I'm Questioning Power/Torque of Gas vs Diesel

They are reassembled because of importing rules as a whole unit.
Desiel will always pull better with less stress than a gasser.
Do you want a race car, or a RV?
My Chevy Diesel will give a gasser a run for its money if you want to get down on the pedal.
Most don't buy diesel because of extra cost.
But tradein value remains higher than a gasser, and will run many more miles than a gasser.
Same work, less stress on the engine.
Allison tranny is a proven tranny. Used in military tanks.
If it has spark plugs it isn't a real truck. :)
If you drive a diesel, you will never want a gasser again.

Lee

My Sprinter is a 2004. I probably wouldn't buy a new Sprinter, unless there is something very wrong with the new Ford Transit. I will say, whether gas or diesel, without a turbo, I ain't interested. I haven't had a daily driver that was normally aspirated for years and don't plan to own one.

topless wrote:
Ask yourself, why are all 18 wheelers powered by turbo diesels? Also why are most trucks used for heavy hauling turbo diesels? Hp is a method of rating the work a motor will do, but torque is what moves things. It's not hp that loosens nor tightens a bolt, it torque.
Having said that, for general,use, a gasoline engine is fine. There are more advantages to a Sprinter than just the turbo diesel. When driving in mountains, you can use the manual shift mode in the transmission to engine brake and save over heating you brakes. Since the Sprinter was designed as a delivery van for use around the globe, it handles difficult terrain with ease, uphill, downhill, tight turns, narrow roads, and those in combination. We drove the road between Montrose and Durango Colorado and after that 107 miles of hairpin turns, 3 - 12,000 ft passes I learned to really appreciate the Sprinter. There are hairpin turns on the side of a mountain that are 15 mph. I don trembler a single level part of that road, Longest straight might have been 1/4 mile. The next day we drove down Hiway 50 through Monarch Pass . Speed limit is 45 mph, by using the lower gears, never touched the brakes all the way down the mountain. Was following a Suburban that was riding its brakes all the way.
There is more to a truck than just the motor, I was one of the first on this forum with a Sprinter. Got all kinds of static about how my 154 hp motor wouldn't do work. It does.

I agree. You must have the I-5 diesel like in my 06 PW Plateau TS. I have driven the merciless Coquihalla Highway from Vancouver to Kamloops and some of those long uphill stretches practically bring trucks and motorhomes to a crawl. I will sometimes downshift to 4th but generally can keep going around 45 to 50 mph, passing all sorts of RVs. All RVs(regardless of what people say) do heat up a bit including mine on long stretches but the diesel has the grunt to do the job my previous V10 managed but with 4500 to 5000 revs and lots of noise--although i did like the V10 on lesser climbs. Most highways though are fine for most rvs, gas or diesel. But the old I-5 td gets me 30mpg(24USgal) whereas my V10 got 10-14mpg(8 or so USgal). Hmm.

Al

There's also the idea that a vehicle built here puts people here to work, they pay taxes here and buy other things here, which puts more people to work here who also pay taxes here, etc etc. Then the idea that the really big money from that purchase will be exported to the country of origin instead of being put back into the economy here to generate more revenue to provide more services here. All of which adds to the overall cost in some way.
john 'I am Canadian'

I beleive Canada gets them through the US.

mlts22 wrote:
The reason that the Sprinters come as kits that are reassembled is due to the "chicken tax". The blame for that one rests squarely on the politicians, not on consumers or Mercedes.

Thank you and interesting, but I don't know the answer to some of it - you may.

I could not find that there was a chicken tax in Canada for Spinters or any other vehicle (but there could be and I missed it), and there is no chicken tax on vehicles manufactured in Mexico or Canada and shipped to the US due to NAFTA.

So it seems like Spinters importer to Canada would not have to be disassembled?

Bud

The reason that the Sprinters come as kits that are reassembled is due to the "chicken tax". The blame for that one rests squarely on the politicians, not on consumers or Mercedes.

Hi applegater,

I basically agree, but someone could make the argument that some folks have a 'need' to maintain their 'self image' and have a 'need for speed' with a crotch rocket or corvette, or some kind of 'female magnet vechicle'.

"... you should probably wonder why the sprinter comes from the factory as kits that have to reassembled rather than imported as complete units!"

I just asked myself and don't know the answer. Why is that?

Thanks.

Bud

When you talk cost difference you should probably wonder why the sprinter comes from the factory as kits that have to reassembled rather than imported as complete units! Second countless threads have covered the sprinter with the same conclusions, there are those that love them and there are those who won't consider them. Last I am reminded of a conversation I had with the chairman of one of the three largestest auto retailers in the country; he said " I didn't get rich because people bought what they needed instead of what they wanted"!

Once the Sprinters were forced to become less polluting they lost their huge (23 mpg Sprinter compared to 16 mpg Chevy) mpg advantage.Why pay $10,000 more for a vehicle that gets 2 mpg(18mpg Sprinter 16 mpg Chevy) more with higher upkeep. I will eventually buy an older up until 2007 because I'm slow and want the great gas mileage but I will wait and see how the new Sprinter 4cylinders will do.