Does chassis make matter for parts?

We were focused on a Sprinter chassis RV as well. Did some research and found a list on-line of dealers that would service them. Seemed like a pretty thorough list. Can't speak for part cost but, it is a M-B and anyone buying one shouldn't be shocked at cost...it sort of goes with the territory!
In the end, we choose a unit that just happened to be on a Chevy chassis. Mostly for the space and layout. (DW's primary objective!)Handling and power were my major concerns and this unit checked the majority of our boxes. As I mentioned earlier, warranty service seems to be the challenge, at least in our area. Unfortunately, GM doesn't appear to publish a list of dealers capable of servicing their chassis used as an RV. Or, at least I haven't been able to locate such a list. Granted, there are many independent shops capable, and hopefully willing, of working on the GM stuff...our challenge will to find one when we need them! I suspect regardless of chassis, we all face a similar challenge when repairs are called for.

Gary

I'm really glad I asked (and joined the forum).

Those Sprinters are so common now, you'd think over time eventually that would change due to either demand or soured relations.

If it doesn't, there's going to be a glut on used Sprinter-based RV's at some point.

This is only my opinion......

For years I wanted a Sprinter, saved up and finally was able to buy one. Started seriously shopping around and ran into a lot of people that scared me away from them. One guy was selling his RV and we got talking and he had been a sales person for Sprinter, even after he sold his RV he still was contacting me to talk about RV's and still was against Sprinters.

Why? Cost to keep running. Parts were priced crazy and Sprinter wanted nothing to do with selling the parts to other shops so parts were hard to come by. Then I had people contact me to tell me about the black death they were having with the engines. More people contacted me to tell me that finding a service place outside of major towns was a nightmare. Needless to say I stayed away from s Sprinter.

Bought a Ford. Is it the best unit? Really not sure but at least I can go to just about any garage and they know the units and can get parts. Same with Chevy, you may be in back country US or Canada but there is probably a place that has parts and know the units close by.

Over the years I have discovered that we can read people picky on this or that chassis. But generally I've found that both Ford & Chevy make good ones that suit RV's all the same. It's more about the MFG and their engineers for the floor plans to match the chassis. This is why brand matters.

Sheesh.
One of the advantages to a C (over an A) is supposed to be having a 'standard' chassis that mechanics can easily work on.

Not to say they can get it in their garage easily, but you know what I mean. :)

Thanks for all the answers.

I had wondered about Dodge since the bankruptcy and Daimler/Fiat things.

Of course most cars are a hodgepodge of parts and labor from multiple countries, but I figured Ford/GM would be easier to deal with overall, and cheaper.

I'll continue with that presumption. I guess before I buy a class C, I can verify there's someone who can service it in my area.

I mostly split time between Missouri and Florida. I've been assuming RV service in FL is a non-issue.
I can stay with relatives while they work on it, so I'm not picky about turn-around time.

We have the Chevy chassis and service is somewhat of a challenge in our area. There are several dealers in our area that sell and service medium duty chassis. Unfortunately, none of them will service an RV. So for us, it is a 100 mile drive to the nearest dealer for warranty related service. A local truck shop will handle normal service though!

Gary

I'm in agreement with tatest, I'm hesitant on purchasing any Pro-master Ram motorhome chassis, since it's basically a Fiat and a lot of cost cutting is evident. I still remember the Phaser and Pulsar motorhomes based on Renault truck chassis years ago, then Renault left the US market and parts became scarce. Fiat has left US market once before and we saw Daimler Benz unload Chrysler Corp after a somewhat short merger. But yesterday we saw one of the new Fiat 2 seat roadsters introduced to the US market to combat the Mazda Miata, which we have one, I was very impressed with the design.

Ford and Chevrolet truck dealers are easier to find than Mercedes-Benz truck dealers, though some Freightliner dealers help fill in the gap. With the realignment of franchises under FCA, I'm no longer sure what is the status of dealer support for medium truck chassis under the RAM brands, although in rural areas I'm finding most dealers sell and service Chrysler, Dodge and RAM passenger vehicles and light trucks.

Mercedes-Benz parts, even service parts and special lubricants, tend to be more expensive than domestic models.