When I started planning my latest campervan build, I should have known better than to fall into the rabbit hole of the great chassis debate. Mercedes Sprinter or Ford Transit? What about the Ram ProMaster? Every aspiring van lifer must make this pivotal decision.
Having owned or used all three platforms for over a decade, I was still second-guessing my choice. But after over 100,000 miles of experience, I made the right decision.
My latest is a 2022 Transit Cargo van with the naturally aspirated 3.5L V6 that I picked up with 32,000 miles on it. It’s a tall van with a high roof configuration, providing the interior space to stand and store bicycles or motorcycles under the sleeping platform.
After traveling by van to countless climbing, riding, and camping areas, my decision ultimately came down to accessibility for maintenance and repair.
The Reality Check
My epiphany came when I called an Austin, Texas, Mercedes dealership, asking about Sprinter parts and service availability. “We don’t stock many Sprinter parts,” the service manager told me. “Could be a few days, maybe a week if it’s something unusual.”
He also stated that the wait for notoriously expensive service for scheduled maintenance was 2 weeks or more, due to Amazon delivery vans. The other Mercedes dealership in Austin doesn’t even service Sprinters.
Then I called the Ford dealer across town. “Transit parts? Yeah, we keep the most common stuff in stock. What do you need?” I asked about a regular service interval job, and he said, “C’mon right over.” This was one of three dealerships in the city; all of them service Transits.
These conversations crystallized something crucial: When you’re 100 miles from the nearest cell tower and your van starts making noise, brand prestige means nothing. What matters is whether Podunk Auto Parts has what you need, and Joe’s Tire and Auto knows how to get you back on the road.
Numbers Don’t Lie
Ford sold over 140,000 Transit vans in North America last year. Mercedes moved about 60,000 Sprinters. Ram’s ProMaster numbers hovered around 65,000.
But here’s the key advantage: the Transit shares components and service specifics with the F-150, America’s bestselling truck for 47 consecutive years, with nearly 750,000 units sold in 2023 alone.
My naturally aspirated 3.5L V6 Transit shares DNA with Ford’s truck lineup. Considering that more than 41 million F-150s have been sold since 1948, it’s clear that there’s an enormous base of related service, technology, and design. This will continue to deepen with Ford’s commitment to platform modularity within all its offerings.
I’ve tested this theory from rural ranching communities to tiny mountain villages. Ford dealerships seem to be everywhere, and independent mechanics can provide service.
The Sprinter, despite its European quality, remains a niche player in most markets. Finding a Mercedes-certified technician in places like Datil, N.M., or Squamish, British Columbia, isn’t guaranteed.
The Ram dealership network is well-established but not as extensive as Ford’s. Also, ProMaster parts are generally more expensive than the Transit counterpart.
The Truth About Maintenance
Here’s what three Transit builds have taught me about maintenance accessibility compared to Sprinter and ProMaster platforms:
Oil Changes
Every Ford dealer and independent shop knows the Transit’s maintenance needs because it shares service procedures and design with Ford’s truck lineup.
My 3.5L V6 uses the same basic procedures and many consumable parts as millions of F-150s. I’ve never had to wait long for service. Sprinter owners often tell different stories — not every shop stocks European-spec filters or knows European service procedures.
Brake Work
Many brake components are shared with Ford’s truck line, including F-150 parts. When my rear pads wore out, my local Wimberley, Texas, NAPA had everything in stock.
And when I was unwilling to do a pad replacement myself (I admit it’s not straightforward for the rear brakes), a local mechanic had worked on similar systems hundreds of times.
Electrical Issues
Ford’s wiring diagrams are widely available, and many technicians learned on Ford products. When I had a strange electrical issue I couldn’t figure out, the local mechanic diagnosed and fixed it using generic OBD-II tools. It cost me $70. I doubt a Mercedes dealer would even diagnose it for that amount of money.
The ProMaster Problem
Ram’s ProMaster has gained traction due to its lower price and impressive interior dimensions. But it’s a rebadged Fiat Ducato, creating similar support network challenges as the Sprinter. The van shares little DNA with Ram’s truck lineup, so the commonality that benefits Transit owners doesn’t exist. When something breaks, you’re looking at Fiat-specific components.
AWD vs. RWD: Why I Stick With RWD
Ford offers AWD on the Transit, and it’s tempting to think you need it for adventure access.
After decades of off-roading in vans with true Quigley 4WD and factory AWD systems, I’ve learned something important: If conditions require AWD or 4WD, I don’t need to be taking a tall, 8,000+ pound loaded van there in the first place. I had to put my ego aside to see this.
A loaded Transit campervan isn’t a mountain goat. It’s a mobile basecamp designed to get you close to adventure, not become the adventure itself. The RWD setup offers better payload capacity, simpler maintenance, and one less system to fail in remote areas.
