T1N Interstate bulletproofing

[Lotus54]

If you are worried about the plastic parts on the aux water pump- I would suggest replacing the heater control valve also. It is plastic.

https://europarts-sd.com/heatercontr...e2002-2006.asp

If the coolant has not been changed regularly, I could see where the internals could deteriorate and cause poor functionality in any case.

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by Lotus54

If you are worried about the plastic parts on the aux water pump- I would suggest replacing the heater control valve also. It is plastic.....

Good point. Something for me to pursue in terms of evaluation.

See how disjointed and random this whole process is? Even WITH a catastrophic failure on the table for discussion (i.e., the Instagrammer), you have been the only person to bring up that facet of the risk analysis.

That shouldn't be. There should be a far more objective way to enumerate and evaluate all of these factors.

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by Lotus54

If you are worried about the plastic parts on the aux water pump- I would suggest replacing the heater control valve also. It is plastic.....

BTW, Joel says that he's never seen one of those disintegrate leading to a coolant issue. But he does see them fail, and when it happens, the result is that it will blow hot air 100% of the time.

Which, of course, would be disabling at our latitude where it is already 100+ degrees in the van at this time of year.

[mysprinter]

Hi all interstate owners
I'm the proud owner of a 2004 interstate. Thankfully they made things slightly better in those days. I have had some repairs related to age which are expected but the things you all are describing is unbelievable considering you spent close to 200k for your vehicles. Mine was a Dodge Merceedes combo and the hardest thing was finding someone to work on it. I found a truck center that services sprinter vans and they keep me going with little down time and fair prices.

Sorry to hear of all the troubles you have been having. One should not have to spend time mental energy and $$$$$ to fix up something that costs a lot to begin with. I hope you all are complaining to Airstream at the company level about the rigs they are putting out. Safe travels

[InterBlog]

You know the old phrase, "rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated"?

Well, the T1N Sprinter analog is, "rumors of my life have been greatly exaggerated".

The T1N is well-known for going phenomenally long distances IN SHORT TIME FRAMES.

In other words, it is eminently suited to the purpose for which it was designed - intensive local trucking, running 8 hours a day, every day. Properly cared for, it will go hundreds of thousands of miles in the first X years of its life.

After that, it's a major crap shoot irrespective of how many miles are on it. Component degradation begins to eclipse wear and tear as the source of failures.

That's where we are now with the brand. A lot of owners are banking on those rumors of reliability, but the reality is somewhat different. A quick review of Sprinter Forum's T1N section will confirm that. Ditto for Instagram.

Husband and I own four cars, and the T1N is almost the baby of our automotive family (only my 2010 Toyota Sienna is younger). The T1N, despite its relative youth (and by far it has the lowest mileage), is much, much more fragile and twitchy than any of the others. And one of them is a 1965!

[Alex AVI]

Originally Posted by InterBlog

You know the old phrase, "rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated"?

Well, the T1N Sprinter analog is, "rumors of my life have been greatly exaggerated".

The T1N is well-known for going phenomenally long distances IN SHORT TIME FRAMES.

In other words, it is eminently suited to the purpose for which it was designed - intensive local trucking, running 8 hours a day, every day. Properly cared for, it will go hundreds of thousands of miles in the first X years of its life.

After that, it's a major crap shoot irrespective of how many miles are on it. Component degradation begins to eclipse wear and tear as the source of failures.

That's where we are now with the brand. A lot of owners are banking on those rumors of reliability, but the reality is somewhat different. A quick review of Sprinter Forum's T1N section will confirm that. Ditto for Instagram.

Husband and I own four cars, and the T1N is almost the baby of our automotive family (only my 2010 Toyota Sienna is younger). The T1N, despite its relative youth (and by far it has the lowest mileage), is much, much more fragile and twitchy than any of the others. And one of them is a 1965!

INTERBLOG - keep in mind your T1N, my NCV3, and most Sprinter based rvs are either close to or over GVWR (as evidenced by responses I got from my thread about my 1st CAT Scale weigh-in). I seriously doubt your other cars and my other cars, are always running close to their limits. So, our rv's are always being run "harder" than our normal vehicles. IMHO That has got to factor in to it's parts longevity?

As for mine, I plan to trade it in once the 2020 Sprinters have gotten 4-5 yrs of stable reliability. I dont mind having vintage cars (I still have a few). But 10-12 yrs. old is my personal threshold for vehicles I drive cross-country (and only if they have run reliably in all those years). Will see how the NCV3 holds up.

But if all my previous Benz's are any indication - maybe my NCV3 will run at least 25 yrs by only changing tires, oil, and fluids. But during that timeframe, all my window regulators will need replacing every 5 yrs. even though I rarely open any windows. MB window regulators & labor are a huge MB money maker. So learn how to take apart every door panel and in order to replace your regulators blind-folded. I have and save thousands of dollars everytime. 1 dual pane window glass + regulator + labor for an MB S500 will cost $2,200. Only One! No discount for 4.

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by Alex AVI

INTERBLOG - keep in mind your T1N, my NCV3, and most Sprinter based rvs are either close to or over GVWR (as evidenced by responses I got from my thread about my 1st CAT Scale weigh-in). I seriously doubt your other cars and my other cars, are always running close to their limits. So, our rv's are always being run "harder" than our normal vehicles. IMHO That has got to factor in to it's parts longevity?

....

There has to be some impact due to this, yes. It's one of multiple variables.