I do love the fe engines. But most around here are worn out and ready for rebuilds. They tend to be expensive to work on than some engines of the same era.

 

what are you wanting to use or do with the van?

 

As a cheap back up vehicle.

 

Just cheap back up vehicle.

 

I dont know about your area of the country but here in GA, like YoGeorge said, a family window or conversion van would be the one to pick if you are getting a older van. I own 2, a 85 and an 88. I bought mine because I like the body stile. They were not without needing work though. Both had been well maintained before they sat for a few years. Some problems wont show up till you start driving them. My 88, I have been driving as a daily driver and the spring shackle bushings along with the bushings on the front suspension look good but have dried and have some play in them. Basically i think it is a pretty solid van though.
So if you get an older van, be prepared to have to do some maintenance yourself..

What are you looking for in a back up car? Something you can use to haul things in, people, or just something for backup? Why a van? I hope later on to make a little camper for short trips with mine.. What price range are you looking at?

Watch out for the “Ran and drove perfect when parked”.
I always take a test drive out on the freeway for 30 or 40 miles as that will tell you allot since it gives it time to get up to temp at higher speeds.. If the owner don’t want you to do that, its probably not running perfect!
take it somewhere and get it up on a lift so you can inspect underneath..

If you get a raised roof van, or perhaps any van, look for rust around the rain gutter as that can be a major problem...

Rear axle repair can run around 1k if you cant do the work yourself. check for slack or vibrations in the rear end..

 

Thanks for the tips on where to look on suspension areas. I was looking for an older running ford in general. I'm familiar with the engines and transmissions so those areas aren't too bad for me. I just stumbled on that van ad. I'm not opposed to the idea since the cargo room would be nice if needed.

I normally drive trucks and the occasional car.

 

You missed one: 410 = 1966/67 Mercury Parklane.

 

Not too many of those around though. As a hot rodder I mostly ignored fat old Mercurys and Lincolns...

I did lust after early Shelby GT350's, Boss 302 Mustangs, and real Shelby Cobras. The Trans Am series made for some cool cars, and I kept up with drag racing (and raced myself) and NASCAR.

I wrote my college thesis (1974) on the rise and fall of the musclecar so I used to know a lot of detail but mostly about hot rods. Fun times

Sorry about the thread drift to the OP...I also doubt the van has a 360. Prolly the orig or a replacement 351.

G

 

I'd be willing to bet it's a 351. I think $750 is a bargain for something you can hop in and drive home 240 miles, IF that is true. A running 351 Windsor and matching running automatic trans is well worth $500. The differential is well worth $150. A radiator that is good is well worth $25-$50 (or more depending). The hull would bring $300 or so in crush weight (depending on whether market is up or down).
At one point, scrap was $10 per hundred, so a 4,000 lb tank would bring $400 crushed. And down here, they don't follow those rules about tires must be removed and gas tanks. In fact, they love when the tank has gas, the use a pick on all tanks and catch the leftover gas in container and use it on their piece of junk "yard trucks".
BUT, do you really want a backup that might be inconvenient to park and bulky and gets poor gas mileage? If it's a backup for just one person (or two), and you want a Ford real bad, little Rangers are cheap and can haul some stuff. Plus, van engines aren't fun to work on, you can almost reach most stuff from the removed doghouse inside and can almost reach some stuff from under the hood. BUT, one thing for sure, it's hard to reach most anything because how the engine sits and stuff running over it.
And, I disagree with the luxury van stuff too, based on mine. Mine had leaks and all that old velour and carpet and crap held smells and mold, I stripped mine down to a cargo van. And, maybe he even kept it periodically washed out with a hose, as a cargo van?
I admit my needs are different, I need to haul stuff (and some of it greasy nasty stuff) and not people. I need to haul plywood, couch, dead minibikes, pushmowers, crap like that.
Since you like Fords, have you considered a late 70s Ford F100 or F150? They are abundant, cheap, and in my opinion, easier to wrench on?
Ok, ya'll can vote me off the island now....