Our Excellent Adventures

Tire pressure is usually a subject that everyone agrees to disagree on but I confused on this one. I have posted this in the SMB forum and in the Sprinter-source forum. Since the #1 cause of tire failure is low air pressure we can’t take this lightly.

This is the manufacturer’s label . . .

and I don’t know whose label (Sportsmobile?) this is but the difference is major.

The tires maximum capacity is 3049 pounds at pressure 80psi.

The GVWR in 8550 pounds with the GAWR Front 3970 and the GAWR Rear 5360. I am not over these but I am within about 200 pounds.

Higher pressure will help my mileage but a stiffer ride on these trashed freeways in California will be bone crunching. (I have hit some holes that the rear axle comes entirely off the road.)

BTW, if the rear seating capacity is 0 as it reads on the second photo, why do I have 4 seatbelts in the rear?

Saturday we had a get-2-gether and a lots of fun. We had 5 or 6 Sprinters there, 2 from SMB. We also had 4 or 5 great 4wd Sportsmobiles and one owner with his Sprinter on the production line at SMB in Fresno. Lots to look at, learn about and talk about!

Tony was there with his Lopes 55 Special from Sportsmobile (the red one). That is quite the deal with the stereo system, satellite dish, etc. More on that here http://www.sportsmobile.com/3_bikes.html.

These are some pics silkwan (from a different forum) took - he apoligized for the contrast - too busy talking. Thank goodness someone was taking pictures!

After Saturday I decided to upgrade the bus’s shocks and sway bar. Also, as soon as I win the lottery, I am getting a CJ5 to pull behind our Sprinter so I can join some of the 4wd Sportsmobile parties. :^)

Had there been a contest, no doubt I would have won but there would have been some close seconds. One 4wd was about the same color as mine and just impeccable.

I am hoping the next get-2-gether we will have some different branded Sprinters and maybe a Class C or two.

I think almost everyone learned one thing or another about Sprinters, SMB 4w drives, how-to’s etc. We had lots of goodies, beer, water, etc. but the group seemed pretty shy about drinking so Tony and I helped make up for it. Hey, the kids wouldn’t even take cookies! Next time it will have to be a bbq. And somewhere shady!

Here is a picture of the work I did yesterday. I used the storage space beneath the radio to mount the Parrot 3100 and the connector for my Zune. The Zune fits nicely in here and with one of those silicone covers does not slide out.

Today I did the first part of rebadging the Dodge Sprinter to a Mercedes Sprinter. Why? Ego? Because others have done it? Something to waste money on? I don’t know. I never really wanted a Mercedes. I also never had a Dodge before so who knows. I guess cause its one more thing to do to make the Sprinter unique.

For the badge or star or logo. the Mercedes-Benz part number is A 906 758 00 58. For the surround (Mercedes takes a round one and Dodges is more like a shield) the part numbers are A 906 742 01 30 and A 906 742 00 30. You need both, the left and the right.

The left surround is the difficult one to get off. It is held in place by a small screw that you can’t get to until you partially remove the inside door panel. Of course, I didn’t have the correct size screw driver (mine was too long) and had to improvise. I undid part of the cover on the left side before looking at the replacement part and discovering it just slid into place and was held by the badge screws.

Given the proper tools, this small mod should not take you over a half-hour.

I also have some lettering in decal form to go over the rear license plate that says Mercedes Benz. I don’t think I will use that. All the MB’s I have seen are pretty low key in the rear - a logo and model number.

Next, what to do with the front-end?

Sometime ago I replaced the Becker Sound 5 radio with a Sony. The Sony had blue tooth and I had used one before so I thought it would be ok. Technically it was. The Sony did just as it should but visually it was not good.

The Becker radio is much larger when it comes to the buttons and dials. It is a much better fit for the dash board area of the Sprinter - guess that’s what happens when you are designed in from the get-go. The Sony was lost. You could hardly see the buttons.

At the same time I reinstalled the Sound 5, I added an auxiliary option so I could play the Zune and I added Blue Tooth functionality with a Parrot 3100. It all looks much better and functions perfectly.

Pictures and the write up on how to install the auxiliary line and Parrot 3100 are here and here. The instructions with pictures are detailed and correct. If you don’t check The Sprinter Source dot com from time to time, you should.

The top side of our Sprinter has been used as well.

To the left you see the new Fiama awning made to attach to the rails which come standard on any Sprinter. Because of the high side door, the awning ends up on top instead of the side. It adds about another 4″ to our height which puts us close to 9-1/2′.

The antenna on the front is a power amplified antenna. What is that? I don’t know. I think it makes reception better.

The 2 Kyocera Solar Panels are multi-crystal photo-voltage blue panels, encapsulated between tempered glass and a PVC back sheet. The panels are installed in an anodized aluminum frame and feed into a Blue Sky Solar Boost 2000E Controller and then into the 4D-AGM house battery. The house battery provides the 12 volts DC we need and feeds into a 2000W Triplite Inverter for any AC requirements. 

These are the spec’s:

• Max power output 130 watts
• Max voltage 17.5 volts
• Max current 7.4 amps/hr
• Weight 29 lbs.
• 56″L x 26″W x 2″H

Behind the panels is the cover for the Fantastic fan and in the back, a vent for the marine toilet.

Since the awning used the right rail, we had to add another short rail on that side. It would be possible to mount a Thule M.O.A.B. behind the top of the fan cover but getting to it might be a problem.

If you look closely at the photo you will see there is a color change above the antenna. I haven’t any information on that.