robust cargo barrier but also insulates the cabin from cargo bay noise, which in some commercial vans without a bulkhead can be unbearable at highway speeds.

Its front-wheel drive chassis platform has MacPherson strut front suspension, leaf-spring beam axle rear suspension, four-wheel disc brakes, power-assisted rack and pinion steering and a compact 2933mm wheelbase that provides a competitive 11.8-metre turning circle.

Our test vehicle is fitted with the standard LHS sliding load-door and twin rear barn-doors, but optional body configurations include a window in the LHS sliding load-door, dual side load-doors with or without windows and a rear swing-up tailgate.

Thanks to its relatively light 2093kg kerb weight, our test vehicle’s 3250kg GVM allows for an impressive 1157kg payload rating.

It’s also rated to tow up to the category-benchmark 3500kg of braked trailer and given its big 6200kg GCM (or how much it can legally carry and tow at the same time) that would still leave a generous payload capacity of more than 600kg.

These are strong numbers well suited to a variety of heavy-hauling tasks.

The load tub’s floor is 1547mm long and 1584mm wide with 1224mm between the wheel housings, allowing it to carry an 1165mm-square Aussie pallet which can be secured using a choice of six load-anchorage points (three each side).

A steel-framed bulkhead doubles as robust protection for the cabin’s rear window and a handy place on which to lean and secure items that are too long to fit in the tub.

Its flush-fitting load retainers can pivot and lock into a vertical position on each side, to effectively ‘book-end’ loads when securing them.

The tub has internal lighting thanks to small but bright LEDs embedded in the sidewalls. These are welcome not only when accessing the tub at night or in poorly-lit internal spaces, but also if it's fitted with a hard tonneau cover.

There are concave side-steps behind the rear wheels, which make accessing the load tub easier and safer than standing on top of the tyres as owners often do, because if they're wet or muddy it’s easy to slip off.

Six plastic caps (three each side) along the top edges of the sidewalls can be removed to provide access to internal mounting points for numerous structures, like ladder racks.

The top edge of the tailgate incorporates a 1.3-metre ruler and a pair of spring-loaded ‘trapdoors’ which provide access to the tailgate’s internal cavity.

This allows for the use of G-clamps, which can be inserted into these holes when using the open tailgate as a workbench to clamp materials in place when cutting, drilling, sanding, etc.

Front-of-cabin storage includes dual bottle holders and a bin in each door, plus an overhead glasses holder and, on the passenger’s side, an open shelf with glove box below.

The centre console has open storage up front, a pair of small-bottle/cupholders in the centre and a lidded-box at the back which doubles as a driver’s elbow rest.

Rear seat passengers get a bottle holder and bin in each door, another bin in the rear of the centre console and a pocket on the front passenger seat’s backrest, but with no fold-down centre armrest there are no dedicated cupholders.

The one-piece seat base can also swing up and be stored vertically if more internal luggage space is required, or to access two large underfloor storage compartments.

With its 2064kg kerb weight and 3100kg GVM, the Sport offers a one-tonne-plus payload rating of 1036kg.

Handily, up to 130kg of that can be carried on the smartest of roof storage systems, comprising a trio of sturdy hinged racks which lie flat against the roof when not in use but can be quickly swung up and locked into vertical positions for load carrying.

It’s also rated to tow up to 1600kg of braked trailer. However, to do that without exceeding the 4100kg GCM (or how much it can legally carry and tow at the same time) would require a sizeable and impractical 600kg reduction in payload from 1036kg to only 436kg.

More than half of that 436kg could be used up by the weight of three big crew members alone before you could think about loading anything in the cargo bay.

So, from practical experience, we reckon it’s best to base tow ratings on a vehicle’s GVM. In this case, the maximum tow rating drops from 1600kg to 1000kg, but the payback is you get to keep the full 1036kg payload which is safer when towing and generally more useful.

The Sport’s cargo bay offers a competitive 6.0 cubic metres of load volume and with its 2555mm load floor length and 1351mm between the rear wheel housings, it can carry either two 1165mm-square standard Aussie pallets or up to the three 1200 x 800mm or 1200 x 1000mm Euro pallets.

Both types of pallets can be forklifted through the rear barn-doors with their 180-degree opening, but only the narrower Euro pallet could be loaded through the sliding side door with its 1030mm-wide opening.

