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No More Dodge Sprinter

greg334

greg334

Veteran Expediter
I know that I may be coming to the party late, I got the news Monday night and forgot to post it.

Mercedes will no longer use Chrysler/Dodge as an outlet for Sprinter sales or servicing 1.1.10

They will only sell it and service through FL and Mercedes.

As an added nicety, if you have a Dodge extended warranty, they may not be covered, seeing the warranty goes through Dodge, not Mercedes.

Fiat... ah I mean UAW owned Chrysler will be bringing the Ducato and their iveco version, they will have some here for testing soon - by the way they may not build them here, but in Mexico. 55% makes you wonder.
 
greg334

greg334

Veteran Expediter
I said I was late to the party. I didn't get it from Auto week or a blog though.

The warranty issue seems to be left out of the news releases, Daimler is not obligated to cover the extended warranty that is arranged by the dealers, as Chrysler was not also obligated when dealers were closed.

Fiat already seems to have made the decision, their van will be introduced into the market. They are working on the integration of the companies right now, but it looks like Fiat wants to hit the ground running.

Now an interesting question has popped up; Will Fiat products marketed through Chrysler will have the Blue & Me systems installed which Ford has under the Sync name?
 
Turtle

Turtle

Administrator
Staff member
Retired Expediter
Well, it was just announced yesterday, so if you were late, it wasn't very late. The warranty issue for extended warranties could be an issue. Word is that Freightliner Sprinter dealers might honor it, but MB dealers almost certainly won't. We expect MB dealers to have a separate lounge for Sprinter owners, as it is, probably some broken lawn furniture and a cooler with a hole in it out under a tent in the far corner of the lot.
 
ebsprintin

ebsprintin

Veteran Expediter
Or a gravel lot two blocks off the main street. But then if the high end rv'ers get involved maybe that will help our cause.

I heard some commentary that this arrangement will lower the cost of running a sprinter, but I can't see it. A three pointy star on the grill has to be expensive.

eb
 
OntarioVanMan

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
spoke to my Dodge/Sprinter dealer to-day...

Dodge will continue to service Dodge/MB/FL sprinters prior to 2010....all warranties that were issued before 01/01/10 will be honoured till they expire at Dodge....They still have their techs and parts access...so nothing really changes....cept they won't sell Sprinters or service the new ones...
 
greg334

greg334

Veteran Expediter
OVM, then that is a good thing I didn't ask about post service issues and any agreements setup for charge backs to Mercedes, I assume that Dodge could honor the extended warranties but Mercedes may not.

The bottom line is this, I don't have a sprinter, want to but don't and they seem to be too pricey for me now. I would like to see the Transit come here and take the market over and like them, they drive better than a sprinter to me and the dealer network is still bigger. The connect is a start, seen a bunch of them last week and they look good in ad wraps. Saw my first wrecked one this morning on the way back home, amazing how it smashes up.

Just wondering, if you were to buy another OVM wagon, would you consider a 170" super high top 2500 sprinter?
 
OntarioVanMan

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
greg334 said:
OVM, then that is a good thing I didn't ask about post service issues and any agreements setup for charge backs to Mercedes, I assume that Dodge could honor the extended warranties but Mercedes may not.

The bottom line is this, I don't have a sprinter, want to but don't and they seem to be too pricey for me now. I would like to see the Transit come here and take the market over and like them, they drive better than a sprinter to me and the dealer network is still bigger. The connect is a start, seen a bunch of them last week and they look good in ad wraps. Saw my first wrecked one this morning on the way back home, amazing how it smashes up.

Just wondering, if you were to buy another OVM wagon, would you consider a 170" super high top 2500 sprinter?
Click to expand...

Maybe there are some variables....the Blue-Tec engine for 2010 will be the swinging factor I think...and I'll give it a year or so after it is out...

Taller and longer only takes away from fuel preformance..I am happy with the 158" version...

Bigger doesn't do anything for the weight carrying situation, only the living space with a load on over the weekends...

A lot can happen between now and 2011....
 
F

FIS53

Veteran Expediter
The Transit (full size) has a version with just over 14' of cargo bed so would probably work well for us. The Connect has a longer version available but not here as of yet and Ford initially did not have any plans to bring it in, but was testing the full size Transit for here.

