Mercedes Sprinter Chassis, 6 speed Sprintshift Automatic
- Thread starter Rod
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Covey
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I have a Hymer S700 A Class left hand drive which is built on a Sprinter T1N engine and chassis with an automatic gearbox. Date of build was 1997.
When I bought the vehicle 4 months ago, the previous owner gave me two very large carrier bags full of documentation.
I have all the service records since the vehicle was built and all the servicing has been done by Merc Commercial Dealers since Day1. I had a full Merc Maintenance Service done two weeks ago and the basic service cost £628. It ain't cheap, but if your target vehicle has a full service history with Merc then you can read it like a book as to what has been done and when. Merc servicing mainly runs on condition and my T1N has Oil Change services and Maintenance services. Oil changes are 10,000kms apart but the more modern vehicles have far more reasonable intervals. Maintenance Services are really annual or on condition.
An oil change for the T1N Sprinter is 29 litres of mineral oil!!!!!! Merc believed in lots of oil to keep the engine cool! I could save money and have my servicing done by a guy around the corner, but my view is that an unbroken record of Merc servicing helps maintain the value of the vehicle. In this I might well be proved wrong!!!
My Sprinter chassis is immaculate and has no signs of rust and still has almost all its original off white chassis paint intact.
Rumour has it that the Merc motorhomes are more reliable than the Fiats but I am told that the current Fiat 3L Diesel engines are very good. You pays your money and takes your choice. You will normally pay more for a Merc based MH but interior wise (which is where you actually live!!!) it makes no difference so the Merc badge is an expensive asset to have but well worth the bragging rights!!!
If the vehicle you are looking at has an incomplete history or gaps in the servicing, then avoid like the plague!!!!!
When I bought the vehicle 4 months ago, the previous owner gave me two very large carrier bags full of documentation.
I have all the service records since the vehicle was built and all the servicing has been done by Merc Commercial Dealers since Day1. I had a full Merc Maintenance Service done two weeks ago and the basic service cost £628. It ain't cheap, but if your target vehicle has a full service history with Merc then you can read it like a book as to what has been done and when. Merc servicing mainly runs on condition and my T1N has Oil Change services and Maintenance services. Oil changes are 10,000kms apart but the more modern vehicles have far more reasonable intervals. Maintenance Services are really annual or on condition.
An oil change for the T1N Sprinter is 29 litres of mineral oil!!!!!! Merc believed in lots of oil to keep the engine cool! I could save money and have my servicing done by a guy around the corner, but my view is that an unbroken record of Merc servicing helps maintain the value of the vehicle. In this I might well be proved wrong!!!
My Sprinter chassis is immaculate and has no signs of rust and still has almost all its original off white chassis paint intact.
Rumour has it that the Merc motorhomes are more reliable than the Fiats but I am told that the current Fiat 3L Diesel engines are very good. You pays your money and takes your choice. You will normally pay more for a Merc based MH but interior wise (which is where you actually live!!!) it makes no difference so the Merc badge is an expensive asset to have but well worth the bragging rights!!!
If the vehicle you are looking at has an incomplete history or gaps in the servicing, then avoid like the plague!!!!!
mark61
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29 litres seems a huge amount.
Covey
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Don't I know it!!!
Apparently Merc went down the "lots of oil" (mineral only!!)design route to produce an engine that stayed cool and did not rely on high stress turbo type components. Timing is via a chain whereas most modern vehicles use a rubber type camshaft drive belt.
The downside is the oil change service is every 10,000kms and a deep pocket if Merc do it!!
Long gone are the days when a car used 5lt of GTX for a fiver from Halfords.
Apparently Merc went down the "lots of oil" (mineral only!!)design route to produce an engine that stayed cool and did not rely on high stress turbo type components. Timing is via a chain whereas most modern vehicles use a rubber type camshaft drive belt.
The downside is the oil change service is every 10,000kms and a deep pocket if Merc do it!!
Long gone are the days when a car used 5lt of GTX for a fiver from Halfords.
mark61
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Covey
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I have just checked in my Hynes manual and it should be 9.5L. The 29L figure came from the previous owner or I am getting dyslexic in my old age. Must keep taking the tablets!!!!
Oil change interval is still 10,000kms. My Hymer was originally registered in Germany for its first 10 years so all the books and documents are in German which is why I bought the Hynes manual to cover the Sprinter bits.
Sorry for the confusion!!
Oil change interval is still 10,000kms. My Hymer was originally registered in Germany for its first 10 years so all the books and documents are in German which is why I bought the Hynes manual to cover the Sprinter bits.
Sorry for the confusion!!