Freightliner Sprinter Complaints (2020)

7 consumer complaints on file.

#11685330September 5, 2025
ENGINE
The Cooling fan behind the radiator also known as the clutch fan fell off the water pump. I realized it before it fell on the highway during rush hour and caused a major accident and engine failure. This is a very common problem and is all over the internet. In most cases it will take out the radiator, fan assembly, belts and hoses as reported by many on the internet when you google “MB sprinter clutch fan falls off”.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11523457May 23, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
On May 22, 2023 around 19:00 after driving my vehicle for nearly 90 minutes the vehicle no longer responded to the gas pedal being depressed by increasing acceleration. The vehicle would not go over 2,500 RPMs even with the gas pedal fully depressed. No warning were shown on the driver display or in the messaging system. The manual gear shifting did not work to raise or lower the gears while the vehicle was in this state. The vehicle display showed the vehicle in "D" for Drive and I could not change it to any other value such as D1, D2, etc.. The vehicle had almost no power and would not accelerate except for very slowly taking over 1.5 minutes to reach 55 mph. This is a SEVERELY dangerous situation as without warning my vehicle stopped responding to driver input in a reasonable fashion and thus if I was attempting to turn onto a busy road or cross a road my vehicle would not have enough acceleration to do so and could cause an accident resulting in serious death or injury. No warnings or alerts were shown on driver console. Parking assistance was turned off. Lane departure was turned off. I cycled on/off the cruise control to no avail. I evened turned the engine off and on and the problem still persisted. It wasn't until I was able to safely pull off later and power off the vehicle and wait 5 minutes that the problem went away. It is incomprehensible to me why we allow car manufacturers to override user input and commands with faulty and buggy computer software. If I press the gas pedal it should respond!
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11503674January 25, 2023
ENGINE
Engine destroyed by oil and water accumulation in intercooler that was pulled through the turbo and entered cylinder 6. Bent connecting rod on Cylinder 6, Bent and torn turbo vanes. Sudden loss of power while operating. Mercedes is replacing the entire motor. No Symptoms before the event, check engine light after first restart.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11501821January 14, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Driving in center lane of three lane interstate highway in the evening so it was dark. I had cruise control set at 55 mph. Nothing to my right and at least 100 yards of nothing in front of me. A white sedan speeds by in the left lane staying entirely in their left lane. My vehicle slammed on the brakes for some unknown reason almost causing the vehicle behind me to collide with me. A red triangle appeared on dash display for 2 seconds or so (not long enough to know what the computer thought happened ). No explanation given. No messages in drive computer. Absolutely awful. This could have caused a major accident and it was all done by a computer with no explanation. I want a dealer to download the log from my car for 17:52-17:53 on 1/14/23 and issue a complete and detailed report. There’s a severe safety issue and it must be fixed.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11477168August 2, 2022
ENGINE
I am experiencing cold start hesitation and unresponsive throttle at high elevation. The vehicle takes up to 20-30 seconds to accelerate, and puts me in a dangerous situation (in a highway intersection, for example). Once the engine temperature is warm, this issue goes away.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11421862June 22, 2021
LANE DEPARTURE: ASSIST
The Lane Keep Assistant (LKA) as implemented is a severe safety flaw. The LKA only take input from lane markers on the road but fails to consider other issues such as other vehicles or construction. Several times on my most recent drive on interstate highways at 70-80 mph I was passing large semi trucks. The trucks drifted out of their lane and into my lane. I took emergency evasive action to steer my vehicle out of the way of the semi truck but the Lane Keep Assistant (LKA) noticed I was out of my lane and aggressively steered my vehicle back into the other vehicle. Luckily I did not hit the other vehicle but the LKA made avoiding other vehicles more difficult and could contribute to a collision if the driver is not foreful enough to both steer out of the way of danger and to counter the steering control of the LKA. 1. This feature should not be allowed on vehicles as implemented. In my 30 years of the driving this is the most dangerous feature I have ever experienced. My vehicle is trying to kill me!! 2. This feature should have the ability to be set to "off" permanently or tied to a driver's profile settings to remain off while that driver is in control. Drivers should not have to remember to turn off the feature manually every time the car is started. 3. Driver's should have the ability to turn off steering control but still have the lane departure warning signal.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11389057January 20, 2021
EXTERIOR LIGHTING, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
COLOR INSTRUMENT CLUSTER INCLUDING COLOR DISPLAY BETWEEN THE SPEEDOMETER AND TACHOMETER WILL NOT DIM AT NIGHT. THE RESULTING WASH OF LIGHT MAKES SEEING OUT THE SIDE MIRRORS OR ANYTHING AT NIGHT VERY DIFFICULT. VAN IS NOT SAFE TO DRIVE AT NIGHT. MANUFACTURE CONFIRMS THE PROBLEM BUT HAS NO FIX.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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