More Stylish and Comfortable Interior Enhances Driver Workspace

MELBOURNE – Feb 20, 2014: The all-new Ford Transit Custom brings a new level of driver appeal to the one-tonne class with a stylish, car-like interior which combines enhanced comfort, outstanding everyday practicality and quality craftsmanship.

Combined with the new model’s improved refinement and more supple ride, this makes the Transit Custom’s cab a comfortable place to spend a long working day behind the wheel.

Customers in the one tonne van segment place a premium on a comfortable, car-like environment, with the ability to serve as a mobile office when required. In Transit Custom, Ford has given them a modern, driver-focused cockpit, which combines stylish looks and generous space with a host of smart stowage areas.

Stylish, car-like design
The interior design of the Transit Custom is stylish and modern, adopting the more expressive design language found in Ford’s latest kinetic design passenger cars.

Customers familiar with Ford’s design characteristics will appreciate the car-like, driver-focused feel of the interior, with the characteristic sculpted shapes and bold graphics, which are key elements of kinetic design. Features like the distinctive trapezoidal shapes of the instrument binnacle and the wing-like form of the instrument panel give the cockpit a unique and very contemporary appearance.

At the same time, Ford engineers did not compromise functionality, making sure that the design met the needs of a practical workspace and was packed full of useful stowage features.

To complement the more stylish design, the interior was developed with a rigorous focus on quality and craftsmanship, to ensure that the cabin materials combined typical Transit durability and toughness with a more premium, car-like appearance.

Throughout the cabin, the fit and finish of components has been significantly improved. The choice and execution of materials follows the practices used on Ford’s latest passenger cars, with distinctive accents used to highlight design details, yet offering good durability to withstand day-to-day working challenges.

An example of the improved material quality is found in the instrument panel, which uses a specially developed modern synthetic material with a soft feel and a sophisticated grain pattern designed to match leather used in Ford’s car lines. This material combines low gloss levels, creating a perception of softness, with outstanding durability and resistance to marking.

Outstanding everyday practicality
Designed for outstanding practicality, the Ford Transit Custom interior satisfies the needs of customers who use the vehicle as their everyday working environment.

The cabin features a large number of innovative stowage and convenience features, including:

Driver’s top stowage bin – concealed under a hinged hood above the instrument binnacle, this stowage area is ideal for storing mobile phones, portable music players and other smaller items. The compartment includes a range of connectivity sockets, including a 12V power point, a USB socket and an auxiliary audio input

Underseat storage area – Transit Custom 280S and 330L with the full bulkhead and dual passenger seat feature a generous concealed stowage area under the passenger seat, which can be accessed by flipping forward the seat cushion or through a load-through hatch in the bulkhead, offering an increased load length of up to 3.0 m with the SWB, or 3.4 m with the LWB models

Dedicated mobile phone holder – located on the instrument panel, integrated into the driver-focused design just above the gear lever

Fold-down centre seat back – with a dual passenger seat, the centre seat back folds forward to create a convenient surface for writing or using a laptop, with cup and pen holders

Multiple bottle/cup holders – large bottle holders capable of carrying two-litre bottles are located on both sides of the lower instrument panel, while two large cupholders are cleverly integrated into the ends of the instrument panel where it mates with the doors

Main glove box – the capacious main glove box contains space for an A4 folder system

Door stowage bins – upper door stowage bins provide space for bottles and small items, while lower compartments are designed to hold safety equipment such as first aid kits and warning triangles

With its dash-mounted gear lever, the interior provides excellent cross-cab access for driver and passengers.

All of the interior materials have undergone extensive lab testing to ensure that they are functional, durable and easy to clean. The vinyl floor covering, for example, features a grain pattern specifically chosen to minimise soiling and allow simple cleaning.

Enhanced driver comfort and ergonomics
Driver comfort on the Transit Custom is significantly enhanced through a highly adjustable driving position which features increased seat travel – including 30 mm more rear travel for taller drivers – and the addition of a steering column adjustable for reach and height and driver seat armrest and lumbar adjustment. The steering wheel itself is positioned at a more vertical, car-like angle.

Driver and passengers will also appreciate independent heated seats for those cold winter mornings.

The front seats are brand new, and are designed to deliver superior all-day comfort, more efficient adjustment and a more car-like appearance.

The cockpit has a driver-focused design, with improved ergonomics which have been developed following the same Human Machine Interface approach as Ford’s recent passenger cars. The reach to major controls such the gear lever, the climate and audio systems have all been significantly improved.

The driving position has a command bridge feel with excellent visibility – the Transit Custom has one of the largest clear windscreen glass areas of one-tonne vehicles in the van segment.