Home » The Mercedes eSprinter Is The Best Benz Electric Vehicle And It’s Not Even Close

The Mercedes eSprinter Is The Best Benz Electric Vehicle And It’s Not Even Close

E Sprinter Ts
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I’ll never forget it. We’re driving to camp orientation and my daughter turns to me, a look on her face so serious I instinctively clench my stomach as I brace for whatever is about to spill out of her eight-year-old brain. In a voice that implies she’s carefully chosen each word, she says “I don’t care if it’s next week, next month, or even ten years from now. I want you to get another big van.”

My daughter has lived her entire life in this strange world where her dad occasionally picks her up from school, soccer practice, or whatever in an entirely different car from the one that dropped her off. Usually, this happens without any kind of warning.

Vidframe Min Top
Vidframe Min Bottom

I’ve been doing this for almost her entire existence and she’s never reacted as strongly to a vehicle as she has to the soft blue 2024 Mercedes-Benz eSprinter high-roof electric cargo van. And you know what? I’m with her. This van rules.

The Basics

2024 Mercedes Esprinter 1

As-Tested Price: $75,316

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Battery: 113kWh usable capacity lithium-ion

Drive: Single-motor, rear-wheel-drive

Horsepower: 201 hp

Torque: 295 lb.-ft.

WLTP Range: 273 miles

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DC Fast Charging: 115 kW

Curb Weight: 6,746 lbs

Why Does It Exist?

2024 Mercedes Esprinter 1 (1)

Mercedes-Benz is thought of as a luxury brand here in the United States due, mostly, to the fact that Mercedes has historically only sold luxury cars to Americans. It’s a little different in Europe and the rest of the world, where Mercedes has acted more like a full-line automaker that sells small economy cars, vans, trucks, and even big rigs.

The big Mercedes van was not sold here until 2002, though even then only as a Freightliner. This was the weird DamilerChrysler era and so the Sprinter was quickly rebadged as a Dodge product, though it was sold as both the Freightliner Sprinter and Dodge Sprinter simultaneously for no obvious reason. Eventually, Daimler spun off Freightliner into a new subsidiary and Sprinters became solely Mercedes-badged products in North America.

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These are great-looking vans with a layout that is superior to the traditional American van (think Econoline) in many ways, generally offering more efficiency, comfort, and space for the wheelbase.

Mercedes has made expanding its line of electric vehicles a priority and a cargo van, especially one used primarily for last-mile/local deliveries, is about as good a use case for an electric vehicle as can be imagined (only an electric school bus makes more sense).

Why Do You Have This?

2024 Mercedes Esprinter At Church 1 Large

I’m quite active with my local Lutheran church and have served on our church’s council, which means I’ve seen summer attendance numbers. With everyone traveling, kids in camp, et cetera, we can sometimes lag just a little bit around the, oh, 5th Sunday after Pentecost.

The solution to the summer slows? An outdoor service at a local park with a big BBQ afterward. Because we’re a Lutheran church with a lot of Germans we need to transport our giant flat outdoor grill to cook too much meat and coolers/ice to hold too much beer (and Twisted Tea for some reason). I would never imply that the beer drinking and grilled meats are more important than the service, but the New Testament is generally pro getting together with folks and throwing down on some food and we very much embrace this spirit. 2024 Mercedes Esprinter Loading 1 Large Usually, we’ve got a friend with a big truck who helps us move everything from our church building to the park but he was busy that Sunday so, knowing there was an eSprinter in the fleet, I volunteered to move everything.

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What I didn’t expect was how much fun it would be to cruise around with my daughter. I initially thought she wouldn’t get to ride in it at all because the cargo van has no backseat and she’s still just light/small enough to probably need a booster seat.

2024 Mercedes Esprinter Grille 1

Seeing the big blue van for the first time her even bigger and bluer eyes lit up and I knew that I’d at least have to let her drive with me to the local Electrify America station to top off the van before the weekend’s festivities. After studying the eSprinter’s manual and reviewing booster seat safety advice I finally measured everything with her in the van and realized that I didn’t even need the booster seat.

