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oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
After some hair pulling, finally got a trailer hitch ordered from the dealer. You'd think this would not be that big of a deal, but you'd swear I'd asked them for something they've never heard of before. :rolleyes:

I installed that over the weekend, bolted right on BUT it did not come with the trailer wire harness, which I thought it was supposed to. It did come with an extra bracket for the plug, but that same bracket was already welded on to the hitch itself, so I am really not sure what happened there. But at least I got a correct OEM hitch, made in Germany by Oris.



A friend mentioned a place that lists an OEM harness available, so I'll likely just go there at get one instead of having to struggle with the dealer. I did look at that place (Eurocampers) originally for a hitch, but they only showed some generic Curt brand hitch so I did not look any further to see that they had a harness.

My Sprinter does not have all the Parktronic or backup camera or anything, so the wiring should be pretty straightforward. I just need to get it done before the lift is installed because I do not know what panels I need to get access to and they may be difficult to get at once the lift is in place.

Had my first DEF warning come on over the weekend, at only 1600 miles. I hope it was just not filled at PDI and that is why it went through it so fast. Normally my understanding from talking to one of our fleet customers that have a bunch of these is that they can normally go around 5k miles before needing a refill.
 

sandmansans

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2013
Location
NJ/PA
TDI
2014 Jetta
After some hair pulling, finally got a trailer hitch ordered from the dealer. You'd think this would not be that big of a deal, but you'd swear I'd asked them for something they've never heard of before. :rolleyes:

I installed that over the weekend, bolted right on BUT it did not come with the trailer wire harness, which I thought it was supposed to. It did come with an extra bracket for the plug, but that same bracket was already welded on to the hitch itself, so I am really not sure what happened there. But at least I got a correct OEM hitch, made in Germany by Oris.



A friend mentioned a place that lists an OEM harness available, so I'll likely just go there at get one instead of having to struggle with the dealer. I did look at that place (Eurocampers) originally for a hitch, but they only showed some generic Curt brand hitch so I did not look any further to see that they had a harness.

My Sprinter does not have all the Parktronic or backup camera or anything, so the wiring should be pretty straightforward. I just need to get it done before the lift is installed because I do not know what panels I need to get access to and they may be difficult to get at once the lift is in place.

Had my first DEF warning come on over the weekend, at only 1600 miles. I hope it was just not filled at PDI and that is why it went through it so fast. Normally my understanding from talking to one of our fleet customers that have a bunch of these is that they can normally go around 5k miles before needing a refill.
Hey oil hammer,
Did you try pfjones? https://www.pfjones.co.uk/towbar-wi...its/mercedes-sprinter-towbar-wiring-kits.html

Seems like this is the one for your van

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Oh sorry about that.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk
Ha, well, turns out I am sorry... the "factory" trailer wire harness I got from eurocampers is just a Chinese-made overly complex and useless Chrysler (Mopar) kit that won't even work with my hitch. I think it *is* made for 906 Sprinters, but is just for lights, nothing else. And the trailer plug will not even bolt on to the bracket on my hitch.

I had found out that starting in 2011, the 906 Sprinters had the ability for the ESP/ABS/etc. to interface with (or at least acknowledge that) a trailer (is hooked up).

I think the harness I got would otherwise work to make the trailer lights work, and even support the use of an aftermarket brake controller mounted up under the dash, but nothing else. Since mine does not have the backup camera or Parktronic or anything like that, the only "else" is the ESP/ABS.

Cannot seem to find much information on the intarwebs, but I have been looking. I will try (sigh :rolleyes: ) the MB dealer again, but I tell ya these clowns are not the best at knowing their product.

It appears that the Oris-made OEM hitch for US-spec Sprinters would require its own US-spec Sprinter wire harness. Because we commonly use a different trailer harness connector here. Given the fact that my hitch already came with the connector mounting bracket welded to the hitch, I would think there should be a harness available for it... why it did not COME with one like other makes do is beyond me, unless it was supposed to and they simply didn't add it on.

