Good time for that to happen, I was driving mine when both lines blew out, thankfully the parking brake worked and I was empty.....
2005 Sprinter second and reverse only
- Thread starter brokcanadian
- Start date
BOTH wow...as an expediter you likely carry a change of underwear
before too long I'll attack the visible rust underneath with that conversion paint then thick rustproofing...also have wands and a few gallons of the stuff for inside body panels...
In for safety...WOW what a nice ride compared to a ram van . . . fingers crossed
What's the name of 'the stuff', I'm assuming it's the rust conversion stuff ;DBOTH wow...as an expediter you likely carry a change of underwear
Rustoleum Rust Reformer in US (tremclad here) rustproofing is Rustcheck green (thick long lasting in spray can) and normal rustcheck by the gallon for interior panels...not sure if rust check is available in US it's clear and non staining, safe for electronics
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So in for safety, mechanic said rotors were turned and they're not to be turned, so front and rear rotors, wiper blades, emergency brake cables are rotted, emergency brake out of adjustment, fan not working (heater fan)
I explained it's not ontario law, just a mercedes tech bulletin . . . if the rotors had not been turned would he measure thickness. Answer was yes. He then let it slip out that the rears had "just" passed and stopped talking. I know damn well they pass I turned them to remove the surface rust and i put a caliper on them. Less than 1 mm removed
As for the steering I imagine it's the u joint after sitting for 7 months. It's fine for me, and after a week I don't think it will be stuck.
The brake cables have 1 strand broken on the parts that go into the rears. Might have to snip that off when I pull the van out and take it down the street to another shop.
Fan works fine on high. When has a blower resistor been part of a safety?
Anyway it was 150 for them to look, and probably quite a bit of my lifetime left worth of business gone. I expect clear answers backed with proof not a fishing expedition. The final bill for this would have been in excess of 2000 dollars including the brakes and steering and selling me mercedes rotors while installing Chinese ones.
Not what I expected from the shop I had used for years to install my high pressure extra cng tanks, and sent many referrals to, and paid 85 cents a litre for fuel that cost them 33 cents to produce out front.
Oh well. I'll go to a big chain and turn the 17 year old apprentices loose on it
I explained it's not ontario law, just a mercedes tech bulletin . . . if the rotors had not been turned would he measure thickness. Answer was yes. He then let it slip out that the rears had "just" passed and stopped talking. I know damn well they pass I turned them to remove the surface rust and i put a caliper on them. Less than 1 mm removed
As for the steering I imagine it's the u joint after sitting for 7 months. It's fine for me, and after a week I don't think it will be stuck.
The brake cables have 1 strand broken on the parts that go into the rears. Might have to snip that off when I pull the van out and take it down the street to another shop.
Fan works fine on high. When has a blower resistor been part of a safety?
Anyway it was 150 for them to look, and probably quite a bit of my lifetime left worth of business gone. I expect clear answers backed with proof not a fishing expedition. The final bill for this would have been in excess of 2000 dollars including the brakes and steering and selling me mercedes rotors while installing Chinese ones.
Not what I expected from the shop I had used for years to install my high pressure extra cng tanks, and sent many referrals to, and paid 85 cents a litre for fuel that cost them 33 cents to produce out front.
Oh well. I'll go to a big chain and turn the 17 year old apprentices loose on it
I'd get them to do it at the lower price and never see them again
New rotors are 22mm thick, and the minimum thickness allowed is 19mm, so with only 3mm to work with there really isn't anything there to grind. You will hardly find anyone who will turn rotors anymore, because few few manufacturers allow them to be turned. Sprinter rotors, like most of them nowadays, are softer and thinner than in the days of yore so they will be smoother and won't squeal. You're doing good if you can get 2 sets of pads out of one rotor. Most people just replace the pads and rotors together.
I mic'd them, and the worst was 20.7 the shop legitimately passed them. But they didn't check first. And 1 strand broken on e brake cable, that's picky. I allowed them to change the steering shaft u joint because it's there and I'm working, but they said heater blower too and I was using it all the way there...van has only 150000
Should have added pads and rotors replaced by prev owner but we're rusty. Shaved rather than turned
If the fan only blows on 4 then it's the resistor that's bad. You can get those real cheap from Rock Auto. But 150,000 miles isn't all that unusual for the blower motor to go. They don't last very long and they are most a throwaway part. You can replace the brushes, though,
Thanks! Just don't want them to do it at 90 per hout
Bower Motor and resistor can both be replaced in maybe 10 minutes if you really take your time. Removing that padded shielding will consume most of the time. Blower motor is 3 screws and the wiring harness plug and the resistor slides over and pop-a-tab out.
