Ford Supervans

Carfection takes a peek at the history of the Supervans

Jeff Glucker

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“Supervan 1 is lost to the sands of time”… is a sad sentence to hear, but that’s what Alex Goy says of Ford’s legendary grocery-getter/ass-hauler extraordinaire. In a new short film from Carfection, Goy examines a brief bit of Ford’s extreme van adventures. The first, dubbed Supervan, was built in 1971 and featured a first-generation Transit body plopped atop a GT40 chassis.

Yes, that’s right. This was a van with Le Mans winning power under its pumped up skin. And it was amazing.

Ford continued to tinker with its super vans. Supervan 2 arrived in 1984, wearing the suit of a MkII Transit and Group C racing bits underneath. Cosworth supplied an engine. Silverstone supplied a top-speed run of 174 miles per hour. In a god damned van.

Supervan 3 landed in the mid 1990s. With the arrival of an updated MkIII Transit, some go-fast engineering went into the creation of a wild new hauler of things. This one went even crazier though, as Ford UK fashioned a body that was actually a 7/8 scale of the full-size Transit. Channeling their best Smokey Yunick impression, the slightly down-sized van packed more Cosworth power.

Today, you can buy a Ford Transit Connect ST if you’re reading this across the pond. A few years back, they produced a Focus RS-powered Transit Connect as well.

Hopefully Ford pays attention to my video on the full-size Transit, and allows me to create a Transit ST for American BBV fans.

About

Jeff Glucker

Jeff Glucker

Jeff Glucker is the co-founder and Executive Editor of Hooniverse.com. He’s often seen getting passed as he hustles a 1991 Mitsubishi Montero up the 405 Freeway. IG: @HooniverseJeff

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5 responses to “Carfection takes a peek at the history of the Supervans”

  1. Tank Avatar
    Tank

    I watched the video on the Transit RS and the Transit ST yesterday because it popped up in my suggested videos. I really wish I had the means to make one, that thing would be rad

    Reply
    1. Zentropy Avatar
      Zentropy

      Make it the 350/350 2.3 AWD drivetrain from the current Focus RS, and I’d be all over that. The Mk1 212-hp mill doesn’t quite make all of that work worth the effort.

      Reply
      1. Tank Avatar
        Tank

        I’m not sure what “350/350” you mean?

        AWD drivetrain seems like a pain in the ass. A Modern ST would be fine

        Reply
        1. Zentropy Avatar
          Zentropy

          350 hp / 350 lb-ft.
          Even a modern ST engine swap would be a PITA, in my opinion. I just don’t like FWD dynamics, so the AWD would be worth the extra effort for me.

          Reply
  2. Zentropy Avatar
    Zentropy

    I remember a few years back some car magazine crew (Motor Trend, maybe? Car and Driver) was attempting to put MazdaSpeed 3 running gear into the Mazda5, but I think they ran into difficulty mating up the electronics of the two. I’m not sure they ever finished it. Edit: They did, but with underwhelming results. Here’s the story: https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a15391593/return-of-the-boss-wagon-mazdaspeed-5/

    Reply