April 1st started like any other day – yoga, chores, and errands in my Mercedes Sprinter van. Laundromat, groceries, post office – the usual mundane tasks. Excited to get going, I started the van and pulled away from the curb. Barely a hundred feet later, my Sprinter van began sputtering and quickly stalled. Not ideal!
Trying to remain optimistic, I attempted to restart the engine. It hesitated, coughed, but eventually started. Disappointingly, the relief was short-lived. Within another hundred feet, the sputtering returned, and the van was struggling to move forward.
Fortunately, I was on a quiet residential street. Breaking down completely in the middle of the road was something I definitely wanted to avoid. I managed to pull over to the curb, put it in park, and kept the engine running, hoping it might resolve itself.
The sputtering continued sporadically. I decided to call the nearest Mercedes-Benz dealership and spoke to their service department. They recommended bringing it in immediately. I hesitated for a moment. Strangely, after a few minutes on the phone, the sputtering stopped, and the engine seemed to hum normally. Just as I started to convince myself it was a fluke and everything was fine, the engine completely stalled again. Time for a different approach.
Reaching for my AAA card, I initiated the roadside assistance process. This was only my second time using AAA since embarking on van life, and I have to say, their system is incredibly efficient. (The first time? I accidentally locked my dog inside the van – a truly terrifying moment!).
AAA’s online tool estimated a tow truck arrival within five minutes. The speed of their service was impressive, and I quickly scrambled to prepare the van for towing. I secured everything inside, gathering essential items I might need for a couple of days, anticipating a potentially lengthy service.
One crucial step was removing one of our galley drawers entirely. A push button latch was malfunctioning, and the last thing I needed was for the drawer to fly open during towing or while at the service center.
Next, I emptied the perishables from our Dometic cooler and used the Goal Zero App to shut down the 110-volt, USB, and 12-volt power plugs. Our van’s electrical system is powered by a Goal Zero Yeti 6000x.
I opted not to completely power down the Goal Zero as the battery was at a healthy 63% charge, and there was no significant power draw at that point. My thinking was that the solar panels could continue charging the battery while the van was being transported and potentially sitting in the Mercedes parking lot, possibly unsheltered. If the van ended up being stuck at the dealership for more than a couple of days, I could always return to fully power it down. Fingers crossed that wouldn’t be necessary!
Just as I finished my preparations, a flatbed tow truck arrived – incredibly, within ten minutes of my call.
The driver was optimistic he could start the Sprinter van and drive it onto the flatbed. We had a brief moment of hope when he managed to coax the engine to start. Unfortunately, our optimism quickly faded as the van stalled again as soon as he attempted to accelerate onto the ramp. With some skillful maneuvering and persistence, he successfully loaded the van, and my Mercedes Sprinter was finally on its way to the dealership.
Shortly after the van arrived, I received a call from a Mercedes service advisor. Imagine my surprise and slight frustration when he informed me that the van started without any hesitation and was running perfectly fine. It was sitting there idling smoothly, as if nothing had ever happened.
I explained to him that the van had been sitting for three days prior to this incident, which shouldn’t be an unreasonable amount of time. Could that have contributed to the issue? I also suggested the possibility of a fuel filter problem, as the van was likely approaching its next service interval. After a busy winter of travels, I suspected some build-up or grime might be affecting it.
Since the van hadn’t displayed any warning lights or error codes on the dashboard, Mercedes indicated they would proceed with a thorough diagnosis. The diagnosis alone would cost $299, and at that point, I still had no idea if the van’s warranty would cover any potential repairs or parts. After hanging up, my first instinct was to search for Mercedes-Benz service coupons online, hoping to soften the financial blow.
While I waited for a status update from Mercedes, I thought I’d share this slice of van life reality. This wasn’t our first Sprinter van towing experience. I previously wrote about towing our 2019 Winnebago Revel, which is built on a 2018 Mercedes Sprinter chassis. That earlier article includes some helpful tips if you ever find yourself needing roadside assistance for your van.
And here’s a slightly less-than-glamorous photo from the second time our Revel/Sprinter required towing:
April 2nd Update: The Plot Thickens
One of the genuinely excellent aspects of Mercedes-Benz service is the direct line of communication you have with your dedicated service advisor while your vehicle is in their shop. Upon the van’s arrival for intake, I immediately received a text message, making it easy to communicate via text or initiate a phone call.
This morning, I had both a text message exchange and a phone conversation with my service advisor, Jesse. They were still perplexed because they had been completely unable to replicate the engine issue! The Sprinter van was starting and running without any problems at the dealership.
Jesse posed a few diagnostic questions, trying to gather more information since they were somewhat stumped. Was the van parked on an incline? No. When was the last time I filled up the fuel tank? Five days prior. When did we replace the original fuel tank with this 47-gallon fuel tank replacement? The larger capacity fuel tank was part of the van conversion completed by Van America back in November 2022.
Jesse mentioned that Sprinter van owners who leave their vans stationary for extended periods might occasionally encounter similar issues, but our situation seemed unusual given our recent usage.
Frankly, I didn’t feel I offered any particularly insightful answers. However, their current plan is to let the van sit overnight and attempt to replicate the rough idle and stalling issue again in the morning. If they are still unable to reproduce the problem, their next step is to replace the EGR valve. Since the van is still under warranty, this repair option is covered, making it a logical step to try.
Apparently, replacing the EGR valve has resolved similar engine performance issues in other Mercedes Sprinter vans exhibiting almost identical symptoms. The theory is that carbon buildup can clog the EGR valve, leading to the sputtering and stalling our van experienced. Hopefully, we’ll have a definitive answer tomorrow!
