Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!

Dodge Sprinter

1…1112141617…24

Comments

  • nescosmonescosmo Member Posts: 453
    Host please could you explain to bsperty about the screaming on post #722. Thanks......
  • surlyoldbillsurlyoldbill Member Posts: 36
    Thanks for the info. However, for this oil change, I would rather get the filter locally rather than wait and pay shipping as well. The local "good old boys" auto parts store has the Hastings filters in stock, $8. Because the oil was so dark and thick, I don't know if it had ever been changed before (20k). I am going to use a cheaper non-syn oil for this change, and then change it again in a few thousand miles to the Mobil-1 0-40. That way I can clean some of the gunk out before doing what I hope will be a 15k oil change (and $75 worth of oil!). I may order a case of filters if the end price is comparable.
  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    I'll reply.

    bsperty - typing in all caps on an internet forum is considered "shouting". It also makes things difficult to read.

    Try posting without your caps locked.
  • jstein3jstein3 Member Posts: 1
    I am tring to get information on purchasing and customizing a Dodge Sprinter van for my family (6 kids). Nothing to fancy like Airstream but more that the box it comes as (and preferably not white). Does anybody know of a dealership that does this?
  • bspertybsperty Member Posts: 20
  • nescosmonescosmo Member Posts: 453
    Surlyoldbill....The 0w-40 oil is very thing and the engine will shatter very loud and also the configuration is not for diesel engine. The delo 400 is an cl4+ oil made for diesel and when you use it the engine will run smooth and not loud at all. The oil will get dirty at about 6000 miles of use, for a dino is the best. The Sprinter will work better with dino but also I replaced mine at 6000 miles not at ten as the book said. to me if you can replaced the oil at 5000 miles, the better. -The cleaner the oil the better will run. That is my opinion.
  • sprintermansprinterman Member Posts: 14
    Hello all.Just picked up my new Sprinter this week and I have a question regarding the daytime running lights.In Canada we
    must have daytime running lights to properly register the vehicle.Does anyone know if the daytime running lights are activated through the computer? I don't want to damage the computer if I install a relay connected to the start switch
    in order to turn my lights on upon starting the vehicle.
    Thank you for any information regarding this issue.
    By the way,I am really impressed with the fuel mileage on my first trip.
    Guy
  • sonnywood2sonnywood2 Member Posts: 38
    i have the maintenance asst in my 2006 sprinter and would like to know if anyone knows how to reset the maintenance asst to zero after service. can i change it without voiding the warranty my dealer quoted me about $200.00 for the oil, oil filter and fuel filter. i think that is a bit steep so i would like to do it myself. is that what everyone has been paying? they also said i had to change it at 10,000 look in my book. so i did and i read it to say change when it tells you. got 11,000 and says about 3000 more until it is due. isn't that why you pay the extra money for the maintenance asst? i don't think they are to hip on the sprinter. they only have one person to work on them. you need to make an appointment to get it serviced.
  • jim314jim314 Member Posts: 491
    all caps is jarring and is conventionally used to indicate SHOUTING. if you don't like to switch between lower and upper case, then you could use all lower case like a lot of people do. however, i usually don't. I use the standard convention for upper and lower case mainly partly because I am 62 years old and rigid.

    From the wording of your post it was clear you were not shouting. Your post was harder to read than it would have been in standard lower and upper case type, but punctuation is very often used to liven up prose. Your post conveyed the impression that the writer was a not very internet savy, old-fashioned grease-under-the-fingernails mechanic. This may lend more credibility to your posts for some people and reduce it for others. Lots of people intentionally give a certain impression over the net. Maybe you are acting, or maybe this is really you!

    I am not "offended" by all upper case, but I think we should write like our high school English teachers taught us to.

