The Worst Things About the 2023 Mercedes Sprinter

I’ve been quite happy with my decision to go with the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, but after driving the van for nearly two years, there are several things that I’ve found quite annoying, bothersome, or otherwise less than desirable.

It would be one thing if I had purchased a used van that was a decade old, but since I bought this van new from the dealership and since (at the time) it was the newest model available, I feel justified in pointing these things out – especially when you consider that I ultimately opted to go with a feature-rich vehicle package that left relatively few options omitted.

None of these are dealbreakers (except maybe the diesel issue), and some of these can be fixed or augmented with aftermarket parts (at potentially a high cost). That said, here are the issues I’ve found with the 2023 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van (and likely Sprinters of similar age/year).

The USB-C Ports

The good news? The 2023 Mercedes Benz Sprinter has multiple USB-C ports. The bad news? These USB-C ports are located in a spot that’s basically inaccessible while driving or sitting in either of the front two seats.

The ports are located at the top of the front of the cab inside a cubby with a lid that lifts vertically—accessible via a button at the front. I can barely reach the inside of the area where the USB-C ports are if I am sitting in the driver’s seat. However, it would not be safe to reach these while driving.

Yes, you can get longer cords and run them out of the cubby where the USB-C ports are. That said, there are no holes or slits to run cables out of the small cubby where the cords are, which means you need to force it shut with the cable(s) coming out of one of the corners or edges.

The Steering Wheel Controls

Another thing that may seem good – or at least a bit fancy – at first, but that’s actually not great is the steering wheel controls.

There are controls on each side of the steering wheel—the left for the screen directly in front of the driver between the instruments and the right for the infotainment system in the center of the front cab; they are touch controls. Fancy, right? Not so much. Touch controls are cheaper to program than tactile controls, probably why Mercedes opted to use them. However, these controls are easy to accidentally trigger when turning the steering wheel.

Additionally, they can be annoying to use depending on the temperature and humidity in the cab. Cold or sticky fingers don’t do a great job of operating the controls, and if you wear super cool driving gloves, you won’t be able to navigate the controls at all. Small tactile joysticks on each side would be much better than the current flat touch controls.

The Climate Controls

The Sprinter has two climate control levers in the center of the cab beneath the infotainment system.

The temperature control is located on the left, closer to the driver; the fan speed – which also controls the on/off of the system – is located closer to the passenger. I would argue that the fan speed/power control is more used than the temperature (and I can say that personally, I do use this more); therefore, this control should be closer to the driver than the passenger.

With the current configuration, I need to lean forward and to the side to access the fan speed/on-off of the climate control system. It’s not ideal as it feels a bit dangerous to do while driving. Unfortunately, these physical controls are the only way to control the climate system in the van, and you cannot make any changes via the steering wheel controls or the infotainment system.

There’s also no tactile identification on the mode adjustment and defrost controls, which means you have to lean forward and look down to access them. Again, this is not a safe position to be in while driving.

The Hood Strut

When opening the hood of your Sprinter, don’t expect to find a hydraulic hood strut. From the factory, the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter’s hood is held up with a manually deployed stay on the lefthand side of the hood (if you’re looking at the front of the vehicle).

It’s not terribly difficult to prop up, but I’ve owned less expensive vehicles that came standard with hydraulic hood struts. Honestly, Mercedes appears to have done several things to cut costs and hope that no one notices, the hood strut being a prime example.

If you’re looking to upgrade your hood struts, I would recommend these from Moonraker Design. But if you’re looking for someone to do this installation for you (the Moonraker Design struts are DIY), you can do it at a place like Owl Vans.

The Sun Visors

There are two sun visors in the 2023 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, one on the driver’s side and one on the passenger side. These can be folded down and subsequently detached to guard the sun coming in from the driver’s side or passenger side window.

However, unlike many others I’ve encountered, the sun visors have no lateral movement. This means that if the sun is coming in from the middle of the windshield or the rear portion of the forward windows, there’s no way to block it with the visor. I can only imagine that the decision not to allow lateral movement in the visor was a cost-saving one. I do not know why this would be a matter of functional necessity.

I really need to get around to tinting my front windows (there’s zero tint from the factory).

The Wireless Charging

The 2023 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter has wireless charging for your devices. Awesome, right?