Now I am up against the clock as the van goes "under the knife" to have the lift installed Monday. I really wanted to get all this wired up and working before that. :(
 
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IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
Welcome to our world of M-B Parts Departments. We have a constant struggle to get what we order. And we rely on EPC to identify what we need, but that is pretty byzantine compared to ETKA (now PartsLink24). And after two years the drivers from the dealer still have trouble finding our warehouse. Baby steps.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Welcome to our world of M-B Parts Departments. We have a constant struggle to get what we order. And we rely on EPC to identify what we need, but that is pretty byzantine compared to ETKA (now PartsLink24). And after two years the drivers from the dealer still have trouble finding our warehouse. Baby steps.

Yes, but the Sprinters in particular have been troublesome to get good support for here from the get go. They are MUCH better now, but still...

I remember when they first came here for the 2002 model year (we had a small fleet customer that had about 10 of them) they were just sold through Freightliner dealerships. Now, you'd think that since FL has been an MB brand since 1981 they'd have a good handle on parts support for them, especially given they've had to deal with FAR greater variations of truck configurations with medium and heavy duty trucks. The Sprinters should have been simple, right? They only offered one engine, one transmission, the only major variations were single or dual rear wheel and body height/length. Nope. They were lost. Even getting brake pads and rotors was troublesome.

A year later in 2003 they showed up at Dodge dealers. But other than the grill, no other differences. Those guys were just as clueless, maybe even more so. Couple that with the Daimler banner of Chrysler seemingly wanting to integrate some of the Sprinter (and also the Chrysler Crossfire) but keep other things separate, the confusion continued. Dodge parts guys played the Dumb Card repeatedly, so much so you'd think that was all they had in their deck. And it never really improved.... and now it got worse after that short lived marriage fell apart and ChryCo was taken away by Fiat.

The fact that MB decided to even sell these (and now the Metris) at their dealers is shocking, because they have such an air of snobbery about them. And that snobbery doesn't seem to be going away, but I could care less about that. What I DO care about is the dealer staff being able and willing to support the product they sell. Of course, I knew this going in... but at least now there is no third party involved like in the Dodge days.

Still a fantastic vehicle. :)
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Late to the conversation but ive always wondered which is better. The full size transit diesel or the sprinter.
I considered the Transit, along with the Promaster (Fiat Ducato rebadged).

Here are the Pros and Cons for me:

Price: Sprinter easily wins. Standard with a diesel engine (the gasoline engines in the Transit and Promaster were not even considered). Ford gets nearly $9k for the diesel engine option, FCA gets about $4k. The Transit would have also required me to step up to the middle roof, Sprinter is tall enough already. FCA would also require the taller roof, but that is the only way they sell a window van anyway PLUS they ONLY sell a longer (unnecessary for me) wheelbase with the window van, AND their window van is just that: a cargo van with windows. No interior of any kind aft of the B-pillar, which meant it would have had to go to a third party for fitment of the rest of the interior, which adds cost and would be a bunch of crappy parts anyways (think conversion van).

Fuel economy: Sprinter wins again. Smallest engine, most gears in the transmission.

Serviceability: Sprinter easily by far is the easiest to service, plus I am already somewhat familiar with them as we already service a lot of them here.

Handling/driving: Transit is not bad with the low roof, but that would not work for me, so the middle roof would be the only comparison, and they are maybe a tad better than the Sprinter simply because they sit so much lower to the ground. Promaster being FWD actually handles pretty well, but can be a little jittery over bumps due to the excessively heavy duty springs they put on them as standard to boost them up over that 8500 GVWR...although I admit I never was able to test drive a window van since none were anywhere to see. The big I4 diesel in the Promaster is powerful, but not very refined, and it uses a double-clutch auto trans which felt a bit "lurchy" for me, and it was raining when I drove it and the traction control was constantly having to intervene. It would probably be fine in a heavily loaded vehicle.

Brand support: For sure not the Promaster. While Fiat does seem committed to Chrysler, who knows what the future will hold. It may become another Dodge Sprinter or Isuzu Oasis or anything with an Eagle badge. The Transit is all Ford, and the Sprinter is all Mercedes, although neither brands' dealer seems well versed in their product.

