The medium-sized panel van is typically the vehicle of choice for countless professionals in the UK. There’s plenty of debate as to which is the best medium van for businesses.
To be fair, nominating the best mid-size van for the UK market is not an easy decision to make. In previous articles, we’ve discussed what features and benefits to look for in small and the best small vans in the UK.
In this article, we’re going to list our top three favourite medium-sized vans in the UK. Hopefully, this will help you to narrow down your search.
Before we dive in, however, it’s worth noting that medium-sized vans come with a wide variety of feature sizes and potential. But there are two main types tradespeople should be looking at; standard height or high-roof.
If you install some van racking ideas either van type will make you more productive, but a high roof gives you re potential. Keep that in mind. You may prefer to go for a less expensive medium-sized van with smaller dimensions.
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What Is The Best Medium Van?
The Ford Transit Custom is widely regarded as the best mid-sized van. It’s hard to disagree. A staple favourite for many years, Ford consistently boasts an array of features, leading technology, generous load capacity, a competitive payload and an impressive fuel economy.
The Transit Custom is a mid-sized van that ticks a lot of boxes for businesses. So, the Transit Custom gives you a payload of 686-1489kg and ample loadspace – 6-8.3 cubic metres.
That’s not bad considering the fuel economy is 31.7-40.9mpg – one of the lowest running costs in this class. Ford estimates its 2.0-litre EcoBlue TDCi will deliver average savings of around £1,250 a year.
The Other Best Medium-Sized Vans in the UK
Choosing the other best mid-sized vans in the UK was a tough ask. However, considering the current economic climate, we decided top focus on the most economical panel vans.
Volkswagen Transporter
The Volkswagen Transporter gets our vote for the best medium van in the UK because its generous load capacity is great to work with. With a customised van racking system, this van looks immeasurably cool inside and out.
The load space is almost 3000mm in length – which makes this one of the most versatile medium-sized vans that will suit a wide range of professionals. Whether you’re carrying lots of small equipment, euro pallets or 8×4 sheets, you won’t struggle for space.
This model also comes with a high roof which gives you even more potential to maximise the load space. This makes it ideal for couriers or professionals that prefer to stand upright when retrieving equipment from the van.
Like Ford, Volkswagen has equipped the Transporter with a 2.0-litre diesel engine which delivers around 201 bhp and average fuel consumption of 46 mpg.
Vauxhall Vivaro
The Vauxhall Vivaro is the most expensive of our three choices. A market value of £35,700 will not appeal to most businesses. However, this mid-sized van has huge potential and is one of the sexiest vans on the road.
Don’t let the dimensions fool you either. The third-gen Vivaro appears to be smaller than previous models despite its hefty asking price. However, Vauxhall’s designers have just been clever.
Although the dimensions are narrower and shorter, the wheel arches are smaller. As a result, there’s greater width and more space between the wheel arches. The slightly higher roof has also improved the load volume, and all without the van being too tall to restrict drivers that have to pass under low bridges.
A steel bulkhead also means you can use the entire 2415mm load length. The payload is not bad either, 1100kg which should be ample for most UK professionals.
Where the Vivaro really comes into its own is the impressive fuel economy which rings in at around 42.8mpg. That puts out among the top rivals for miles per gallon.