The RWD Transits with appropriate tires and suspension components have gotten me to more than 95% of the places I wanted to camp, and that’s precisely what it should do.
EcoBoost vs. Naturally Aspirated: Choosing Simplicity
The turbo EcoBoost offers more power — 310 horsepower and 400 pound-feet of torque versus 275 horsepower and 260 pound-feet for the naturally aspirated engine. But after three EcoBoost and one naturally aspirated Transit, I chose the naturally aspirated engine because turbocharged engines are inherently more complex.
More complexity means more potential failure points, especially in remote areas where advanced diagnostics and specialized parts aren’t readily available.
The naturally aspirated V6 Duratec has been powering Ford trucks for years with proven reliability: no turbo seals to fail, no intercoolers to leak, no wastegate actuators to malfunction. When something goes wrong, repairs involve basic mechanical components that any competent mechanic can handle.
I liked the EcoBoost power in the mountains, but I also wondered what would happen if it broke down in a small town or Baja. With limited time and a child on a school schedule, I don’t want to wait for turbo parts or service in rural areas where the feed store is the social hub. For a mobile office and adventure basecamp, reliability trumps peak performance every time.
Cargo vs. Passenger: Learning the Hard Way
I had four Transit builds on the passenger chassis, but this current build is my first cargo van — and I wish I’d made this switch years ago.
Passenger vans seem appealing with their finished interior panels, windows, and more upscale general specifications. But you may be paying extra for features you don’t need or might ditch (like several rows of seats).
Even the legitimate concern about rear AC has been mitigated by 12V units. You get rear air conditioning at the campsite as well as on the go for less money than the cost of the factory upgrade.
Cargo vans are designed for heavy payloads and commercial use, with stiffer suspension and stronger floor mounting points. The cost difference is significant, too — that 2022 cargo van I bought would have cost considerably more in passenger configuration, and I would have paid extra for components I don’t want, will never miss, or will remove.
Another example of not wanting a passenger van feature, other than the passenger seats, is that all the windows are thermally inefficient. During torrid Texas summers or below-freezing conditions, the windows were an enormous energy suck for the AC or heater. I immediately got insulated covers, and other than the one for the side access door, they never came off.
The Performance Trade-Offs
I’m not suggesting the Transit is superior in every metric. I love driving Sprinters — smooth, refined, and confident at highway speeds. The ProMaster’s front-wheel-drive layout provides a lower load floor and better approach angles, plus its more square interior walls make the build process significantly easier.
But for my priorities — reliable transportation through remote areas with minimal downtime — the Transit’s maintenance accessibility wins out over marginal performance differences.
I’d rather know I can fix problems quickly than flex an MB keyfob or wait days for parts to show up.
Real-World Validation
One of my more adventuresome friends has a Mercedes campervan. It’s beautiful, refined, and expensive. It drives great and looks better. But she’s been stuck at home a few times waiting for a service appointment that was weeks out, and laments the high price of regular maintenance.
Her partner is a good mechanic, but cannot work on the turbodiesel engine, being unaware of its European layout after a lifetime of domestic or Japanese cars.
A climbing buddy has a ProMaster build. The interior layout is ideal because the bed orients sideways without flares due to the best-in-class interior width.
Like many rock climbers, he is super-handy and can fix or build almost anything. But he is having trouble getting parts for a pair of known transmission issues. And this is in Austin, not the boonies.
I’ve had no related issues for over a decade with Transits. One time, I dropped a traction bar arm in Comstock, Texas; it is the ass of nowhere. The sign coming into town says something like “Six feet from hell, six miles from water.” I’ve never had cell service there and hope I never do.
Amazingly, just one town over in Del Rio, I managed to get the special bolts and bushings to reattach it within 15 minutes of strolling in.
Van Chassis Debate Conclusions
Van life is about freedom and adventure, but both depend on reliable transportation. When your home has wheels, downtime isn’t just inconvenient. It’s expensive, can wreck your entire trip, and is potentially dangerous.
The Ford Transit isn’t perfect. It’s not the most efficient or refined. But when something goes wrong hundreds of miles from the nearest Starbucks, it’s the van most likely to get you back on the road quickly and affordably.
After more than 10 years of regular van use across four Transit builds and experience with all major platforms, that peace of mind is worth more than any spec sheet advantage.
The best campervan is the one that keeps rolling, and for North American adventures, the Transit delivers that reliability better than any alternative I’ve used. Sometimes the boring choice is the smartest choice.
The bottom line: Choose the van you can fix anywhere, not the one that looks best on Instagram.
(Stay tuned for continued content on my latest van build. There are big plans in the works, and you’ll see it all unfold here on GearJunkie.)
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