The Mercedes sprinter is the quintessential base vehicle for a van life conversion, and is by far the most popular model chosen by the van life community. The Sprinter can be considered the ‘O.G’ cargo panel van, and many other manufacturers have based their panel vans after it.
This means there is a well established ‘corporate’ knowledge base within the van life community of exactly how to fit out Sprinter vans, and you can get access to many free or purchasable Sprinter van conversion guides.
“Mercedes Sprinter panel vans are undoubtedly the most popular and iconic van models for van life conversions. Professional (commercial) conversions typically cost around $30,000, but a DIY fit out can be achieved for less than $5,000.”
Because of the practicality of choosing a quality van with a reasonable amount of mileage on the clock, this review focuses on the more modern options from approximately 2005 onwards.
Mercedes Sprinter
Providing an awesome ‘blank canvass’, the sprinter has enough interior space to accommodate a diverse range of conversion designs such as fixed beds, Murphy beds or convertible table-bed designs, as well as space for including fixed kitchen (fridge, stove-top and sink), counter tops and even a self contained shower / toilet.
The sprinter panel van comes in a variety of wheel base (length) options, and all of these have a 69 inch (5″9′) width at its base but the walls curve inwards:
- Mid Wheel Base – 144 inch wheel base (128 inches living space)
- Long Wheel Base – 170 inch wheel base (170 inches of living space)
- Long Wheel Base extended – 170 inch wheel base (185 inches living space). This is basically a bus and quite impractical to park or maneuver.
As well as a variety of roof top options:
- Mid Roof
- High roof (6″3′ tall)
- Very high roof
In addition, they can come with both petrol or highly efficient diesel engines – expect around 12L per 100km (20 miles per gallon) on the highway and about 20% more fuel usage for city driving. The Sprinter also comes in automatic or manual transmission (automatic is more common) with the following drive trains;
- Front wheel drive
- Rear wheel drive (most common)
- All wheel drive variant (most expensive)
Sprinters are renown for being more of a premium van life option, and so are one of the most expensive van life options. This is both true when purchasing your van, and also when servicing it as parts can be comparatively expensive and Mercedes recommend only using qualified mechanics which can be difficult to source in remote areas.
A brand new Sprinter panel van can cost upwards of $60,000 depending on options, and according to Redbook, a good quality second hand van (under 5 years old with under 200,000km) can easily be found for around $30,000.
Expect to pay around $500-1500 for each service (Mercedes ‘A’ or ‘B’ service) and if you treat it well (don’t drive it too hard or off-road) and service it according to the guidelines, they are known for lasting 600,000km without too many nasty suprises. Be prepared however, to spend more on maintaining a sprinter than you might on other vehicles, and because of their complexity under the hood you might not be able to DIY as many ‘running repairs’.
Mercedes Sprinter Panel Van summary
Mercedes Sprinter panel vans are undoubtedly the most popular or ‘cool’ van to do your conversion with. They are a bit more expensive to buy and maintain, are a little complex mechanically than other vans and are the narrowest of their class.
Having said that, they make up a huge percentage of all van life conversions, and there is a wealth of knowledge in the van life community about converting and travelling in them. They are also available in a factory standard 4×4 configuration, which I think is super awesome and really opens up the possibility to explore remote locations like beaches and mountains.
I personally want to go with a sprinter just for the ‘cool’ factor!
