Sprinter vs Transit vs ProMaster Ranking Guide: Best Van for Van Life is…

This comprehensive ranking guide which compares and ranks the Ram ProMaster, Mercedes Sprinter, and Ford Transit vans across 14 different categories, will help you choose the perfect van for your lifestyle so you can buy the best van for van life.

Sprinter, Transit and ProMaster vans

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Are you trying to decide which van to buy, but are getting lost between all the different reviews? It is incredibly easy to get overwhelmed, and confused when you read a load of different articles, or watch lots of different videos about all the different van options available to you as a prospective, or even current van lifer. If you are looking for a full size van in North America, you realistically only have three choices. Those options are the Ford Transit, Mercedes Sprinter and the Ram (Dodge) ProMaster. In this article we are going to help you answer the eternal question of which van is best for you.

There is a huge amount of detail for each van, in terms of interior length, interior height, and how those impact your exterior length, and in turn your manoeuvrability. To get an in depth insight into the exact dimensions of each van you can read our detailed guides for the Transit, Sprinter, and Promaster. 

The Ford Transit, Mercedes Sprinter, and Ram ProMaster vans all have their own strengths, and weaknesses, especially when it comes to using them as the foundation of a tiny home for van life. For example, if you want to be as compact as possible, then the Ram ProMaster could be a good choice for you, but if fuel economy is your top priority then the Mercedes Sprinter might be the better van for you. 

Mercedes Sprinter in Baja Mexico
Our Mercedes Sprinter camper van

To help you make the right choice for your lifestyle we are going to compare all three vans, across 14 different categories. The winner may surprise you if you have spent a lot of time looking at Van Life Instagram.

To make it easy to understand, the scoring system is really simple, a 1 means that, for example, the Sprinter performed the best in that category, and a 3 means it performed the worst. This will allow us to tally up the score at the end, and the vehicle with the lowest score will be the winner. Without further ado let us get the comparison party started with our first category:

THE BASICS:

Resale Value of a Sprinter Van, Ford Van and ProMaster Van

Love it or hate it, the Mercedes Sprinter is the clear winner when it comes to retained value. The Ford Transit, holds its value decently well, and slides into second place. The Ram ProMaster captures last place, with the highest depreciation of all the vans. 

The Mercedes Sprinter also collects the biggest premium when you look at vans sold by professional van conversion companies. In fact, if you are unsure about van life, but still want to convert a van on your own, and then travel for a bit, the Mercedes Sprinter is going to be your best bet, as their enduring popularity means you are unlikely to lose much money on the venture. 

The Ford Transit has been gaining popularity, as people begin to look for alternatives to the Sprinter, and this means that prices for converted Ford Transit vans seem to be holding up fairly well. With that being said unconverted Ford Transit vans will still be cheaper to procure than a Sprinter, partially because there are more of them available to buy. 

Ford Transit camper van
Ford Transit camper van

The Ram (Dodge) ProMaster has suffered much the same fate as its European cousins, which is to say that their value drops significantly once they drive off the lot, and even more so once they have a good amount of miles on them. Even converted Ram ProMaster vans will fetch a lower premium than either the Transit or the Sprinter. The upside to all of this is that it can make a great option for those wanting a full size van on a budget. 

Fuel Economy: Ram Promaster vs Mercedes Sprinter vs Ford Transit

With its small torquey diesel engines the Mercedes Sprinter easily wins the fuel economy competition against the gasoline V6 engines that are in both the Ford Transit, and the Ram ProMaster. The Ford Transit, and the Ram ProMaster tie for second place.

However, the savings from the Mercedes diesel engine can quickly be eroded depending on where you live, as in some parts of the US and Canada diesel is a lot more expensive than gasoline. In addition with the diesel Sprinter you have to keep your AdBlue (Diesel Exhaust Fluid, aka DEF) topped up, which is an extra cost. So before you buy a Mercedes Sprinter for the fuel economy, it is worth doing some quick maths based on your local fuel prices to see if it actually makes sense for you. 

Although the official fuel economy numbers for the EcoBoost engine available in the Ford Transit look great, I can tell you from personal experience, and real world tests, that those numbers do not pan out in normal driving. If you convert your van to a tiny home on wheels, you should also not expect to be getting close to the official fuel economy number, regardless of which engine you choose, as you are probably maxing out the payload of your van on a daily basis. 

