Car Design News visited Ford and spoke to design director Amko Leenarts and head of D-Ford Usha Raghavachari about the new electrified E-Transit Custom
“This is the most important vehicle for Ford of Europe,” says Amko Leenarts, design director for Ford of Europe. “And not just because it has a huge impact on businesses all around Europe. It is the best-selling car so we have to deliver something exciting. That kind of pressure is stimulating in a really positive way.”
Leenarts spoke to Car Design News as the Ford E-Transit Custom van was revealed to the global audience from a cavernous, not to mention stiflingly hot, broadcasting studio at Olympic legacy project Here East in east London.
The post-industrial setting seemed appropriate to a machine that has kept businesses going for the best part of 60 years: former warehouses transformed into 21st century co-working spaces. As Leenarts says, the E-Transit is a hugely significant vehicle for Ford, so much so that even after 4 years in development you will not be able to buy it until late 2023.
Access to motor show and concours coverage, trend and technology reports, design reviews of new and classic concept and production cars, exclusive interviews, regional reports, who’s where, design essays, career resources, design competitions, regular newsletter updates PLUS comprehensive degree show reports from the world’s leading design schools, the CDN archive of sketches, images and articles spanning 20 years of coverage.
An online subscription also gains you access to exclusive designer interviews from our annual Car Design Review yearbook, and access to exclusive interior design reviews from Interior Motives magazine. You can also receive Interior Motives in print through our online + print subscription, or buy individual copies of Interior Motives and Car Design Review.
Fees start from £55/€60/$70. Packages available for students, individuals, schools and corporates.
Gain full access to cardesignnews.com subscribe today
ALREADY SUBSCRIBED - Individual, Studio, Student or School
You now need to register your details and sign-in for full access to cardesignnews.com
Karl Smith looks back at the move by some designers to deploy a central driving position, an interesting trend that never really caught on beyond specific niches
Often derided as “a poor man’s carbon fibre”, fiberglass was critical in the development of the modern sports car. CDN takes a look back to the beginnings of the composites era
A strong theme of Chinese culture runs through the electric four-door sedan, influencing everything from the underlying form language and interior design to the unique exterior paint