The load floor length can be extended by almost half a metre via a swing-up hatch at the base of the cabin bulkhead, which accesses otherwise empty storage space beneath the front passenger seats. This useful feature allows extra-long items like lengths of timber, copper/PVC pipe, rolls of carpet, etc, to be carried.

The cargo bay has eight load-anchorage points and the load floor is protected by a tough vinyl covering. The walls and doors are lined plus there’s a handy 12-volt power outlet and bright LED lighting.

Plentiful cabin storage includes three levels of bins and a large-bottle holder in each front door plus upper/lower bottle holders on each side of the dash and a pop-out cupholder beneath the gearshift. There’s also a single A4-sized glovebox and more bins set into the top of the dash.

 Overhead is another cubby for small items and hidden beneath the two passenger seats is a cavernous storage area (when the cargo bay’s load-through hatch is closed of course) which is accessed from above through the hinged base cushions.

The centre seat’s backrest also folds forward to reveal a handy ‘mobile office’ work desk with pen holder, elastic strap for securing documents and two more cupholders.

Our test vehicle is the Transit Custom Sport 320S SWB, which translates to 3200kg GVM (it’s actually 3100kg), S for Sport and SWB for Short Wheelbase.

It’s available only with Ford’s 2.0-litre 'EcoBlue', four-cylinder turbo-diesel and six-speed automatic for a list price of $50,390 plus on-road costs.

Our example is finished in 'Blue Metallic' which is one of six optional premium colours that cost an additional $700. Other standard equipment for Sport buyers includes Bi-Xenon HID headlights with static bending and LED daytime running lights, body-coloured side mirrors and unique Cobra-style matt black body stripes and side decals.

There’s also a neat body kit with body-coloured front and rear bumpers, side skirts and wheel-arch flares; the latter neatly shrouds the black 17-inch machined alloys and grippy 215/65 R17 Michelin Agilis tyres. Stored underneath is a full-size steel spare.

The cabin can seat up to three on leather-appointed and heated seating, enhanced by a 10-way power-adjustable driver’s bucket seat with fold-down inboard armrest.

There's also a hard-wearing 'Sensico' (synthetic leather) steering wheel with height/reach adjustment and classy chrome air-vent surrounds with contrasting piano black fascia highlights on the dash.

Four-speaker multimedia includes an 8.0-inch touchscreen control and multiple connectivity including Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, Sync3, DAB+ digital radio, and more.

The 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel with single turbocharger produces a healthy 125kW at 3500rpm and 405Nm of torque between 1750-2500rpm, which exceeds the outputs of 2.4-litre HiLux and 1.9-litre D-Max diesel rivals.

This engine is paired with a six-speed torque converter automatic, which offers the choice of sequential manual-shifting using a small thumb-operated toggle on the side of the shift-lever.

This can be handy when carrying and/or towing heavy loads, particularly in hilly terrain to minimise gear-hunting.

Originally the Sport’s 2.0-litre EcoBlue four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine was tweaked for more power (+11kW) and torque (+15Nm) than the standard engine, as you’d expect.

However, given that availability of that unique variant ended in June 2022, it now shares the same engine as the standard Transit Custom.

While not class-leading, it still provides an energetic 125kW at 3500rpm and ample 390Nm of torque between 1500-2000rpm.

It also meets Euro emissions standards using AdBlue with SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) and offers a choice of Normal and Eco drive modes, plus an auto engine stop-start function which thankfully can be switched off.

The Sport also shares the same six-speed torque converter automatic used in the standard Transit Custom with ‘intelligent’ electronic protocols that monitor different driving styles, gradients and loads to optimise engine efficiency.

It also offers the choice of sequential manual shifting, but that’s done by flicking a small toggle switch on the side of the gearshift which doesn’t feel very sporty to use.

Ford claims official average combined cycle consumption of 7.8L/100km.

When we stopped to refuel at the end of our 493km test, which included a mix of suburban and highway driving of which about one fifth was carrying a heavy payload, the dash display was claiming 8.5L/100km.

This was very close to our own figure of 9.3, calculated from fuel bowser and trip meter readings, which confirmed thrifty single-digit economy in real-world driving conditions.

So, based on our own figures, the test vehicle should achieve an impressive driving range of around 860km from its big 80-litre tank.

