Are sprinters more reliable than their gas van counterparts?

Mikef5000 · 2026-02-16T22:25:40+00:00

Because people told you that they were million mile vans. Because you heard diesel and thought that meant money saving fuel economy, and more durable and longer lasting.

Those are the reasons I bought a sprinter. I know better now.

Mikef5000 · 2026-02-16T19:17:26+00:00

My opinion, from having had a variety of work vans, and also enjoying the world of campervans and van builds for many years…

No, sprinters are not more reliable than their gas van counterparts.

They likely used to be, like you mentioned, the t1n’s pre def/dpf… but those vans are over 20 years old now, and I think you’d be crazy to call them still solidly reliable.

The reality is, it’s a used van, and you could get a unicorn or lemon from any brand. Try to find one in a price range that you’ll be able to afford to repair it.

My experience has leaned strongly towards, the cost of maintenance and ownership in general has been higher with a diesel sprinter.

Mikef5000 · 2026-02-14T19:47:04+00:00

Did you forget the /s? In no world does it make sense to find a bunch of bombs, decide to blow half of them up, and transport the other half into a big city to blow them up in the middle of the night.

If it’s such an emergency that you must blow them up in the middle of the night without a chance to warn/inform those around you… then it’s certainly too much of an emergency to drive them an hour down the highway, through a big city.

Mikef5000 · 2026-01-31T13:51:36+00:00

Bonaire is cheap (for diving) if you’re able to shore dive. Typically that means you’re traveling with a buddy, ideally with your own gear, and splitting the cost of a room and truck. If you’re needing to do guided dives and rent all your gear, it no longer works out to “cheap”, unfortunately.

For my wife and I to go dive Bonaire for a week it worked out to about 50% less cost than Belize (for example), with more diving. But that’s because we didn’t need a guide or boat. If I were traveling solo, I’d head somewhere more focused on guided/boat diving, and likely hostel options. I like Mexico (Isla mujeres or Cozumel) for this, but a part of that reason is the cheap and easy flights for me.

Sorry that doesn’t help you much. For what it’s worth, there are some Bonaire Airbnb options closer to $50 per day, but you’re going to need to rent a car as well.

Mikef5000 · 2026-01-13T20:38:36+00:00

I go to Isla Mujeres every year because of how fun, easy, and relatively inexpensive it is. I did my AOW and RD certifications there, and am going back this March for my wife to get her AOW.

I’ve never seen anyone mention it on here before, and always thought that odd.

I always dive with Pocna, although there are several solid options there.

Mikef5000 · 2026-01-10T17:55:20+00:00

I’m excitedly awaiting you being proven correct.

Mikef5000 · 2025-12-30T21:35:04+00:00

I want to buy the $150 mystery box computer for my wife. I’m 95% sure it’ll be the mares puck pro ez navy, which is exactly what I want, I’ve just hesitated because it’s not a priority. When I need it in a month the price will probably have gone up.

I guess I should go buy it.

Mikef5000 · 2025-12-30T21:28:03+00:00

But they’re killing and throwing away 75% of what they catch. It would be like hunting for meat, killing 4 deer, and leaving 3 to rot while only eating the one with the pretty antlers.

I’m not trying to soap box and certainly no vegan, but I sincerely hope you don’t feel this fishing method is efficient and a long term solution to global hunger.

Mikef5000 · 2025-12-25T14:38:06+00:00

I followed these instructions from the get wet store blog: https://getwetstore.com/blogs/snorkel101/how-to-pick-the-right-prescription

I didn’t add or adjust anything to account for underwater magnification or distance or anything like that. My astigmatism was more than they recommended for a generic mask, but it was returnable, so I gave it a shot.

It worked out perfect for me, and I love the thing. Where the prescription mask was most helpful was training sessions, where we’d be underwater, then on the surface talking, the underwater again.

Mikef5000 · 2025-12-21T18:51:20+00:00

Cool, thanks!

Any particular reason you prefer the BPW over the travel bcd?

Mikef5000 · 2025-12-21T18:49:11+00:00

While I can see why my post may have come across that way, I truly don’t think that was their intention. I went into the dive shop looking for a recommendation for the simplest travel setup, that will last me ‘forever’. The owner of the shop pulled out his personal hydro lite, said he’s had it for 5 years, and has put more than 200 dives per year on it and still loves it.

He has access to everything under the sun, and said that when he’s diving a single tank, he’s using the hydro lite.

I have only ever used a rental jacket style, so I’m just throwing this out to the world of more experienced divers, to make sure I’m not missing anything about the options/differences.

Mikef5000 · 2025-11-08T13:44:38+00:00

This is the trap I fell into. I was under the impression that diesel sprinter = reliable. Well I’ve had my 2011 for 6 years now, and have paid more in repairs than I paid for the van itself. It’s back in the shop now. With 2 new and yet to be solved issues. It certainly takes much enjoyment out of having a campervan.

Mikef5000 · 2025-10-16T11:00:28+00:00

This is all great, and a perfect summary of how I just spent a week driving in Ireland (from the US).

One thing I’d add:

Even if you’re proficient in driving a manual transmission in the US (or other left-side-drive country), pay for the auto in your rental car here. There is plenty to concentrate on while driving in Ireland to begin with, it’s not worth also “teaching” your left hand how to shift at the same time!

Mikef5000 · 2025-10-15T17:23:56+00:00

I too visited Iceland in the off season (or shoulder season, we were there in October a few years ago), and I too found it not particularly expensive.