Interior and general fitment and quality: Hands down the Sprinter wins there, by far. Pretty spartan interior, very utilitarian, but very well made and sturdy, and I know they hold up since I service some of them with over a half million miles of commercial use on the clock. The Transit seems somewhat cheap inside in comparison, and a little less refined. Promaster's interior is pretty nice, but again they only give you the first 15% of it :rolleyes:

And recently we've found out here at the shop the Transits eat brakes, especially the rears, like crazy. The Sprinters seem to last a very long time. Tire wear is an issue on the Promasters, as it does not seem like you can rotate them fast enough and they've wiped out the front tires.

In the end, the Transit would have cost me a total of about $8k more to get what I need, the Promaster between $9-12k more (depending on the interior arrangement), and in neither case I do not think I would have as good of a vehicle. The others may be better for engine power, but the 2.1L in the Sprinter is plenty for me, and for an extra $5k I could have gotten the V6 diesel. But I did not need that. The 2.1L is surprisingly peppy, the trans works perfect, and even the guys on the Sprinter forums seem to prefer the 4cyl/7sp over the 6cyl/5sp.

I should say though that they are all great vans, and they are all light years better than the old ancient domestic garbage we've had available to us over the years. I mean seriously the Transit is so much better than the Econoline van it may as well have come from a different planet. And they all have something to offer that is unique that the others do not. The Promaster's FWD could be beneficial. The Sprinter's optional 4WD could too. And I suppose someone might like the tire smoking power of the Ecoboost option in the Transit. But the Sprinter worked out best for me.
 
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ddorrer

Veteran Member
Joined
May 19, 2010
Location
WVa
TDI
2015 GSW Tdi, 2012 JSW Tdi DSG (Sold w/80k miles), 2010 Sportwagen TDI 6spd (Traded)
Should have waited for the MB Metris diesel. Smaller van.
 

sandmansans

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2013
Location
NJ/PA
TDI
2014 Jetta
Ha, well, turns out I am sorry... the "factory" trailer wire harness I got from eurocampers is just a Chinese-made overly complex and useless Chrysler (Mopar) kit that won't even work with my hitch. I think it *is* made for 906 Sprinters, but is just for lights, nothing else. And the trailer plug will not even bolt on to the bracket on my hitch.

I had found out that starting in 2011, the 906 Sprinters had the ability for the ESP/ABS/etc. to interface with (or at least acknowledge that) a trailer (is hooked up).

I think the harness I got would otherwise work to make the trailer lights work, and even support the use of an aftermarket brake controller mounted up under the dash, but nothing else. Since mine does not have the backup camera or Parktronic or anything like that, the only "else" is the ESP/ABS.

Cannot seem to find much information on the intarwebs, but I have been looking. I will try (sigh :rolleyes: ) the MB dealer again, but I tell ya these clowns are not the best at knowing their product.

It appears that the Oris-made OEM hitch for US-spec Sprinters would require its own US-spec Sprinter wire harness. Because we commonly use a different trailer harness connector here. Given the fact that my hitch already came with the connector mounting bracket welded to the hitch, I would think there should be a harness available for it... why it did not COME with one like other makes do is beyond me, unless it was supposed to and they simply didn't add it on.

Now I am up against the clock as the van goes "under the knife" to have the lift installed Monday. I really wanted to get all this wired up and working before that. :(
I know the stuff they sell at pfjones is legit. The kit they sell for the sprinter on there does have trailer stability control which is an uber cool feature. That and having a 13 pin connector, you can run alternative accessories (keeping in mind the proper load that the wire can handle)

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German_1er_diesel

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2008
Location
Ratzeburg
TDI
BMW 118d
Not big enough. Same size as the Eurovan I already have, and technically the Eurovan's door opening is a wee bit taller.
The Metris is a nice van though.
After comparing some numbers, whoa, you are right. A T4 (4707mm total length and a Metris/Vito (5140mm length) have very similar interior sizes. The T4 is a bit taller, the Vito is a bit wider inside. The length from the end of the 1st row seat to the rear hatch is virtually identical.
So all the additional length goes into the longitudinal engine arrangement. Whoa.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Yeah, I think a lot of people who have suggested much smaller vehicles to me than the Sprinter have never actually set foot inside of a T4, let alone set foot in one with a wheelchair lift installed and two wheelchairs inside. Because when I was at the Ford dealer asking about the Transit, the salesperson asked me if the Transit Connect would work :rolleyes:

