On The Road
Handling is assured but bouncy. Swerve around town, in and out of traffic and the body will jump from side to side but this is never, ever a worry – it always feels safe. The Sprinter never threatens to behave badly or lose its line, only under-steering a little when pushed.
Damping seems well measured and the Sprinter needs little correction to keep it going along the straight and narrow. The van is just as happy on the motorway with crosswinds as it is performing idiot-avoidance manoeuvres: both experiences left us calm and unruffled. The whole feel is so accomplished you can soon forget how fast you were going, and the Sprinter can go fast. Take it to a track with the proper facilities, and this one will happily cruise along at 90mph.
There is no doubt that the engine (designated OM611 DELA for all you anoraks out there) is amazingly flexible and powerful. You can feel all that torque the first time you pull away – you could ripple tarmac in this thing. The fact that it’s used across such a wide power range, from 82hp to 127hp, is a testament to its abilities. And remember, it only displaces 2,151cc.
Delivery of power is very smooth and with little or no turbo-lag, either from a standstill or when stamping on the accelerator on the move. The new remote cable-shift gear change gives excellent feel and is well placed on the dashboard. Throw is nice and short with little movement from the stick when in gear and reassuring feedback when going through the box.
That anti-skid regulation system, standard on all vans above 127hp along with ABS, should perhaps have been switched off for the acceleration tests, where times are slightly up on the old Sprinter, particularly from 0-50mph.
Going the other way down the speedo dial is another stress-free affair in the Sprinter, with the ABS system doing all the clever work and leaving the driver to stamp on the pedal. Feel is nevertheless good and the van comes to a sharp halt in a straight line every time.
All in all, driving the Sprinter is very enjoyable – relaxed and assured but with the potential for great performance.
Cab Comfort
Mercedes-Benz has done a good job with the Sprinter’s cab, from the seat fabric to the bombproof-build quality of absolutely everything. All of the plastics used are top notch and blend together to create a calm and welcoming cab.
The new instrument panel is well laid out and the dials are clear and well lit. Components from warning lights to indicator stalks and Switches are sensibly placed and put together extremely well. However, you might have to stretch a little to turn up the stereo or reach the document clip.
Our seat was an optional Isri comfort seat with suspension (£232), but the standard affair offers four-way adjustment with enough movement to please everyone. Three-point seatbelts are standard for all seats, which also feature head restraints. No air bags are standard, but buyers can opt for window bags as well as the usual driver’s and passengers’ affairs starting from £168.
Ventilation is excellent and features a heater booster because of the engine’s high efficiency. The blower was powerful enough to keep us cool and to clear the windscreen and windows quickly.
The radio-cassette is a big improvement on other vans on the market, unless you’re desperate for the Sony name or tiny buttons best suited to dextrous midgets. Operation is far easier for the driver than in others and therefore far safer – although it still falls short of steering wheel-mounted control.
Cab storage has never been the Sprinter’s forte, but has been improved in its latest incarnation. Bins in the doors are still leaflet thin and useless for carrying drinks, but as long as you don’t fit a bulkhead you can reach around into the loadbay and feel for a bottle holder which Mercedes has bolted onto the back of the driver’s seat. Something best done at the lights, we might suggest.
There are two coat hooks, a shelf to the right of the steering wheel, a hole for pennies, a clip for a pen (just one pen), and a document clip on the dash. The glovebox is lockable and has a couple of cup holders, while a toolbox lives under the passenger footwell floor.
Another cup holder is to be found incorporated into the ashtray.
Although a little wind noise kicks in at around 65-70mph, the cab remains very quiet on the whole. This is no doubt largely down to the engine which makes so little noise it could be the product of military stealth technology.
Tyre, the transmission and turbine noises are also very limited, but without making you feel like you’re playing a computer game rather than driving out on the roads.