From looking at user submitted reports on fuelly.com the ProMaster and the Transit seem to return fairly similar fuel economy numbers, which makes sense as they are both fairly simple V6 engines, with similar displacement. 

Exterior Appearance of the Transit, Sprinter and ProMaster

This category I will admit is wildly subjective, so feel free to change the ranking as you see fit. For my personal taste, I find that the Mercedes Sprinter has the best looking exterior, without too many weird angles. Next up is the Ford Transit, which again keeps it fairly simple, without too much going on. The last for me has to be the ProMaster which sports the face of a boxer that never learnt to dodge blows. Naturally, if you find pugs to be the cutest dog on the planet, then you will probably fall in love with the ProMaster. 

Ram ProMaster Van - Side View
Ram ProMaster van

RELIABILITY & MAINTENANCE:

Reliability of the Sprinter vs Transit vs ProMaster

This is a tough category, as every brand is capable of producing a lemon. Nevertheless, the Ford Transit is generally the most reliable of all three vans, with the Mercedes Sprinter coming in second, and the RAM ProMaster unfortunately takes third.

In Europe, the Mercedes Sprinter is perennially ranked as one of the most, if not the most, reliable van by fleet managers. However, I feel these surveys are a bit skewed, as when looking at the used market it seems that the majority of businesses do not keep these vans in their fleet past approximately 120,000km. Obviously the more mileage a van has the more likely it is to develop issues, and since most people looking to get into van life are not made of money, these are the vans that prospective van lifers are most likely to buy. 

The other big downside of the Mercedes Sprinter, is that when things do go wrong, it is usually very expensive to fix. As such if you are on a very tight budget, where a $2,000 or higher repair would seriously affect your finances, then you should stay away from the Mercedes Sprinter, unless you can afford one under warranty.

One of the big issues with the Mercedes Sprinter, in common with most German vehicle manufacturers, is that like a trophy wife its reliability is extremely dependent on how well you treat it. Oil changes should be completed punctually, if not more frequently than the official recommendations, and idling should be kept to a strict minimum to avoid issues with your diesel emissions equipment. 

With all of the above in mind, I would say the Ford Transit is the most reliable van. Largely because the gasoline V6 engine that it comes with as standard is nowhere near as picky as the modern diesels in the Mercedes Sprinter. The key with the Transit is to avoid the EcoBoost engines, as they have a history of serious issues that can result in very expensive repairs. With a huge dealer network, and a local parts supply, you will also pay less, and not have to spend as much time waiting for parts. 

Ram ProMaster Van - Maintenance

Sadly, the Ram ProMaster comes in last place, as they have a reputation for developing incurable electrical gremlins, and have a higher rate of mechanical failures than the Transit or the Sprinter. However, the dealer network is much larger than Mercedes, and parts are cheaper, and quicker to come by.

Repair Costs for the Mercedes Sprinter Van, Ford Transit Van and Ram ProMaster

The van with the lowest maintenance, and repair costs is the Ford Transit. The Ram ProMaster comes in second, as in our research it was a fair bit more expensive than the Ford Transit for certain key maintenance items. The Mercedes Sprinter, as expected for a premium German brand comes in last, but it should be noted that the Mercedes Sprinter has longer maintenance intervals – although given that most converted vans are usually working at their maximum capacity, I would recommend shortening these intervals to extend the life of your Sprinter. 

In order to create this ranking we used www.yourmechanic.com and www.repairpal.com for US zip code 77077 to get an estimate for what basic maintenance items would be for the different vans. All estimates are for a 2019 model year van. There is a good chance that you could get these items done for cheaper if you shopped around, or even more expensively if you went to a dealer. The details of this comparison are broken down below:

Oil Change: 

  • Ford Transit 250 – $131.88
  • RAM ProMaster 2500 – $131.94
  • Mercedes Sprinter 2500 – $279.00

Replace all Brake Pads:

  • Ford Transit 250 – $526.32
  • RAM ProMaster 2500 – $577.61
  • Mercedes Sprinter 2500 – $707.2

Replace Spark Plugs / Glow Plugs:

  • Ford Transit 250 – $580.41
  • RAM ProMaster 2500 – $682.41
  • Mercedes Sprinter 2500 – $991

Replace Alternator:

  • Ford Transit 250 – $632.73
  • Mercedes Sprinter 2500 – $968.99
  • RAM ProMaster 2500 – $1199.59

Build Quality of a Ram ProMaster, Mercedes Sprinter and Ford Transit

In terms of build quality, the Mercedes Sprinter takes first place with its more premium feeling interior. The Ford Transit comes in second, and the RAM ProMaster comes in last place with a reputation for poor fit, and finish. 