The Sprinter has an extremely comfortable and adjustable seat with a seatbelt mounting point that moves to accommodate passengers of different heights. While weight/airbags were still slightly a concern, knowing I’d only be driving on local roads.

She was so happy. I was so happy. There’s a certain kind of bonding that happens when your kid can ride up front with you and there’s no hypercar or truck that made her feel as cool as she did on that drive.

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Neither of us wanted it to end. Knowing how much fun it was she immediately volunteered to get up early and go with me to the picnic. This was, I think, the first time I heard be this enthusiastic about getting up early on a Sunday.

How Does It Van?

2024 Mercedes Esprinter Unlaoding 1

I feel like loading up the truck we usually use for the church picnic involved some sort of complex, Tetris-like arrangement and we never seemed like everything fit in the bed. Some amount of prayer was involved in getting everything safely to the park.

That was not an issue this time. The Sprinter in this configuration has a 170-inch wheelbase and a cargo volume of 488 cubic feet. That’s to say it’s about as big as your average Manhattan studio apartment inside.

If no one told you this was an electric van I don’t think you’d clock it as one from the outside. I definitely got a few funny looks from other folks at the Electrify America station when I pulled straight into a spot.

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2024 Mercedes Esprinter Charger 1 Large

Loading it up you’d also probably not have any idea this was an electric van. The cargo capacity is listed at 488 cubic feet, which is just a little shy of the approximately 530 cubic feet of space in an equivalent diesel Sprinter. I assume that’s because the battery and motor are slung underneath the floor, but in practical use I had no idea it was any smaller.

2024 Mercedes Esprinter Motor 1

Nächste Generation Esprinter Grafik Next Generation Esprinter Graphic
Click to enlarge

Unfortunately, there’s no frunk as Mercedes has utilized that space for some of the van’s electronic guts:

2024 Mercedes Esprinter Frunk 1

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There is a little random storage where the fuel door is, however:

2024 Mercedes Esprinter Storage 1

Driving it you’ll start to figure it out, with the eSprinter lacking the mechanical chug-chug of the four-cylinder diesel usually found in a non-e Sprinter. Once you adapt to that it drives better than any Sprinter I’ve ever driven, with plenty of low-end torque and power delivery as smooth as a Knight Rider-era David Hasselhoff. It does taper off as you reach closer to the 75 mph top speed, but it’s a van, what do you expect?

It worked perfectly as a van for moving church picnic stuff. Everything fit easily inside and, due to the low floor of the van, little thought was given to where stuff needed to go. And that’s even with a giant heavy box in the middle. Oh yeah, there was a giant heavy box.

Why Is There A Giant Heavy Box In This Thing?

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Autojournalists can be a little simple and, especially here in New York, there’s no guarantee that you’re average hack has any idea what it’s like to drive a high-profile vehicle. For various reasons, I’ve put in a lot of miles on vans and trucks with a large enough surface area that they can be pushed around by the wind.

While the eSprinter has the advantage of a lower center of gravity owing to its floor-mounted batteries, it’s still going to drive quite differently on the highway and in high winds based on how much weight is in the cargo area. Nothing but emptiness can quickly turn a cargo van like this into a sailboat.

2024 Mercedes Esprinter Crate 1

Rather than worry about what your average journo might conclude, Mercedes opted to put a crate with 400 pounds of weight in the back. It was actually quite useful as a divider to rest everything against when moving items so I never gave into the temptation to take it out.

I happened to pick up the van on one of the windiest days in memory and, despite the Volver-like gusts, the eSprinter barely flinched. I even drove over the Tappen Zee bridge and got smacked with a fist of wind while going about 55 mph and the van seamlessly engaged the crosswind assist and applied light brake pressure to keep me straight.

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Is This Really The Best Mercedes EV?

2024 Mercedes Esprinter Driving 1

I’ve driven the EQS, EQS SUV, and Mercedes EQB. None of them are bad on their own, but their overall inefficiency relative to the competition makes them mediocre by modern standards. I also don’t love the way they look.

