# Fiat Ducato or Mercedes Benz 318 Cdi. HELP



## travelsRus (Mar 1, 2007)

Has anyone got any views of either of these engines. We are looking at getting an Autotrail Cheyenne 696G with automatic transmission. We haven't got a clue about either of these and don't want to be 'bamboozled' into something when we go to Peterborough on Sunday. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.


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## 101368 (Oct 12, 2006)

travelsRus said:


> Has anyone got any views of either of these engines. We are looking at getting an Autotrail Cheyenne 696G with automatic transmission. We haven't got a clue about either of these and don't want to be 'bamboozled' into something when we go to Peterborough on Sunday. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.


"Oh lord wont you buy me a Mercedes Benz" can't seem to find any songs about Fiat Ducatos so that'd clinch it for me. Personally I wouldn't touch a Fiat with a barge pole but that's just me. Plenty of motorhomers run Fiats and seem happy with them. Motorhome use is very light compared with the commercial use that all the base chassis are designed for so in terms of long term reliability it's not that important. Look for a layout you can live with and build quality of the conversion. Oh and payload some conversions don't leave you with enough to fill the fridge let alone go camping.

Have fun looking.


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## sersol (Aug 1, 2005)

Hi,with the sort of mileage most m/h's cover the badge on the front is pretty well irrelevant. Unless of course you want an auto ,then it has to be the "old 3 star" (MB) I am afriad. 
Gary


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## sailor (Aug 23, 2005)

You say you want a merc with an auto. If this is the sprintshift I would prefer the manual. The gearbox takes electric feeds from places such as the stop lights - which sounds vulnerable to me.


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## 101405 (Oct 15, 2006)

*fiat or merc*

I run Mercedes lcv's and trucks, and also had Fiat cars . both were brill . For a motorhome its got to be FIAT! great engine ! and good chassis light and simple . Merc is tops but more costly on the service side and an auto box which is from the car range, no no. with the dash mounted gear change what could be simpler


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## davesport (Nov 12, 2006)

That's what I like about web forums, lots of conflicting opinions.



> Personally I wouldn't touch a Fiat with a barge pole but that's just me





> Hi,with the sort of mileage most m/h's cover the badge on the front is pretty well irrelevant.





> If this is the sprintshift I would not touch it. Mine has left me stranded 3 times, in embarassing places





> I am afraid for me the mercedes image is somewhat tarnished, and my next motorhome will be on a fiat or peugeot, and a manual!





> For a motorhome its got to be FIAT! great engine


I was reading a thread on here yesterday where owners of RV's were extolling the virtues of buying & running a landbarge. I didn't see a huge response from the owners of Brit or German MH'ers. The point I'm trying to make is that there are thousands of happy owners of both Fiat & Merc motorhomes who are not going to say anything.

Statements like


> Personally I wouldn't touch a Fiat with a barge pole but that's just me


 I find to be unhelpful in the extreme. If someone's had a bad experience lets hear about it.

I know peeps who run various vans in different fleets & rumour has it that Iveco vans are unreliable & fall apart. Personally I've no experience of this so keep quiet about it. It just so happens that Niesmann build some of their premium MH's on this platform & I've never heard a bad word said against them.

Part of the Merc V's Fiat chassis debate is that Merc is "perceived" to be a premium brand, especially when the other option's a Fiat. No brainer, right. Well I tend not to agree The Fiat Ducato JTD is a reliable platform & I dont know anyone who's got a bad word to say about them.

Dave


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## peedee (May 10, 2005)

Do Fiat do an automatic?

Is there a 318? Am I a little out of touch with the market? 

Some observations from when I was in touch with the market.

You can generally get a better payload with a Fiat unless you go to the Merc 4xx series.

Mercs cost a lot more, with an automatic probably another £3000, they do run better and are rear wheel drive. They will leave a similar sized fiat standing and are excellent in mountainous terrain. My 3.8 ton 316 CDI 156 hp is a pleasure to drive.

A disadvantage of rear wheel drive is the transmission shaft, it always seems to be in the way of designers attempt to distribute weight. It should be better over wet ground though.

