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OK, 1200 miles or so on my van now. My opinion? In spite of a few issues that are less-than-ideal, I have no regrets. Actually, I love this thing! In other threads I talk about some mods I've made, and there will probably be others. But so far.... The Good: The pleasant driving characteristics. In an online review the driver said this vehicle felt a bit top heavy. Really? Have you ever driven a pick-up? This thing feels like a sports car to me after my last 3 Nissan 2WD 4-cyl. Frontiers. I whip around corners and on-ramps at speed (no cargo). It feels like a go cart. Once you learn where the back axle is located (so you can avoid dragging the rear wheels up over curbs when cornering) you can shoehorn this tight-turning bug into just about any space that's wide enough to contain it. You feel like you can execute 90 degree turns from a standstill. And I never would have imagined that a tiny-screened back-up camera would have had much real-world usefulness, but once you learn how to use it, and begin trusting it, you can back out of parking spots with confidence. The doors! Oh the doors! Doors everywhere. You don't even have to bend over to place or remove common cargo like groceries. And you will be the envy of many who watch as you pull open one of the sliders in a tight parking lot, while they are manhandling their massive hinged doors to avoid crashing into the vehicle next to them. Never before have I felt like I was showing off just by opening a door! It also reveals it's commercial intent every time you open the door and just stand up to exit. There's no denying the massive view...you feel like you've booked a tour on a Rocky Mountain Vista-Liner! (you WILL pay for it when you try to clean the inside windshield). I also like to drive around town with both front windows down. It's surprisingly pleasant until you get up near 50 MPH. The sliding Sun visors. Yes, I didn't know they did it in the first week. I was accustomed to a slide-out tab in my Frontiers. I thought the visors just swung over. One morning I was driving with the early Sun coming into the driver's side and was shielding my eyes with my hand. I was imagining how I was going to have to live with this shortcoming and I reached up and grabbed the visor, accompanied with the thought, "If only these things would slide back..........." tugging at it at that moment. It was like my thoughts had manifested in reality. The visor slide back to the rear and blocked out the Sun! For the next mile I laughed at how ignorant I was, and how I had just been saved from a life of annoyance and discomfort. Watch out though. There are those who have whacked themselves in the head with these huge paddles, and those who are going to whack themselves in the head with them. For a man...having that massive cargo area behind the front seats is akin to a woman toting around a massive Prada handbag. You can put just about everything you can think of in it (I'm using it like a pickup, not as a commercial vehicle). The tiny digital readout panel above the gauges and speedometer. At first you think it's an inane idea that is silly and necessary. Then you discover that it's really hard to see the actual steam gauge speedo except at night when the lights are on, and you really do need it. You think it was an afterthought to remedy the poorly readable steam gauges. Then you begin to realize that reading your speed off the digital readout is actually quicker and better than a dial and you begin to prefer it. The Bad: The bare-boned interior does leave much to be desired in terms of both climate control and road noise. Without question, I feel it's the biggest price to pay. It can be ameliorated to some degree, but not with ease, and at some cost. The noise from rough surfaces can be pretty intrusive. I HAVE forgotten about my wife's rude comments about having bought a hearse...or HALF a truck. I now imagine I'm driving around in one of the Enterprise's shuttle craft. I HAVE been heard to say that I now have the capacity to not only deliver bodies to the funeral parlor - I also have space to deliver the flowers too. The unfortunate lack of rear ventilation, sometimes forcing use of the AC when you wouldn't need it otherwise. Some sort of simple exhaust vent in the rear could at least offer some flow-through air movement when on the move, even when parked, but I have not found a minimal and aerodynamic solution I could accept, that doesn't look and act like a camper accessory. Ford really dropped the ball by not fitting opening second row windows. The unfortunate Sync system. But what would you expect from Microsoft, who developed it? It's voice control works half the time due to background noise interference, or inability to distinguish your speech. The menu system is unintuitive and sometimes lacking in it's ability to utilize the features of your phone. Bluetooth and hard-wired connectivity is actually very good, but I cannot get the Bluetooth system to connect to any Bluetooth equipped device except my iPhone. It refuses to recognize a Bluetooth-equipped Nano for example. All-in-all the shortcomings in this vehicle are acceptable for the daily driver if you recognize that it's really built for commerce. If you like the utility of a pickup and are willing to accept a lesser comfort and trim level, you might find this van to be surprisingly capable, and in many respects a much more convenient universal hauler.

I suppose the current generation of vehicles have an oil change indicator. When the oil change light comes on, I'll change it then. Ford wants the consumer to use Motorcraft Synthetic Blend. Everyone seems to have an idea of Which brand of oil to use. Some people think that they know better than the manufacturer when it comes to which weight to Forums like Bob Is The Oil Guy are full of opinions from guys who will actually have their oil sent to a lab for analysis. Then you have all the guys who will cut their oil filters in half to determine which filters are best. I'm using 5W20 because it is the spec weight, and I already have it on subscription by the case from Amazon. 5W20 works in my pickup, as well as my Honda. Amazon had a decent price for Mag1 full synthetic oil in the 6 quart case. Wally World seems to have good prices on Mobil1 in the 5 qt jugs. Of course, you could always go with Red Line, Royal Purple, Amsoil, Lucas Oil. Pennzoil.........practically every full synthetic will be a decent oil in comparison to conventional oil. Even the Wal*Mart house brand of full synthetic, is still full synthetic oil. I suppose you could go with 0W20, since it is still 20 weight oil, with a 0 winter temperature rating, if you live in a cold weather climate. But don't get creative. No sense in mixing in a quart of 20W50 to thicken it up, or a little diesel oil for good luck. At the end of the day, you should probably pay a little more attention if you've got an EcoBoost or you're running LPG or Flex Fuel. It used to be that most guys agreed on K&N Filters. Now, Mobil1, Royal Purple, and even aFe are also in the game. If you like Amsoil, they have a filter also. I'm going to use Motorcraft since it is only a couple of dollars, as opposed to between $10 & $20. Hard to use a Wal*Mart filter or Fram, when Motorcraft is only $3.95. You do not have to stick with dealership service if you're still under warranty. Do your own oil change if you enjoy it and it makes you feel better. Get a set of those magnetic sockets. But a Gold Plug and a Filter Mag. Make sure that you have the right filter wrench.

I think I paid a little more to have my Transic Connect shipped from Valencia, Spain.