But for the record, I did pull out a tape measure on the Metris even though I was already certain it was nowhere near big enough. The T4 is actually a much more efficient package, to be honest, given its transverse FWD layout. I bet the Metris handles really nice though given its RWD and IRS. Too bad we only get the gasoline engine.
 

compu_85

Gadget Guy
Joined
Sep 29, 2003
Location
La Conner, WA
TDI
... None :S
The T4 is actually a much more efficient package, to be honest, given its transverse FWD layout.
When you start paying attention to details like that, it's amazing to realize just how space efficient a transverse FWD drivetrain is. Same reason the NMS can be as big inside as the W126, yet the NMS is a foot shorter!

-J
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Yep, which is one thing the Promaster has going for it, BUT Fiat seemed to fall short in some minor design aspects that seem to truncate that advantage. As it does not really feel any "roomier" up front than the others. Obviously unladed traction would be its greatest asset, something the Eurovan is VERY good about.

At least the Sprinter's EDL seems to work well, even if it requires steady even pressure on the accelerator before it engages. My wet grass inclined yard has already called that into use.:eek:
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Lift and anchor bits being installed this week. I am a nervous wreck handing someone the key to my brand new van.

And of course, my youngest decided he wanted one last ride in the Eurovan.... went to the hospital yesterday for difficulty breathing. *sigh* He is doing better now. Common cold will smack that poor kid down. :(
 

GoFaster

Moderator at Large
Joined
Jun 16, 1999
Location
Brampton, Ontario, Canada
TDI
2006 Jetta TDI
Late to the conversation but ive always wondered which is better. The full size transit diesel or the sprinter.
This all depends on what you are looking for. oilhammer provided a good explanation of why the Sprinter is right for him. And I'll explain why I bought a Promaster. (I'm 3 years in)

I wanted a cargo van ... the fact that there are no windows aft of the B pillar except in the back doors is of no concern, that there is no interior back there is of no concern. I've carpeted the cargo area and built my own shelves/mattress back there.

I wanted ease of loading and unloading motorcycles. The front wheel drive means the ProMaster has the lowest loading floor. It might look like the floor in a Sprinter or Transit is as low as the bottom of the back doors ... but it's not. It steps up inside the doors. The ProMaster's floor is the same level as the bottom of the back doors. No step inside.

I did not want to deal with "clean diesel" ... mine has the V6 gas engine. I'm happy with it. Even with the gas engine, fuel consumption is not all that bad - nothing like what the old school vans would use. In highway and country driving it uses 10 - 11 L/100 km (most of my usage), urban 13 - 14 L/100 km.

I haven't had front tire wear issues - mine has about 33,000 km on it and there's lots left.

In MY case, a Sprinter would have been $8,000 more. The diesel engine accounts for a lot of that but I didn't want "clean diesel".

And another thing ... I live in the rust belt. Sprinters do not stand up well here - they rust like nothing else. The ProMaster was an unknown but unknown is better than known bad. 3 years in, mine still looks like new.

Transit wasn't out yet when I bought mine, but it wouldn't have changed the decision.

All of these modern vans are far more pleasant to use and live with than the old school designs. Even with the low roof (mine) I can stand up in the back with my head ducked. The interior is wide enough that I can sleep crosswise. The steering is accurate and it goes where pointed (no Ford Twin-I-Beam here!). It's quiet inside. It doesn't squeak and rattle like a bucket of bolts. It has huge mirrors. While mine doesn't have seating aft of the B pillar, it does have 3-across front seating - can't do that with the old school vans because of the engine doghouse.

Back to regularly scheduled programming ...
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Finally got the lift installed, here is my boys going for their first ride together in the new family van:



That is my younger son's nurse in the picture.



The little one seems less than enthused, LOL. :p

Lift weighs 404 pounds. It is a commercial level Braun Ability unit. Same one they install in OATS and other mobility access minibuses. Very well built unit, far better than the Ricon unit in my Eurovan or the kids' school bus.

