2004 Sprinter Limp Mode Resolution

[seekerman]

Ok......Ended up at Freightliner in Tulsa yesterday in Limp Mode. Got a tech there named Bill; in about a 30 seconds he found large split in the underside of the air charger hose below the water tank at the bottom of the radiator on the passenger side. Ordered part and he's replacing that hose and the bottom part of the large charger hose on the driver side. I replaced the top part yesterday because it had a split in it too. To replace the whole hose assembly on the driver side, the grill and headlight have to be removed to access the bottom of the hose. Both hoses can be DIY if so inclined. This should take care of the problem. What I've learned with five years in the Sprinter: I've experienced serious extended limp mode four times; first time a dealer in Hattiesburg Mississippi said it was the turbocharger which was replaced. After they replaced the turbo they came to me and said that the EGR needed to be replaced too. I believe from that experience that the problem was the EGR and not the turbo. My mistake was, since I had only had the Sprinter for 2-3 months my only "awareness" was that I had lost boost and that was provided by the turbocharger, so when I went into dealership I told them the turbocharger went out. They were of course happy to replace it for me. Lesson learned.

Second time the EGR valve clearly went out. One thing that may happen when the EGR goes is coolant loss from the EGR, which is what happened to me. I thought the vehicle was falling completely apart. Third time it was the Turbo Resonator. And this time it was splits in the hoses (will know in for sure in about an hour).

Recommend that anyone with a diesel engine check the air hoses regularly to help prevent the same problem. Thanks guys.