Jodie Kidd: I Thought I Knew My Ranger – I Was Wrong
As Vans and Pickups Editor at Parkers it falls on me to decide which are the best commercial vehicles on sale in the UK each year. Every year we begin with a clean slate and take a fresh look at what the industry has to offer – disregarding which models took the win the previous year and starting from scratch.
I’m in the fortunate position that I have been able to drive all the major commercial vehicle models that are on sale in the UK so am able to compare their relative merits. If it’s brand new, then we tend to get behind the wheel before they even go on sale, often at a launch somewhere designed to really show it off to its fullest.
I’m also lucky to be surrounded by a team with vast amounts of reviewing experience, so we can bounce thoughts off one another and compare notes. Between us we have many decades of experience, which we lean on to work out whether the latest vehicles’ new features are handy or just gimmicks.
We don’t just rely on our memory – we often create group tests and put the vehicles up against one another. A big part of this year’s testing involved a day where we collected all the latest pickup trucks together, drove them on road and off and even got our resident towing expert to assess what they are like with a trailer attached (loaded with a Sunbeam Alpine racing car in this case.)
We’re also aware that many of our readers use their vehicles beyond the working day, so we also throw them into the rigours of daily life, exposing them to families, a variety of commutes and all kinds of weekend workouts.
Then we do the sums, just as we know that so many of our readers do. We consider value for money when it comes to the purchase price, monthly deals, insurance, running costs such as fuel economy or electric range and servicing, maintenance and repair costs. We have access to a hugely comprehensive reliability survey from our sister publication Fleet News, which collates feedback from businesses that live and work with large numbers of vehicles.
I say this to give a small look behind the scenes at everything that goes into the Parkers Awards judging. It isn’t just a case of sitting down and plucking a few names out of the long list of candidates, or choosing the newest contenders. We do the work all year around, with half an eye on the next set of winners whenever we get into a new vehicle. It’s our headline project so we want to get it right.
With all that in mind, Ford’s three wins and continued success in the 2026 Parkers Van of the Year Awards is even more impressive. The Ford Transit Courier was named the Small Van of the Year, as we loved the car-like accessibility of how it drives, the modern and practical cabin and the fact that you can get a huge amount of stuff into a van that is easy to live with on the road. 1
The Ford Transit Custom retained its Medium Van of the Year title, marking a hat trick of wins for the latest model. 2 It’s a best seller for good reason, and there are features in its cabin and beyond that are genuinely innovative. We also love the sheer breadth of its offering, with different shapes, sizes, layouts and a wide range of powertrain options to pick from.
Finally, the Ford Ranger was named the Pickup of the Year once again, but with an important note – it is the PHEV model that took the title in 2026. 3 Ford’s plug-in hybrid Ranger is unique in the pickup market, and it is striking how seamlessly the kit slots into the hardy truck. Not only does it provide the same off-road smarts as the diesel, it does so with a much more tax-efficient status.
Given how important commercial vehicles are to Ford, and how much thought clearly goes into them, the whole Parkers team is looking forward to try out what comes next. The judging for the 2027 Awards starts here…
Tom Webster is Vans and Pickups Editor at Parkers
1 Transit Courier homologated CO2 emissions 137-202 g/km WLTP, homologated fuel efficiency 5.2-7.7 l/100 km WLTP.
E-Transit Courier. Up to 300 km driving range based on full charge. Estimated range using Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) and with optional 120 km/h speed limiter.
2 Transit Custom. Plug-In Hybrid homologated CO2 emissions 86-112 g/km WLTP, homologated fuel efficiency 3.8-4.9 l/100 km WLTP and pure electric driving range 46-55 km WLTP.
E-Transit Custom. Up to 337 km driving range based on full charge. Estimated range using Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP).
Transit Custom EcoBlue diesel. Homologated CO2 emissions 178-296 g/km WLTP, homologated fuel efficiency 6.8-11.3 l/100 km WLTP.
3 Ford Ranger Plug-In Hybrid. Homologated CO2 emissions 143-145 g/km WLTP Euro 6e-bis (UK: 70-72 g/km Euro 6e), homologated fuel efficiency 6.2-6.4 l/100 km WLTP Euro 6e-bis (UK: 3.1-3.2 l/100 km Euro 6e) and pure electric driving range up to 43 km WLTP. A range of up to 43 km can be achieved with a fully charged battery - depending on the existing series and battery configuration.
The declared WLTP fuel/energy consumptions, CO2 emissions and electric range are determined according to the technical requirements and specifications of the European Regulations (EC) 715/2007 and (EU) 2017/1151 as last amended. The applied standard test procedures enable comparison between different vehicle types and different manufacturers.
Figures shown are for comparability purposes and should only be compared with other vehicles tested to the same technical procedures. Actual range varies due to factors such as temperature, driving behaviour, route profile, vehicle maintenance, lithium-ion battery age and condition.
