Ford Transit Custom Sport PHEV 2026 Review

The 2026 Ford Transit Custom Sport PHEV is the upper-spec model of the two-tier Transit Custom PHEV range, which kicks off with the long-wheelbase Trend at $67,890. While mechanically the same, the Sport instead uses a short wheelbase body, adds some features and costs $2500 more at $70,290 (all prices plus on-road costs).

If you want to go to a battery-electric medium van, Ford also has the Transit Custom EV models, at $77,890 for Trend LWB and $80,290 for Sport SWB (so exactly $10,000 more than the PHEV equivalent models, plus ORCs). The diesel-powered Transit Custom range has more variant and body choices and is cheaper, ranging from the $56,890 Trend SWB to the $62,290 Trail (all plus ORCs).

There is no direct PHEV competition for the Transit Custom PHEV. The bulk of the commercial van market appears to prefer diesel, with the likes of the LDV Deliver 7 (from $44,726 +ORCs), Hyundai Staria Load (from $46,990 +ORCs) and Toyota HiAce (from $51,880 +ORCs).

If you’re particularly seeking ‘green’ van alternatives to the Transit Custom PHEV, with no other PHEVs on offer you’d have to choose one of the growing number of battery electric commercial vans.

Aside from Ford’s own Transit Custom EVs, these include the Farizon SV (from $71,490 +ORCs), the LDV e-Deliver 7 (from $67,358 +ORCs) or the Volkswagen Transporter Electric (from $83,590 +ORCs).

There’s also the Mercedes-Benz E-Vito at $98,951 (+ORCs) or the Volkswagen ID Buzz Cargo (from $79,990 +ORCs). However the Mercedes-Benz E-Vito is significantly more expensive than its peers while the Volkswagen ID Buzz has a smaller (more of a Volkswagen Caddy-size) load area.

The 2026 Ford Transit Custom Sport PHEV comes with vertical split rear doors with window panes, a passenger-side single sliding door, integral 155kg-capacity set of three roof racks, power adjustable, power-fold, heated side mirrors with a convex lower section, 17-inch alloys, a space-saver spare tyre, smart keyless entry, rear spoiler, body kit and sports stripes.

Sports cloth seats for three occupants (heated in outboard positions) with blue accent stripes feature in the cabin, comprising a single driver’s bucket seat with fold-down armrests and a two-passenger bench seat alongside. The driver’s seat is power-adjustable, including lumbar support, while dual-zone climate control is also standard. A steel bulkhead partition with glass window is also part of the deal.

In the cargo area a floor protective cover and six tie-downs are included. There is no vehicle-to-load (V2L) capacity, a shame given that tradespeople could benefit from a work van with such capacity to recharge electrical equipment or run 240v gear.

The Sport has a 5.8 cubic-metre cargo area capacity that is big enough to accept an Australian standard pallet. Payload is 1255kg and kerb weight is 1970kg while towing capacity is 2300kg maximum, braked.

While the Transit Custom Trend grade comes with a variety of options such as more than 50 exterior colour choices, the Sport options list is simpler. While ‘Frozen White’ is free, Prestige paint (a choice of five colours) is a $700 option, a rear liftgate door (in place of vertical split doors) is $700, while dual side sliding doors are $1000.

With optional ‘Grey Matter’ flat grey paint and the dual side sliding doors, our test Transit Custom Sport PHEV was $71,990 (+ORCs). Warranty cover is five years/unlimited kilometres, except for the high-voltage battery, which has eight years/160,000km of cover.

Services are due every 12 months or 30,000km, whichever occurs first. Capped priced servicing is available and costs $499 per service for routine scheduled servicing for the first four years/120,000km. You also have complimentary roadside assist for the first 12 months, which is extended 12 months each time a service is performed at a Ford dealer.

The 2026 Ford Transit Custom Sport PHEV’s safety features are comprehensive. The list here includes autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go function, lane keeping, blind-spot monitoring and assist, rear cross-traffic alert and braking, roll over mitigation, speed sign recognition, front and rear parking sensors and 180-degree view rear camera.

Vans are not physically crashed as part of local Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) crash testing any longer. Rather they are assessed on active safety systems, in this case the ANCAP 2024 Commercial Van Safety Comparison.

In this safety test, the Transit Custom scored 96 per cent, achieving the highest score of vans tested, and a ‘Platinum’ result. However the Transit Custom also achieved five stars in the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) testing, where the Transit Custom was crash-tested.

The Transit Custom has six airbags – dual front, front side and side curtain airbags. Interestingly, Ford says that the dual front airbags deploy from the roof, to free up dashboard space for oddment storage.

Inside every 2026 Ford Transit Custom Sport PHEV there’s a 12-inch colour digital instrument cluster and a separate 13-inch touchscreen infotainment system powered by Ford's SYNC 4. You get wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, satellite-navigation, wireless phone charging, wired USB-C charging and the Ford Pass connected smartphone app.

