Faults:

Gearbox failure (jammed in second gear) in 1997. 90,000 miles.

Engine wore out at 100,000 miles and had severe bore wear, but kept running, if a little underpowered.

General Comments:

I purchased my series 3 as a restoration project for a few hundred pounds. It had sat in a field for 5 years and was in a bad state, but after six months of hard work and £4000, it was fully restored. It is a simple vehicle and a great workhorse for towing and transporting stuff and people around, but don't expect car type comfort. It is cheap to run and insure if you do your own maintenence (not hard) and use non franchise dealers and pattern parts. The fuel consumption is however poor at 20mpg even if the engine is healthy.