One minor thing about MB and Sprinters. When looking for front brake rotors (first time replacement) the Chrysler dealer had trouble supplying them. My mechanic bought them from a MB dealer for over $20 each less than Chrysler wanted. Yes the labour rate at a MB dealer is higher than most Chrysler dealers but not higher than FL dealers here (MB $115/hr, FL $112-117/hr last time I checked).
Rob
 
C

Crazynuff

Veteran Expediter
OntarioVanMan said:
spoke to my Dodge/Sprinter dealer to-day...

Dodge will continue to service Dodge/MB/FL sprinters prior to 2010....all warranties that were issued before 01/01/10 will be honoured till they expire at Dodge....They still have their techs and parts access...so nothing really changes....cept they won't sell Sprinters or service the new ones...
Click to expand...
For those of you not aware of it Chrysler's bankruptcy and Fiat put the warranties in jeopardy . Chrysler to assume product liability it had shed in bankruptcy | detnews.com | The Detroit News
 
OntarioVanMan

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
Crazynuff said:
For those of you not aware of it Chrysler's bankruptcy and Fiat put the warranties in jeopardy . Chrysler to assume product liability it had shed in bankruptcy | detnews.com | The Detroit News
Click to expand...

Chrysler agreed to honor warranty claims, lemon law claims and safety recalls regarding the vehicles.
The action was met with approval from victims advocacy groups.
"Chrysler has responded to pressure from injured victims and consumer groups, and we commend them for taking this important step to protect public safety," said Joanne Doroshow, executive director of the Center for Justice & Democracy. "All along we've believed that Chrysler's taking full responsibility for its defective cars was both the right thing to do and good business for the company."
Click to expand...

It mostly effects lawsuits before June 10th
...warranties should not be effected....

Rob...is that on the Canuck side? They have no problems here that I am aware of.....

Maybe you should plan ahead and buy some parts of the internet?
 
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F

FIS53

Veteran Expediter
Yeah ovm that's canuck. I've actually had quite a few Chrysler supply problems with different parts. Also have had problems with MB doing service on the Sprinter as it has a stupid chrysler serial number so they can't lookup the parts installed by the factory so I see this being a potential problem for any of us with a dodge unit.

I have found a parts dealer who has reasonable pricing for aftermarket parts so have been buying the items through them as much as possible. Filters for example are much more expensive (dealer and full retail) than in the US but I can buy them for at least near the US pricing (discounted canuck).
I think we're going to see a lot of problems for us with the older units in the coming months.
Rob
 
piper1

piper1

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
I think the key is the Dodge dealers are "supposed to" honour the warranties and provide service.

It should be interesting, the chances of them selling a Sprinter owner an Iveco or Fiat certainly drop if they fail to provide good service to his Sprinter. Just the same, I have begun to lobby my local Freightliner dealer to at least become a Sprinter parts dealer, I can't see my Dodge dealer making any investment in having parts in stock for something they don't sell anymore.
 
Turtle

Turtle

Administrator
Staff member
Retired Expediter
Until now, there has been a "commercial block" via software that prevents MB dealers from ordering Sprinter parts. That's supposed to go away.

Also keep in mind that unless the repair requires the DRB Tool, most other Sprinter repairs are just car repairs and can be done by most any mechanic. My regular, non-Sprinter mechanic even has the DRB Tool and can service the Sprinter for anything. Certainly brake pads, rotors and brake sensors, for example, can be installed by any shade tree mechanic (even yourself if you have the ability to raise and support the vehicle with stands) and doesn't require a dealer. Buy the parts on the net and take 'em to any competent mechanic and you'll save money on parts and labor (or labour, in Canada).
 
F

FIS53

Veteran Expediter
In fact that's what I usually do now is buy/source the parts and have my mechanic install. So now I buy the brake parts (original change no aftermarket available here), filters etc where I can for discounted prices and let the mechanic install. Usually have him do 2-3 things at once and a lot easier with the van well off the ground (tranny fluid change is so easy on a hoist).
You have to remember that the Sprinter only arrived in Canada in 2004 not 2002 like the US so a lack of aftermarket stuff available through stores back when I got this thing.
Rob
 
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