got chance of an x reg merc sprinter lwb 10 mnths ticket 4 mnth tax £1500 just for moto x bikes and fucking about ,any opinions greatful and things to look out for

 

IMO they are the worst vans you can get. But if it's tidy enough and not being worked hard it should be ok

 

shit. buy a tranny.

 

i would much rather have transit but for the cash there all old rotters ,and the size of the sprinter is quality

 

my mate works as AA patrol and he says he goes to loads of them and also thinks they are shit!

 

I have no knowledge of their pros/cons, but just to note...I have seen vans on 06 plates and newer that are rusty as fuck.

 

there body seems to rust but think chassis are sound, this 1 isnt to bad but i no what you are saying ,

 

My brothers just got one, as his tranny blew the gearbox, rusted to fuck (MOT fail) diesel leak etc... The sprinter is a spot on van, was an ex transco van 130k, just a few spots of rust and fully kitted out in the back. He got it for 2k. They seam to hold there money well. He doesn't like the gearbox though

 

what are the numbers on the back of it?


it'll be a 311 or a 313 or the like, the higher the number the more power it's got

but the brakes are shocingly small for the size of the van

 

Horrid vans, i have driven them all and still do, very bouncy, un-stable feel on the road and corners they just wallow

Fuckin shite, hate the vans with a passion, power steering pumps were a problem with early models, dropping doors, and the big one........... Half shafts snapping on the cunts causing serious accidents (my ex work had this on a van that was 4 days old, van was on the M8 motorway and went for a roll and bounce closing the road for hours)

We have brand new shape ones, top mounts shagged at 40k on the clock and 6 months old, (Motorway driving only on this van) doors drop down, even the shitty wee sprung clip thats designed to hold paperwork broke when a work mate touched it the first 2 minutes we were in the fucker

Rusty fuckers aswell

Although some of the newer transits are still rusty on the sills below sliding side door there built to do the job elsewhere imo, nice and comfy to drive where a merc feels like your sat on a pallet of bricks

Enjoy it

 

i actually work on and deal with a lot of sprinters and hav not had any major problems with them however i would still go for a transit over a sprinter just for the better drive allthough trannys do have thier fair share of problems, pump disintergrating, injectors etc.... as for rust there asre still a few minters to be found on the cheap if you look about

 

fuck me,i always thought sprinters were the dogs,their owners evan looked down their noses at trannys,and some yards evan favored a sprinter owner driver over less fortunate owners........

 

I dont think you can beat a sprinter as long as you look after it, ( ie) regular service and the like yes they do tend to rust abit but alot of it is only surface rust get it bought

 

I have an LT35 mwb which is the same as a sprinter from the screen back. Good workhorse and holds and drives a load better than a trany as we have one as well.
Dont get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with the tranny, its just the lt is better in my view
Both the Sprinter and LT are well known for clocking up big miles with ease so dont let that put you of.
On the sprinter, they do run hot and can very easily cook them selves if not looked after
The LT, different engine (5 pot) but check the Cambelt has been done
Both do 50 miles to a tenner in real time
An x plate for 1500 is a good buy if its as good as you say so i would say get it bought already and dont let your mates know you got it as they will all have something that needs moving

 

speaking as someone who's run fleets of transits and sprinters, the older sprinters wern't as nice to drive and the newer transits, but the new sprinters are much nicer to be sat in, although ours are only a few weeks old, they have already started to rust where the water drips down the sides

 

My mate just paid £1500 for an '03' plate with full history with 110,000 miles, 1 owner etc. Sprinter prices are up and down IMO on price

 

i have had 7 merc sprinters over the years 310. 312. then onto the cdi models 311, 313, 315 ( 315 is bad on diesel..) i m a flooring contractor so need the 4 mt load leangth.
i have drove them to over 300,000 miles, never had many problems .
injector seals would go in them every 70k but if you change them then no probs. just keep them well serviced.

i have 2 new ish ones now , a 311 cdi and a 313 cdi . ones on 30k and the other is on 44k . all i can say is they drive like a car.. and never had any problems as yet

many thanks steven