Glow Plugs Continue to Fail

Pohlgb

New member
I have had a Sprinter RV for 9 years and had 4 glow plugs fail. Replacing them at the dealer is $400 each. (No controller). What is happening? Do they make non OEM glow plugs that last longer. Seems like a lot to pay for a spark plug.
 

smiller

2008 View J (2007 NCV3 3500)
Glow plugs are a consumable item and four plugs in nine years of operation isn't particularly abnormal (as long as we are talking about random failures over time.) However a Bosch or BERU OEM glow plug is about $15 and takes maybe 30 minutes to replace so why anyone would charge $400 for it is another issue.
 

smiller

2008 View J (2007 NCV3 3500)
Well a dealer has to pay for overhead and make a profit so naturally things are going to be marked up over DIY pricing, but $400 for a single plug does sound rather excessive. You might want to shop around, in such a populated area there must be a more reasonable independent shop or two.
 

smiller

2008 View J (2007 NCV3 3500)
Glow plug failure modes tend to be pretty straightforward. Most often the resistance goes out of spec due to age (sometimes they last 20k miles, sometimes 200k miles) and seemingly not much rhyme or reason for that. Sometimes glow plug failures are misdiagnosed due to some other issue such as a bad glow plug controller, but it's easy to check the resistance of a plug to verify it good or bad. Also there have been occurrences of plugs failing due to installation of an incorrect controller during service but in those cases the problem should be immediately obvious.


.
 
Last edited:

bcislander

'07 Mercedes-badged Dodge
Ok thanks!

I think my controller might be the issue.
Putting your Sprinter details in a 'signature' that appears in each post you make would be of great assistance to anyone reading your posts and might make diagnosis/solution of the problem more accurate.

Also, since this problem is a 'chassis' problem, not a 'house' problem, it would have been better to post this thread in the NCV3 (guessing here) Sprinter section of the Forum or the general Sprinter section.

For example, the original GP module on early NCV3 Sprinters is a known point of failure and has been replaced with the 'latest & greatest' version. The GP module is trivial to access and replace for almost any DIYer, so all you would have to do is buy it and replace it yourself, for less than $400.
 

smiller

2008 View J (2007 NCV3 3500)
But again, always check glow plug resistance first as a part of any diagnostic procedure. If the plug is out of tolerance then it is bad and the problem is not the controller, or vice versa.
 

LucasCali

New member
Thank You. I wish we had someone that would install them in SoCal for that amount.
I worked in El Segundo, CA & used the following for my Gas MBZ. Because many MBZ’s are Diesel, I would think they could help on your Sprinter Glow-Plugs. Give them a call.

dynamicperformanceauto.com

Dynamic Performance at 1717 N Sepulveda Blvd, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266

(310) 546-7466

I found them to be Very Honest, highly qualified, and best of all affordable.

Lucas
 

StanUbeki

New member
I believe glow plugs are only needed for cold starts. If your engine starts in SoCal and you don’t go north of the Arctic Circle, you may not need to be concerned.
 

Top Bottom