    Jim
  • altered3altered3 Member Posts: 59
    Just a case of a differnt point of view, to today's society
    One need's to be aware in the US! Of which,there is a differnt group of folk with varying education standards, time has changed, we no longer have the luxury of living in the fifty's.
    Unfortunatley standards have changed, as a direct result of Govenments failing to teach the basic, three R's.
    Altered Sprinter.
    Australian Citizen :sick:
    PS: And a for, the start letter! Is Capital =A :shades:
    No one's perfect, on the net.
  • sonnywood2sonnywood2 Member Posts: 38
    why is there so much confusion on the type of oil to use. my book on the 2006 says to use mobil 1 0w-40 change at 10,000 unless you have the asst. why are some you saying don't use mobil #1 that it is not a diesel oil. it is installed by the factory that builds it. they surely would not tell you to use something that is going to do it any harm. did the freight liner call for something other than mobil 1?
  • nescosmonescosmo Member Posts: 453
    Sonnywood2.....My 2005 book have 3 pages of different oil that you can use on the Sprinter, yes the 0-40 in one of them but not the only one. I have a Jeep CRD that DCX said to use the 0w-40 but the problem is that the CCV get the turbo cooler and the EGR valve clogged of dirty oil.
    The 0w-40 do more harm to your engine than good, that is why you should use 15w-40 or 5w-40 to reduce future problem with your inter cool and EGR valve. VW diesel run with the same problem with the oil they use. On my Jeep CRD I use a Proven 200 to avoid the problem.
  • sonnywood2sonnywood2 Member Posts: 38
    is what you are saying the mobil 1 is ok but i should use the different grade like 15w-40 not the 0w-40. i live in florida that is mostly hot. maybe a few days a year we go below 40 degrees.

    the book only says you should only use oil meeting api and/or daimler chrysler spec mb 228.3, 228.5, 229.3 and 229.5 such as mopar sae 15w-40 hd diesel engine oil (eg mopar part number 04798231ad or equivalent.
    thats all it has in my book on oil
    i got over 10,000 on it and it is quiet and has not used any oil.
  • alfaunoalfauno Member Posts: 13
    I have about 22k on my '05 2500 118". With the assyst program, I went 15k before the first oil change. My dealer charged $116 for 10 qts synthetic oil, filter and labor. i think that's fair - they check over all systems while it's in. A rear leaf spring cushion fell off, and they replaced it under warranty.
    I think the assyst program will assume you are using the recommended oil-which is synthetic. You could go well past the useful life of non-synthetic oil if you switch but still utilize the assyst recommendations.
  • nescosmonescosmo Member Posts: 453
    Sonny...I will get my book and write the oils that MB suggest to use; If you use 0w-40 all I can said is that at about 70 to 90k you will have to flush the intake ventilation system and more.
  • duffaholicduffaholic Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2002 Sprinter, and need to put in a new fuel pump, part # A 611 090 03 50, I talked to a parts company that said a chrysler part would be exactly the same, and over $700 cheaper ($979 vs $224). Does anyone know if this is true, and will part # 508-02255 AA fit into the 2002 freightliner sprinter 2500?
  • nescosmonescosmo Member Posts: 453
    Duffaholic.... Nest time do not foget to use lubricating additive in the fuel. which fuel pump?, the low pressure or the high pressure. I look at the dvd manual and I could not find any part numbers. maybe they are different one low and the other high, that is why the price difference.
  • surlyoldbillsurlyoldbill Member Posts: 36
    I need to add ventilation on my 140shc. It would be nice if the rear door windows rolled down a few inches to allow the air to pass through. Because I have the passenger version with the thick, fancy headliner, and the ceiling mount A/C, I would prefer to not add a roof vent. I'm thinking of putting a vent in the top of each rear door above the windows; I think there's a 9"x25" space there. My question is: would a vent on the rear of the van, even at the top, suck in exhaust if the vehicle was moving? I'm not educated on the air-flow patterns on these vans. Also, if anyone wants to BUY my ceiling mount A/C, that would be great, because I don't need it. It's the one that does not have the external roof intake, it is all self contained with a two speed fan, and two cab lights mounted in it. Pic available.
  • widethoughtswidethoughts Member Posts: 5
    I have torn down many engines after tracking their maint and use as a Mechanic/Shop Owner. The gas engines maintained their combustion efficiency and ideal mechanical tolerances up to 250,000 miles or more when the oil was changed at the time it became too dark to read Add/Full or Min/Max thru the oil on the dipstick. The Diesel engines did best when the oil was changed when it could not be easily wiped off your hands. In ALL instances the use of Marval Mystrey oil caused the internal parts having friction to polish their contact surfaces and greatly reduce drag and wear. The breakin of the engine MUST be allowed to occur before adding any friction modifiers like Marval. This is generally 12,000 mi for gas and 24,000 mi for diesel engines. Marval Mystery Oil has a molecular structure that lets it fit into or be absorbed into the engine's lubricating oil. Add a qt of Marval to the crankcase of an engine already filled to the min mark. The oil leval will of course now be at the Max mark but will return to the startng level after a few hundred miles. Then top the crankcase up with your engine oil. The best suited oil for sustained highway and severe duty (Short trips & stop/go) is either the Shell Rotella-T 15W-40 or the Texaco URSA (LA3) 15W-40. Both oils hold combustion soot in suspension rather than allowing it to bake onto and build up on the oil coated surfaces of the engine.
  • bspertybsperty Member Posts: 20
  • punter1punter1 Member Posts: 50
    Although this does not help you, the 2007 is supposed to have electrically operated rear windows and a sunroof.
    .
  • widethoughtswidethoughts Member Posts: 5
    Synthetic oils are too thin to afford the hygroscopic properties required to provide good dry startup protection. Multiweight oils such as 15w-40 are a 15 weight oil with additives that increase the oil to 40 weight at the extreme top of their operating range. The normal operating temperature of a fully warmed up engine makes the oil perform as 30w. 15w oil flows easily/fast upon startup giving good lubrication sooner than heavier single weight oils to parts at the extreme end of the oil "route". Also I find when there is a oil leak, the synthetic oils leak more and faster.
    I broke my sprinter engine in on Shell Rotella-T 15w-40(24,000 miles,2 changes) then added Marval Oil the third change. When I changed @34k mi I switched to synthitic (w/o Marval)and my milage went down by 2.5 mpg. I am due now again and am going back to Rotella-T 15w-40 and Marval. I will post again after 1 or 2 thousand miles. (About a week for me).
  • widethoughtswidethoughts Member Posts: 5
    Very important site for Service Informatiom and diagnostics.
    Remember: Techauthority

