Ford Tourneo Custom crosses finish line without breaking a sweat

SUVs and double cab bakkies might be the go-to body styles in the new car market, but there is one thing neither of them can pull off. Keeping six adults comfortable on a seven-hour open road trip.

This exercise might be physically possible in a seven-seater SUV or enclosed double cab. But comfort is anything but top-notch, cargo space is limited and safety in the case of the canopy-dwellers is not guaranteed.

The only body style that ticks all the boxes is a van. Depending on its seating configuration, it seats at least six adults in the greatest of comfort, keeps them safe, has enough boot space for all their luggage and last but not least, provides easy access to all the seats.

Ford Tourneo reports for duty

In what has become a bit of a tradition over the last few years, The Citizen Motoring in June takes a van to KwaZulu-Natal to go and partake in the Comrades Marathon. This year a Ford Tourneo Custom in Sport guise was our preferred method of transport. At R1 232 000, the Sport is the mid-model in the three-derivative Tourneo Custom range.

Setting the Tourneo Custom Sport apart from not only its own siblings, but anything else in the van space, is its sporty styling. The Sport in its title solely refers to its aesthetics as the van’s 2.0-litre turbodiesel engine produces the same 125kW of power and 390Nm of torque as the flagship Titanium X.

Hard to miss are the distinctive black racing stripes with blue outer edging, which worked a charm along with our test unit’s Frozen White paintwork. Further exterior styling cues includes 17-inch black alloy wheels, black honeycomb grille, LED headlights, model specific bumpers and tailgate-integrated rear spoiler.

The Sport comes standard with 17-inch black alloys. Picture: Jaco van der Merwe

The racing stripes also find their way into the cabin where every seat feature two blue stripes set on a combination of black cloth and synthetic leather edging with blue contrast stitching.

Clever cabin configurations

The Ford Tourneo Custom Sport is an eight-seater that features two rows seating three each behind the two individual front seats. Instead of the traditional bench seats associated with passenger vans of old, the Sport’s second and third rows are made up of three individual seats with headrests which can each slide and recline to create a personalised configuration.

As we only had four occupants in the rear, we utilised the luxury of folding the backrests of the two middle seats flat. This creates arm rests, a table and drinks holder, features that came in handy for runners with their constant need for nutrition and hydration.

Adding to the rear comfort is dedicated climate controls with plenty of upper and lower vents, retractable blinds in the side windows, additional drinks holders inside the door and no less than eight Type-C ports.

The minimum boot space in the Sport is almost 700 almost litres with the third row slid all the way to the back. Additional storage space comes in the form of upper and lower glove boxes, storage space on the dashboard, a storage compartment underneath the front passenger seat and plenty of compartments inside the front and sliding doors.

The Sport’s cabin is fresh and modern. Picture: Jaco van der Merwe

Loads of creature comforts

While the tailgate requires manual operation, the two sliding doors are both fully electric and open wide enough for easy access to the third row, a crucial requirement the day after an ultramarathon.

Things aren’t all that shabby up front either. Here you’ll find a 10-speaker 13-inch SYNC 4A infotainment system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, 8-inch digital instrument cluster, reverse camera, wireless charger, dual climate control and heated seats of which the driver’s side can be electrically adjusted. Each front seat also comes standard with very handy armrests which adds to the overall seat comfort on long journeys. Generous use of piano black gives the cabin a much more modern finish than some of its aging rivals.

Over and above the standard set of safety systems, advanced assistance support comes in the form of adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitoring, collision mitigation braking and reverse brake assist.

Frugal sipper

One of the highlights of our 1 255km round trip to Scottburgh and back was the Ford Tourneo Custom Sport’s fuel consumption. The van only sipped 8.0 litres per 100km, which is nothing short of excellent. Especially during these times when the diesel price is over R30 per litre.

Only one van has returned better fuel economy and that was the Mercedes-Benz Vito Tourer Select last year. The Merc’s number came in at 7.8L/100km, but only carried four compared to this year’s six occupants.

In the two years we were five, we got 9.5L/100km in the Toyota Quantum VX and 9.4L/100km in the previous generation Mercedes-Benz V300d.

Foldable middle seats provide tables, cup holders and armrests. Picture: Jaco van der Merwe

Even with our load, the 2.0-litre mill never felt underpowered, with the rev counter hardly threatening 2 000rpm while travelling at the national limit. The eight-speed automatic transmission, which sends the power to the front wheels, also played its part in a supersmooth ride. The box passed the test of the undulations around Pietermaritzburg with flying colours.

Ford Tourneo Custon Sport for the win

The van segment is not very big and most of the premium offerings like the Ford Tourneo Custom offer fairly similar spec sheets. But the Sport has a definite edge. While it might be ticking all the same boxes as the rest, it seals the deal in terms of styling. Hell, I wish I could survive the hellish stretch of road between Durban and Pietermaritzburg looking as good.