Sprinter advice

[hoptroll]

I went to look at 2006 low roof 140" wb cargo sprinter today. It has a side window and two back windows. It was in good shape, couple of minor dents here and there. My big concern was rust underneath the windshield. The windshield is cracked and I would replace it anyway, but is the rust something I should stay away from all together? It was bubbling the paint but was stable enough where it was hard to tell how deep it is. Other than that it passed all of my tests, great mechanical condition and no other rust. Asking price of $11k firm with 164k miles, maintenance has been done, not a fleet vehicle but privately owned. I plan on converting the inside to a bed and some simple storage.

On another note, I will be commuting in this car, about 75 freeway miles round trip. Will I be hating life in a sprinter?

What are your thoughts?

Thanks

Dave


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[mhiscox]

Forty mile freeway trips in a T1N cargo Sprinter are hardly punishing, but it is a commercial truck and you'll get the good with the bad. The main reason you might not like it is that it'll be noisy compared to a car, SUV or pickup. But driveability should be good, and the fuel economy of the five-banger is better than many cars. And you do have a nice view out of the rather tall seating position.

That said, the rust troubles me a bit. I seem to recall that windshield base area being mentioned on the Sprinter-Source forum as a potential trouble spot, and I don't believe the repairs are particularly easy. If you can't find another one that suits you, so be it, but coming up with a rust-free West Coast example shouldn't be too hard and, all else being equal, I'd pay a premium to avoid starting out with a problem.

Feel better about it if it has a documented service history; less good if it doesn't. Some T1Ns rack up 400+K miles, and some seem to be toast by 200K, and the consensus is that comprehensive scheduled maintenance probably makes the biggest difference.

Good luck.

 

[Haf-E]

I've seen that rust on a number of sprinters - including my own. Seems to not be terminal if you treat it when you replace the windshield (I need to do mine this summer...)

Sprinters drive nicely - I used mine as a daily driver for a couple of years. OK if you can tolerate slower speeds though. Do you have much hills? Only other issue is that you'll rack up miles quickly - about 20k per year...

 

[Paddy]

Mine has rust there and all over. I'm treating spots with POR15 after a quick wire brush/screwdriver jab prep job. If you haven't used that stuff check it out, it's pretty amazing. It reacts to rust and metal and makes a new substance that's tougher than heck, and stops further damage.

I recently took up sprinter as my primary vehicle. A bit noisy yes, but I've done a 1000mi day and it was easy. The seating position and height make it less strenuous than a nice quiet car in some ways. And 25mpg!

 

[hoptroll]

The rust troubles me too, but it does need a new windshield so I could tackle it when I do that. As long as the structure underneath is not too compromised and it's just bubbling paint that I'm seeing, it should be ok. It's only 2.5 small spots that are worrisome. I'm coming from a 2008 4tunner that is very smooth and quiet. I plan on paneling the cargo area if I get it. I would really like to get better mileage and all of the research I have done suggests the t1n is the most economical and reliable models. Plus I enjoy traveling to baja and the no emissions equipment is attractive as well. I will have to think it over some more and see if this really makes sense for me right now.


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[hoptroll]

The miles do rack up quickly. I put 18k on this year working part time, I took at least 3 months off of work. First year I worked where I'm at, I drove 30k miles.


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