    https://techauthority.gltghosting.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CustomerHome?lan- gId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10051
  • bspertybsperty Member Posts: 20
    I thought the lower range on the synthetic viscosity was 0.
    I will check out techauthority.
  • bspertybsperty Member Posts: 20
    My sprinter did not come with the oil monitoring system.
    Do you know if it is possible to hook it up aftermatket?

    Thanks, Brian
  • tidwellstidwells Member Posts: 5
    I just did my first oil change on my recently-purchased 2002 Freightliner Sprinter. I got a Mopar remanufactured engine installed and changed the oil after only a 1500-mile break-in. When I replaced the filter, I didn't notice the 3 gaskets in the bottom of the filter box until AFTER I finished the oil change. I can see where the largest (approx. 3") one should have gone- the old one should be fine since it is almost new. However, I never even saw any other smaller gaskets when I removed the old filter. Where are they and is it possible I dropped and lost them when I removed the old filter? Do I need to re-open the filter case to install them? If so, how much oil will I lose in the process? Thanks for your advice. Doug
  • surlyoldbillsurlyoldbill Member Posts: 36
    All the O-ring gaskets are located on the center post that goes down inside the oil filter cartridge. The Hasting's filter that I bought had a slightly different size O-ring for the middle sized one, so I just reused the old one.
  • sonnywood2sonnywood2 Member Posts: 38
    what can i do to lower my 140 high top? the city i live in has a height limit of 96" to keep it at my house overnite. i have had someone complain on it and they gave me 10 days to remove it or pay up to $250.00 a day fine.
  • punter1punter1 Member Posts: 50
    The owner of mercedessprintergrille.com called me in response to an email I sent him about how he got pictures of the 2007 Dodge. Assuming its not photoshop it shows the Dodge front end. Also, October is when we should see the new one. Link below:

