No more Dodge Sprinters after 2010

[ThomD]

Autoblog reports that Merc is pulling the plug on ChryCo so that Merc can sell them.

As much as Daimler has been hating on Chrysler lately, one would think that the Pentastar was the cold-hearted deviant who stuck a knife into the heart of the German automaker. The "Merger of Equals" turned out to be a bum deal for Chrysler, but at least it was able to procure some hardware from its German ex. Some parts of the LX platform that underpins the Dodge 300C, Charger and Challenger, and the platform that will underpin the next-generation Jeep Grand Cherokee and Durango all came from Mercedes-Benz, as does the excellent Sprinter van.

Though the Sprinter has been met with some level of success at select Dodge dealers, Mercedes has decided to pull the plug on Chrysler in 2010. About 350 dealers sell the Sprinter as a Dodge, and the large commercial van has managed sales of about 20,000 per year since it donned the Ram head in 2003. Mercedes is switching to 120 dealers branded Daimler Vans USA.

The updated Sprinter van, which will now be branded as a Mercedes, will receive a new 3.0L diesel engine that will reportedly be eligible for sale in all 50 US states. The Daimler dealers will reportedly be able to sell up to 18,000 vans per year, a sizable portion of the van's production quota of 32,000 vehicles per year. The remaining production will be sold as Freightliners. The commercial vehicle company has 45 specialized Sprinter van dealers across the nation.

Daimler says the reason for the switch has a lot to do with the fact that the vehicle is now established in the market, though one has to wonder if the German automaker is making an effort to further distance itself from its former step-child. The big losers in the deal could be the 350 Dodge dealers who spent $30-50K to upgrade their dealerships to sell and service the vans.

 

[Funrover]

Oh man.. this could get ugly. I was wondering when that was going to happen.

 

[haven]

This makes sense. Freightliner is owned by Mercedes, not by Chrysler. So they will continue selling the Sprinter. And now Fiat can plan to import their competing model, the Iveco Daily, to replace the Sprinter in Dodge showrooms.

The Daily is powered by a 4 cylinder 3.0L turbodiesel that produces a maximum of about 400 ft-lbs of torque, and has a wide rev range where more than 300 ft-lbs are available.

Both Mercedes and Iveco offer 4x4 versions of these vehicles. I hope one or both will import them.

Forum member egn posted links to campers built on the Iveco Daily 4x4 chassis. Here are three:
http://www.allradwohnmobile.de/Allradwohnmobile/Iveco Daily 4x4 argalibasecamp.htm
http://privat.albicker.org/iveco-womo/index.html
http://www.bimobil.com/deutsch/expedition_ex345/expeditionsfahrzeug.htm

 

[mhiscox]

And another article, forwarded from a Sprinterlist post from the knowledgeable Stew Ives:

First part of story goes....

It's official; as of January 1, 2010, the much-loved Sprinter van, made by Daimler, will once again have the three-pointed star in the U.S.--and be sold by Mercedes-Benz rather than Dodge.

Automotive News reports that the Sprinter will be sold by 120 appointed dealerships as part of Daimler Vans USA, a new entity that shares its corporate headquarters with M-B USA. Meanwhile, Freightliner franchises, which have sold Sprinters as well, will continue to do so.

Go to the link to read the full story:

http://www.ibtimes.com/blogs/articles/9488/20090901/sprinter-van-sprints-from-dodge-back-to.htm.

It's worth noting that Sprinter dealers are already hard to come by, with 350 Dodge dealers and maybe another hundred Freightliner dealers to service them. Cutting the number to 120 will make them few and far between and, I would guess, leave sizable areas with the nearest dealer hundreds of miles away.

But the good news is that at least the Sprinter will survive in this country. And another possible good outcome will be that Chrysler/Fiat now has no reason not to bring in the IVECO vans that are Fiat's European direct Sprinter competitor.

And other good news, in most people's mind, is that the 2010 Sprinter will get a Bluetec (urea injection) V-6 that will up the horsepower over 200--currently 154--and the torque from inder 300 to almost 400. That would seem to make it worth waiting for a 2010, except that last month when I was looking, I found virtually every dealer giving $10K or better off MSRP on new 2008s ($13.5 at Folsom Lake Dodge, Thom) which is pretty compelling.

 

[ThomD]

.... I found virtually every dealer giving $10K or better off MSRP on new 2008s ($13.5 at Folsom Lake Dodge, Thom) which is pretty compelling.

You know, if I did not have this nifty SUV to drive around, I'd be all over that. Thanks. :wings:

 

[haven]

"Daimler Vans USA, a new entity" that will sell Sprinters through a select group of existing Mercedes dealers. That way, MBZ customers won't have to rub elbows with plumbers looking for work vans in the showroom, and freight expediters eating doughnuts in the service department waiting room.

This does raise the issue of importation of other vans. Mercedes offers the Vito, a smallish minivan, and the Viano van as well as the Sprinter. And then there's the Vario, Mercedes' traditional large work van.

The Viano is available in "Marco Polo" trim by Westfalia, with a pop-up roof reminiscent of the Westfalia VW campers. The Westfalia web site is http://www.westfalia-van.de

Since this is the "camper vans" section of ExPo, Here are a couple of photos of the Viano "Marco Polo:"

 

[charlieaarons]

". And then there's the Vario, Mercedes' traditional large work van.


[/IMG]

The Vario is really closer to the F350-550 series, it comes with Class 4 and 5 GVW ratings, duals and engines putting out ~500 ft-lb (the 904, 4 cyl version of what's in my U500). And it's often used as a base for a camper as a cab-chassis.

Charlie

 

[kerry]

i've had my eye on a couple of Vario camper conversions over the years. There are some 4x4 versions, at least of the 814. don't know if they were standard production vehicles or limited custom builds. I saw a former utility company 4x4 version converted to a camper on Ebay last year. The departure angle left something to be desired.

Here's one:

http://suchen.mobile.de/fahrzeuge/s...ORT&customerIdsAsString=&lang=en&pageNumber=1

 

[haven]

I agree, the Vario is unlikely to be sold through a Mercedes passenger car dealership. It would be more at home in a Freightliner shop, alongside Unimogs with the new 2010 USA smog-legal diesel. We can only dream...

 

[mhiscox]

i've had my eye on a couple of Vario camper conversions over the years. There are some 4x4 versions, at least of the 814. don't know if they were standard production vehicles or limited custom builds. I saw a former utility company 4x4 version converted to a camper on Ebay last year. The departure angle left something to be desired.

John Speed (Stuart Allsop) in his valuable book, Travel Vans, did the conversion of a 4WD Vario. They are big and square, kind of the same form factor as a UPS package car, and they'd make a great overland camper. If 4WD Varios were to become available in the US (which they won't ), I'd be all over one.

 

[Harald Hansen]

Here's the web site for the Travel Vans book. Much recommended!