Pre purchase inspection in Las Vegas

Njclimber

Active member
I was recommended franks european service through the forum but after having a head gasket done there I cant overstate enough that whatever you do, do NOT GO TO Frank's.

What's your time frame? I'll be back in town in November and very sprinter savvy
 

Kajtek1

2015 3500 X long limo RV
I don't see too many Sprinters in Las Vegas and > 10 yo van will not have much paint left.
I can scan the van for you and walk around, but any vehicle of such age is higher risk of engine or transmission problems.
Read what are common issue on the engine in question, so you will know what to observe.
 

helpmeimdumb

New member
I was recommended franks european service through the forum but after having a head gasket done there I cant overstate enough that whatever you do, do NOT GO TO Frank's.

What's your time frame? I'll be back in town in November and very sprinter savvy
I don't have a strict timeframe, I'm just looking to build it into a camper and want to start sooner than later. Thanks for the advice to avoid franks I'll keep that in mind.

https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/inven...Helper.selectedEntity=c1666#listing=280750752 this is the specific sprinter that I was wanting to check out.
 

helpmeimdumb

New member
I don't see too many Sprinters in Las Vegas and > 10 yo van will not have much paint left.
I can scan the van for you and walk around, but any vehicle of such age is higher risk of engine or transmission problems.
Read what are common issue on the engine in question, so you will know what to observe.
Thank you for the offer but I really couldn't ask you to do that without paying you, and if I'm paying someone then it might as well be a shop that can really dig into it right?

Also would you recommend I build on a different platform than the T1N? I'm trying to keep the initial van purchase ~12k or under. I would get a gas high top but, I think the fuel economy would offset the initial price and maintenance costs of a sprinter. And the added room and comfort would be worth something.
 

Njclimber

Active member
Here's something to think about; hertz is going out of business. About a month ago I was finding 2017 tall transits with less than 100k miles on them for under $15k!!!! That's really a steal and honestly if I could choose between a 2017 transit with less than 100k and an old t1n....well I'd hands down choose the transit every time.
 

Kajtek1

2015 3500 X long limo RV
Thank you for the offer but I really couldn't ask you to do that without paying you, and if I'm paying someone then it might as well be a shop that can really dig into it right?

Also would you recommend I build on a different platform than the T1N? I'm trying to keep the initial van purchase ~12k or under. I would get a gas high top but, I think the fuel economy would offset the initial price and maintenance costs of a sprinter. And the added room and comfort would be worth something.
Than read what the shop will do in their PPI package.
Most of shops will do "roadworthy" inspection.
They will tell you tires thread, brake pads, but they will not do any performance test and often overlook engine leaks.
Pads are cheap, tires you can see by yourself, while engine can have problems worth big thousand$$$.
I am big admirer of OM651 engine (have 4 of them in family fleet) and that 1 comes in newer models.
 

helpmeimdumb

New member
Here's something to think about; hertz is going out of business. About a month ago I was finding 2017 tall transits with less than 100k miles on them for under $15k!!!! That's really a steal and honestly if I could choose between a 2017 transit with less than 100k and an old t1n....well I'd hands down choose the transit every time.
Do you have more info on how to buy one of these? On there website the only high top I see is a 2018 thats $30k. Could be that all of the good deals are gone, but I may be looking in the wrong place.
 

helpmeimdumb

New member
Than read what the shop will do in their PPI package.
Most of shops will do "roadworthy" inspection.
They will tell you tires thread, brake pads, but they will not do any performance test and often overlook engine leaks.
Pads are cheap, tires you can see by yourself, while engine can have problems worth big thousand$$$.
I am big admirer of OM651 engine (have 4 of them in family fleet) and that 1 comes in newer models.
All of the newer sprinters I see seem to have similar mileage but are more expensive, so if I was to get a newer one for the same price then its a trade off of paying more money for a newer vehicle, but similar mileage. So it seems like I have to weigh price age and mileage against each other and the older sprinters seem to come up ahead for me, also I'd prefer to have a 158" wb. Am I missing something here, cause I'm by no means an expert?
 

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