A Transit van is a medium-sized panel van. The term comes from the Ford Transit, a model so common on UK roads since the 1960s that the name is now used loosely for almost any mid-sized enclosed van, whatever the manufacturer.
A panel van has a fully enclosed metal body with no separate box section and no overcab storage. The load space sits behind the cab, accessed through rear doors and usually a side sliding door.
Transit-style vans come in several sizes:
- Short, medium and long wheelbase versions, with low, medium or high roof options.
- Usable capacity ranges from roughly 250 cubic feet for a small van up to around 420 cubic feet for a long-wheelbase high-roof model.
- Payload is typically 800kg to 1,400kg depending on the size and specification.
A Transit van is a common choice for a man with a van handling single-item deliveries, part-load jobs, studio and small one-bedroom moves, and runs where the load is awkward rather than large. For a full flat or house move, the bigger square load space of a Luton van is usually the better choice. Both sit within the 3,500kg limit of a standard car licence.