Ford e-Transit Custom electric van confirmed for Australian release

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Ford has confirmed that it will release its all-electric e-Transit Custom van in Australia – but not until some time in 2024.

The Toyota Hiace and Mercedes-Benz Vito-competitor will debut in Australia as the second fully-electric Ford model behind the larger e-Transit full-size van that is set to arrive in January 2023. 

Ford also plans to bring three other electric models to market by 2024, however the Michigan-based carmaker has not revealed which vehicles they will be.

There are rumours of the all-electric Mustang Mach-E coming to Australia and even the Ford F-150 Lighting, however these are still yet to be confirmed. Ford has also been busily registering patents in the United States for a presumably all-electric Ranger Lightning ute.

The electric Ford vans form part of a larger US$30 billion (AU$40 billion) investment in electrification by the Ford Motor Company by 2025, with the ultimate goal being 40-50 percent of Ford’s product volume electrified by 2030, and carbon neutral by 2050.

E-Transit Custom range and battery

The new e-Transit is fitted with a 74kWh usable battery pack that has cells shared with the F-150 Lightning. 

Ford says the battery enables the e-Transit Custom to travel up to 380km (WLTP) on a single charge. 

Australian-delivered e-Transit Customs will have a rear-mounted electric motor that produces 160kW of power and 415Nm of torque. Ford has mounted the motor low in the rear of the van to maximise cargo space. 

The Ford e-Transit can handle DC fast charging up to 124kW and sits on a new platform that is unlike what’s currently under the ICE Transit van. 

As its motor is mounted on the rear axle, the e-Transit Custom will be rear-wheel drive (RWD).

A new platform for the all-electric Custom

The load floor of the new Ford e-Transit Custom has been lowered by 100mm to help with loading cargo.

The load length of the electric Custom is 3450mm and can handle load volumes of up to 6.8 cubic metres. 

As with the e-Transit, the Custom variant is fitted with trailing-arm independent rear suspension that not only lowers the floor height, but also, in Ford’s words, “improves steering precision, handling and traction”.

Standard specification for the Ford e-Transit Custom 

Ford says that every electric Custom van will come fitted with a 13-inch landscape-orientated screen that is angled toward the driver for easy accessibility.

The Ford e-Transit Custom comes fitted with an array of safety features such as pre-collision assist, lane-keep assist, adaptive cruise control, traffic-sign recognition, intelligent speed assist, front and rear parking sensors and a rear-view camera. 

A new Driver Focus Mode option uses sensors to direct airflow only to the seats that are occupied. 

Further specifications are set to become available closer to the Custom’s launch in 2024. 

First Ford e-Transit electric delayed past original on-sale date

11 months ago, at the announcement of Ford Australia’s future electric plans, the company said that the full-size e-Transit electric van was due to hit Australian showrooms in the middle of 2022. 

However, Ford now states that their first all-electric van will go on sale from January 2023 – likely delayed due to supply shortages like many of their models, electric or not. 

The smaller e-Transit Custom van is set to arrive during 2024.