Although very closely related to reliability, build quality is more about the quality of the interior, and how well it stands up to the test of time. In this regard, the Mercedes Sprinter has historically been hard to beat. However, both Ford and Ram have made improvements to their interiors since launching their vans in the North American market, back in 2014. At the same time, I feel that the latest generation Sprinter interior has lost some of the durability, and toughness of its predecessor. Although it looks fancy, the plastics are harder, and feel cheaper. The steering wheel controls are also far too small, and the use of touchpads on the steering wheel is a source of constant irritation when I am driving. The standard seats are still excellent though, and feel the most premium out of all the vans.

The early Ford Transits were fairly spartan, with lots of scratchy plastics, and basic infotainment systems. The latest generations are definitely an improvement, but the standard seats are, in my opinion, absolute garbage. 

A very similar story plays out for the Ram ProMaster, with early generations lacking a lot of refinement. They have gradually improved, but if you drive a ProMaster right after driving a Sprinter, you will instantly notice the difference in quality.  

Dealer Network for Mercedes, Ford and Ram

This is a fairly easy tie between the Ford Transit and the Ram ProMaster, as you will find a huge dealer network for both companies. Mercedes has a lot less dealerships around the country, and not all of them are equipped to work on Sprinters. 

Aside from the dealer network, the engines used by both Ford and Ram in their vans, are so ubiquitous across the lineup of both brands, that most independent mechanics will not have an issue working on them. Given that both Ford and Ram manufacture vehicles for the mass market, your average mechanic is also likely to have the necessary diagnostics software, that is the curse of all modern vehicles, to diagnose any issues you may be having.

Ram ProMaster Camper Van - Canoe by the Lake
Ram ProMaster

The network of Mercedes dealers is already smaller than the other manufacturers, and once you add in the fact that not all Mercedes dealers are equipped to work with the Sprinter, your choices for servicing are reduced even further. The other limiting factor for the Sprinter is its diesel engines, which although common as dirt in Europe, are very much a novelty in North America. The reduced dealer network also means that when you do find a shop that can work on your Sprinter, it will take you longer to get an appointment than it would at a Ford or Ram dealership or independent mechanic.

SUITABILITY FOR A CAMPER VAN CONVERSION:

Build Accessories & Advice for a Camper Van Conversion

This category is to an extent subjective, depending on what accessory you are looking for. Nevertheless a quick glance at some of the major van accessory manufacturers, such as Agile Offroad, Aluminess, and Owl Vans shows that the Mercedes Sprinter and the Ford Transit have by far the most options available to help you improve the functionality, looks or handling of your van. The Ram ProMaster is still lagging behind in terms of highly customised accessories, but you still have choices for rims, roof racks, rear door tire mounts, and lighting mounts. 

Everything We Use for a Van Conversion Thinking about buying a van for a DIY camper build? Make it easier with the right van build tools and materials.
Van Build

When it comes to advice, the landscape is constantly changing, but I would say that there are more resources available for help with converting a Mercedes Sprinter, compared to the Ford Transit or the Ram ProMaster. With the rising popularity of the Ford Transit, this is beginning to change, as more people convert their Transit vans into campers, and share their experiences online. 

Ford Transit Van Life
Ford Transit van

The good news for fans of the Ram ProMaster is that its European cousins the Fiat Ducato, Peugeot Boxer, and Citroen Jumper are massively popular in Europe, and European content creators have published tons of videos with helpful advice, and ideas. The trick to finding those resources is to simply search YouTube or Google for ‘Fiat Ducato Van Conversion’ you can also do the same search for the Boxer, and Jumper. 

Front or Rear Wheel Drive Vans

Both the Ford Transit and the Mercedes Sprinter come standard with Rear Wheel Drive (RWD), which means they tie for the top spot. With its Front Wheel Drive (FWD) set up the Ram ProMaster comes in last. 

These days almost every single car or SUV on the market is FWD, and that can make a lot of sense for a vehicle that is not usually fully loaded with a tiny house build. However, as soon as you add in 2,500 lbs plus of furniture, appliances, batteries etc., the physics change. In a regular vehicle, the engine is usually the heaviest part of the car, and having that weight be on top of the driving wheels will provide you with better grip in slippery conditions. In a typical van build though, the majority of your weight is likely to be in the back of the van.

