Newbie Here-- Some basic questions!

[samhouston]

Hi all,

New to the forum and have just been introduced to the world of Sprinters. Thinking of taking an extended, slow road trip this spring (Jan-June) around 10k miles.

I've always been interested in well designed, small spaces and I have my mind's eye firmly set on doing this in a Sprinter at the moment. At present I have no vehicle to speak of, but have about a $10k budget to work with.

I've been poking around craigslist a bit and found this guy has a 2004 118" (am I using the lingo correctly here??) with 183k miles sitting on it. The vehicle itself is in my price range ($7.2k) with a bit of room to do some conversion/ tinkering.

http://knoxville.craigslist.org/cto/3315020542.html

Full disclosure: I know you can't evaluate this vehicle via the internet, but what are gut reactions here? What kind of things should I be concerned with when I go take a look at the van? He told me it was previously used by FedEx for the beginning of it's life... is this generally a good thing in terms of service/ upkeep?

I honestly know very little about cars, but am here to learn and hope that you can at least point me in the correct direction.

Should I be worried about traveling cross country in a van with this kind of mileage already on it?

Perhaps I am barking up the wrong tree... Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

 

[jmoller99]

If it has been maintained using quality parts and the correct fluids, it will likely be a solid vehicle.
If not, it could have a lot of problems (just like any vehicle that was not taken care of).

 

[GaryJ]

It looks like a 140" wheelbase to me, not 118" from the pictures. It could be priced right if the maintenance was done correctly. Any more history?

Gary

 

[samhouston]

At this point all I know is that it was formerly a FedEx unit.

The current owner bought it thinking it would work to haul dirt bikes around the regional racing circuit, but is now looking around for the longer version instead.

The pass through from the cab to cargo area has been shoddily boarded up and jigsawed out around the cross section. This leads me to believe that perhaps there was perhaps an intermediary owner as well (as the current owner hasn't modified it at all).

Is carfax the standard to judge these things by? Again, I know very little about this process, so I really appreciate your insight. I have never bought a used car before and haven't even regularly driven a car in nearly 8 years! I suppose I could ask the seller what information he has on the vehicle history on-hand as well. If I were to take it to a mechanic before making an offer, is there anything specific about this year/model that I would want them to check out?

Thanks again!

 

[Amboman]

Seems to be the right price but there are some FedEx owners on here with plenty of stories to tell about dirt road usage,
a lot of clues will be underneath the vehicle.

 

[RSchleder]

FEDEX vehicles really get some rough usage. The drivers are not the owners so they use the truck as a tool and there's most likely been lot of start/stop driving, idling, and who knows how many thousands of miles it has traveled on wet dirt/gravel roads. IMHO, I'd stay away from any Sprinter or for that matter, any other vehicle, that's been used for industrial/commercial use. I say PASS!

 

[A.Hayes]

You've come to the right place to do some research. Here's a start:
https://sprinter-source.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5174&highlight=tips+buying

Good luck!

 

[modrover]

Can you have it inspected by a Freightliner, Dodge, Mercedes Benz, or even an independent diesel rig shop (that knows Sprinters)? That would certainly put things at ease.

If the seller won't agree to a shop inspection (at your cost mind you)... then I'd pass on it. A diesel rig is usually more $ when big ticket parts need replacement. Thankfully, they usually last a long time. Good luck to you!

 

[ECU]

I picked mine up with 300,000m. Did a carfax on it and found it had been in service only 18 months. It has been a good rig.

 

[autostaretx]

One of the photos shows a DOT number... perhaps you can chase down some of the history with that?
To my eyes, that price is suspiciously low... but if you mentally "reserve" the nearly $3k you're "saving" from your $10k budget for initial repairs, it may still be worth it.

I also agree that the pictured Sprinter is the mid-sized wheelbase (140").
The little thing above/behind the wheel behind the sliding door is the "door stop" for the 270-degree swinging rear door, not found on 118's.

It's being sold by a dealer, so there must be some reason they want to get rid of it quickly.
(what's Blue Book on these things these days? ... visit www.edmunds.com )

--dick

 

[samhouston]

Thanks for the excellent advice everyone.

This will definitely give me a good place to start. Now if only I had the time to jump into this project like I want to!

You'll probably be hearing from me around the forum later if I do manage to acquire a Sprinter and start some modifications, but thanks again for the warm welcome.

 

[samhouston]

Further investigation via Edmunds puts the National Base price on a 2500 High Roof 140 WB 3dr Van at $7700 with a private seller. With a mileage adjustment (~$1500) and a condition adjustment (~$2000) the total number drop significantly.

This is for a Dodge, however, and this is a Freightliner... can I assume these are basically interchangeable in terms of resale value?

Either way, this figure seems extra low even in comparison to the price being asked ($7200).

Next step is a mechanic I suppose... thanks again!

 

[jmoller99]

There are trim differences between the T1N Freigtlinters and Dodge - the head lights are also different as is the front grill. The remaining 99.99% are the same.

I have a Freightliner and have not have any problems getting parts - the mechanicals are the same for same years/same models between Freightliners and Dodge Sprinters.

The key is how well it was maintained. Fedex takes care of its vehicles, but they also tend to drive them pretty hard.

Based on the picture, its a 140 WB (not a 118 WB), however, maybe that's not a picture of the Sprinter for sale.

 

[mendonsy]

I am a bit suspicious about this vehicle ever being a Fedex van. Theirs are all long wheelbase and the last I knew they required all of them to be crushed when they are retired, never sold complete.