mrtn

Estonia. I could get it inside but the underbody and wheel wells are full of brown ice and salt combo and I don't want to mess up the garage.Anyway, just replaced the filter. There was a colony of mosquitoes in the old one. Had to remove the top grille/insert from the filter cowl, the new Denso filter fit exactly in the bottom part. The previous one was small and fit in the top grille.

Common sense helps here. Moderate rpm and no load in the first mile. -30F winters are common here and I have not had any plastic part failures in any car apart from splash guards, hub caps and other body parts in direct contact with ice and curbs. Those accidents can be avoided by sensible driving and cleaning the wheel wells from ice buildup. Planning to replace the cabin air filter today, now there's a chance of breaking that cowl panel. Replaced three of four glow plugs yesterday, outside. Didn't get to the fourth one, need to remove the oil stick tube and as I noticed a leak in the bottom end of the stick tube assy I need to replace a seal anyway, the glow plug can wait. It starts fine with three functioning ones.

The rule of thumb in our Nordic climate (if not equipped with a preheater, which most new cars and diesels of the past decade or so have) is to get the engine running, turn on the seat heater, go outside and clean/scrape the snow/ice off the hood, lights and windows and go. Shouldn't take more than two minutes, anything over that is a waste of fuel and time.

Agreed, we're far up north and spoilers are no good here.

I think it's best to ask them: http://www.van-sport.co.uk

Here's the production ready M-Sport Connect: https://www.facebook.com/vansportuk/posts/476405475885688

Not sure how it goes in the US but you may need to register your modification in the DMV and have a new title printed.

Did you get a two-seater with just a boot in the back? No crew cab available?

I have owned both. The previous gen Berlingo which I swapped for a new Connect after realizing it won't work (for other than pizza delivery that is). I also went to try out the current Berlingo (was considerably cheaper fully loaded, about 8K) but it also failed to deliver. These are different classes, Connects are work trucks by all characteristics among small vans, can carry double the payload of Berlingo and you can feel that.

If it has gas struts you could just replace those with shorter ones. A few mm should do.

It's usually a connection/earth problem. 2013 should be under warranty, have them deal with it.

While you have the door card off - get some sound insulation mat and put as much of it in the door sheet metal as possible. Well worth it.

The 2.5 must be great. we only get the 1.0 Ecoboost (plus three different diesels).

Now a nice set of alloys?

A bit too early for a fuel filter change but an oil filter should be easy like any other.

Apart from the drive train and the odd brake light replacement it is the same exact car so the same issues must come up. Sure, it's been on the market for many more years (2002-2013) here so more issues have surfaced.

4-speed automatic connects have had shifting issues. The drivetrain is shared with the Focus so you can cross check that. Other problems that have been reported and I have experienced include door lock issues, stone chips that create zinc bubbles under the paint, heater blower resistor pack or plug failing (max speed working only), overhead light acting up (related to door lock/contact issues, probably). Front tire wear (more in the inside), not sure what's the reason, I have experienced it on both my units, heated windshield issues, rear barn door hinges wearing out if not greased properly, door sill rust if not equipped with mud flaps. Pretty sure I'll remember some more if I think about it. The major problems I have had have been related to diesel or poor maintenance. One of my service engineer drove the '06 one for three years and did not pay attention to front suspension clunking which eventually took out the whole steering rack. Gearbox failed this year, it was working but there was some metallic shine in the oil so I replaced it with some scrap yard focus box. Diesel pump failed 3 years ago, but it's considered normal for the Bosch system I have. Drive shaft support bearing failed this year. Exhaust pipe rust through a couple of years ago, replaced the whole cat back part. A couple of wheel bearings. Brake parts, normal wear and tear for a towing vehicle. Not bad for a 10 year old work horse.

The first and second years of a new model always have these teething problems.

I even got used to a windowless boot. Not sure who configured it but there's a window in the bulkhead for better rear visibility.

The camera replaces the inner number plate light and you have to connect the power feed to the backup light wire. I have the same unit. It's a bit weird to use for parallel/box parking as it's off center but okay for distance and hooking up a trailer. The sensor is poor in the dark so you might want to upgrade your reverse bulbs to some bright LEDs. The accordion rubber comes off the door and body together with the plastic clamps, this way it only takes a few seconds to run the cable through. Then snap it back on.

It was done by some company in Holland, no idea if they were certified or not but they did a lousy job.

I had torque converters go bad in both my Hondas (lock-up clutches failing) and the dealer was trying to tell me, with a straight face, that this has never happened before but was ready to offer me remanufactured units from the shelf. That didn't work out as these were even worse than mine. Ended up with getting OEMs.

No Transit Custom over there?

Seems like FAQ: http://fordtransitconnectforum.com/topic/4348-tpms-failure/#entry12197

Just checked mine for you. No play at all. I can feel the resistance both ways.