The EPA doesn’t rate the eSprinter since it’s a cargo van, but on the WLTP test cycle it gets an estimated 273 miles of range and, on the city cycle, a whopping 329 miles. The WLTP cycle is historically way higher than the EPA, so my best guestimate is between 220-240 miles.

2024 Mercedes Esprinter Guage 1

My fully charged eSprinter told me I could get 232 miles in the maximum range setting, which would correspond to an efficiency of about 2.1 miles per kWh. That makes it about as efficient as an AMG EQE 4matic and more efficient than a Silverado EV or Hummer EV. It’s even better than the equivalent Brightdrop Zevo purpose-built EV van.

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Driving in a mix of highway and city driving I barely put a dent in the range, dropping the van to just 90% after approximately 45 miles of driving. If you press the paddles behind the steering wheel to D++ you get max regenerative braking and the range stays high. I could see this getting 300 miles of range if you keep it off the highway.

It’s not quite one-pedal driving, which would be ideal in this van, but it gets close enough that it makes cruising in traffic in this behemoth a lot easier. Seriously, cruising around in this big van is no chore. If I had just seven more children I’d definitely consider grabbing the passenger van version as a daily driver.

Did I mention the cupholders? Oh, right, I did a whole story on how this has more cupholders per person than any other vehicle on sale today. Couple that with a simple infotainment system capable of accepting Carplay and a few speakers and it’s quite the cruiser.

Here’s a video from a guy who does sound system reviews of vehicles, which is something I don’t care about, and he thought it sounded fairly decent for a cargo van. “I’ve been in full-size pickup trucks that are new that are worse than this,” says the DM Sound reviewer. I agree!

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Does It Fulfill Its Purpose?

Hell yeah it does. It’s a big van. It’s an efficient big van. It’s blue.

What’s The Punctum Of The eSprinter?

2024 Mercedes Esprinter Power 1

The eSprinter is the only electrified Mercedes product I’ve driven that I think can fairly claim to be the best overall value in its segment. I know that $75k is a lot to pay for a fully loaded van, but I suspect this will be something that’s cheap to operate and maintain over the long term.

It’s also a superior driving experience to the diesel version so long as you’re not going on a lot of long trips, which is also not something that’s necessarily true of every product that offers both EV and gas-powered versions.

And even if you do have to go on the occasional long trip it’s not as range-limited as you’d expect. Upon returning the eSprinter I decided to make a detour to Tractor Supply Co. to return a giant stock tank I realized I didn’t need.

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Because I was in a hurry and distracted I picked a location that was 30 miles beyond the TSC I meant to select in Google Maps. This added about 60 necessary miles to my trip.

Tmd Van Top

Did I sweat it? Absolutely not. I knew the eSprinter could make that trip and, honestly, I was having a great time driving the van so I didn’t particularly care about the extra hour I was getting.

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Scone Muncher
Scone Muncher
1 month ago

Very cool. Been seeing the FedEx EVs (Brightdrop Zevos) around town lately but I’ve never wanted to interrupt the hardworking driver to ask about them.

Request from outside the US: can you include kWh/100km efficiency stats, please?
(2.1 mi/kWh = 29.6 kWh/100km)

Flyingstitch
Flyingstitch
1 month ago

Sure, you drove it on the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, but would you have driven it on the real (old) Tappan Zee?

Turbo Quattro CS
Turbo Quattro CS
1 month ago

Hey Matt, if you’re in the greater NYC area you should get some tickets and do a story on the Historic Festival at Lime Rock over the Labor Day weekend. Go on Sunday for the car show and I guarantee you that you will see many cars you’ve never seen before and may never see again.

Jalop Gold
Jalop Gold
1 month ago

I miss the older freightliner sprinters. I moved to Charleston in 2006 and after 1 potential murderoomate situation, quickly got a German intern from the CKD sprinter factory as my roommate. He was given a short wheelbase cargo sprinter as his company car. We drove that thing all over for 2 years, confusing the heck out of parking managers in downtown Charleston who kept trying to direct us to the delivery entrance “no man, this is my ride!” I had a lot of experience in econolines and expresses, and the sprinter was a total revelation. Newer ones fully built in Charleston have never felt the same to me, but they have also all been much larger.
I do think EV is perfect for commercial use like mail/parcel last mile, and residential delivery, garbage trucks, and buses.

