itrresting to hear talk of the transit connect..
I had a 2l tdci diesel one as a company van for 2 years- did approx 15000 miles in it.
Observations-
the long wheelbase i had had some issues..
1. The side doors didnt offer a wide enough aperature for loading larger items
2. They are too long to fit in a standard parking bay if you need to open the rear doors
3. The rear arches intrude a lot into the loadspace
4. The above cab storage is useless
5. They will happily take a 1 tonne load-it handles better with the cart springs bent level
Mechanical issues-
1. Balljoints- it doesnt like potholes
2. Front tyre wear can be heavy
3. Watch out for the timing belt tensioner
4. Exhausts fall off after 3 years.
These observations were confirmed by several other fleet users, so i do t think it was me having a bad van.
On the plus side i regularly got 420 miles out a 12 us gal tank.
The tdci lump pulled well
Carrying capacity was huge for the van size
Spares were cheap, and replaceable in a fleet workshop
I'm sure i could source some diesel lumps to post over