A Three Year Update on the Journey with my 2010 Sprinter

Wheeljack

Active member
Someone asked about the DPF bracket that I had replaced. I realized it wasn't clear in my write-up, and I had posted most of the details in a thread specifically related to cracked DPF brackets.

Anyway, back in summer 2017, after reading about cracked brackets, I crawled under the van to see what mine looked like. I was somewhere just past 100K miles or so, and basically 7 years old at that point. Sure enough, the bracket was indeed cracked. It had started at the bottom and propagated up to a small hole near mid-height. The crack is circled in RED. I ordered a replacement, shown here, and they had added a strap to bridge the problem area, shown by the RED arrows. So I swapped it out and haven't paid much attention to it since. I think I even have an extra because I ordered two to see if I could get one as fast as possible because we were heading out on a trip.



Installed:



So keep an eye on those DPF brackets before they cause a much more expensive problem!
 

Wheeljack

Active member
Nice write-up. How long it took to replace this bracket?
Thanks, George!

It took maybe 30-45 minutes. Like many vehicle repairs, there was something in the way of 1 or 2 of the mounting bolts, but I can't remember exactly what it was without crawling underneath and looking. Maybe a harness or something had to be maneuvered out of the way a little bit. All in all, was a pretty easy swap and the DPF stayed in place enough to not need any persuasion to get all of the bracket mounting holes lined up.
 

goinoregon

New member
Did you ever think about putting the bed supports up higher to provide a bit more garage, and maybe allow bikes inside? or another set of the brackets up higher, so you can start with bed up higher, with camping gear below, and when you get to 'camp' take camping gear out? and move bed back down? though I don't know if the ikea support brkts would span different widths, as I think the sprinter walls are different widths at different points on the wall.
 

Wheeljack

Active member
Did you ever think about putting the bed supports up higher to provide a bit more garage, and maybe allow bikes inside? or another set of the brackets up higher, so you can start with bed up higher, with camping gear below, and when you get to 'camp' take camping gear out? and move bed back down? though I don't know if the ikea support brkts would span different widths, as I think the sprinter walls are different widths at different points on the wall.
Yes, but like so many decisions, comparing the trade-offs and factoring in what was important to us specifically is what drove the layout we ended up with.

First, the IKEA Skorva cross-members have plenty of telescopic adjustment to handle the van width from top to bottom, and all variations in between. I don't know the full range but probably around 48" to 76" or so as they are meant to run lengthwise for the IKEA bed frames.

We use the garage area under the bed to store a lot of camping, biking, and climbing gear and other random things like firewood, or tools. We've not ever really thought we wanted or needed much more space under here. Often when we are out doing overnight trips, half of this area gets cleared up for our third sleeping spot. During some of the early planning we had also thought about putting up an narrow 'bunk' for this additional sleeping spot. That was maybe one reason early on why we wanted to keep the bed platform a little lower. But also we wanted to have enough room to sit up in bed without feeling cramped.

The photos showing just the bed platform make it look pretty low, but with the 8in foam mattresses and bedding, we were about as high as we wanted to go. Also, it gets a bit more involved adding in mounting locations higher up because you are starting to run up into the window voids when you start to go higher. So you need to add some type of additional structure to mount the brackets to. Not an insurmountable problem, but it wasn't part of my initial plan of keeping it simple by being able to put the mounting plates along the horizontal member below the window cutouts.

I didn't really want to put wet, dirty bikes in the van either. That, and having to take the front wheels off of freeride bikes with ~5 screws per wheel, isn't something I want to do every time I transport the bikes. If we ever need to leave the van out of site in a questionable spot for a long time when we have the bikes, we just put the bikes in the front part of the van, or store them inside if that is an option. Even if I could just move the bed higher without having to add another mounting rail or something, I don't think we would do it because the vertical height above the bed is perfect for us.

Here you can see how much vertical space is lost from the mattress/bedding:



 
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Wheeljack

Active member
I like the exposed fastener look on your interior walls... sorry if I missed it, but what are they ? Do you have a link ?
I've been using the factory 'washers' like the plastic panels used, now NLA:



Since they are NLA and I need a few more, I posted a WTB ad, but it has been crickets so far...

https://sprinter-source.com/forum/showthread.php?t=78987
 
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Wheeljack

Active member
It's not often I'm impressed by customer service, but this was a pleasant surprise. We all know about the Takata airbag recall disaster that pretty much wiped out the company. Of course, many of our Sprinters were impacted as they were a supplier to so many auto manufacturers, including MB. I had the passenger side airbag replaced under the recall campaign probably almost 2 years ago, but the steering wheel airbag was back-ordered when my van was in for DEF-related repairs, which is when the passenger side was replaced. Well, after getting many notices over the course of the past 2 years, and recently getting weekly phone calls and bi-weekly mailings, I received a postcard with an offer that enticed me enough to finally have the steering wheel airbag replaced. You know, because the possibility of it exploding in my face and sending metal fragments into my brain just wasn't quite enough.

Anyway, it was an offer to receive a $125 Shell card which seemed like a really nice 'peace offering' on their part. So I scheduled my appointment a couple weeks back and hung out at MB Reno for about 2 hours while I had some lattes and various breakfast pastries while they replaced the airbag and washed my van. And, of course the complimentary inspection, in hopes of finding something wrong they could charge exorbitant amounts to fix. Well, I left with a clean bill of health, and today my $125 Shell card arrived. Pretty happy with MB on this one, even though I'm sometimes quick to jump on them for other issues I have. I do love my Sprinter.

So, if you haven't, you should try to jump on this deal because it sounded like it was somewhat limited, and I was kind of expecting them to say sorry, it's not available anymore, even though I scheduled my appointment the day I got the offer.

 
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Wheeljack

Active member
Anyway, it was an offer to receive a $125 Shell card which seemed like a really nice 'peace offering' on their part. So I scheduled my appointment a couple weeks back and hung out at MB Reno for about 2 hours while I had some lattes and various breakfast pastries while they replaced the airbag and washed my van. And, of course the complimentary inspection, in hopes of finding something wrong they could charge exorbitant amounts to fix. Well, I left with a clean bill of health, and today my $125 Shell card arrived.
So the story gets even better...the Shell card had $200 on it. Cha-Ching!
 

Wheeljack

Active member
I recently had to take a trip in Cargo mode, so pulled everything out of the van for some hauling. While it was out, I also took some photos that show what the adhesive plank vinyl flooring is doing after a few years of use. As I mentioned previously, I was hesitant but it was a cheap option and worth trying, and really isn't too bad, or I would have probably replaced it by now. Unless you really start looking closely, you don't really notice the movement that has taken place in some areas. Anyway, on to the pictures...











 

Wheeljack

Active member
1/18/2020: Glow Plug #5 Replacement Write-up

A few weeks back, I started up the van and noticed the glow plug came back in after starting, followed by the CEL.

Pulled out the scanner, and sure enough, we had an active error code of P0675, indicating an open circuit on glow plug #5.


Of course, the first thing I do is consult the sprinter-source forum as I recalled many related threads with good info on diagnosis and repair.
After reading through a couple threads with different failure scenarios and questions of ceramic and steel plugs/modules, I pulled out the camera and multi-meter.

Dennis is always a help to figure things out...


Glow Plug Module to see the part number to confirm which glow plugs I have:


I wasn't keen on needing the dealer to tell me whether I had ceramic or steel glow plugs/module, which is apparently possible with the BlueTech Sprinters.
So I used the light and camera to snap a picture of the control module, which should tell me which ones I'm dealing with.



Then, pulled off the multi-pin connector to ohm out the plugs and verify the #5 open circuit. Sure enough, one by one, 0.6 ohms for #1-4, and #6, but #5 was showing OC, so the problem was confirmed.
I verified the module number, which confirmed I was dealing with steel glow plugs, and then went to my favorite online euro parts place, autohausaz.com, to order up a spare.

The good plugs are reading 0.6 ohm:


But #5 is a full open circuit:


Ordered and received Bosch glow plug 0 250 403 008, Made in France, came with code to verify authenticity.

Fresh Glow Plug:


I thought about getting more than one, as ths shipping costs can be amortized, or even eliminated, if I bought $75 worth of parts. But often, I end up doing that only to have spare parts sitting until I eventually retire or sell the vehicle. Not this time, just one for about $25.
The module part number was A 642 900 58 which apparently was pre-DEF NCV3 vans, but mine is also an early model, 2010, so may just be normal.
I got the replacement glow plug but had to wait out some weather as we got about 3 feet of snow followed by rain over Thanksgiving holiday.
Research suggested taking them out when warm, doing a pre-soak with your favorite penetrant (PB Blaster, Kroil, etc.), blasting any debris from the vicinity so it doesn't drop into the hole or get into the threads.