I'll see if I can grab them no wonder they want to do it
Update: I elected to save the 227 plus tax and turn the blower on myself for them (was working when I parked it) so they called back and said the parking brake shoes were disintegrated as well as the backing plates. Now the fronts were rusty enough to turn to powder and the emergency brake was stuck on when I first saw the van, and I freed it up with a large hammer. So I believe them . . . not that my input matters, they won't safety it without and they have the van
Rear axles have to be removed to change plates. So bout 2 hours labour (labor sorry Americans)
I have experienced this on my E350 and investigated it just before the rear caliper had dug a groove right through the center of the actual wheel. Would have been a fun experience in heavy traffic.
Yes I could fix cheaper. No I don't want to I've had enough for now. Current van is overheating every 3 hours, I just need that damn sprinter on the road
Rear axles have to be removed to change plates. So bout 2 hours labour (labor sorry Americans)
I have experienced this on my E350 and investigated it just before the rear caliper had dug a groove right through the center of the actual wheel. Would have been a fun experience in heavy traffic.
Yes I could fix cheaper. No I don't want to I've had enough for now. Current van is overheating every 3 hours, I just need that damn sprinter on the road
So I made about 1100 working with the other van this week, while someone else was doing the fixing, softens the blow a bit. I'd like to get an identical van to switch out so no downtime, don't think I'd get away with it in an accident
After I said I'd fix the blower they called back and said the backing plates were shot, and one of the emergency brake shoes was separating. I didn't look, so whatever, have them the go ahead (300 parts 200 labor said they have to remove the axles. They phoned back today saying it was done, and it was a real cluster**** getting the plates off and they didn't know what they were getting into . . . they spent at least 8 hours on them, but quoted me already so they couldnt charge the extra labor. Serves them right
They also managed to destroy the abs sensor, and said they needed to take it apart again to change so sorry about that, left it broke but it safetied.
Near as I can tell it's 60 for a Bosch and I don't plan on taking the rearend apart to change it . . . they can learn on someone else's van now...
So to complete the deal I have to get the blower working (turn it on?) It's 45 minutes both ways so I hope I'm not going there for something simple
Planning on continuing my no mechanics policy
After I said I'd fix the blower they called back and said the backing plates were shot, and one of the emergency brake shoes was separating. I didn't look, so whatever, have them the go ahead (300 parts 200 labor said they have to remove the axles. They phoned back today saying it was done, and it was a real cluster**** getting the plates off and they didn't know what they were getting into . . . they spent at least 8 hours on them, but quoted me already so they couldnt charge the extra labor. Serves them right
They also managed to destroy the abs sensor, and said they needed to take it apart again to change so sorry about that, left it broke but it safetied.
Near as I can tell it's 60 for a Bosch and I don't plan on taking the rearend apart to change it . . . they can learn on someone else's van now...
So to complete the deal I have to get the blower working (turn it on?) It's 45 minutes both ways so I hope I'm not going there for something simple
Planning on continuing my no mechanics policy
You'll probably want the blower motor working in any case but I'd sure want to know why a nonfunctional blower motor is a Safety item. It may very well be in Canada, but it's not anywhere in the FMCSA regulations as a safety related function.
The blower motor can fail for several reasons. The most common is "just because" and it simply needs to be replaced (or the brushes changed out). When it first starts going bad it'll work one time then not the next, and sometimes hitting a bump in the road will start it working again. That's classic bad brushes and worn contacts and will need to be replaced (or the brushes changed out)
If it works only on HIGH then it's the resistor.
It could be a fuse.
It could be the blower motor circuit wiring or wire harness connectors.
An inoperative blower motor switch could also be the cause. That's the ATC in the dash below the radio. If that goes bad (very rare) then you'll have to replace the entire ATC (~$400).
The chances are the temperature control dial doesn't work already, so basically whatever you have the temperature set at when starting the van, that's what it'll be. If it's set on the hottest setting, and you're driving down the road and it gets too hot and you dial it down a bit, it'll then be cold, and will remain cold even if you change it back to the hottest setting. The only way to get it hot again is to shut off the van. Let it sit for 10 or 15 minutes, start it up with the temp setting on HOT, let it idle for 5-15 minutes, then continue on your way. You can rip it out and send it off to have it rebuilt, with all of the well-known problems fixed, for about $100. But it takes 2 weeks. Or you can replace the entire ATC which is expensive. Or you can just figure it out and live with it.
But in your case, if the blower motor isn't working, it's probably the motor needs to be replaced, or the resistor needs to be replaced.
