Not a lot... needed new brake pads, load sensing valve etc, but I don't begrudge wear and tear items.
Ford never got to grips with rustproofing on these though, it's needed quite a bit of welding.
If you buy one you plan to keep, then rustproofing is a must. They rust EVERYWHERE.
Noisy and sluggish, may touch 85 mph on a good day and takes an age to get there. Leans on corners, but it's not fair to apply car criteria to a commercial vehicle.
It's the most practical vehicle I have owned, I use it as an everyday car, not commercially.
40-45 mpg means I can forgive it anything.
The driving position is also spot on and reliabilty is all you could ask for. If buying one, rust is the thing to look for.
Secondhand mechanical parts are easy to get hold of. As an indicator of how durable they can be, witness the large amount of older trannies still in everyday use.
I just wanted to add, if you have one of these vans, please bear in mind they are staggeringly easy to break into and steal. A simple hammer into the door lock will have it open, failing that they smash the quarterlight windows to gain access. An immobiliser is a must.
They are also staggeringly simple to transform, as are pretty much all transits up to '99 by opening up the egr valve (takes 15 seconds to disconnect the operating arm and cable tie the valve into the open position) and adjusting the fuelling on the diesel pump to provide a tad more fuel to the engine. The snail becomes a hare, at no cost, in ten minutes flat. But they are also a ball of rust with poor quality steel throughout and low grade components. The mod can be found on any decent transit forum.
Mine was a very early mk4 (new generation) and didn't have an EGR valve. I briefly experimented with turning up the pump, but found it too smokey. just learned to live life in the slow lane... got rid in the end after the local pikeys started taking an unhealthy interest in it.
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