DadBod
DadBod
1 month ago
Reply to  Jalop Gold

That vintage is also the sweet spot before the engines got all brokey

John Stiles
John Stiles
1 month ago

Maybe this is just me showing my age, or channeling some grumpy even older man: I don’t care of it’s propelled by electrons, dinosaur juice, or unicorn farts. There is no way I would ever drop 75 large on a cargo van, loaded or otherwise.

Last edited 1 month ago by John Stiles
El Jefe de Barbacoa
El Jefe de Barbacoa
1 month ago
Reply to  John Stiles

Get off my lawn, grandpa.

Scoutdude
Scoutdude
1 month ago

I’m not so sure that Mercedes put that weight in there to keep it more stable. My guess is that they have determined that is about the average weight a last mile delivery vehicle carries. IE starts off the day with 800 lbs and returns with 0lbs so that those reviewing it can’t say “we tested it empty so we don’t know how a load will affect performance or mi/KWh”.

Hugh Crawford
Hugh Crawford
1 month ago

That combined motor / solid rear axle is awfully intriguing. Between the unsprung weight and having the presumably expensive motor bouncing around and exposed to whatever you might run over seems sort of primitive.

Actually, I would’ve expected Mercedes to make this a front wheel drive design. Isn’t the diesel sprinter front wheel drive?

Scoutdude
Scoutdude
1 month ago
Reply to  Hugh Crawford

No the Sprinter is RWD with optional AWD.

Hugh Crawford
Hugh Crawford
1 month ago
Reply to  Scoutdude

I could swear that I saw a beam axle waiting behind one in traffic.
Must have been some other van.

Scoutdude
Scoutdude
1 month ago
Reply to  Hugh Crawford

That would be the Promaster.

B B
B B
1 month ago
Reply to  Hugh Crawford

The rear suspension is a De Dion setup; the motor isn’t mounted on the axle

Hugh Crawford
Hugh Crawford
1 month ago
Reply to  B B

Well that makes a lot more sense. Someone should tell whoever made this illustration

https://images-stag.jazelc.com/uploads/theautopian-m2en/next-generation-mercedes-benz-esprinter_100773467_h-1536×723.jpg

I like De Dion, keep the wheels on a common axis.

Bhtooefr
Bhtooefr
1 month ago
Reply to  Hugh Crawford

In the US it’s RWD, but in Europe, it can also be FWD.

I’m guessing they went with the RWD bodyshell to make room for the battery, and at that point, no reason *not* to make it RWD.

Hugh Crawford
Hugh Crawford
1 month ago

I know that $75k is a lot to pay for a fully loaded van.

That of course, depends on what Mercedes put 400 pounds of in that box in the back. Now if it was moose cheese it would be a screaming deal.

“Coaxing five liters of milk from each moose per day takes a delicate hand and calm demeanor, which leads to the product’s prestige and price”

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/moose-cheese-algens-hus-sweden

El Jefe de Barbacoa
El Jefe de Barbacoa
1 month ago
Reply to  Hugh Crawford

The guys down at the Moose Lodge really appreciate a calm demeanor and delicate hand.

Turbo Quattro CS
Turbo Quattro CS
1 month ago

COTD!

MrLM002
MrLM002
1 month ago

The electrically heated windshield option is what I like. That being said I can’t see myself buying a van, even if I decided to do a van life thing I’d go with a camper trailer and or a slide in camper (that way if the rig, slide in, or trailer needs maintenance I can detach them and still have a place to stay without having to rent a hotel room).

Anoos
Anoos
1 month ago
Reply to  MrLM002

I’d be fine renting s hotel room at the intended destination. I would like something like this for rest stops on the way to the destination that I don’t feel like making full hotel night stops.

I wouldn’t want to live in it or spend a week’s vacation in it, but I’d be quite happy to be able to pull over for a rest with the dogs. Even if it’s just long enough to wait out rush hour before passing through a metro area.

