Gas Sprinter 2005

Jeremiah802

New member
I have been looking at Sprinters for a while, owned one last year and had to give it up. Back in the market. Have been looking solely at diesel models. Just found a gas engine 2005. I don't see much info about the gas engine. Is there anyone out there that can tell me more about it? I am not going to be doing tons of driving so I am not worried about the diesel mileage etc. I want to know if the gas is a solid engine or is it full of problems? Thanks.
 

Boxster1971

2023 Sprinter 2500 144wb AWD
I have been looking at Sprinters for a while, owned one last year and had to give it up. Back in the market. Have been looking solely at diesel models. Just found a gas engine 2005. I don't see much info about the gas engine. Is there anyone out there that can tell me more about it? I am not going to be doing tons of driving so I am not worried about the diesel mileage etc. I want to know if the gas is a solid engine or is it full of problems? Thanks.

What gas engine is in this Sprinter? Is it a real van or an online for sale listing that says it has a gas engine? As far as I know all 2005 Sprinters in USA/Canada had the 2.7L I-5 Turbo Diesel engine.


- - Mike
2012 Sprinter 3500 Extended converted B-Van by Airstream
 

autostaretx

Erratic Member
As Boxster wrote, the petrol/gasoline engines were not sold in the US/Canada market during the T1N (1999-2006) years, and most of the forum's members are US/Canada based (but by no means all of them).

So "where are you?" would help in describing which engines were available "there" and their reliability.

(i'll put an engine chart in here if i can find one....)

According to the SprinterWiki (link on the top blue bar of this page), the T1N Sprinter only offered the 2.3 liter M111 4-cylinder, 141 horsepower at 5400 rpm, 159 ft-lb torque. It was sold from 2000 through 2005 (Europe started switching over to the NCV3 in 2006)
A few more details are on the right edge of this page.

Other MB products may have used the same engine, and (once determined who got it) there might be more reliability info via those channels.

Googling "m111 mercedes engine reliability" finds (among others) this: https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=23&t=1596824&i=20
which says:
Mercedes reliability on the various models does depend a lot on which engine and transmission as some are renowned for issues and others are equally renowned for no issues.

For example the M111 engine has issues with an oil leak into the loom from the camshaft variable timing actuator. This eventually reqiures the loom to be cleaned or replaced and can cause O2 sensor or MAF issues.
The M271 engine is renowned for having cam chain gears made from cheese which causes high wear and slipping of teeth. They also suffer from the same camshaft actuator issue as the M111.

On the other hand the M112 and M113 and M119 engines are almost indestructible.

Similarly some autoboxes (some 5 speeds) have issues with the speed sensor plate in the bottom of the gearbox. Whilst not a huge issue its very common. Other gearboxes (7 speed is notorious) can have very poor shifts especially when cold and whilst this isn't linked to reliability it does detract from the vehicle.
... on the other hand, discussing MB C230's, we read (at: https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w202/53059-c230-reliability.html )
Many techs I know consider the W202 series 1996 and on to be the most reliable MB ever built, with the M111 equipped car especially so. The engine is very well made, has no head gasket issues, and after 1995 the wiring harness issues that plagued all 1993-1993 MB's were also sorted out.

Also, the post 1996 cars have the variable pressure AC system, which is also proving to be very reliable and robust.

Be careful of overfilling the engine oil, as the main crank seals can easily be wrecked by doing so. Make sure your PPI includes a close inspection under the car.

Also, the W202's that live where roads are bad can go through lower front ball joints.

There is mixed feelings on the Eaton M62 supercharger mounted on the M111 Kompressor cars. Eaton supes have long been built as sealed non-rebuilable units with a typical service life of 100-125K miles. While this is suitable to GM products, most MB's are still valuable and excellent cars at that mileage. However, the verdict is still out on this, and I understand M62 pricing has come down lots since it is being used in many applications.
Your mileage may vary....

--dick
 
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Boxster1971

2023 Sprinter 2500 144wb AWD
Good info Dick. In reading over the Sprinter-Wiki I noticed is is a bit out of date. Looks like it haven't been updated since 2014.


- - Mike
2012 Sprinter 3500 Extended converted B-Van by Airstream
 

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