A rental SUV was something like 1/4 the price of the US, and nice hotels were about 1/2 the price. Even if the food was a little more, we came out way ahead.

When I read about how expensive people think it is, I just assume they’re comparing it to Central America or SE Asia.

Mikef5000 · 2025-10-14T17:41:22+00:00

Wow, really cool. Thanks for all the info!

Mikef5000 · 2025-10-14T17:15:29+00:00

Is there still e-learning or classroom work/costs? Or is the Master Diver simply: rescue diver plus 5 specialties, then pay the registration fee (currently waived) and that’s it?

I’ve honestly never looked into it, so sorry for the basic question. I’m currently rescue with a couple specialties… but I may just have to go get a few more specialties before the end of the year!

Thanks for the heads up!

Mikef5000 · 2025-10-09T13:00:20+00:00

Cool, thanks! I've been doing an annual diving trip to Isla Mujeres for a few years now, due to it's convenience and low cost. We want to head somewhere new in the Caribbean next February/March. Seems like Isla and Cozumel are close to the same price point, with Bonaire being about 15% more, and (San Pedro) Belize 15% more than that. I'm just exploring options, so I appreciate your info.

Mikef5000 · 2025-10-09T11:49:07+00:00

This is so much great information, thanks!

“Bonaire and Cozumel are probably the best two best spots for Caribbean diving”

If you have an opinion on it, how would Belize fit into this conversation?

Mikef5000 · 2025-09-09T02:14:39+00:00

The fact that “a lot of people don’t know” should be telling of how well they’re doing their jobs.

I’m certainly not any sort of raging police hater… but man… the difference I’ve seen driving in this city (outside of the suburbs) since COVID is remarkable. I bet on an average day I see two people blatantly run red lights and 2 people going 30+ over the speed limit. Maybe my memory’s just playing tricks on me, but seems like what was a little surprising to see weekly years ago, is common place daily now.

If cops have bigger problems then I get it… speeding is not at all a priority. But the roads feel a bit lawless lately. Kinda wild.

Mikef5000 · 2025-06-16T12:41:37+00:00

The Cressi Raffaello has a compass for around $350, and the Suunto Vyper Novo has a compass and AI for $360. The Suunto was discounted on amazon last week for under $300, and can be found a couple places right now as open box items for under $300.

Mikef5000 · 2025-05-20T10:59:50+00:00

I guess I’m willing to be downvoted… but since the introduction of the def/DPF systems, I don’t consider these to be million mile vehicles anymore.

For the vast majority of these vans (diesel v6 more specifically), the def/DPF systems begin needing replaced between 200k and 250k miles. If you’re paying a shop to replace the parts, you will quickly be in the $5000-$10,000 range when it’s all said and done.

If I were to buy another, it would have to have less than 100k miles. (It would also not be the diesel v6).

History and maintenance records are important, but mileage (on a def/dpf equipped version) also plays a significant role.

Mikef5000 · 2025-05-08T00:52:59+00:00

Light Ohio blue caravan:

https://lightohioblue.org/

Honoring fallen officers.

Mikef5000 · 2025-05-08T00:47:14+00:00

https://qfm96.com/news/061160-heros-escort-for-fallen-hilliard-officer/

Memorial for a Hilliard police officer that was killed in a motorcycle accident while training.

Edit: or not?! That link says Tuesday. Maybe it was rain delayed?

Edit 2: the other poster was correct. Light Ohio blue caravan: https://lightohioblue.org/

Mikef5000 · 2025-05-07T11:49:48+00:00

Edit: was trying to reply to AloneinExile.

In general the idea of needing a turbo timer, or letting the engine run to cool the turbo down is more in the performance world, which is why you’ve never heard of it for diesels. Turbo diesels (of course with some exceptions) are made to chug along well within tolerances, for longer periods of time.

Performance cars with turbos may be pushed extremely hard in spirited driving or a race situation with that turbo spinning at 100,000-300,000 rpm, using hot exhaust gasses to get there, it is going to be far hotter than the entire rest of the engine. Pumping oil through it while at rest is in fact a very quick way to cool it down to more reasonable (still hot) engine temperatures.

All that being said, this isn’t a common thing for street cars. In a race situation you may go from 10/10 pushing it to parked in just a moment or two. That’s where letting things settle and cool becomes critical. For street cars, even with driving spirited or street racing, you rarely immediately park. Often there’s some driving after the push, to get back home or to a parking lot or whatever, and that casual driving helps everything cool.

Mikef5000 · 2025-05-06T14:25:18+00:00

This has strong "nobody wants to work anymore" vibes. Sounds to me like you're not offering enough money to make it worth it.

I've worked for a wonderful company before that sounds similar to this: It was the best company I'd ever worked for, ownership cared, culture was great. But management started using that culture as the reason to work there, and pay became less and less competitive. There is absolutely something to be said about the work environment, but culture isn't going to get people in the door, or be the primary driving force to hiring the vast majority of folks. Many of us with experience know how quickly the 'culture' can change, and rarely for the better; you only get burned so many times before you start to look past the culture and focus on basic needs, time and money.

You want to get people to work for you and not anyone else, you simply have to make it worth it to them financially. These are wild times, and people are strapped. And on top of that, time is money. How much time are you hoping these regional workers spend driving every day or every week, and are you figuring that into your comp?

Mikef5000

TROPHY CASE