ADDvanced
ADDvanced
1 month ago
Reply to  MrLM002

It’s really, really nice to be able to pull over, and walk into your bedroom. Like…. way more convenient than a hotel. And if you’re towing a trailer, you’re likely driving a fairly large vehicle anyway, so vans make more sense.

DadBod
DadBod
1 month ago
Reply to  MrLM002

If you do stuff the involves stuff (e.g. mountain biking, dogs, mountain biking with dogs), a van is an awesome daily driver.

VanGuy
VanGuy
1 month ago

That thing looks awesome. Have you driven an E-Transit? I’m curious how they compare, although I assume maintenance/parts will be cheaper with the Ford.

MATTinMKE
MATTinMKE
1 month ago

“The WLTP cycle is historically way higher than the EPA”

Why?!?!?!

I’ve asked before for a write up on the differences between them, and I shall continue to do so. Please and thank you.

TheHairyNug
TheHairyNug
1 month ago
Reply to  MATTinMKE

I believe WLTP is basically theoretical whereas EPA attempts a real world test. WLTP is absolutely useless

Silent But Deadly
Silent But Deadly
1 month ago
Reply to  TheHairyNug

WLTP is a European test based on European driving conditions. It will never be meaningful in the US…

Bleeder
Bleeder
1 month ago
Reply to  MATTinMKE

Here is a good overview of the differences between WLTP and EPA range testing:
https://insideevs.com/features/695492/epa-vs-wltp-ev-range-difference/

Both methods use a rolling road (dynamometer) and simulate various city/hwy conditions/cycles until the battery is depleted. Range estimates are calculated from these results.

The primary (but not only) difference is that the EPA uses the actual number of miles driven during the testing and includes a “real-world” adjustment to the range estimate (range * 0.7) to determine the window sticker range estimate.

The WLTP uses a formula that, rather than using miles driven, uses battery capacity vs electricity consumption during the testing cycles; or:
Range (km) = usable battery energy (watt-hours) / energy consumption (Wh/km)

The link also touches on PHEV range estimates if you’re interested.

MATTinMKE
MATTinMKE
1 month ago
Reply to  Bleeder

Excellent! Thanks!

Aron9000
Aron9000
1 month ago

We had diesel sprinters in our fleet, 2019 or 2020 models, got them with 7 miles on them. Talk about some of the biggest turds ever put on the road, we had 30 vans, at any one given time 4 to 6 of them were at the Mercedes dealer broke down. Of course all kinds of problems with the engine/emissions systems. Seat belts, all kinds of electrical shorts, a/c, transmissions, drivers doors springing open, broken door handles, drivers not filling the def, drivers filling them with gas. Thank god they were under warranty. Parts were also hard to get, some sat broken for weeks.

We got 7 or 8 v6 gas(no ecoboost) Ford transits a few months later, ZERO problems for the next two years with those. Just oil changes, tires, brakes. These were being used for last mile delivery, so severe use but the Fords took the abuse no problem. Never had downtime with any of the Fords

As for the electric Benz, the range is rather impressive. Electric port is on the wrong end of the van. Much easier to back into a parking space with a vehicle this size. Much safer pulling out as well.

Paint-Drinking Thundercock Harvey Park
Paint-Drinking Thundercock Harvey Park
1 month ago
Reply to  Aron9000

> drivers not filling the def, drivers filling them with gas

That’s not a defect with the van.

Aron9000
Aron9000
1 month ago

Actually Id say it is. Cause at the time diesel engines were the only way you could option a Sprinter. Or at least with the payload/length spec we needed. 3 to 4 mpg better than the gas transits, but with the more expensive fuel, the $1500 to $4000 bill we were stuck with when filled with gas each time, the cost per mile with gas Transits was WAY cheaper.

