14K MILES 75k 72 month transferable warrenty and 48 month transferable maintenance package added up all the "bolt on store bought " parts and just about comes out to what i paid not to mention the labor. the fella thats doing these seems like a very nice guy trying to make some clean affordable weekend style campers in so cal. wish me luck!
will be a huge upgrade over the worn out chevy flip pac combo
Here’s the certified Mechanics view point on the 3.7L transit. (I’m the mechanic) I wanted to buy a van, and The sprinter and transit vans were narrowed down. Medium roof, short wheelbase was what I was looking for. I didn’t want to be too long because I get into some tight spaces at times. I wasn’t worried about 4x4, but what I was worried about was reliability, and parts accessibility. I have not found Mercedes vans particularly reliable, and are very costly to fix if you did run into something. Not so with the ford. While interior trim and vehicle build might be slightly less quality then the sprinter, the drive train seems endlessly reliable with the 3.7 and six speed. No turbos, and no unreliable diesel emissions equipment. Everything on the 3.7L engine, is proven technology. There’s nothing new about it and it’s one of the last port fuel, injected engines on the market. That’s a bonus in itself. The engine technology is proven. All it really needs is a excellent quality oil, (I use Schaeffers) to keep the timing chains and tensioners in check.
I researched for 6 months, both vans. I even pulled a few of my stings in the mechanical world and was able to find some really good opinions. My decision ultimately was the Ford and I bought one. Short wheelbase, medium roof, 3.7, and a 4.10:1 differential. I think it’s a really good combination actually. How fast do you need to drive a van? It’s a van! And yeah the ecoboost might be more exciting, but it doesn’t get better fuel mileage then the 3.7 if your driving it excitedly. In fact, my 3.7 averaged 22MPG on my trip to Tuktoyaktuk, late this summer. I think that’s excellent fuel mileage considering the size and weight of the van. Not once have I thought it was lacking power either. It’s perfect for what I need.
Down sides I see in the van, is that the automatic transmission is difficult to service. It’s hard to break into the lines to flush it, and the transmission cooler is thermostatically controlled anyways, making it difficult to actually get fluid to pass through. The dipstick is in the side of the transmission under the van and a crossmember must be removed to sneak the transmission pan off to replace the filter. At this point, what I see as a solution, is to suck the pan clean every 30,000kms and top it up with fresh fluid. Might be over kill, but for me it’s cheap insurance even if you can only suck out 3 Litres of the 8 that’s in the transmission.
I also don’t like how low the rear shock mounts hang down and I wish I could get a basic leveling kit for the front. Those are just picky things though.
I love the van, I’m happy I bought it, and I would buy another one. I started out being more biased towards the sexy looking sprinter van but kept and open mind. Glad I made the choice I did. I’m curious what your first thoughts on your van are?