The blower motor can fail for several reasons. The most common is "just because" and it simply needs to be replaced (or the brushes changed out). When it first starts going bad it'll work one time then not the next, and sometimes hitting a bump in the road will start it working again. That's classic bad brushes and worn contacts and will need to be replaced (or the brushes changed out)
If it works only on HIGH then it's the resistor.
It could be a fuse.
It could be the blower motor circuit wiring or wire harness connectors.
An inoperative blower motor switch could also be the cause. That's the ATC in the dash below the radio. If that goes bad (very rare) then you'll have to replace the entire ATC (~$400).
The chances are the temperature control dial doesn't work already, so basically whatever you have the temperature set at when starting the van, that's what it'll be. If it's set on the hottest setting, and you're driving down the road and it gets too hot and you dial it down a bit, it'll then be cold, and will remain cold even if you change it back to the hottest setting. The only way to get it hot again is to shut off the van. Let it sit for 10 or 15 minutes, start it up with the temp setting on HOT, let it idle for 5-15 minutes, then continue on your way. You can rip it out and send it off to have it rebuilt, with all of the well-known problems fixed, for about $100. But it takes 2 weeks. Or you can replace the entire ATC which is expensive. Or you can just figure it out and live with it.
But in your case, if the blower motor isn't working, it's probably the motor needs to be replaced, or the resistor needs to be replaced.
As for safety, the blower needs to defrost windshield for safety here . . . thanks for the leads I couldn't figure out how to operate the climate controls and stopped when I got air blowing on the windshield
That temperature control dial is the bane (plight, pest, nuisance) of many Sprinter owners. It's not so bad in the summer and winter, because you're most likely to just leave it set for coldest or hottest all the time. But in the fall and spring, it can be a real PITA.
You start off during the day when it's warm and the setting is on coldest, then the sun goes down and the temperature drops, so you rotate the dial it's hottest setting, yet the air temperature coming out of the van remains as unaffected, open-vented air. You can drive all night and it won't get any warmer.
I've found the only way to get it hot again is to shut the engine off and let it sit there until the engine temperature cools down a bit. 10 or 15 minutes (but I've never done any scientific methods for it), and then start it back up and let it idle until the engine reaches operating temperature again. If you turn the fan on and it blows hot for more than a minute or two, it'l stay hot. Just don't touch that dial again.
Many people have just had their ATC unit replaced with a new one (OEMs are Airtex, Wells and Hella).
eBay $322.33 ($396.99 from Rock Auto), Airtex or Wells from Europarts $489.87, $444.09 from Berry (now Toliver) Dodge in Corsicana, TX.
One option is to send yours off for a rebuild for $99.
For an extra $100 (plus another $100 core deposit), they will send you one that's rebuilt already, then you send in your old one and they'll refund the core deposit.
Just don't buy a used one on the cheap and expect it to work. They will ALL fail for the same reasons. They ALL did within 3 or 4 years, for the same reasons. The rebuilt ones won't fail, though and if it does he'll fix it for free. The bran news ones manufactured after 2007 aren't likely to fail, either. But any original likely has already failed, so a used one won't be any better than the one you've already got. Of course, if you can get a used one for really, really cheap, you can send it off and have it repaired. That's been my plan now for 5 or 6 years.
You start off during the day when it's warm and the setting is on coldest, then the sun goes down and the temperature drops, so you rotate the dial it's hottest setting, yet the air temperature coming out of the van remains as unaffected, open-vented air. You can drive all night and it won't get any warmer.
I've found the only way to get it hot again is to shut the engine off and let it sit there until the engine temperature cools down a bit. 10 or 15 minutes (but I've never done any scientific methods for it), and then start it back up and let it idle until the engine reaches operating temperature again. If you turn the fan on and it blows hot for more than a minute or two, it'l stay hot. Just don't touch that dial again.
Many people have just had their ATC unit replaced with a new one (OEMs are Airtex, Wells and Hella).
eBay $322.33 ($396.99 from Rock Auto), Airtex or Wells from Europarts $489.87, $444.09 from Berry (now Toliver) Dodge in Corsicana, TX.
One option is to send yours off for a rebuild for $99.
For an extra $100 (plus another $100 core deposit), they will send you one that's rebuilt already, then you send in your old one and they'll refund the core deposit.
Just don't buy a used one on the cheap and expect it to work. They will ALL fail for the same reasons. They ALL did within 3 or 4 years, for the same reasons. The rebuilt ones won't fail, though and if it does he'll fix it for free. The bran news ones manufactured after 2007 aren't likely to fail, either. But any original likely has already failed, so a used one won't be any better than the one you've already got. Of course, if you can get a used one for really, really cheap, you can send it off and have it repaired. That's been my plan now for 5 or 6 years.