Van and Commercial Vehicle Awards 2022: Best Car-Based Van

Priced from £26,450 Range 245 miles CO2 emissions 0g/km Load space 1m3 Payload 375kg Power 133bhp Torque 181lb ft

Not all vans have to look like a box on wheels. In fact, there are several light commercial vehicles that can pass almost undetected to the untrained eye as they mix the silhouette of a car with the practicalities of a van.

While many are based on SUVs like the Land Rover Defender Hard Top or Suzuki Jimny Commercial, there are a small number of regular cars passing discretely along the streets acting as highly credible vans. 

Two stand out, not least because they are leaders in their respective fields as cars: the combustion-engined Ford Fiesta Van and the all-electric Renault Zoe Van E-Tech Electric.

Which you choose will depend on your priorities but we believe most will be able to comfortably live with the official 245-mile range of the Zoe, and both have similar load capacities, which means the determining factors are likely to be comfort and running costs.

In our estimation, both are exceptionally comfortable and decently enjoyable models to drive. However, the electric Zoe Commercial has an edge over both the super-economical diesel or fractionally cheaper petrol engine of the Fiesta. 

Up front, boosted by the Plug-In Van Grant allowance, the Renault Zoe Commercial isn’t quite as expensive as it first seems when compared to the Ford Fiesta Van.

But the real benefits are made up over the length of time you own the Zoe, when the total cost of buying or leasing and running it becomes a deciding factor. Even the increasing price of energy cannot unbalance the Zoe Commercial’s numbers, thanks largely to impressive residual values. 

Play the long game and the Zoe Commercial is a clear winner.

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