The lift was paid for by Variety Club and Kids Assistive Technology, and installed by Southern Bus & Mobility.

It works great, and it is SO NICE being able to take the whole family, nurse, and all our accoutrements along in one happy package that is both frugal and pleasant to drive! :)
 

sandmansans

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2013
Location
NJ/PA
TDI
2014 Jetta
Finally got the lift installed, here is my boys going for their first ride together in the new family van:



That is my younger son's nurse in the picture.



The little one seems less than enthused, LOL. :p

Lift weighs 404 pounds. It is a commercial level Braun Ability unit. Same one they install in OATS and other mobility access minibuses. Very well built unit, far better than the Ricon unit in my Eurovan or the kids' school bus.

The lift was paid for by Variety Club and Kids Assistive Technology, and installed by Southern Bus & Mobility.

It works great, and it is SO NICE being able to take the whole family, nurse, and all our accoutrements along in one happy package that is both frugal and pleasant to drive! :)
That's awesome man. I am happy for you and your family to be able to spend quality time like that together.

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oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Thanks! We are planning some day trips on the weekends...mostly sightseeing, and the Sprinter offers an excellent view of the world around you.

Now that I think about it, there were only a couple times we had both the boys in the Eurovan, and one that sticks out in my head the most was when the tree blew over on to our house in a storm and we had to bug out in a hurry. :eek:

I filled the Sprinter up last night, and I calculated 26 MPGs. That is officially 10 MPG better than my sister's Sienna averages. :cool:
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
The important question is do the boys like it? It does look light and bright in there.

26 MPG is pretty impressive. I bet that's better than the Eurovan did, too.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
The boys like getting out for a ride no matter what. Nicholas (the younger) does not get to go to school every day like Noah does. So other than doctor visits and occasional hospital stays, he really never gets to go anywhere.

So he was just taking it all in on the first Sprinter ride, LOL. I loaded up an SD card with a bunch of fun music for them, they enjoy that.

Eurovan, if driven carefully and no A/C is used, could top out about 21 MPG. But general driving is more around 18, and maybe as low as 16 with the A/C running. And it is not nearly as peppy as the Sprinter, and needs about 3800 RPMs to cruise at 80....the Sprinter rolls along at 2600 RPMs at the same speed. I really cannot say enough good things about the OM651/7sp G-tronic combo, it really does well. And this is coming from a guy who has been enjoying the virtues of diesels for nearly 30 years now.
 

kjclow

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 26, 2003
Location
Charlotte, NC
TDI
2010 JSW TDI silver and black. 2017 Ram Ecodiesel dark red with brown and beige interior.
Sounds and looks like a great set up. I surprised the lift only added 400 pounds. Looks much beefier than that. 26 mpg in something that size is amazing.

Glad the boys are enjoying the new ride and that you can all go along.
 

tdidieselbobny

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 4, 2005
Location
Stafford,NY (WNY)
TDI
'03 Galactic Blue Jetta TDI, '15 Silk Blue Golf Sportwagen TDI
That looks awesome! The boys definitely have a nice view of scenery with all those big windows. Have fun on your upcoming day trips!
 

AnotherPerson

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 24, 2015
Location
New Orleans
TDI
1999 Beetle
I considered the Transit, along with the Promaster (Fiat Ducato rebadged).

Here are the Pros and Cons for me:

Price: Sprinter easily wins. Standard with a diesel engine (the gasoline engines in the Transit and Promaster were not even considered). Ford gets nearly $9k for the diesel engine option, FCA gets about $4k. The Transit would have also required me to step up to the middle roof, Sprinter is tall enough already. FCA would also require the taller roof, but that is the only way they sell a window van anyway PLUS they ONLY sell a longer (unnecessary for me) wheelbase with the window van, AND their window van is just that: a cargo van with windows. No interior of any kind aft of the B-pillar, which meant it would have had to go to a third party for fitment of the rest of the interior, which adds cost and would be a bunch of crappy parts anyways (think conversion van).

Fuel economy: Sprinter wins again. Smallest engine, most gears in the transmission.

