Mercedes-Benz Sprinter
Euro · Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz Sprinter: The Van That Wore Three Badges
The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter is a large van built by Mercedes-Benz as a cargo van, chassis cab, minibus, and pickup since 1995. In the US it was sold as a Freightliner and a Dodge before it carried a Mercedes-Benz badge.
The Sprinter launched in Europe in 1995 to replace the T1 Transporter, a van dating to 1977, and it was the first Mercedes-Benz product to get a name instead of an alphanumeric code. Mercedes moved the engine 290 mm, about 11 inches, farther forward to free up cabin space and reduced its aerodynamic drag. It came with four-wheel disc brakes and anti-lock brakes and the most powerful diesel in its class, 90 kW (120 hp), and it was International Van of the Year for 1995. Electronic stability control became standard in 2002.
The Sprinter reached North America for the 2002 model year badged as a Freightliner, and from 2003 it was also sold as a Dodge, replacing the aging Dodge Ram van. DaimlerChrysler kept the Mercedes-Benz name off it because it thought a work van would hurt the brand's luxury image in America. Early US vans used a 2.7-liter five-cylinder diesel and couldn't be sold in California until a cleaner engine arrived for 2004. To get around the chicken tax on imported vans, cargo Sprinters were built in Germany, partly taken apart, and reassembled in South Carolina, first in Gaffney and, from June 2006, in Ladson, near North Charleston, in a former fire truck plant.
The second generation arrived in 2006, and the third debuted on February 6, 2018, in Duisburg, Germany, going on sale that June. Amazon announced in September 2018 that it would buy 20,000 Amazon-badged Sprinters for its delivery partners. Volkswagen has also sold rebadged versions as the LT and Crafter.