Well, it would be awesome, except the wireless charging area is in the front/center of the dash and receives full sun during the day (assuming the sun is coming through the windshield). This area heats up quickly, which can damage your devices and stop most devices from charging. Many phones have automatic charging cutoffs when the battery gets too hot; mine does.

This area is also relatively inaccessible when driving the vehicle. Opening the compartment and reaching inside to grab your phone (presumably, that’s what you’re charging wirelessly) while driving is quite dangerous. While not driving, it’s just annoying. I wish the wireless charging was inside the cubbies on either side of the infotainment system in the middle of the front cab. Maybe in future models.

The Horn

The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter is a large vehicle. Sitting in front of it, you can look directly into the semi-truck cabs. It’s tall and wide and has a presence on narrow roads. You would expect an appropriately sized horn for a vehicle of this size. However, the Sprinter horn does not match the Sprinter facade.

To put it lightly, the Sprinter horn is weak and sad-sounding.

It’s like a lion opening its mouth to roar and instead emitting the meow of a kitten. People are more likely to laugh than to acknowledge your presence. It’s a clown car horn (but not even the fun kind). I’ve upgraded the horn in my Sprinter to this one and am no longer embarrassed to use it. More importantly, I now know people hear me when I use it.

The Fuel Tank

The stock fuel tank on the 2023 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van is 22 gallons (83 liters). If you’re traveling long distances, boondocking, or visiting remote places, the limitations of this tank capacity will quickly become apparent. Couple this with the fact that many diesel heaters won’t function with less than a quarter tank of fuel, and the seemingly inconsequential tank size will be something you find yourself thinking about more frequently than you may have imagined.

Fortunately, there is an extended-capacity fuel tank available that more than doubles the tank’s size to 45 gallons (170 liters). Unfortunately, this tank is expensive, at over $1,500. And that doesn’t include the labor you’ll (probably) need to pay to have it installed. Personally, my DIY expertise does not grant me the confidence to perform potentially fatal (seeming) body or engine modifications.

One other point of annoyance here? There are (at least?) two different programming options your Sprinter may have come with from the factory.

The Diesel Compatibility

Yet another thing I learned when I purchased my 2023 Sprinter is that there are different kinds of diesel. There’s diesel #1, diesel #2, off-road diesel, biodiesel—which comes in varieties B5, B20, or > B20—renewable diesel, and probably other types of diesel as well.

The issue with all these different types of diesel is that Mercedes-Benz does not provide clear guidance on which are appropriate for the Sprinter. Apparently—and I’ve been told this by three different dealerships—the 2023 AWD Diesel Sprinters can come with two different engine configurations, and one of them (the one I have) can be filled with biodiesel up to B20.

This is excellent news for me as I spend a lot of time in California, and it can be extremely difficult to find diesel #2 or B5 biodiesel along some of the state’s major interstates and highways. However, there is no guidance on whether renewable diesel (which I’ve seen on pumps as either renewable #2 or R99 – don’t know if these are two different types of different names for the same thing) is appropriate for the engine as well. This means that I can’t fill up at most (all?) Costcos in California because they carry diesel that contains more than 20% biomass.

Hopefully, Mercedes-Benz will address this with future engines or will provide guidance on renewable diesel (or biodiesel > B20 – I still don’t know if these are the same thing or not) in the near future.

The Android Auto and Apple CarPlay

Lastly, and this ties somewhat into the first point regarding the inaccessibility of the vehicle’s USB-C ports, are the two issues I have with the Android Auto and Apple CarPlay interfaces. The 2023 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter supports Android Auto and Apply CarPlay, but your phone needs to be plugged into a specific USB-C port in the forward cubby of the van.

That said, my first issue is that the Android Auto and Apple CarPlay in the Sprinter are not wireless. There are already cars (manufactured before 2023) that include wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Why every vehicle – especially feature-rich vehicles – does not have this standard by now is a testament to how car manufacturers have neglected the technology in their vehicles.

The second issue is simply the location of the USB-C, as described above. On paper, it may seem like a nice, clean solution to the phone charging/interfacing question, but in practice, it’s an annoyance and doesn’t make much sense. I’ve purchased this adapter which can be used to provide (somewhat reliable) Android Auto in the van (here’s a comparable Apple CarPlay version).

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