DadBod
DadBod
1 month ago
Reply to  Aron9000

I would be even cheaper to train the drivers to operate the vehicle correctly

Along with Martin, Dutch Gunderson, Lana and Sally Decker
Along with Martin, Dutch Gunderson, Lana and Sally Decker
1 month ago
Reply to  Aron9000

Transits are so much nicer. We had a Diesel Sprinter than someone drove over a curb and did some damage to the fuel system. The end result was a huge fuel leak in our off-site parking lot and weeks at the dealer followed by a multi-thousand dollar repair bill.

Sprinters also rust out prematurely.

SarlaccRoadster
SarlaccRoadster
1 month ago
Reply to  Aron9000

Not filling up the DEF, even though you get plenty of warnings before it actually runs out, or filling a diesel with gas because you can’t read “DIESEL ONLY” inside the fuel door is hardly something to blame Mercedes for. I mean nobody could ever design something 100% moron-proof.

Lally Singh
Lally Singh
1 month ago
Reply to  Aron9000

The transit’s the best thing Ford’s putting out.

Eggsalad
Eggsalad
1 month ago

You did not make a price comparison to the Diesel version, so I went and looked. Without a full equipment list it’s hard to be certain, but I’m guessing that if you optioned a Diesel Sprinter similarly to this EV version, you’d be close to $65k. I don’t think that’s a huge gap, percentage wise, the e-van is about 15% more expensive?

If your use case works for an EV and you can charge it at your home or business, I’m pretty sure your TCO over 5 years would be significantly cheaper than the Diesel version.

TheHairyNug
TheHairyNug
1 month ago
Reply to  Eggsalad

They’re definitely playing a bit of games with the trim. I really doubt many diesels get sold as fully loaded. I can see some value, but it’s certainly a bit narrow of a market segment

DONALD FOLEY
DONALD FOLEY
1 month ago
Reply to  TheHairyNug

Only three eSprinters available within one hundred miles of my location, none for less than $84,000.

Pat Rich
Pat Rich
1 month ago

Is this the first production vehicle that uses an eAxle solid axle system?

TheHairyNug
TheHairyNug
1 month ago

It simultaneously has a bit too much range to be an ideal urban/suburban fleet utility and too little range to do basically anything else. Low 200s is no man’s land for an EV. Especially at that price

MrLM002
MrLM002
1 month ago
Reply to  TheHairyNug

Charge it to 80% and you got the range and the extra battery life.

TheHairyNug
TheHairyNug
1 month ago
Reply to  MrLM002

Playing games is totally something I want to do with a $75k depreciating asset lol

Scoutdude
Scoutdude
1 month ago
Reply to  TheHairyNug

It really isn’t playing games you set it once to charge to 80% at the home charging location. That is something that many EV owners normally do.

Scoutdude
Scoutdude
1 month ago
Reply to  TheHairyNug

They do have 3 different battery sizes to allow the buyer to fit their specific needs.

Unlike retail buyers who lease a new one every 2 or 3 years many fleet buyers expect a minimum 10 year 150K life cycle. That means fleet buyers are likely to factor in some expectation of battery degradation. The other thing to consider is cold and to a less extent hot climates. In passenger cars heat can make a massive hit on the range but those have smaller interiors and even if you put in a partition, last mile delivery use means opening the door and letting all the heat out every few minutes. So that ~230 mi range could turn quickly turn into less than 100mi of usable range in the dead of winter.

Another advantage is that having a van that can go two days or more on a single charge can lower the cost of the needed charging infrastructure by cutting the numbers of plugs needed in half. That is what they seem to be doing at the nearest Amazon delivery station where the number of Rivians serviced there far exceeds the number of plugs. Based on where I see them heading to and fro the Rivians seem to be deployed to the areas that are furthest from the station.

Scottingham
Scottingham
1 month ago
Reply to  Scoutdude

I’ve always thought that a chemical based heater (kerosene, diesel, or w/e) would be a perfect fit for cold climate EVs.

Vans like this would have the room and the need for something like that. Hell, loop the coolant into the heater and it’d likely also address the range cut in cold weather.

It wouldn’t be ZeRo EmisSionS anymore, but the thermal energy of diesel should not be underestimated. And if it’s being used for actual heating, the efficiency is stupid high.

