Articles by Mark Oastler

The growing popularity of mid-sized commercial vans equipped with seating for five or six, generically known as crew vans, has seen an increasing number of rivals from mainstream manufacturers enter the market with a second row of seats.One of the more recent competitors is the Ford Transit Custom DCiV, available in a choice of short or long wheelbase configurations and Custom or Custom Sport trim levels.

There's an old saying that if you want to become really good at something, then just keep doing it. That certainly applies to Ford and its iconic Transit van, which following its launch in 1965 has evolved through four generations, an expanded choice of variants and total production of around 10 million units.

Mark Oastler is spending three months with the Isuzu MU-X LS-T to see how it suits his family's needs.

You may have seen utes, trucks and buses with brightly-coloured caps or oddly-shaped rings or straps attached to their wheel nuts and wondered what they were for. They’re called loose wheel nut indicators (LWNI), commonly seen on vehicles used in mining operations and increasingly popular on government and commercial fleets. They can also be of great benefit to private vehicle owners.

The 4x4 dual-cab ute is the most popular and versatile light commercial vehicle in the Australian automotive market, due to its proven ability to serve as both a work truck and/or family hack during the week and escape machine on the weekend.

The Renault Kangoo is the closest competitor to Volkswagen's top-selling Caddy in Australia's small van segment (under-2.5 tonne GVM). In 2020 the enduringly popular German light commercial holds a commanding 72 per cent share of this market, compared to the Kangoo's 21 per cent.

Toyota's current sixth-generation HiAce is an impressive all-rounder, offering a choice of wheelbases, body styles and engine/transmission combinations. These include four-cylinder turbo-diesel and V6 petrol engines with either six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmissions.

Toyota's 70 Series Land Cruiser is unique in the Australian 4x4 market. With Mercedes-Benz's decision to cease local sales of its $120K G-Professional in 2019, the LC79 is now the only single-cab cab-chassis off-roader available with the unmatched strength, durability and off-road performance of 'old school' rigid axles front and rear.

Ford is a making a habit of providing answers to questions that have not been asked. First there was the Baja-inspired Ranger Raptor, a unique version of Australia’s favourite Ford ute with pumped-out guards, a tougher frame and sublime long-travel suspension inspired by ‘pre-runner’ pick-ups used by US off-road race teams.Although we weren’t aware of any pent-up public demand for such a vehicle, regular sightings of Raptors these days suggest Ford’s ‘build it and they will come’ approach was the right one. Now just about every ute manufacturer is offering (or working on) a more specialised premium-priced variant of its top-shelf model in trying to match it.The blue oval is using this bold strategy again with the Transit Custom Sport. As its name suggests, this is a more athletic version of Ford’s mid-sized commercial van, which among numerous industry gongs claimed CarsGuide's 2019 Tradie Car of the Year award.Most folks think of vans as little more than shipping containers on wheels but, like the Raptor, Ford is again challenging the consumer to think outside the square (or rectangle in the case of a shipping container).After spending a week in Ford’s latest automotive thought-bubble, we have to admit it may be onto something here, too. From go-kart and motorcycle racers to surfers, scuba divers and personal trainers, the Transit Custom Sport may well have widespread appeal for those that need the practicality and load-carrying capacity of a van with a sportier image to go with it.

Market leader Toyota's flagship is the HiLux Rugged X, which is also a member of the $60K-plus club with a unique combination of specialised off-road hardware to justify its premium pricing.