From some of the service costs of Fiats I have seen quoted on here and the 5th gear problems, a Merc could be cheaper to run.

It is alledged the resale value of a Merc is better.

peedee


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## 101411 (Oct 15, 2006)

Dont have any of these as a base vehicle for a m/h but use them as vans for my business. My findings so far are this

Merc Overpriced, not the best build quality and expensive to repair and service. Broken down on 2 occasions has 80k miles owned for 3 years from new

Transit Not bad but dont like driving position (personal opinion i know!!) easy to get parts and reasonably priced servicing. Owned 3 over 5 years all from new and had 4 breakdown 3 in the same van

Fiat never owned one sorry

LDV Good solid cheap van reliable but looking very dated now. Cheap servicing and very reliable (they use the transit engines). Owned 1 for 5 years 120k miles no breakdowns

Iveco Without a doubt the best of the bunch ive got 3 of em all with over 100k miles on em worked to death every day owned from new reasonable sevicing costs spares easy to get and only 1 breakdown in 5 years which was a broken fanbelt.

Hope this helps

Dazzer


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## travelsRus (Mar 1, 2007)

*Fiat Ducato v Merc Benz*

Thanks for all your replies -what a mixed lot. At least we are a bit wiser about both now. Still don't know what to choose but will have a good look around the Peterbrough Show and see what we think after that Thanks again for good replies.


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## Waleem (Nov 1, 2006)

It would have to be the Merc if an auto is required. I understand that although Fiat promised a RHD automatic in the new Ducato, they have now reversed that decision and there won't be one! If you don't mind LHD, I'm sure one could be ordered, although whether a British manufacturer would be prepared to do this is anyones guess!


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## 101411 (Oct 15, 2006)

If your happy to have LHD Winnebago do a lovely B+ class RV based on a MERC chassis and engine/gearbox with autobox as standard. They are really nice and only 95" wide and not to long. The B+ range on the Merc chassis is a Winnebego Aspect.

See here http://www.winnebagoind.com/products/winnebago/aspect/

Dazzer


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## androidGB (May 26, 2005)

I had a Sprintshift in my Benimar and loved it, much prefered to the full auto I have in the Hymer.

I can understand Sailors feeling bearing in mind the problems he's had but I don't believe Sprinshifts are normally troublesome.

I can't understand why the gearbox would take and impulse from the stop lights I'm sure there are much more reliable places to take an input from.



Andrew


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## sailor (Aug 23, 2005)

Hi,

According to the merc dealer, the sprintshift control unit takes feeds from the engine (to know when you are accelerating) and from the brakes, ie stop light circuit, to know when you are braking, and uses this info - and other info such as speed and memory of your driving style - to decide when to change gear.

Therefore a short circuit in the rear lights can send incorrect intermittant feeds down the brake circuit, giving conflicting info to the gearbox control unit which can cause it to stop working. Result - an immovable van. 45 minutes (roughly) later it starts working again. The merc man explained that this is because after 45 mins stopped, the whole system automatically reboots itself. 

My problem is fixed now and the above was explained to me in great detail. It it is nice when it works.


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## richardjames (Feb 1, 2006)

*Mercedes*

Hi All  
I would go for a rear wheel drive any time because of better traction with most of the weight being at the rear! Trying to get off a wet site with front wheel drive can be a nightmare. I have a 316 chassis and have had a problem with the sprintshift system and brakes. The problem was with the towing setup - it was wired wrongly! The issue was that you are left with only first and second gear which you select manually. The brake light fuse had blown and a replacement soon fixed it. When you consider that Tesco, CityLink and the likes use Sprinters with Sprintshift - these get real abuse.
Hope this helps your dilema! :lol: 
richard


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## maddie (Jan 4, 2006)

Hi I agree with Dazzer's earlyier post about ivecos (on my second)and def on ldv's.Used both for work as well no prolems.Only thing is now with tranny engines the ldvs are holding their prices similer to transits! cheap as chips to run/repair(none needed)The new ones-maximus are different the garage where i get odd bits from says doors fall off! terry


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