Mercedes-Benz Sprinter

The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter is a light commercial vehicle (van) built by Mercedes-Benz Group AG of Stuttgart, Germany, as a large van, chassis cab, minibus, and pickup truck. In the past, the Sprinter had been sold under the Mercedes-Benz, Dodge, and Freightliner nameplates. In the U.S., it was built from complete knock down (CKD) kits by Freightliner. Re-badged and re-engined Sprinters were also sold by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles as the Volkswagen LT and the Volkswagen Crafter. They are now primarily marketed by Mercedes-Benz.

In the Mercedes-Benz van lineup, the Sprinter is the largest model offered, followed by the mid-size Vito (aka Viano, V-Class, and EQV) and small Citan.

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First generation (1995; W903)

Europe

The first-generation Sprinter was launched in Europe in 1995 to replace the famous but outdated T1 Transporter van dating from 1977. Compared to the T1, the Sprinter had reduced the aerodynamic drag and moved the engine further forward to increase cabin space. It was the first Mercedes-Benz product to carry a name rather than an alphanumeric designation. It was released with four-wheel disc brakes equipped with an anti-lock braking system and was driven by the most powerful diesel engine in its class, with a power output of . In 2003 it received Dodge branding as DaimlerChrysler chose to replace the aging Dodge Ram van with the Sprinter. After 2003 they were sold concurrently under the Freightliner and Dodge nameplates and were identical except for minor styling details and badging. DaimlerChrysler chose to not badge the Sprinter as a Mercedes-Benz because they felt the utilitarian Sprinter would interfere with the luxury image that Mercedes-Benz has in North America, whereas Freightliner and Dodge have more experience selling trucks and commercial vehicles.

Cargo versions of the Sprinter were manufactured in Düsseldorf, Germany, partially disassembled, and then shipped to a Freightliner factory in Gaffney, South Carolina, where they were reassembled. The cargo versions, classified as light trucks, are subject to the 25% chicken tax if imported as a complete unit, which is avoided by the disassembly and importation as a semi knock-down kit, with subsequent reassembly in the U.S. Passenger vans were not subject to the same tax classifications and were imported as an assembled unit through Mercedes-Benz in Jacksonville, Florida.

2002–2003 Sprinters sold in North America were only available with the 2.7L OM612 inline-5 diesel engine and were only available in 49 states because it was not compliant with CARB emissions standards; 2004–2006 models used the OM647 engine which replaced the OM612's air-cooled EGR valve with a water-cooled unit, among other changes, which made the 2004–2006 Sprinters CARB-compliant. The only transmission offered in North America was the 5-speed 5G-Tronic transmission.

The product was launched and supported by DaimlerChrysler Vans LLC, a small division based in Huntersville, North Carolina. Key individuals from DaimlerChrysler Commercial Vehicle Division and Freightliner Trucks were selected to spearhead the effort and made up the bulk of the division. DaimlerChrysler Vans LLC retained sole responsibility for the North American Sprinter market until the sales, service and parts support responsibilities were absorbed by Chrysler Commercial Vehicle Division in 2004. Nearly all of the original staff were retained, though the base of operations shifted from North Carolina to Auburn Hills, Michigan.

Japan

The Sprinter van was sold as the Mercedes-Benz Transporter T1N due to Toyota using the name Toyota Sprinter, a version of the Corolla.

Iran

The model 314 of the first generation is still assembled by Iran Khodro Diesel.

Sprinter Classic

thumb|right|Sprinter Classic (Russia)

Since 2013, the 2000–2006 Sprinter model has been revived in Russian markets only as the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Classic. The Phase II 2002–2006 grille was chosen for use on the Sprinter Classic and the 2000–2006 dashboard design. The Sprinter Classic used the steering wheel from the 2006–2014 Sprinter models. The Sprinter Classic is built by the Gorky Automobile Plant at Nizhny Novgorod for service in Russian/Eastern European markets only.

Engines

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:96%;"

|- style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center; vertical-align:middle;"

!Models!!Engine code!!Configuration!!Displacement!!Max. power!!Max. torque

|OM 601||Inline-four 8V SOHC||||||

|OM 602||rowspan="2" | Inline-five 10V OHC||rowspan="2" | ||||

|OM 602||||

|M 111||Inline-four 16V DOHC ||||||

Dimensions

{|class="wikitable" style="font-size:90%;text-align:center;"

|+Key Sprinter (1st generation) dimensions

! rowspan=4 colspan=4

! colspan=2 | Short !! Medium !! Long

! Exterior

! WB

! Interior

! rowspan=2 | Std.

! Exterior

! Interior

! rowspan=2 | Volume

| colspan=2 rowspan=2 |

| rowspan=2 |

| colspan=1 rowspan=2 style="background:#ddd;" | N/A

! High

! Volume

| colspan=2 |

;Notes

Fuel economy

With 2.7L I5 OM 612/OM 647 156 hp CDI engine:

{| class="wikitable sortable"

! Model !! Roof Height !! Wheelbase !! Manufacturer estimated miles per gallon

| 2500 || Standard Roof || 140" || 24

| 2500 || High Roof || 158" || 22

| 3500 || High Roof || 158" || 21

Diesel Hybrid Concepts

In 2004, A Plug-in hybrid prototype version and a non-plug-in hybrid prototype version of the van were made, The plug-in van had an electric motor with an output of and an NiMH battery with a capacity of 14kWh. Which supported an all-electric operating range of up to . The battery recharged from the plug-in to the main power supply in approximately 6 hours. the non-plug-in van had a smaller electric motor with an output of and smaller batteries with a capacity of only 3 kWh. These allowed purely electric operation with a range of .

Gallery

Pre-facelift

File:Mercedes sprinter 1 v sst.jpg|Front

File:Mercedes sprinter 1 h sst.jpg|Rear

</gallery>

Facelift

Mercedes Sprinter front 20080102.jpg|Front

Mercedes Sprinter rear 20080102.jpg|Rear