The 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine and electric motor combine to deliver peaks of 171kW/400Nm, with the electric motor fed by an 11.8kWh NMC battery and the engine fed by a 63-litre fuel tank. Power gets to the front wheels via an e-CVT automatic.

There are three EV Drive modes: Auto EV, EV Now, and EV Later. Auto EV automatically works with a combination of petrol and electric power to optimise driving range and performance. EV Now uses only the electric motor, while EV Later runs the petrol engine exclusively, retaining battery charge until either Auto EV or EV Now modes are selected.

The official combined fuel consumption for the 2026 Ford Transit Custom Sport PHEV is 1.7L/100km. On test, primarily a 600km return interstate highway run, the overall consumption average was 6.5L/100km using Auto EV mode with an indicated EV range of 34km at the start of the trip. We saw a low of 4.9L/100km around town while one stretch of highway use saw 7.9L/100km.

The AC 0-100 per cent charging time is 7 hours at 2.3 kW, while charging at the maximum 3.5kW it takes a claimed 4h 15min. The Transit Custom uses a Type 2 AC charger, fitted at the front right bumper corner.

We charged for 1h 17min on an up to 22kW AC charger, before running out of time. The Ford was charging at a rate that suggested it would be at 100 per cent in just over four hours. With an energy use of 4.15kWh, range was increased from zero km at the start of charging to 12km when unplugged and battery capacity showing as 27 per cent charged. Ideally, you’d invest in a wall charger at home or work so you could charge overnight to gain maximum use from electric operation.

There’s no doubt that medium size vans have improved a lot over the years, becoming more comfortable and poised in their drive experience. The 2026 Ford Transit Custom Sport PHEV is no different, although there are some highs and lows from the experience.

The near-silent operation in EV mode or around town when the petrol engine is only called up for work occasionally (where it was not intrusive at all) makes for a relatively serene drive experience. The tyre roar on some coarse highway surfaces was quite noticeable, although much suppressed no doubt by the cargo bulkhead.

With a long wheelbase relative to overall length and independent rear suspension, ride quality was quite good. We only had about 400kg on board, but even unladen the ride is impressive for a van riding on firm-sidewall commercial tyres. Squeaks and rattles were relatively minor, with some seeming to come from door rubbers over bumps.

Performance around town is very good. Anticipating a gap in traffic joining an arterial road, the PHEV powertrain got the Ford up to 60km/h from a standstill quickly on full throttle – albeit with a banshee wail from the petrol engine as the CVT held revs up high under such conditions.

Provided you don’t need or want to floor it all the time, the electric motor’s torque gives that instant bump in speed that is useful for assertive if not weapons-grade acceleration.
On the highway, the pull forward under full acceleration isn’t nearly as impressive (when overtaking for example), but it still builds up speed with an assertive enough response.

The cabin is well thought out and comfortable, with loads of nooks and crannies to store stuff. There really is so much here, from large door pockets, enclosed under-seat storage, two glove boxes and a deep pocket on the upper dash.

The step up into the seats is a bit like clambering aboard a tall 4WD, which might get tiring for shorties among us like this writer, but there is an inset step to climb up and grab handles to help you aboard, and it’s worth the effort for the commanding driving position.

You get to see what’s happening around you easily, and with the large mirrors and crisp, clear rear-view camera screen, seeing out the back is very easy when reversing. The menus, instruments and controls are all simple, with a few caveats.

The digital dashboard offers a lot of information, and while thankfully the main stuff is in a big font, the more minor info is relatively small and can be harder to find when you’re trying to keep your eyes on the road.

The gear lever, a wand on the right side of the steering column, can be confused with the indicator (which, at least, is on the left) if you’re not used to the arrangement. Put it this way, you’ll learn quickly enough, especially when selecting Neutral by mistake when indicating to change lanes on the highway…

The cargo area is easily accessed and is well lit with LED lighting and has six solid tie-down points and the steel floor is protected by a moulded plastic cover. The addition of a driver’s side sliding door really makes access more flexible and should be standard.

The 2026 Ford Transit Custom Sport PHEV is a well-executed medium van, with comfort, performance, usable payload and safety among the highlights. Yet you could say the same about the diesel Transit Custom.

As far as this PHEV model goes, the promise is reduced consumption and cleaner and quieter operation. Yet the reality is that this van really needs to be used in an urban environment with only short commutes and using an AC home wall charger overnight to make its fuel consumption significantly lower than the diesel.

In such an urban use scenario, the Transit Custom PHEV is a more feasible and potentially economical option, accompanied by less laggy response off the mark than the diesel. However, for those needing to log big distances in a day and who are on the clock, the diesel Transit Custom Sport is about as fuel efficient and cheaper.

2025 Ford Transit Custom Sport PHEV at a glance:
Price: $70,290 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Powertrain: 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol-electric
Output: 86kW/209Nm (electric motor: 111kW/390Nm)
Combined output: 171kW/400km
Transmission: e-CVT
Battery: 11.8kWh NMC
Range: 54km (ADR)
Energy consumption: 19.7kWh/100km (ADR)
Fuel: 1.7L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 38g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested