What did you do to your Sprinter today.

flman

Roadrunner, Genius of Birds ALWAYS WINS! NO FAILS!
I noticed coolant leak drips on the left front corner!! :thumbup:

Good news... I think. On the way down and back to Florida I needed to add coolant twice. I found no evidence of leaking. My concern was that it could be the recently installed new MB coolant pump, or the coolant was going into the engine. There is a definite drip now. It may still be an expensive fix, but at least it appears it's not being lost into the engine. That's a good thing.

I'm going to try to wait out further inspection/work until our weather improves.

vic
Espar?
 

220629

Well-known member
Nope. The passenger side loosened clamp appeared to have been the problem. No leaks since tightening. Apparent shoddy workmanship on the pump install. I'd fire the idiot, but he just works so cheap and he's family.

Seriously though. I'm pretty certain that I tightened the clamp. It loosened over time/miles all the way down to Florida and back. Either I didn't tighten it sufficiently or the clamp is defective. I'm keeping an eye on it.

vic
 

hippy

Hardware Modifier
Fitted a small led light bar to the rear edge of the front crossmember underneath the gearbox, it's switchable from the driver's seat base. It acts as a puddle light for the entire van from the front doors back and it's focus is the ground under the diff. At the moment it's only via a physical switch but eventually it will be activated via PSM when reverse is selected and/or a long press/double press on the keyfob.

It so when I'm reversing into gaps at festivals and outdoor events I can see the rear tyres clearly lit up so I don't run over tent pegs/tents/stoners/bottles/passed out drunks/ etc as well as making working underneath and inspecting easier and the camp setup easier. Much easier to back up ramps/bits of wood at night time out in a field somewhere or in the woods.
 

Nightpanda

2016 4x4 144 premie
Installed a new portable toilet today. Went with Dometic 976. The Thetford Porta Potti Curve we had kept leaking from a seam on the top tank. They replaced it for us and it started to leak again from the same spot. So we decided to go with Dometic instead. Around $150 with brackets.
View attachment 214833
We had the same problem and same solution. The hold down kit is more robust as well :)
 

SprinterVanGuy

Well-known member
@SprinterVanGuy - how pray tell did you deal with the corrosion? Did you cut and blend or?
80-90% of the work was done with only iron remover, rubbing compound, polish, and a lot of elbow grease. From 10 feet away it looked great after this. But still some small bubbles.

I managed to sand down a few of those bubbles and fill them in with primer, touch up paint, and clear coat.

Unfortunately I still have some bubbles & chips to work on. The remaining chips will fill in nicely with a paint pen. Today I ran out of sunlight and energy. I’ll probably tackle the rest on the weekend.
 
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220629

Well-known member
...

Unfortunately I still have some bubbles & chips to work on. The remaining chips will fill in nicely with a paint pen. Today I ran out of sunlight and energy. I’ll probably tackle the rest on the weekend.
Chips are one thing. The hood has a different paint process so bubbles there are less of a problem. The bubbles are insidious. In my experience grinding them open there are always little tentacles of rust trails radiating out. If those trails are not taken out they can restart the bubble process in a short time.

I've never been one to polish/wax my trucks. They basically get a bath when God deems it proper. After some bad experience with the 2004 Arctic Whitewash paint I treat the more decent 2006 Arctic Whitewash better. We have found that a wash and polish program Spring and Fall has reduced the paint bubble issues significantly. I generally use Nu Finish polish, but have also used other products. As long as quality polish is applied, I think that the twice a year schedule is more important than product selection.

vic
 
Good on you for those before and after pics. Very nice work there.

Anytime spent here will tell you that the windshield frame under the glass is almost surely holding a few more surprises. I have changed out my windshield twice in over a decade and each time it was amazing how much rusting was going on where the sun don't shine.

In my case, I never needed any welding, whew!, but the rust was distributed in patches around the entire frame. I blame the useless rubber molding that seals out nothing and allows the cancer to proliferate.

After reading here, I took that to heart and eliminated that molding by relying upon the adhesive to seal the glass which it does, along with some added black caulk to fill and seal the edges of the glass. No moisture can get to metal frame under the glass.

The next time I need a new windshield, I am hoping this makes difference. It has to be better than what we got from MB that seals out nothing. The weep holes along the bottom edge may be helpful, but a molding that lets water in, needs a rethink, me thinks. haha Thanks to all here.

One last addition I did was painting the whole windshield area and more with a gray Herculiner truck bedliner roll-on product for what I hope is a one and done rust preventative. I too, tend to not wash my van as often as I should, but give it an occasional rinse off. In that respect, the bedliner is ideal for me.
 
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TorqueMonster72

Red Forman is my hero dumbass
Finally put in the two deep cycle AGM GC2 6V 230Ah batteries under the hood as well as a plug in for charging/float the starter battery. Now to move all parasitic draw to the deep cycle batteries.
Also added a NEMA port to be able to plug into the charger/coolant heater without draping a cord out of the hood
Plug Charger.JPG Deep Cycle GC2.JPG
 

220629

Well-known member
Yesterday the 2004 passed annual inspection. It needed a backup lamp. I checked the brake lamps and turn signal operation. Forgot to check reverse. :bash: Only 5000 miles since last inspection. 23 bucks all in for the inspection and lamp replacement won't break the bank.

In 2015 when I bought the 2006 I thought that I'd only get a few more low cost years out of 2004. It's been fairly inexpensive to keep going. Even if a major drive line maintenance cost doesn't finish it, the rust is inevitably going to do it in though. It is very handy having two Sprinters, but not at all necessary. I find I drive the 2004 more than the much better condition 2006.

vic
 

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