    http://www.mercedessprintergrille.com/wst_page5.html

    .
  • hawk8hawk8 Member Posts: 31
    You are not the only one having a problem, someone-else posted that he was having a problem with his town's parking code because of the dual axles.
    we just came back from Mexico and were charged tolls (bridges & roads) as if it was a semi.
    we had an oil leak(700 miles) the Dodge dealer said it was the oil sensor by the oil pan and he needs to order one, in Mexico we went to a Mercedes Dealer and it was but the O ring. the warranty was honored without any questions. also in Mexico they only use 0w-40 oil.
  • nescosmonescosmo Member Posts: 453
    Sonnywood2....Now is when you are finding out how free is the US and how backward we all are. The only thing that I can suggest in to park it on the side of the house or the back yard or in to a friend house or family and if worst con to worst you will have to rent a parking space in one of those warehouses like Uncle bob's. Make sure that you live that van all day long in your house and take it and store it at night. and hope that the sucker died of cancer.
  • hawk8hawk8 Member Posts: 31
    I meant Dual Wheels.
  • nescosmonescosmo Member Posts: 453
    MY friends.. Some times as much as I love my Sprinter I wish that I never bought one. the county is doing their best to put me underground with the strike of a pen. I build the must beautiful fence that you can think, with a footer and it was 8'8" high. To park my van in the back yard that they said it was ok.(away from the eyes of peaple)well now the inspector told me that the fence have to come down or I have to cut 8" off because is not according to county code. I said to him you do it. well I am with a lawyer now to see what happen; so far this is costing me with fence and lawyer $7000.00. Thanks Dodge with you European van.
  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    Well I don't think you can blame Dodge. You bought it and although unexpected, it's not their fault that it's too tall to satisfy your local codes.
  • hawk8hawk8 Member Posts: 31
    This might be crazy, but how about digging out 8" to 12" where the Sprinter is going to be parked and shorting your fence by 8". if that pass then you can have a sign made saying what you think of your County Inspector and his Sister.
  • hawk8hawk8 Member Posts: 31
    Hi Ken,
    Sorry it took so long, the Hoppy # is 46255, the SKU is 7997646255. i haven't installed it yet.
  • punter1punter1 Member Posts: 50
    or build a garage
    .
    or move someplace where the laws are not so dumb
    .
    you might be happier with more space farther out from the city too
    .
    but blaming Dodge or wishing evil upon the inspector is
    wrong and satan's puppet wrong, respectively.

    .
  • earlwearlw Member Posts: 8
    Reading this forum I get some questions answered and I see some that need answered. So here I go. First my owners manual for 2004 model Sprinter DOES NOT any where in it tell me what type of engine oil to use. This is true also for a friends Van. It also doesn't show the location of the oil filter. When I call the 1-800 customer help number I am told to go to the dealer. We have since got this figured out after much research. It is no longer a problem. Second my local authorized Sprinter dealer is a hour away. But I no longer want to use them after being charged 4 hours labor for the first 10,000 mile service. Which was oil change, filter, tire rotation and toping of any fluids that were needed. Now I have a problem that requires warranty repair. The rack and pinion is leaking oil. The local Dodge and or Mercedes dealers 5 minutes from me but not a Sprinter dealer is not authorized to do the work. The next closet dealer is 3 hours away. They have a back log of 3 to 4 days. Also this Sprinter is a Class B motor home. And when traveling and I have a problem I have been told I HAVE to go go a authorized Sprinter dealer for service. Even though I am in a town that has a Dodge dealer. They are not concerned about how far away I am or how inconvenienced I am. Because of this I am becoming unhappy with my Sprinter Van. And when asked how I like my Sprinter I TELL THEM.
  • punter1punter1 Member Posts: 50
    In Europe where the Sprinter is huge they have thousands of service centers and you can get service 24 hours a day. Here only a small percentage of Dodge dealers have them ( I think they have to be considered "5 star" or "businesslink" dealers to sell the Sprinter). They could only import 20000 a year at their old factory but now for 2007 they can import 30000 a year at the new one and they have expansion space if needed. Hopefully with the greater quantity there will be better service. Also, the mercedes techs could probably work on the engine since it is the same one that goes in the mercedes cars but they probably would not want to work on a lowly Dodge even though it is really a Mercedes. Strange situation.......
    .
    .
  • kenbakerkenbaker Member Posts: 239
    Steve in Ohio...
    It occured to me that you might want to look into a "squatting system". At rest, or maybe in parking lot/smooth pavement situations (like driving into your garage you could have the squatting system lower the van to enter and park.

    Squatting systems are used on limos, handicap vans/buses, and such in order to reduce the step-in height.

    I think I still owe you or another user an opinion on options we recommend... If so, sorry I have been slow... vacation in Alaska and tons of work have made me too distracted to complete the task.

    KenB :shades:
  • kenbakerkenbaker Member Posts: 239
    The roof unit is run from the engine mounted compressor... a second compressor at that (one for front, one for roof unit). If you want 120V. A/C, then you need a roof mounted RV-style unit instead of the stock Sprinter Roof -mount A/C unit.

    KenB :shades:
  • kenbakerkenbaker Member Posts: 239
    All CAPS not so good... yes shouting is implied, but that is not a bad as the intermittent lower-case things (like "I") where people hit shift and the general improvement when people use proper case and proper sentence structure.

