I know this is off topic but I'm sure some people on this forum would know. I am thinking about buying an 05 Dodge sprinter with I think 5 cyl. newly rebuilt engine that has about 20,000 miles on the engine. Any one know if these engines are good as I am wanting to convert it to run wvo. I'm currently running my 85 300SD on the wvo and it works out very well just need more carrying capacity for long trips.

Why are they selling it within 20k of rebuilding the engine?

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Jim

They said cause they are moving to Florida and no longer need it.? The little research I did seems a lot of them are a $$$ pit needing numerous expensive repairs not sure I should even go look at it. Why did last motor go at about 170,000miles and will this new motor last?

1. It ALL depends on Who did the "ReMan"
(If it's a Factory "Crate" motor It may be better than New.)
[BUT,I suspect it's not. a. Too Expensive. b. No one would get rid of
a Newly "Crated" factory motor equipped Chassis.]

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'84 300SD sold
124.128

Don't the Dodge Sprinters have Mercedes engines?

Yes they do have the 2.7 five cal. M.B. engines and I have heard some real horror stories about them.

Well I went to look at the 2005 sprinter with the I-5 diesel today. It is a 2.7 liter 5 cyl. diesel mercedes engine. I was surprised at how accessible the motor is for working on. He told me previous motor went bad because of a clogged injector from burning biodiesel which he bought at a filling station. I find that hard to believe but I am not familiar with biodiesel he took vehicle to a shop and they agreed to put a remanufactured engine in with a 3yr. 100,000 mile warranty for $7,000 there is 2 yrs. 70,000 miles left on warranty. The engine sounded good test drove it had good power no smoke. Two things I did see wrong were it has no a.c. guy says it needs either a condensor, or compressor to the tune of about 4-500 dollars and also the trans. makes a noise he called the rumple strip noise every now and the when you accelerate or deccelerate. He said they told him it is a commmon problem with these vans it is play on the torque convertor clutch shaft they repaired it costing $400 but the noise soon came back now they are saying its a design flaw in that transmission and to really get rid of it he would need a trans. replacement. So I'm undecided if I should take a chance on buying this or should I run from it as it could turn out to be a big $$$$ pit.

If mine, I am sure I could repair the AC for much less than $400. Since you are a member here, I imagine you are hands-on too.

I don't know about the transmission, but since a common problem I expect somebody will step up and come up with a fix. Since it sounds like just within the torque converter, that is a separate part which can be shipped affordably. If RWD, it shouldn't be too hard to remove the transmission to replace, but never seen a Sprinter. You might have to live with the noise for a few years. If from the input shaft in the tranny, it sounds like a worn bushing.

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1984 & 1985 CA 300D's
1964 & 65 Mopar's - Valiant, Dart, Newport
1996 & 2002 Chrysler minivans

The history of one is not much data but my 180000 mile 2006 5 cyl has hummed like a kitten. One boost hose split. B5 is the highest biofuel recommended in the cdi engine.

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Paul

Yuke, There is a Sprinter forum that you might find helpful. I stumbled onto it three or four years ago when I googled an issue on my car.

Send me an PM with your e-mail and I will sent the maintenance records spreadsheet from 298 miles to 428,563 miles on mine.

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Greg
2012 S350 BlueTEC 4Matic
2007 ML 320 CDI
2007 Leisure Travel Serenity
2006 Sprinter 432k
2005 E320 CDI
1998 SLK230 (teal)
1998 SLK230 (silver)
1996 E300D 99k, 30k on WVO
Previous:
1983 240D, on WVO
1982 300D, on WVO
1983 300CD, on WVO
1986 300SDL 237k, 25k on WVO (Deerslayer)
1991 350SDL 249k, 56k on WVO - Retired to a car spa in Phoenix
1983 380 SEC w/603 diesel, 8k on WVO
1996 E300D 351k, 177k on WVO

Do u believe it's a rebuilt engine when u saw it in person or is the guy just saying that?

And just my personal opinion, seems like to much possibility of problems. Remember this guy is selling it to u so he is making these problems sound as easy and simple as he possibly can.

I would wait for another if I were u, but then again I KNOw how it is when u want a car and it's a good Price and u wanna just go for it. So whatever u decide I'd get it, but I would keep looking

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What I'm mostly concerned about with this vehicle is what he described as rumble strip noise (rsn) he said google it and you will see tons of write ups on it. I did and yes it seems a lot of people have a problem with their sprinter vans from about 01-08. There is much discussion as to what causes it and what cures it. It is a noise that comes from the trans. at low speeds 20-35 mph.
Suggested causes:
1.Low or dirty trans. fluid (these vehicles have no dipstick to check)
2.weak trans. support cross member allowing vibration to happen
3.play in torque convertor clutch
So in the end I think he had a different convertor put in to the tune of about $400 he said noise pretty much went away but is coming back again now, when he went back to mechanic to complain he said they told him to get rid of noise he needs another trans. as to how long this vehicle could run with this noise is anybodys guess. He thinks you could get another trans. for about $2500 I have read some people say $7-8 thousand.
When I test drove the vehicle trans. shifted perfectly and to tell you the truth he said he heard the noise but I really did'nt but I am hard of hearing.
I think I'm gonna take a chance on this vehicle hope I'm not getting myself a $$ pit as I read maintainance cost on these sprinters is very high.

Comforting that he pointed out the noise to you when you couldn't even hear it. Sounds like it may not even indicate part wear but just something owners fuss about. Some hear a slight exhaust rattle and think that is serious. Maintenance on any new vehicle today is high. Parts get cheaper as they age and the after-market kicks in.

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1984 & 1985 CA 300D's
1964 & 65 Mopar's - Valiant, Dart, Newport
1996 & 2002 Chrysler minivans

Rsn on my sprinter was an easy fix. If you are serious about buying a sprinter go to sprinter source. There is an easy (and in my case "permanent) as in 40k miles) fix for RSN wrong fluid, dirty sole kids, exc exc cause it but it is fixable. I got a good deal on mine with "broken trans" and had it fixed in two minutes for .15c. Yemv

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1983 240d 5Sp SOLD
1986 300D(LUCO) SOLD
1983 300TD(dreamboat)SOLD
1984 240d (Executive)SOLD
1984 240d (Euripides) SOLD
1982 300sd SOLD
1982 300sd (Ambas)SOLD