So after taking a few things apart, I had the glow plug connector free:


This #5 was looking pretty oily upon removal?


So it turns out that coincidentally #1 went bad at some point after #5, so a week or two later I pulled the cover from the passenger side of the engine. This was also pretty easy to replace, but the most difficult part was the wiring harness was sitting on top of the CP connector. And with as stiff as the large bundle is, it took some persuasion to get enough wiggle room to pry up the connector. I just used a flathead screwdriver which worked but was far from elegant. And I bought 2 plugs this time, so I am sitting on a spare now. But now all the codes are gone and no warning lights.

Codes confirmed by another resistance check like before:


Not a full open circuit like #5, but at 1.9Mohm, something isn't right:


View of the top of the engine with covers removed:


Old and new #1 glow plug. Wasn't any oil on this one like I saw on #5.
 
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Wheeljack

Active member
Wow how time flies...guess we are at about 4 years, and 4 months now...

Back in October, it was time for the 10K maintenance which involved oil change, oil filter, air filter, and fuel filter. I used up half of my remaining stock of old Valvoline 5w-40 ESP VV966 that was still rated at 229.51. So I mixed half of that with the Mobil 5w-30 thinking I can keep the viscosity up for a little while longer. I will likely stick with the 229.51 moving forward but 30 is the highest viscosity that is readily available and not prohibitively expensive. Seems to be just fine and only $5/quart...but it can get hot AF in the summers here.





Sitting at about 135K miles now. Van is running well, although the transmission has an occasional rough shift. It may need a fluid change/check.







I still need to finish up a few things, of course. Currently the folding e-brake handle is installed, but haven't yet swapped out the cable. Probably going to have to wait until spring.



 
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Wheeljack

Active member
Small update... (and looking above I remember I still need to get the e-brake and drivers swivel sorted at some point)...

I had been wanting some overhead storage and with the intention to keep with the lightweight and modular design, the AdWagon MULE bags seemed the best fit, once you've recovered from sticker shock.

At $400/each, these aren't inexpensive for what are essentially reinforced, custom-fit duffel bags. That said, I was hard-pressed to come up with any DIY solution that I felt held a similar overall value, although there are certainly both much cheaper (literally duffel bags as one user has done) and more expensive.

One thing to consider is the cost of the (2) 96in L-track rails or however the mounting is being done. I used L-track as that is what they are designed for, and seemed good for flexibility and removal in the future. It adds roughly $200 in materials (track and hardware) and a few hours of work. For now, I've got (10) 1/4-20 screws holding the wall rail and (5) screws on the ceiling. I would have liked to add something similar to the AdWagon speed strut to allow for better load distribution. I'll just use them for light duty.

I just pulled down the wall and ceiling panels and popped in the nutserts, drilled holes in the panels, and also had to make some adjustments to the holes on the L-track. Both due to some misalignment and also to put some holes in between factory locations.

Overall, I'm happy with how it turned out. They are very sturdy. It does feel a bit more cramped, and we didn't really 'need' this storage, so I'm not fully convinced they will stay for good. But we'll give them a try for the upcoming season. It also hides the wire bundle for most of the van's length, but still have some small areas to 'clean up' the fit and finish at some point, but not a high priority as the ROI is getting pretty low at this stage of the build.

Installed bags:


L-track installed:


Modifications to celing trim and panels:


Full length L-track:


Mock up and test fitting after installing inserts:
 

mincai

New member
Very nice build ! I have a 2016 170wb passenger van and I plan to use a similar layout. But my factory seat location seems to be different from yours. My first row of passenger seat is too close to the front and the second row is too far away from the front. Did you use the factory seat mount?AD6C3B72-8436-4C5F-BE8C-CCB1095A0B5A.jpeg
 
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Wheeljack

Active member
...Did you use the factory seat mount?
My cargo van did not have any seat mounts, so I put it where I wanted. It is very close to what is commonly referred to as the 1.5 position, and I believe you can move your mounts so the front hole mounts into the back hole of your first row so you can use the same threaded inserts. I believe you still need to drill some additional holes though. If you dig around here, there are plenty of examples with the details you will need.
 

RVBarry

2023 AWD 170 DIY CamperVan
Moving crew seat:
 

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