Dodge Discontinues Sprinter; Van Returns to Mercedes-Benz

Dodge Sprinter Cargo Van

The Sprinter commercial van will return to its origins next year. Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC, part of Daimler AG, announced last week that the van will be sold under the Mercedes-Benz and Freightliner brands in 2010. Dodge will discontinue Sprinter sales after Dec. 31.

The Mercedes-built van currently is sold in the United States and Canada under the Dodge and Freightliner Truck brands.

A new company, Daimler Vans USA, LLC, is being established to oversee sales and service of the Sprinter for both Mercedes-Benz and Freightliner. Freightliner is part of Daimler Trucks North America, another Daimler subsidiary.

Dodge dealers will stop selling the Sprinter once current inventories are gone, but will service the vans indefinitely, David Elshoff, head of Dodge marketing communications, told Light & Medium Truck. About 420 Dodge dealers currently sell the van.

Dodge began selling the Mercedes-built van in 2003. It sold 14,600 units in 2008, Elshoff said.

That would account for about 58% of a combined 25,000 units sold last year, Geoff Day, director of communications for Mercedes-Benz USA, told L&MT.

Separate Daimler Vans locations will be set up in about 100 Mercedes-Benz automobile dealerships in and around key markets to sell the Sprinter, Day said. He added that M-B dealerships will service the vans.

About 45 Freightliner dealers currently sell the van, Day said.

The Sprinters sold here are assembled in Charleston, S.C. The van was introduced in Europe in 1995.

Winding Road picks their 12 favorite autos, including the Dodge Sprinter?!

When Winding Road picked their 12 favorite cars of 2008, they went out of their way to diversify. Their "Dynamic Dozen" includes vehicles as inexpensive as the $14,000 Honda Fit up to the $114,000 Audi R8, with everything from the Ford Mustang to the Porsche Cayman/Boxster in between. There are some gaping omissions like the Nissan GT-R and perhaps the Pontiac G8 GT, but Winding Road's criteria stipulated that the majority of the staff had to drive the vehicles in order for them to be nominated, which might explain why some vehicles don't appear.
The list is filled with great vehicles, with one really big (literally) surprise: the Dodge Sprinter. The $37,000 people/cargo hauler doesn't crank through the twisties and it couldn't beat a pack mule in a quarter mile, but WR loves the German-born hauler for its distinct personality and core competencies. It can haul people or things in great quantities, it has very solid interior, has a great service record, and WR claims it's a lot of fun to drive, too.
As surprising as the nod to the Sprinter was, we almost reserved as much shock for the lack of a BMW 3-Series. We were beginning to think that the best-selling BMW was a requirement for any "best" list. They did outline why they chose the 1-Series, though, so that's probably close enough. Hit the read link below to catch Winding Road's top 12 from beginning to end.