The Lemon IndexAll carsMercedes-BenzSprinter
Mercedes-Benz Sprinter reliability.
Is it reliable? It's mixed. About as many complaints as the average car.
About average · 2013–2022
20213rd generation
What owners say on YouTube
2007–2018 Sprinter · 198 most-watched videos
Owners praise
Owners complain about
Fixes owners look up most
- Oil changes & service741K views
- Fuel pump, filter & tank694K views
- Infotainment, battery & electrical535K views
Before you buy, watch
2019–2025 Sprinter · 197 most-watched videos
Owners praise
Owners complain about
Nothing stands out.
Fixes owners look up most
Before you buy, watch
Praise and complaints: the share of each generation's most-watched videos that mention a topic with a praise or trouble word next to it, in the title or what's said. YouTube rank: how positive owners and reviewers sound, compared with every car of the same model year. It measures tone, not failure rates. Videos belong to their creators; we link to them.
Looking at a 2023 or newer? Those are too new for a full complaint score (any score shown is partial, in gray), but YouTube owners like the 2025 best.
Fewest complaints
2015.
Every year. Lower is better. Tap a year for its full report.
Show 2 older years (2007–2008, YouTube reviews only, no complaint data)
Newest year first. Red = worse than average, gray = about average, too new (2023+: a partial score, marked “partial”) or too few complaints to score. #1, #2… = that year's YouTube rank among the 11 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter years with enough videos (#1 = the year owners and reviewers talk about most positively). It is not a reliability rank.
Embed this chart
Put this chart on your site, blog or forum. Free, with the credit line built in.
<iframe src="https://lemonindex.com/embed/cars/mercedes-benz-sprinter/" title="Mercedes-Benz Sprinter reliability by model year (The Lemon Index)" width="100%" height="468" style="border:0;max-width:720px" loading="lazy"></iframe><p style="font-size:13px;margin:4px 0 0">Data: <a href="https://lemonindex.com/cars/mercedes-benz-sprinter/">Lemon Index</a> (Mercedes-Benz Sprinter reliability by year)</p>YouTube rank: we read 398 YouTube videos about the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, 2007 to 2025, and ranked every year by how much they praise it vs. how much they talk about problems. YouTube's favorite: 2022. Old cars rank lower partly because most of their videos are repair and restoration videos. A gray dot means not enough data yet: under 10 videos, or a new year with no owner complaints to compare.
Quick answers.
Is the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter reliable?
It's mixed. It draws about as many complaints as the average car, but YouTube owners complain about it more than about most cars its age. Fewest complaints: 2015. Most complaints: 2016, 2019 and 2020.
Is the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter a good car?
It is about average, by owner complaints to the government per car sold (2013-2022: Lemon Index 107; 100 is average). Some years are much better than others: 2015 drew the fewest complaints and 2019 the most.
What are the best Mercedes-Benz Sprinter years to buy?
By owner complaints per car sold: 2015, 2013, 2018. 2015 drew the fewest.
What Mercedes-Benz Sprinter years should you stay away from?
The 3 years with the most complaints per car sold: 2019 (avoid, Lemon Index 261, the first year of a new generation), 2020 (avoid, Lemon Index 229), 2016 (worse than average, Lemon Index 147). 100 is the average car; lower is better.
How many recalls does the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter have?
172 safety recalls across the 14 model years we track. Most: 2019 (42), 2020 (22), 2021 (18). Each year's page lists them, and every Mercedes-Benz Sprinter recall is in one list here.
What are the most common Mercedes-Benz Sprinter problems?
Across every year, owners' complaints to the government name transmission & drivetrain, electrical and automatic emergency braking most. Some years are much worse than others: see the chart above.
Every year in one table
| Year | Index | Compared with average | Complaints | Top complaint | Recalls | Crash test | MPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 2 | fuel system, diesel (50%) | 7 | — | — |
| 2011 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 6 | electrical (33%) | 5 | — | — |
| 2013 | 26 | about a quarter as many complaints as the average car | 7 | airbags (43%) | 5 | — | — |
| 2014 | 81 | somewhat fewer complaints than the average car | 23 | airbags (52%) | 8 | — | — |
| 2015 | 25 | about a quarter as many complaints as the average car | 7 | electrical (29%) | 12 | — | — |
| 2016 | 147 | about one and a half times the average car's complaints | 42 | airbags (43%) | 16 | — | — |
| 2017 | 51 | about half as many complaints as the average car | 15 | wheels (27%) | 9 | — | — |
| 2018 | 50 | about half as many complaints as the average car | 15 | speed control (27%) | 10 | — | — |
| 2019 | 261 | about 3 times the average car's complaints | 79 | transmission & drivetrain (25%) | 42 | — | — |
| 2020 | 229 | about twice the average car's complaints | 83 | electrical (25%) | 22 | — | — |
| 2021 | 117 | a bit more than the average car's complaints | 46 | automatic emergency braking (35%) | 18 | — | — |
| 2022 | 71 | about three-quarters as many complaints as the average car | 41 | engine (22%) | 7 | — | — |
| 2023 | 69 | about two-thirds as many complaints as the average car | 38 | transmission & drivetrain (24%) | 7 | — | — |
| 2024 | – | too few complaints to score | 16 | brakes (19%) | 4 | — | — |
The Lemon Index counts owner complaints filed with the U.S. government (NHTSA) in a car's first 3 years, per car sold, against the average car of the same model years (100 = average, lower is better). It measures complaints, not crash safety. U.S. sales source: goodcarbadcar.net. How it works
Know someone shopping for a used car?
Updated · Free to use with credit: Source: The Lemon Index (lemonindex.com)
. Get the data