Originally Posted By: fdcg27
Our old Aerostar looked to be a nightmare to work on, and removing the doghouse doesn't help much.
The engine was located almost entirely under the dash.
Just changing the plugs is an exercise in frustration.
Fortunately, it never needed any engine work.
OTOH, oil changes were a piece of cake as was the starter replacement I did.
If you just use the right type of engine and locate it properly, though, a van can be very easy to work on.
I'm thinking of our '81 Vanagon. If you had to remove the heads, not uncommon on the VW Type IV, you just dropped the engine, which was really easy to do.
You beat me to nominating the Aerostar as one of the worst though probably not the worst. I agree especially with the 4.0 engine the spark plugs were a real pain especially on the passenger side. My arms and hands always looked like I'd been in a fight. Fortunately I only changed them about 3 times in the 180,000 miles I drove it.
I always said "next time" I taking it to Ford and have them do it, but I always did it myself! LOL.
Yeah oil changes were a piece of cake. Didn't need to jack it up or put it on ramps. Never changed the starter on mine.
I'm told the heater hoses were a real pain but I never replaced those either.