It's funny: after seeing this thread, I went downtown (Vancouver) and saw two of these vans on my journey. (As with all the other vehicles posted in my
Vancouver thread, they're long gone from rust belt Ontario.)
You're lucky you've got the manual transmission. One other mod I'd recommend (if you're up for it) is an engine kill switch (shifter-mounted is best, I think). Though engine-off coasting to stops/some turns may not make a huge difference if most of your use is recreational (ie. highway).