Serviceability: Sprinter easily by far is the easiest to service, plus I am already somewhat familiar with them as we already service a lot of them here.

Handling/driving: Transit is not bad with the low roof, but that would not work for me, so the middle roof would be the only comparison, and they are maybe a tad better than the Sprinter simply because they sit so much lower to the ground. Promaster being FWD actually handles pretty well, but can be a little jittery over bumps due to the excessively heavy duty springs they put on them as standard to boost them up over that 8500 GVWR...although I admit I never was able to test drive a window van since none were anywhere to see. The big I4 diesel in the Promaster is powerful, but not very refined, and it uses a double-clutch auto trans which felt a bit "lurchy" for me, and it was raining when I drove it and the traction control was constantly having to intervene. It would probably be fine in a heavily loaded vehicle.

Brand support: For sure not the Promaster. While Fiat does seem committed to Chrysler, who knows what the future will hold. It may become another Dodge Sprinter or Isuzu Oasis or anything with an Eagle badge. The Transit is all Ford, and the Sprinter is all Mercedes, although neither brands' dealer seems well versed in their product.

Interior and general fitment and quality: Hands down the Sprinter wins there, by far. Pretty spartan interior, very utilitarian, but very well made and sturdy, and I know they hold up since I service some of them with over a half million miles of commercial use on the clock. The Transit seems somewhat cheap inside in comparison, and a little less refined. Promaster's interior is pretty nice, but again they only give you the first 15% of it :rolleyes:

And recently we've found out here at the shop the Transits eat brakes, especially the rears, like crazy. The Sprinters seem to last a very long time. Tire wear is an issue on the Promasters, as it does not seem like you can rotate them fast enough and they've wiped out the front tires.

In the end, the Transit would have cost me a total of about $8k more to get what I need, the Promaster between $9-12k more (depending on the interior arrangement), and in neither case I do not think I would have as good of a vehicle. The others may be better for engine power, but the 2.1L in the Sprinter is plenty for me, and for an extra $5k I could have gotten the V6 diesel. But I did not need that. The 2.1L is surprisingly peppy, the trans works perfect, and even the guys on the Sprinter forums seem to prefer the 4cyl/7sp over the 6cyl/5sp.

I should say though that they are all great vans, and they are all light years better than the old ancient domestic garbage we've had available to us over the years. I mean seriously the Transit is so much better than the Econoline van it may as well have come from a different planet. And they all have something to offer that is unique that the others do not. The Promaster's FWD could be beneficial. The Sprinter's optional 4WD could too. And I suppose someone might like the tire smoking power of the Ecoboost option in the Transit. But the Sprinter worked out best for me.


Another late reply. But doesn't ford still offer the $5000 rebate towards accessibility options on the transit? Or did they kill that off. Most people would never use it. But I know know what all the wheelchair stuff costs.


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oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Not sure, since rebates seem to be a cagey way of price manipulation and bank institution chicanery. I paid cash for my Sprinter, so the prospect of someone like a car company or their bank "giving" me money was not something I was looking for.

I do know the Ford salesperson (and her manager) were well aware of my situation, and were very helpful in answering my questions etc. and I am certain if something that seemed too good to be true was available they would have let me know.

But again, when you are a cash buyer, things seem to work very differently, since often so much of the profit at the dealer level in the whole process can hinge on the financial branch. This is partly why some car companies got [further] into financial turmoil when they started the whole 0% down 0% financing for 5 years after 9-11.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Just thought I would update this, I got a chance to tow with the Sprinter this weekend. I drug a B5 Passat via tow dolly, it did surprisingly well. Handled the hills no problem, cruised along at 70 easily, and only had to downshift once on a pretty big (for Missouri) hill. I was still able to hold 70 without a problem.

This transmission really works well. It will also stay in a lower gear when going down hills if you press the brake. No mode change or anything is necessary. I drove it the couple miles down the gravel road to our farm property for the first time too, and it handled those bad washboard roads reasonably well considering it is a live axle rear wheel drive vehicle with nowhere near its max payload inside.

The A/C works VERY good in this thing, too.
 
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