freightliner diesel van

[Soundguy]

wife wants a van to replace her yukon.

she just texted me a pic of a freightliner van ( i didn't even know freight liner made passbager vehicles.. or vans.. etc. )

kinda looks like a mercedes i guess. high roof. etc.

Not even knowing freightliner made em.. I guess .. I have plenty of questions.. like. is this a smart idea. or any time i need a doo dad for this thing instead of hitting napa am I gonna have to go down to the local truck stop?

 

[Soundguy]

on second thought. is this just a rebranded sprinter? thus menaing it's why the mercedes is likely a sprinter, since all sprinters are pretty much alike?

 

[JESSE1]

The Freightliner is a re-branded Mercedes Sprinter. Daimler owns Freightliner.

 

[Soundguy]

ahh ok. i started thinking about it, and I had half a thought it might be a sprinter.

 

[Soundguy]

ps forgot.

thanks

 

[rswyan]

wife wants a van to replace her yukon.

she just texted me a pic of a freightliner van ( i didn't even know freight liner made passbager vehicles.. or vans.. etc. )

kinda looks like a mercedes i guess. high roof. etc.

Not even knowing freightliner made em.. I guess .. I have plenty of questions.. like. is this a smart idea. or any time i need a doo dad for this thing instead of hitting napa am I gonna have to go down to the local truck stop?

SG,

Ask away ...

We own an '06 which is Dodge badged, and currently has over 432,000 miles. We are the original owners. I average around 24 to 25 mpg, mostly over the road/highway driving.

In answer to your first question: no ... Autozone and Napa - at least around here - stock parts for them.

 

[Soundguy]

now that's a testimonial...

one of the ones we say was an 03. older than i wanted. but i'm willing to look. yukon is starting the nickel / dime stage. i couldn't see over the fence what year the mercedes was. both looked to be in great shape. saw the diesel sticker on the freightliner.

guess i gotta go take a look.

thanks

SG,

Ask away ...

We own an '06 which is Dodge badged, and currently has over 432,000 miles. We are the original owners. I average around 24 to 25 mpg, mostly over the road/highway driving.

In answer to your first question: no ... Autozone and Napa - at least around here - stock parts for them.

 

[motownbrowne]

They get good mileage. Most people can stand up in them. A guy on here put his bx with a backhoe inside of one.

Other than that, from my research, they are way way overpriced and not very reliable.

Rswyan, I don't mean to dismiss your experience, but that record doesn't seem to be the norm. Both people I know who bought them (used for between 20-30k) ended up with major engine failures and took a big hit on them. That's all I know.

 

[PoorPlowboy]

I have an 04 passenger version in my fleet at work. At only 90k miles it has been through two turbos and two ECUs. The ECUs were about $1100 each and the turbo service ran about $4k each time. Other than that it's been nickel and dime issues like the windows falling off the track, doors that refuse to seal closed due to crappy latch mechanisms. Right now the ac compressor for the rear AC is seized up.

Every time we take it in for service, everyone at the dealership asks us very seriously if we're sure we're not ready to trade it in on something else. We're still upside down on it overall and I can't foresee it ever paying for itself.

 

[texasjohn]

It's a Sprinter. We purchased a used 2007 sprinter which had been outfitted as a limousine. We had a special need for the size, height, lots of captain's chairs, easy to move around in while traveling, etc. It is a dream to drive and to ride in particularly on long trips. Mechanically, there have been numerous things gone bad...and it's really, really spendy to get them fixed at the dealer. My regular mechanics don't want to deal with the problems. The onboard computer is exceptionally complex..if you have the right diagnostic, dealer only, it will tell you which glow plug is bad and which tail light bulb is bad. Lots and lots of sensors...low coolant, brake wear, many sensors not typically found. all this means that the check engine light is always on for one reason or another. We've stopped fixing all the things that would turn it off. Being a diesel, it will pass inspection with the check engine light on. The net is that if you truly need the volume it has and the seating/cargo capacity it has, then there is nothing else on the market which comes close. We have 120k miles on the odometer, but it spent lots of its life idling away. there are two air conditioners, front and back. Here in Texas on hot days they simply cannot get the interior cool like any other car can do, too much volume. I installed numerous 12V small fans and they help ...also painted the top white to reflect sun. My net is that if you can buy used at an great price (we have about $35K in it, purchase and repairs so far) and have need for the unique features of the vehicle, and it's in good shape, then it's worth considering. But, be prepared for strange mechanical things you may not have seen on other vehicles.

For us, the ease of loading up, quickly, 5 adults plus two kids plus gear for special needs kid plus regular baby gear plus two adult friends and their 2 kids to go out for a meal or to the park is worth it. Nothing else will do this while allowing people over 6 feet to stand up and move around and care for kids while traveling.

We have the 2500 model, single rear tires, longest body. It parks amazingly easy, particularly if you can back in and hang the rear over a sidewalk or grassy area. You MUST be able to back up using rear mirrors. MUST