Caution about the Sprinter.

Hello,
I'm new to this forum, so hi everybody!
I want to share a word of caution.
We just bought a TM 2720sl. With air conditioning, it weighs at 3198 lb.
Our tow vehicle is a 2004 Sprinter van. It has a tow rating of 5000lb, so we figured we would be OK.
We loaded the TM with the usual gear: clothes, pots and pans, towels, a microwave and a coffee maker, not much else.
We loaded the Sprinter with the rest of our gear: most notably, weight wise, an inflatable kayak, a bicycle and a tricycle (adult size).
Our Sprinter is a cargo van, with only two seats. A year ago, we soundproofed it. The soundproofing is fairly heavy.
To make a long story short, we left North Georgia, headed to the hills of North Carolina. The plan was a two month trip to Quebec.
That was yesterday. Today we are back home. The Sprinter literally could not make it up the first extended hill we faced (North of Franklin, toward Asheville). It started slowing down severely, and it was clear that it may not make it at all to the top. Scarier yet, we were wondering how it would have fared on the other side of the hill. Luckily, there was a rest area where we could stop, make a u-turn and head home.
Now we are weighing everything (should have done that first!). It turns out we are at about 4800 lb between TM and cargo. This is below the 5000 lb rating. However, it is clear to us that the rating is only valid on flat terrain. I do not know what the multiplier should be for mountain driving.
So, lesson learned: the tow rating and GCWR are not enough to judge if a tow vehicle will work.
I would love to hear suggestion as to what vehicle would be appropriate for mountain driving towing the TM. For now, we will only drive on flat terrain. But next year we might be able to afford a new tow vehicle (out of the question this year, unfortunately).
Hope this helps anybody who is considering the Sprinter!

[B_and_D]

Wow, that's kind of scary! Even with our Chevy 1500, we have to slow down quite a bit on some of the longer, steep grades (Ashland OR, The Grapevine in So. CA, in the Sierra Mountains).

We bought the truck first, because we needed a truck, and then the TM, so we were well equipped to start out with.

Wishing you luck with finding a more capable tow vehicle at the right price.

D

Welcome to the forum. Sorry to hear about your troubles. I can't say enough about how happy I am with my Tundra as a TV. The 2007+ versions with the 5.7 L engine don't even feel the TM back there. I didn't even bother taking her out of cruise control on a decent sized grade (few mile 6-7%) two days ago. We were flying by a number of folks towing that looked like they were laboring too. Braking performance is awesome

Wow, really sorry to hear about your problem. Has to be very disappointing. This really surpises me. I don't mean to ask a stupid question, but are you sure the Sprinter doesn't have a problem you just uncovered? I towed with a '08 Toyota Highlander (5000 lb rated) in the Rocky Mtns and uphill was not much of an issue. I would think the Sprinter to be just as capable. How much HP does it have?
As far as recommendatios, seems that trucks are the vehicle of choice. I love the Tundra, it is a joy to travel in and tow our TM with. Best of luck to ya.

I agree. I used a vehicle with a similar tow rating - and towed at high altitude in the mountains.

It was NOT fun, and I traded up for a better vehicle. But it would pull it up the hills (albeit a bit slower than most traffic around me).

If it really won't make it to the top of the hill at all (not just slowly), I agree - something is wrong with your vehicle. That said, I completely understand if you decide it isn't enough vehicle to tow a TM - I made a similar call years ago.

As for vehicles, it's hard to beat a truck for towing capability. But people here pull with plenty of other vehicles too, many of whom are happy with their performance.

Sorry to hear about the problems. Not knowing a whole lot about Sprinters I took a quick peek on the net and found a little info that I listed below.

Engine(s)

2.1L I4 OM 646 CDI
3.0L V6 OM642 CDI
3.5L V6 petrol/gasoline

Transmission(s)
6-speed manual
5-speed automatic

What engine do you have? Transmission?

I would think that the 3.5 V6 would be able to handle the TM. The 2.1 no. The 3.0, I doubt it but I am no expert.

See signature for my venerable ( read old ) TV....

( I am old school. When in doubt double what you think you will need )

Like I said before, I know nothing about the Sprinter but there is a forum member that pulls his TM with it. If memory serves he is a full-timer and makes his living as an insurance adjuster. Perhaps he can add some real time data.

I cannot help but wonder that if you are pulling with the 3.5 V6 that there may be something wrong with the engine or tranny.

Good luck with the Sprinter and thank you very much for posting!

[ShrimpBurrito]

Originally Posted by Joseph

Like I said before, I know nothing about the Sprinter but there is a forum member that pulls his TM with it. If memory serves he is a full-timer and makes his living as an insurance adjuster. Perhaps he can add some real time data.

Yes, I remember him too. His TV was a Sprinter equipped as a camper, so it presumably had more weight than an empty cargo van.

Dave

Hi again.
Our 2004 Sprinter is a 2.7L 5cyl Turbo diesel, automatic transmission. We bought it as a cargo van when we were doing art shows, to carry all of our stuff. Acceleration has never been great, but we never had a problem with load before. However, I believe they have discontinued that engine in favor of a 6cyl, maybe the manufacturer realized that the van was underpowered. Before the TM, we had an Aliner LXE, which had all the trimming, and was about 2200 lb dry weight. Went all over Alaska on rather steep grades, my husband (he is the better, and therefore designated, driver in the family) said he could not even tell he had a trailer. We figured,with the TM we would feel it more; we did not expect failure. Thanks for the feedback; we are going to take the Sprinter into the shop Tuesday, we'll see what the mechanic has to say. In any case, as grakin said, I'd rather have a bigger margin of safety. For now, we are revising our plans, we will go to Maine instead, hugging the coast, all on flat terrain. That should be no problem, right? :-)
We already love our TM, even though we have not had a chance to use it yet! We liked our Aliner, we traveled around Alaska for 4 months, but by the end of the trip it was feeling smaller and smaller...especially for my husband Eugene, who is 6'2", and did not have many place to stand up straight in it...I'm a shortie, at 5'2'', so I had less trouble. But the TM looks so spacious and comfortable, in such a small towing package. We went to the factory before deciding to buy, and we were well impressed with the construction techniques, they seem very smart.
Well, for now we will enjoy the 4th of July at home, happy Independence Day to all of you!
P.S. I also 'lurked' in this forum quite a lot to help us decide if to buy the TM. Lots of great information to be found here! Thanks to all!

The diesel Sprinter engine was dropped in 2007 as was the diesel in the Jeep Liberty due to new EPA rules in 2007. The US market was not big enough to make the needed changes.

I have a Jeep Liberty with the 2.8 diesel. It is not always a speed demon with our 2720 but has no problems with hills. Be sure you turn off overdrive if you hit hills and you get downshifts (all vehicles gas or diesel) or it will ruin your transmission.

Ditto on the capabilities of the 2.8 liter diesel in our 05 Liberty, we routinely camp in the NC mountains with no problem. However, I did a little spec research and discovered that the 04 Sprinter with the 2.7L is significantly heavier than the Liberty (L: 3650 lbs vs S:5160 lbs) and lower torque (L:295 lb-ft vs S:243 lb-ft). If my figures are correct that's almost 40% worse power (torque) to weight ratio
Horsepower figures are almost the same (L:160 vs S:154) but are not as significant for this application, same for the 5000 lb tow rating.

I would still be interested to see if the Sprinter has mechanical issues, but based on the numbers above I wouldn't be too surprised to find that it just doesn't have the necessary power.