Thevenin
Thevenin
1 month ago
Reply to  Scottingham

I’ve always thought that a chemical based heater (kerosene, diesel, or w/e) would be a perfect fit for cold climate EVs.

They actually do this on some electric busses. I think it’s kind of an ideal use case for biofuel, actually — small volumes, seasonal use, and lower purity requirements all take the edge off of biofuel’s usual scalability problems.

SarlaccRoadster
SarlaccRoadster
1 month ago
Reply to  TheHairyNug

I can clearly see “Choices: 2 wheelbases and 3 battery sizes” in the diagram above, so maybe go back and read the article?

Last edited 1 month ago by SarlaccRoadster
Electric Truckaloo (formerly Stig’s Chamorro Cousin)
Electric Truckaloo (formerly Stig’s Chamorro Cousin)
1 month ago

If it has a decent onboard inverter, this would make for an outstanding work van, or a camper van to zing between plug-in campgrounds with enough range to let you explore along the way.

Love this thing. A camper conversion I’m sure is in the works, and it will cost more than the annual US national defense budget, but it’ll be awesome.

Pat Rich
Pat Rich
1 month ago

Yeah, a camper conversion would be cool. You could probably get about 1kw of solar on the roof too for trickle charging the battery at camp. Figure 8kwhr per day, which is 16 free miles per sunny day. I would guess that you don’t need a roof top AC unit either since the onboard AC will work off the traction battery.

OverlandingSprinter
OverlandingSprinter
1 month ago
Reply to  Pat Rich

a camper conversion would be cool

Maybe my use-case is weird, which I’ll own-up to, but the range is not enough for us. Maybe this would work on the east coast where the distances between camping destinations is shorter.

You could probably get about 1kw of solar on the roof too for trickle charging the battery at camp.

Every van build is a compromise. Filling the roof with panels means one would need to place a vent in a wall or on a back door. I have four 100-watt panels on the roof of my 170-inch Sprinter. The rest of the roof is occupied by a roof vent and skylight. Those were my compromises, and others will make their own.

I am all for BEVs. My next vehicle will be a BEV. I love electric vans for local use, but IMHO they’re not suited for what I need as the base of an RV.

Pat Rich
Pat Rich
1 month ago

Yeah, the range is light for where I am too, but it will certainly work for a lot of people. The truth is that I don’t get much more than 260 miles out of a tank anyway. I mean, I can stretch it to 300 or so, but thats pushing it. Most places will have fast charging these days, even small towns out west. You will definitely have to be more thoughtful with your travels which is a little antithetical to van life, but it wouldn’t be an undue hardship.

I can get a 400 watt panel on my Land Cruiser if thats all I wanted up there, I don’t think it would be a stretch to get 2 x 400 panels on a sprinter and still have room for a vent. Remember you wouldn’t need AC up there and you are building for sustainability and range first.

Barry Allen
Barry Allen
1 month ago

Oh, Mercedes the company put a big crate in there. I’d thought Mercedes Streeter was making you move one of her motorcycles while you had the van

MATTinMKE
MATTinMKE
1 month ago
Reply to  Barry Allen

I had to think about that one too.

Nathaniel
Nathaniel
1 month ago

“Eventually, Daimler sold off Freightliner and so all Sprinters just became Mercedes-badged products.”

Freightliner was never sold off. It is still a subsidiary of Daimler Truck and also still sells a rebadged Sprinter van in North America.

Last edited 1 month ago by Nathaniel
StillNotATony
StillNotATony
1 month ago

It’s got 488 cubic feet of cargo space, and you’re annoyed it doesn’t have a frunk?!?

Whatever, Hardigree! Peace be with you, and all that jazz.

Freddy Bartholomew
Freddy Bartholomew
1 month ago

I appreciate that you referred to the bridge by its proper name, Tappan Zee, even if you got the spelling wrong. If you are not an auto journo, do you have to pay to get the 400 lbs box? Asking for a friend.

Beto O'Kitty
Beto O'Kitty
1 month ago

There’s nothing like riding shotgun!