    KenB :shades:
  • kenbakerkenbaker Member Posts: 239
    ASSYST is the correct count down to change, not a hard-and-fast 10,000.

    Dealer price is way high and is not necessary if you have accurate records that your vehicle was maintained per specs.

    Remember that fully synthetic oil, that meets the applicable service levels (MB or DC criteria), are required in order for the ASSYST system to be reliable. Other oils will void the warranty.

    My dealership also continues to send out reminders for 3,000 mile service intervals even though the Sprinter is on 10,000 mile levels. My first (only) oil change so far was at the dealership, for free due to other service department hassles on early warranty work, and the engine was not filled properly (low after only 1,000 more miles).

    I topped it off with the proper MOBIL-1 (while hot) and it has not dropped any more in about 5,000 more miles. Proof that they did not completely fill the oil. I suspect that they did not add oil for the filter housing, and of course they did not check after running the engine (oil pressure stabilized).

    From now on I will be doing my own oil changes on schedule. My dealership will do an oil change even when the ONE Sprinter Tech. is gone, but everything else is on hold... but the result was NOT good.

    Aways check your OWN oil level after someone changes your oil!!!

    KenB :shades:
  • kenbakerkenbaker Member Posts: 239
    Dodge is not making any friends, are they? D-C needs to get their act together before they lose more market share for vans... I know that there ARE Dodge and D-C reps on this forum. Please let D-C MGMT know what we think.

    Thanks,
    KenB
  • kenbakerkenbaker Member Posts: 239
    In case you don't see it said elsewhere, you could install a "squatting System" like limos and handicap vans use.

    KenB :surprise:
  • kenbakerkenbaker Member Posts: 239
    My 2004 owners manual does tell me what to use, in two different places in at least two types of language: MB spec and by the name Mobil 1 0/w40. Others are also allowed, but I can't remember all of the specs/numbers. It does not require diesel engine oil due to the tight specs and low blow-by products.

    Synthetic is considered top-shelf due to its low volatility and resistance to all types of breakdown. Therefore, any brand of engine oil (diesel or non-diesel) that meets the latest API/ASTM specs, is fully synthetic, and meets the viscosity (or viscosity range) specs for the temperatures you will be driving in will meet the required specs (even with ASSYST).

    Without ASSYST, you could rely on the dino oils that meet the other requires that are listed above (ltest API cert., correct visc. for temp range).

    KenB :shades:
  • kx200kx200 Member Posts: 3
    I think some place it says the 10,000 mile oil changes are when you are using ulsd fuel. Higher sulfur fuel will shorten that some. Any time you bring up an oil topic on any forum it will go on for a long time. 2 stroke dirt bike oil forums will suck you in like a black hole. 24/1 32/1 40/1 50/1 let alone all the brands available. My son’s 06 VW TDI has to use 505.01 oil if not they make it sound like they will void your warranty. If you are worried send an oil sample off and get it tested.
  • surlyoldbillsurlyoldbill Member Posts: 36
    Does anyone know where I can get a copy of, or download, the owners manual for a 2003?
  • earlwearlw Member Posts: 8
    No Dodge is not making any friends especially with RV's that are built on the Sprinter Van. Winnebago, Airstream, Roadtrek,and a whole long list of RV builders are using the Sprinter. One of the big selling points is the economy. Where is the economy when the dealers charge $230.00 for a oil change. I say $230.00 because this is what a dealer in Texas charged and what a dealer in Virginia said he would charge. I used to have a Freightliner truck with a Caterpiller engine in it. It would cost between $180.00 and $230.00 for a oil change. This was 30 quarts of oil, oil filter and two fuel filters. The little Sprinter engine costs as much to service as my big Cat engine. Go figure. Also the word will spread around with RV type people about the inconvenice of a problem while traveling and being forced to go to a authorized Sprinter dealer for a repair. Most Dodge dealers have mechanics or techinicans that could could take care of most of our problems while traveling. I don't understand having to find a Authorized Sprinter dealer hours away when I am in a town that has a Dodge dealer. I travel for weeks at a time living in the class B motorhome. When I had a problem the Sprinter dealer was hours away and had a back log of 3 days. This cuts into my travel time and fun of enjoying the Sprinter Van. Maybe D-C MGMT will see this forum and get some good ideas.
  • punter1punter1 Member Posts: 50
    Is it difficult to do your own oil change?
    .
    I would think it would be easy since you probably do not need to raise the vehicle.
    .
Sign In or Register to comment.

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles