lol dont sell yourself short eternal if you can swap out an automatic trans for a manual at home by yourself i would say you are pretty handy with a wrench!
and you are absolutely correct - ANY vehicle that is 14 years old will need repairs and will vary depending on previous usage/ownership or lack thereof...but it would be nice to be able to tell a mechanic what you have and have them say "ok no problem bring it in" rather than say "ugh...is that a honda??? isuzu?! wow i thought they stopped making them...wow...ugh..." (on the plus side this eliminates all of the weaker or less skilled mechanics because its still a car with normal car parts and an internal combustion engine so no good professional mechanic would ever just say no or act like you're a freak for calling or asking - which has happened more than a few times for me)
i have done most of the repairs on my vx myself so far and i prefer it that way but for the things i cant do it would be nice to not be the lepers of the truck world... but i guess thats what makes the vx special lol