Ford SuperVan: the origins of a Transit gone mad

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s the SuperVan. With the original model recently resurrected, and its youngest descendent continuing to smash records, we’ve taken a look at the evolution of Ford’s wildest van.

Sporty vans seem to have become an increasingly common occurrence in recent years. Models like the nippy Vauxhall Vivaro GS and the rally styled Transit Custom MS-RT strike a sweet spot between business and pleasure — but what happens if you remove the business element from the equation? You get the Ford SuperVan.

Loading up their cargo areas with beefy engines rather than packages or tools, the silhouette is often the only thing these vehicles share with the commercial Ford Transits they are designed to promote. 

Following the recent rebuild of the original SuperVan in preparation for the Ford Transit's 60th birthday in 2025, we’ve dug into the mid-engined madness that has brought them to where they are today. 

SuperVan (1971)

What do you get if you take a standard Ford Transit Mk1 exterior, slap it on top of a Cooper Monaco chassis, and pack in the Le Mans-winning V8 engine from a GT40? A touch of insanity, and the iconic original SuperVan.

Making its debut in 1971, the public was treated to views of the Transit bodyshell clinging to its foundations as it ripped around Brands Hatch, Thruxton, and even the Nürburgring Nordschleife. Visibly rolling and leaning as it tackled the winding corners of these demanding tracks, the SuperVan proved best suited to drag strips where it could achieve a rumoured top speed of over 150 mph.

Sharing its aerodynamic properties with the average brick, much of the appeal came from the fact that this looked like a commercial van as it achieved these feats — that is, if you ignored the racing-striped livery and chunky tyres gripping the track. But this was just the beginning…

SuperVan 2 (1985)

Alongside the new Ford Transit Mk2, came a new SuperVan to match. But unlike Chrstopher Reeve in his man of steel sequel, the Ford certainly didn’t give up its superpowers.

Embodying the excess of the '80s, the SuperVan 2 now used a Ford C100 Group C racing monocoque and carried a 582 hp Cosworth engine in its load area. 

Perhaps more impressive though, were the first hints of aerodynamics applied to the lowered Transit bodyshell, which was a fibreglass replica rather than full-weight commercial offering. Featuring a scooping front spoiler and air-guzzling side intakes, this combined with the nostalgic boxy design and an updated racing livery to create another iconic package.

This flashed past as onlookers watched Ford’s racer glide around Donington and Silverstone, where it clocked a handy 174 mph, going on to be dubbed “the fastest delivery van that I’ve ever had” by Formula 1 World Champion Jackie Stewart.

SuperVan 3 (1994)

And the SuperVan’s links to the pinnacle of motorsport didn’t stop there. 

When the SuperVan 3 roared onto the scene to promote the facelifted Transit Mk3, it brought with it a 640 hp Cosworth HB V8 engine, as found in McLaren, Benetton, and Lotus Formula 1 cars at the time. You know things are getting a little bit silly when you need an F1 pit crew to start up your van’s engine…

Aside from the powertrain, the 3rd iteration was less revolutionary and more evolutionary than its older siblings. The scaled down Transit bodyshell followed a similar structure to its predecessor, with an updated faceplate and a ludicrous rear-wing acting as the key differentiators. Oh, and it has our favourite livery in the entire series, that also helps to set the '90s offering apart.

SuperVan 4 (2022)

Fast forward almost 30 years, and Ford finally unleashed its ICE kryptonite, the all-electric SuperVan 4.

Taking heavily dramatised design inspiration (and not much else) from the electric Ford Transit Custom, the latest iteration leaves the performance of its ancestors behind as a mere speck in its sculped wingmirrors.

Four electric motors hooked up to a liquid-cooled 50 kwh battery push almost 2000 hp though an all-wheel drive powertrain, thrusting the SuperVan from 0-60 mph in under two seconds. You might not guess it looking at the rear cut-outs, but there is a loadspace behind the driver — should you fancy embarking on the world’s most hectic delivery shift.

And if this wasn’t wild enough for you, some tweaks were applied in 2023 to create the SuperVan 4.2. Through the removal of one electric motor for weight reduction, and the addition of an even bigger spoiler, a hill climb hero was born. This has since claimed various records at Goodwood, Pikes Peak, and Mount Panorama — so perhaps there is method behind the madness.

So here we are, present day. But which SuperVan is your favourite? And would you like to embrace the madness of getting behind the wheel?

Hero image credit: Ford