The Ford E-Transit represents The Blue Oval’s popular upfit-ready van overseas, offering an all-electric alternative to gasoline-powered commercial vehicles. The E-Transit is the perfect base for all sorts of unique conversions, compliments of Ford Pro’s Special Vehicle Team, who recently released their latest creation, a Ford E-Transit Sauna Van.
The Special Vehicle Team creates bespoke vehicle conversions for Ford’s fleet customers, and the Ford E-Transit Sauna Van is one of their more unique builds. Dubbed the “E-Sauna,” the sauna itself is powered by the electric van’s power supply via Pro Power Onboard. Interestingly, for each hour that the sauna is run, the E-Transit only loses approximately four miles of range. That means that even if the sauna is operating for eight hours in a given day, the E-Sauna can still travel 180 miles – assuming its battery was fully charged before operating, of course.
The Ford E-Transit Sauna Van has spent quite a bit of time at Longside Lake in Surrey, UK. Visitors swim in the open lake, which is quite cool, then head to the E-Sauna to warm back up. In order to outfit the E-Transit and make it look like a legitimate, freestanding sauna, the Special Vehicle Team had to gut the interior and fit it with custom wooden paneling and seating. Special Canadian pine was acquired for the build, selected specifically because it doesn’t warp or leak sap, which can be dangerous at sauna temps.
Another major hurdle for the design team to overcome was insulation. They had to ensure that the van maintained the heat without letting it escape, which would have rendered the whole project a failure. After hours of testing, the van was ready to roll, and has proved to be a hit with open-water swimming enthusiasts.
The Ford E-Transit is one of the more popular models offered in Europe as Ford pivots toward a more commercial-focused business model in the region. In fact, as far as Ford sales go, the Transit lineup was only outsold by the F-Series throughout the 2024 calendar year.
The exec is a believer in boosting American manufacturing.
Adding several more charges to the driver's docket.
A model sporting a host of darkened elements.
A supercar that turns its nose up at technology.