For example, most people will put all their heavy battery equipment in the rear, along with their water storage. Even if you do not have a fixed bed with a garage, you are likely to store any gear you need in the rear under your couch / bed. In short, the majority of your weight is going to sit on your rear wheels, not your front, which in turn means that your rear wheels are going to have the most grip. I have seen videos of fully loaded Ram ProMaster vans getting stuck on a steep slippery slope, despite having good tires, simply because the front tires could not get enough grip to pull the van up the slope. 

Interior Height: Transit vs Sprinter vs ProMaster Vans

With a max interior height of 81.5” (207 cm) the Ford Transit has the highest interior height of all the vans. The Mercedes Sprinter has a max interior height of 79” (201 cm). Lastly, the Ram ProMaster has the lowest max interior height at 76” (193 cm) although they do have a super high roof model, it is very rare to find one on the used market. 

Exterior and Interior Length of the Transit, ProMaster and Sprinter

This is where the Dodge ProMaster really begins to shine. With its short snub nose, the non extended 159” wheelbase model still nets you a very decent interior length of 143.5” (365 cm) whilst still maintaining a fairly compact exterior length of 236.7” (601 cm). The other huge benefit of the ProMaster is that, if you are not too tall, you can actually sleep sideways, since it has a max interior width of 75.6” (192 cm).

Ram ProMaster camper van

With that being said, the Ford Transit does come in a very close second if you opt for the non-extended 148” wheelbase model. It boasts an interior length of 141.7” (360 cm) while only being 235.5” (598 cm) long on the outside. Technically, this is a bit better than the ProMaster, but considering the extra width of the ProMaster, I feel it deserves the top spot in this category.

The Mercedes Sprinter has to make do with last place, as the 144” wheelbase model has almost 16” (40 cm) less of interior length compared to the Transit, and the Promaster but it still has an exterior length of 234” (595 cm). With that being said, the 170” wheelbase Sprinter is still your best bet if you want the maximum amount of interior space, without a huge rear overhang, helping you maintain a decent departure angle for going up steep roads, or driveways. 

CAPABILITY:

All Wheel Drive Options for the Transit and Sprinter Vans

This category has a very clear, and easy winner, namely the Ford Transit. Out of the three vans, only the Mercedes Sprinter, and the Ford Transit offer an All Wheel Drive system. However, Mercedes kindly requests that you sell your first born child, and hand over a whopping $10,000 for the privilege, whereas Ford ‘only’ charges you $5,000 to get AWD. From the reviews I have seen, both systems seem to perform equally well, so if you want or need an AWD system on your van, then I would go with the Ford.

In addition to offering a more affordable AWD system, Ford has another trick up its sleeve, namely the existence of companies like Quigley 4×4 who can convert your regular Transit van into a proper 4×4. At a starting price of around $14,000 it is definitely a more expensive option, and I personally doubt that any vanlifer needs such a capable system, but having options is never a bad thing. 

If your heart is firmly set on a true 4×4 Sprinter, there are two companies in Europe that can do this for you, namely Iglhaut and Oberaigner. I reached out to Iglhaut in 2021 who informed me that their conversion price for a 170” (L3H2) Sprinter would be between EUR 30-45,000 (~USD 32-42,500). Although I would personally never contemplate spending such a huge sum of money to turn a unibody van into a 4×4, the success of the companies seems to suggest that there are plenty of people who think it is worth the expense. 

Ground Clearance: Ram ProMaster vs Mercedes Sprinter vs Ford Transit

The Mercedes Sprinter takes the top spot, with the ability to add larger tires. The Ford Transit takes second place, and the Ram ProMaster comes in last.

In terms of Ground Clearance the Mercedes Sprinter takes the top spot, as the design of the wheel arches on the previous generation left a good amount of space to easily install larger tires. With the newest generation of Sprinter, it is still possible to fit larger than stock tires, but you will need to purchase, and install a trim kit in order to fit larger tires in the front. It is a relatively simple job, but having done it myself, I can attest that it is trickier than the sellers make it seem.

