High mileage on an i4

M

mtman

Member
So I'm in the market for a van, and came across a 2014 with the i4 for around $8k. Only thing is the 450K mileage (used by an expediter).

I figured if it's mostly highway then it's probably fine, and the i4 seems less problematic to begin with. Would you still consider this a risky deal?

Thanks
 
T

Thump_rrr

Active member
mtman said:
So I'm in the market for a van, and came across a 2014 with the i4 for around $8k. Only thing is the 450K mileage (used by an expediter).

I figured if it's mostly highway then it's probably fine, and the i4 seems less problematic to begin with. Would you still consider this a risky deal?

Thanks
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For that price you can throw a new motor at it and not give a crap.
I would budget for a new DPF.
 
D

Deleted member 50714

Guest
Flash 6 k in his face, figure on New motor and DPF.
 
O

odix@yahoo.com

Sprinter fan
450,000 miles with an average speed of 50 miles per hour is more than a year in constant motion — for a ~five-year-old vehicle. 50mph average may be low but it’s a lot of time none the less. I have an I4 and love it. As noted, if you get a great deal your risk:reward recalculates. One often forgotten commodity is the ultimate one because it’s finite. Your time. Don’t forgot that in the equation if a new engine or other work needs to occur by you or anyone.

Keep us posted!
 
T

Thump_rrr

Active member
Just to give you an idea.
My 2014 144” wb low roof I4 cargo was leased in November of 2013.
We traded it back in this past November with 132,000 km or 82,000 miles.
It was a service vehicle for our mechanical contracting business so it was never left to idle.
The balance at return of lease was something like $19,000 Canadian.
I know of a company that has a Sprinter who’s only use is to be a large billboard for their restaurant

You may be able to find a low mileage sprinter that will serve your needs better.
You never mentioned what you will be using it for?
My vans are used to serve my customers for my mechanical contacting business.
My customers depend on us being there when they need us and my employees depend on their vans to earn them a living.
I lease mine for 5 years with the 6 year 100,000 mile Extended Limited Warranty.
I know what my fixed costs are and I’m happy with it. You
 
M

mtman

Member
Thump_rrr said:
For that price you can throw a new motor at it and not give a crap.
I would budget for a new DPF.
Click to expand...
That's a good point.

Wasn't the DPF suppose to last the vehicle's life time? I could be wrong, but I thought the V6's were due to engineering flaws, but that was fixed in the I4?
 
M

mtman

Member
odix@yahoo.com said:
450,000 miles with an average speed of 50 miles per hour is more than a year in constant motion — for a ~five-year-old vehicle. 50mph average may be low but it’s a lot of time none the less. I have an I4 and love it. As noted, if you get a great deal your risk:reward recalculates. One often forgotten commodity is the ultimate one because it’s finite. Your time. Don’t forgot that in the equation if a new engine or other work needs to occur by you or anyone.

Keep us posted!
Click to expand...
I'll keep that in mind. What kind of price range am I looking at for a new engine?
 
M

mtman

Member
Thump_rrr said:
Just to give you an idea.
My 2014 144” wb low roof I4 cargo was leased in November of 2013.
We traded it back in this past November with 132,000 km or 82,000 miles.
It was a service vehicle for our mechanical contracting business so it was never left to idle.
The balance at return of lease was something like $19,000 Canadian.
I know of a company that has a Sprinter who’s only use is to be a large billboard for their restaurant

You may be able to find a low mileage sprinter that will serve your needs better.
You never mentioned what you will be using it for?
My vans are used to serve my customers for my mechanical contacting business.
My customers depend on us being there when they need us and my employees depend on their vans to earn them a living.
I lease mine for 5 years with the 6 year 100,000 mile Extended Limited Warranty.
I know what my fixed costs are and I’m happy with it. You
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I'm doing a camper conversion, so uptime isn't as mission-critical. But it's still not great if I'm out on a forest road and it breaks down.

I could afford something a bit more, I'll be cutting holes in it and I've never done it before, so I figure I'd go with a cheaper base vehicle.

I also looked at some T1Ns, but these newer NCV3's seem to have more safety features like crosswind stabilization and side airbags.

But I guess if this van would be significantly less reliable than a T1N of similar price range at lower miles (less than 300K km / 186K mi around here), I may go with the latter.
 
4wheeldog

4wheeldog

2018 144" Tall Revel
mtman said:
That's a good point.

Wasn't the DPF suppose to last the vehicle's life time? I could be wrong, but I thought the V6's were due to engineering flaws, but that was fixed in the I4?
Click to expand...
DPFs are designed to trap ash long term. No way to avoid at least a slow buildup.

A high mileage motor using some oil is going to fill the DPF faster.
 
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