Lardo
Lardo
1 month ago

Had a Boxster. Porsche made/makes a car seat. Drove my daughter to her first day of kindergarten. Top down. Some of the other parents thought less of me. Core memory for my daughter.

Cryptoenologist
Cryptoenologist
1 month ago
Reply to  Lardo

My MR2 Spyder has both a weight sensor and a hard lockout of the passenger airbag so it can accommodate humans both too short and too tall for the airbag. We turned the airbag off for my 6’5” buddy since it would likely do unhappy things to his knees in the unlikely event it went off. I’m pretty sure a rear-facing seat wouldn’t fit but forward would be fine and definitely booster. Not taking my tall friend or any kids to the track or on long highway drives but for a jaunt about town it’s fine.

MATTinMKE
MATTinMKE
1 month ago

I’m in the market for a new driving experience, and the MR2 is definitely on my radar. Anything specific to look out for? Problems I should know about? Is it as fun as it looks?

Cryptoenologist
Cryptoenologist
1 month ago
Reply to  MATTinMKE

It’s fun, handling is delightful but definitely feels a bit slow these days, compared to the instant torque of my EV. Look for an example that is as stock as possible, unless you have specific mods you really want.

If you are handy enough for an engine swap, get a rolling chassis and do a 2AR swap.

MATTinMKE
MATTinMKE
1 month ago

So, find a stock one, and add power to taste. That sounds perfect to me.

Cryptoenologist
Cryptoenologist
1 month ago
Reply to  MATTinMKE

It’s not a very easy car to add power to. So if going stock, just go stock. If you don’t think you’ll be satisfied with the power, buy one with a blown motor and do a swap, or buy one with well-sorted mods. The stock ECU doesn’t support ANY tuning.

The well running stock examples are dwindling and should be left alone to retain their value and the original characteristics of the car.

Lardo
Lardo
1 month ago

Oh the Porsche seat required an additional component mounted under the seat that the child seat clicked into.
This connection turned off the airbag. And when the kids grew the back of the kids seat came off, but the booster was still there. It was well engineered. Very Porsche.

Hugh Crawford
Hugh Crawford
1 month ago
Reply to  Lardo

My parents drove me to school in a MGTD. Car seats weren’t really a thing then so i sat on a tiny wicker chair wedged between the seats and the gas tank.

They wouldn’t let me sit in the regular seat because sometimes the doors would fly open going around a corner and there were no seat belts.

Clark B
Clark B
1 month ago
Reply to  Lardo

I remember the 2001 Volvo V70 I grew up riding around in had built in booster seats in the back. You just pulled a handle and the seat bottom could be lifted up and locked into a higher position. Always thought that was pretty neat.

Widgetsltd
Widgetsltd
1 month ago
Reply to  Lardo

Waaaay back in the summer of 1999, we had a 1998 Viper R/T10 roadster at work for a few weeks. So of course I plunked my son down in his car booster seat for the daycare drop-off one morning. He loved it, of course, and is a car nut (and a racer) to this day!

Matt Sexton
Matt Sexton
1 month ago

Nothing is better than when your kid is big enough to not need the booster seat anymore. Suddenly trips are with them rather than taking them. My daughter reacted the same way yours did, the first time she rode up front.

Drew
Drew
1 month ago

“Rather than worry about what your average journo might conclude, Mercedes opted to put a crate with 400 pounds of weight in the back.”

But she knows you and your level of experience with tall vehicles! 😉

Last edited 1 month ago by Drew
AlterId
AlterId
1 month ago

Nice write-up! I hope you can get your money back for the CUV driver you just bought to replace the Disenchanted Forester, because your daughter expects and deserves a big van.

The Sprinter in this configuration is 170 inches long and has a cargo volume of 488 cubic feet.

That overall length number seemed a bit short for a full-sized cargo van given that the current Civic is around 184 inches long. (Yes, it’s enormous by historical Civic standards and the size is a little off-putting for someone like me whose primary drivers have been C-segment for over 30 years, but still – it’s a Civic.)

I suspected that was the wheelbase, which is confirmed here.

Last edited 1 month ago by AlterId
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