The car world is abuzz with automobile manufacturers entering new niches and, in some cases, reinventing existing model names to spark nostalgia. Some sink, some swim. But when it comes to the most respected and recognizable model line on Britain’s roads, then look no further than the Ford Transit.
The subject of Top Gear’s latest video in their Retrospective series, the best-selling commercial van in the United Kingdom has been at the top of its game for some time now. Whether it’s helping someone move house, transporting goods for builders, or assisting the post office with their day-to-day runs, there’s always been a Transit lurking in the background. The Transit is, to this day, one of Ford’s biggest revenue generators, with 8,000,000 vans sold over the years.
There are many reasons as to why the Transit has been such a runaway success. Over its 56 years in production, there have been some 450 versions catering to different uses, with customers able to tackle a variety of tasks.
But, Ford didn’t intend on their star van becoming infamous with the wrong side of the law, with Scotland Yard stating that a staggering 95% of bank robberies have involved a Transit.
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From being a trusted companion to an accomplice to bank robberies, the Blue Oval’s van didn’t need to get any more interesting. But it did. In 1971 Ford’s UK division decided to create the most extreme Transit of all time, the 300 bhp Supervan, which gave way to multiple generations.
The Supervan wasn’t the only stint the Transit had in racing. Who can forget when Sabine Schmitz took a standard van to the Nürburgring, attempting to beat a time set by Jeremy Clarkson?
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Apart from the many interesting variants, the standard Transit was in a class of its own. Its reliability was unmatched, and this was proven when it breezed through the “7 days of Monza” challenge. The stunt saw Ford’s dependable workhorse travel 10,000 miles with an average speed of 73.3 mph around the legendary track, setting a new endurance world record in the process.
The modern Transit is now available as a plug-in hybrid and will be available as a fully electric van in a year. Throughout the years, the Transit has grown from being a workhorse for businesses to being a user-friendly car-like feeling passenger van. It’s no wonder, then, why they refer to it as being the backbone of Britain.