Mercedes Sprinter camper van

The Ford Transit is limited to its stock tire size, even with a lift kit, so it takes the second spot for ground clearance. The Ram ProMaster must make do with last place, as due to its FWD architecture they have a stabiliser bar that runs between the rear wheels to provide extra stability when loaded. The downside of this bar is that it drastically reduces the ground clearance of the van. 

Which Van is Most Suitable for the Pan American Highway?

The Ford Transit takes the top spot in this category, with decent reliability on the gasoline engines, and parts availability across most of Central America. The Ram ProMaster comes in second, mainly because of its gasoline engine, which can handle poor fuel quality. The Mercedes Sprinter sadly comes in last, due to the delicate emissions system that is prone to clogging, and failure when subject to poor diesel quality. 

Admittedly this is a fairly aspirational category, as the vast majority of US van owners find travelling to Canada to be an exotic experience, which I understand. After all Canadians speak with a funny accent, and insist on pouring gravy all over your fries. 

Nevertheless for the adventure seekers who want a fantastic, and unique experience with a soupcon of excitement, and challenge, travelling the Pan American highway is most certain to be a bucket list experience. 

Mercedes Sprinter camper van on beach in Baja Mexico
On the beach in Baja Mexico with our Sprinter camper van

If you look on YouTube or Instagram you are bound to find stories of people completing the drive in all sorts of unique vehicles, and realistically you do not need a special vehicle to do it. There is however one type of vehicle that I would not attempt to complete the journey in, and that is a modern diesel. The reason is that modern diesels demand diesel fuel that is ‘ultra low’ in sulphur, also known as ‘clean’ diesel. This sort of diesel is the standard diesel you get at the pump in the US, Canada or Europe, and to an extent Mexico. As soon as you leave Mexico the situation begins to change a little bit, the fuel quality will gradually decrease, and this places an increased strain on the emissions equipment in your diesel engine. Eventually your emissions equipment will get clogged up, or damaged which could result in very expensive repairs, or having to find a way to bypass the DPF system.  

The Final Result

Ford Transit Camper Van, Van Life
The winner: Ford Transit

Without further ado, the winner of our ultimate van comparison is the Ford Transit. With a score of 21, it just edged out the Mercedes Sprinter, which scored 25, to take the top spot. The Ram ProMaster unfortunately has to make do with a distant third place, with a score of 34. 

I have to confess that I was surprised by the results, with how dominant the Mercedes Sprinter is across van life social media channels. I think it is easy to get a skewed picture, and I truly expected it to win this comparison by a country mile. By breaking the comparison down across 14 different categories we were able to get a really good picture of where all the different vans have their strengths, and weaknesses. 

This brings us to our winner, the Ford Transit, which somehow managed to sneak into first place by being pretty good in almost every category. After completing this comparison, I am not surprised at the growth it has seen in the van life community. For me the biggest downside to the Ford Transit is that they did not extend the wheelbase for their longest model. By keeping a short wheelbase for the extended model, the Transit ended up with a large overhang that severely limits the departure angle, and is extremely likely to get banged up. Luckily, the non extended model is an excellent compromise between interior, and exterior length.

The Mercedes Sprinter generally scored well across all categories, and given its popularity with fleet buyers, and van builders, not to mention its premium feel it would be difficult to portray it as a bad choice. With that being said, it is a premium vehicle, so you need to keep enough money in the bank to pay a premium price for any repairs that may come up. Although the fuel efficient diesel engines are one of the selling points for the Sprinter, the complicated emissions system that accompanies it is probably the biggest minus for the Sprinter, especially if you want to embark on an international adventure. 

The biggest problems for the Ram ProMaster, aside from a face only a mother could love, are its poor reliability, steep depreciation, FWD, low interior height, and build quality. These factors contributed heavily to it coming in last place. This really is a shame, as the wide boxy build of the ProMaster makes it a fantastic platform for a van conversion. I have been tempted by the boxy shape of the ProMaster several times, but the low interior height, and FWD always eliminates it from my short list. With that being said if you are ok with the compromises of a heavily loaded FWD van, can live with the low interior height, and are willing to take a bet on the reliability of your van, then the ProMaster could still be a great option for you. 

If your curiosity has been peaked, we have written an in depth guide for the Mercedes Sprinter, the Ford Transit, and the Ram ProMaster. These guides will give you more details, such as interior, and exterior measurements, along with a little history on the different models.

For an introductory overview of the different vans, you can also take a look at our How to Choose the Ultimate Van for Van Life article.

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