Ford claims an official combined average of 8.0L/100km and the Sport’s dash display was showing 8.4 at the end of our 200km test, which was conducted without a load in normal mode with the engine stop/start function switched off.

Our own figure calculated from actual fuel bowser and trip meter readings came in at a higher 10.2 which is within the usual 1.0-2.0L/100km discrepancy usually found between dash figures and our own.

So, based on our figures, you could expect a realistic driving range of around 680km from its 70-litre tank.

It’s easy to climb aboard with big assist-handles on the A and B pillars to compensate for the absence of side-steps.

The driving position is comfortable and spacious, with ample manual adjustments available in the seat and steering wheel.

It may be a back-to-basics workhorse but refinements in the latest Ranger generation have not been compromised.

The unladen ride quality is undeniably firm but still commendable, even on bumpy roads, given its leaf-spring rear axle and big payload rating.

The relatively light 4x2 kerb weight ensures brisk acceleration from standing starts, combined with steering feel that arguably remains the class benchmark.

We forklifted 890kg into the tub which with driver (and towing pack) was more than one tonne of payload.

The rear leaf springs compressed 50mm under this weight, but there was no chance of bottoming-out because of the rear suspension design that has long cone-shaped jounce rubbers that engage with the springs early in their compression.

This eliminates the hard thumps at full travel like traditional bump-stops and provide what is effectively a second stage of load support. The result is a smooth ride under maximum loads, regardless of road conditions.

The Ranger has ample performance in busy suburban driving and excels at highway speeds, with low engine, tyre and wind noise highlighting its excellent noise suppression.

It also made light work of hauling this load up our 13 per cent gradient, 2.0km set climb at 60km/h, self-shifting down to third gear to easily reach the summit with minimal accelerator required.

Engine braking on the way down, in a manually-selected second gear, wasn’t as robust but typical of small displacement turbo-diesels trying to restrain big loads on steep descents.

The only negative was an alert that appeared on the driver’s info display, warning of a ‘front camera malfunction’ that would require servicing.

As a result, we were without pre-collision assist, adaptive cruise control or speed-limiter functions for the remainder of our test run, which fortunately occurred on the final day of our loan.

For a one-tonne van it’s surprisingly engaging (dare we say sporty?) to drive with torquey engine response, communicative steering and a bolstered driving seat that provides good lateral support of the upper body.

The quartet of disc brakes provides ample stopping power and the well-planted chassis on its larger diameter and lower profile Michelins responds vigorously to steering input, which makes it enjoyable to drive either when zipping through traffic or cruising on the open road. Overall refinement is good with low engine, tyre and wind noise.

It’s a comfortable highway hauler, with gearing that keeps engine rpm capped at a leisurely 2100rpm at 110km/h.

The fold-down inboard armrest is much appreciated on long hauls, but driving comfort could be further improved with a longer base cushion for better under-thigh support.

 All-round vision is as good as you could ask for, given a huge blind-spot over the driver’s left shoulder created by the cabin bulkhead.

The door mirrors are large enough to provide good views down both side of the van, aided by the bottom third of each being fitted with a wide-angle view.

Combined with other active driver aids like blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, parking sensors, reversing camera, etc, the working van’s traditional danger zones are well monitored which makes the Sport easy to live with if you drive it daily.

As the forklift was temporarily out of action, we didn’t conduct our usual GVM test with the Sport during this review. However, we have previously tested one with a 1030kg payload which was right on its maximum payload rating.

The rear suspension only compressed about 40mm which left plenty of bump-stop clearance and resulted in an even more planted feel on the road with no significant effect on engine, steering and braking response.

It also resulted in a smoother ride quality, which is to be expected given that the much heavier sprung weight ironed out bumps and other road irregularities.

Although its maximum five-star rating was achieved when the current Transit Custom generation was launched more than a decade ago, Ford to its credit has continually updated the van’s safety menu to ensure it has remained at the cutting edge of occupant protection, despite its impending demise.

Warranty is five years/unlimited km.

Scheduled servicing is every 12 months/15,000km whichever occurs first.

Capped-price servicing for the first five scheduled services totals $1911 or an average of $382 per service.

The Transit Custom is covered by a five-year/unlimited km warranty.

Scheduled service intervals are 12 months/30,000km whichever occurs first.

Capped-price servicing is $399 annually for the first four years/120,000km whichever occurs first when serviced at Ford dealerships.