Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust!

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Wed 5 Dec 2018 14:52
Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust! - bennyyorkie

Hi,

I've been looking into buying a used sprinter. I know that the 95-06 models suffered badly from rust (or so the online reviews tell me?). Just wondering if the same is true of the 07 onwards models?

It always amazes me when a maker builds a van with a reliable engine, lots going for it and then it rusts away to nothing! I guess thats how they ensure we keep buying..

Would be great to hear from anyone who has had one of these sprinters. They are still priced secondhand, but are they worth it?

Many thanks

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Wed 5 Dec 2018 17:20
Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust! - SLO76
Be very wary when buying a used van. It’s not the same as buying a car where people part-ex or sell just because they fancy a change, generally vans are sold when they’re knackered and no longer economically viable.

The exceptions to this come from some ex fleet stock which is offloaded on age rather than whether it’s done. BT vans are usually well looked after and ex NHS fleet are also good news but both will be newer and more expensive than I think you’re looking at here. Older vans are usually a nightmare of never ending failures and bills.

If you absolutely must then beg borrow or steal to buy the newest and best you can afford and don’t fixate on one particular make and model as condition and history are far more important.

I know fellow traders who’ve tried to specialise in cheaper used vans and suffered as a result. Good examples are spa*** and no one sells a van that is reliable, they get rid when they’re giving grief.

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Wed 5 Dec 2018 17:27
Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust! - gordonbennet

These types of vans are designed to be hammered like hell and to cover high mileages in 5 years and then be replaced, they are generally not designed with rust resistance and in mind.

One of the few exceptions to this is the fairly rare Toyota Hiace (the real one not the rebadged current PSA model), which is much more resistant to rust, and very reliable long term being a simple design, if you considered one make sure it has the turbocharged engine.

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Wed 5 Dec 2018 17:37
Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust! - bennyyorkie

Yep, I've spent the last week looking at hiaces....Im looking for an automatic transmission, van conversion (campervan) but all the hiace campers are Japanese imports and after getting on to a company in Japan who sells parts, they tell me Toyota often discontinue parts for older models so parts for older vans (say 1990s, early 2000's) are an issue! Such a shame as they are great vans and can be got with very low mileage when they are campers! Im a bit annoyed over it really. But will keep looking, still not totally sure about the difficulty getting parts...If I knew what goes in the hiaces, I could hunt those parts down in advance and just see how big a headache it would be.

Not a happy camper at the moment :)

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Wed 5 Dec 2018 17:30
Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust! - bennyyorkie

Now that makes a lot of sense! For me, Im looking for a van conversion (camper conversion) so not quite the same problems as campers often do little mileage and are not abused as you mentioned. But the base vehicle can be tricky, especially when it comes to rust.

As I need an automatic due to my dodgy back, I find myself looking at vans in Germany and France! Automatics almost non existent here except for vans that are a few years old. Many thanks for your advise....really makes a lot of sense. Im glad I'm not looking for a van to convert myself. That would be fun!

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Wed 5 Dec 2018 17:36
Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust! - SLO76
The requirement for an auto does complicate things hugely here, they’re extremely rare in the UK and many such as VW, Vauxhall, Fiat and Renault use very weak trouble prone gearboxes. Merc probably is your best bet with an auto in mind but I think you’ll struggle to find a good automatic van big enough to convert into a camper. Agree with above comment about the design life of vans, they’re built for a short hard life so rust resistance is often of little importance to manufacturers.
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Wed 5 Dec 2018 18:58
Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust! - badbusdriver

Let me just get this straight as i'm a bit confused by your posts. You started off by asking about Merc Sprinter vans and rust, but you are actually looking for a van, but one which has been converted into a camper?, and it must be an auto, is that right?.

If so, Japanese all the way. TBH, i doubt you will have any difficulty getting mechanical parts for a Hiace/Granvia/Regius. Under the skin they are the same as a Hilux pickup and the engines also power various Land Cruiser's. But, as they are all getting on a bit, camper specialists are turning to other Toyota models, such as the Alphard, Noah and Estima. But there are plenty of others to choose from other Japanese Manufacturers, such as the Honda Stepwagon and Elysion, Nissan Elgrand and Serena (not that one!), and of course the Mazda Bongo/Ford Freda. That last two are also getting a bit long in the tooth, but still seem to be very popular, in fact there was a fairly recent post from a forum member travelling almost the length of the country to collect one (a Bongo) for his Daughter.

If you plan to keep the vehicle for a long time i would focus on getting the best base vehicle you can as there are plenty of UK specialists who can convert one of these Japanese MPV's into campers. And of course the two benefits from your point of view is that most of them have led a very easy life (the direct opposite of most Mercedes Sprinters), and at least 90% of them have an automatic gearbox.

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Wed 5 Dec 2018 20:24
Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust! - Ian_SW

The rusty Sprinters got worse at 07 reg, not better, given the state of the ones In see on the road. I think it was about 2011 when they improved things.

By far the most rust resistant van I've come across is the Renault Traffic/ Vauxhall Vivaro. A friend of a friend runs a 51 reg one as a builders van, and despite being dented on all panels, there is very little rust.

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Wed 5 Dec 2018 20:58
Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust! - bennyyorkie

Thanks for the heads up! Will have a look at them

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Wed 5 Dec 2018 21:21
Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust! - badbusdriver

The rusty Sprinters got worse at 07 reg, not better, given the state of the ones In see on the road. I think it was about 2011 when they improved things.

By far the most rust resistant van I've come across is the Renault Traffic/ Vauxhall Vivaro. A friend of a friend runs a 51 reg one as a builders van, and despite being dented on all panels, there is very little rust.

2 problems with the Traffic/Vivaro/primastar. 1, like all vans, the auto versions are like hens teeth. 2, again, like most vans (in the UK at least) the auto versions are actually automated manuals. Not sure how reliable they are in vans (according to GB, in trucks they work well and are reliable), but in cars they don't have a great reputation. The single clutch version suffer from jerky changes and delayed throttle responses. The dual clutch versions can also be a bit jerky, but the main problem is the long term reliability suffers due to their complexity.

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Wed 5 Dec 2018 20:40
Mercedes sprinter van - Mercedes Sprinter and rust! - bennyyorkie

Hi,

I really appreciate you mentioning other possibilities. Im not very familiar with the different options. Will spend a bit of time looking into them. Was looking at rust on sprinters as a lot of the automatic transmission campers available in Germany are Sprinters.

Great advise, much appreciated!

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