Luckily, I was scheduled for a weekend with Mercedes-Benz eSprinter 2024 right when i needed it
The third wettest spring on record in southeastern Wisconsin flooded my mother’s basement. Before moving from an apartment to a house three years ago, I stored a lot of my clutter downstairs to help organize my life, and three years ago when my niece’s father passed away, I stored more stuff there.
The flood meant it was time to move all that furniture out to make room for the contractors to get to work.
I got the eSprinter with a 99% charge on the battery and an estimated range of 199 miles. The official range hasn’t been announced, but the 2024 eSprinter has a range of 273 miles on the more lenient European WLTP cycle.
I have to admit, I was a little worried about range. I figured the round trip would be about 140 miles, and I didn’t want to risk running out of battery mid-trip. Turns out I didn’t have to worry. My mom’s house is 42 miles north and west, while my niece’s house is just over 14 miles south and east, which translates to about 112 miles for the day. That leaves a lot of wiggle room between the eSprinter’s actual performance and its actual range, which seems to be at least 200 miles.
My test car was similar to all 2024s: a high-roof model with a 170-inch wheelbase and a larger (usable) 113-kwh battery ( 2025 eSprinter (The test car also has a shorter hood, a shorter 144-inch wheelbase, and a smaller 81-kwh battery.) This test car also had a more powerful 201-horsepower motor, making the same 295 pound-feet of torque as the base 151-horsepower version.
Mercedes-Benz eSprinter 2024
A big empty box with a whopping 488.1 cubic feet of cargo volume, the eSprinter comes with a 48x48x28-inch wooden box mounted in the center of the cargo floor, as well as a pair of spare tires mounted up front. The box holds 440 pounds of weight, which combined with the spare tire stabilizes the vehicle when empty, much like how pickup truckers use sandbags in the bed of an empty car. The big empty box would have robbed me of a lifetime of valuable moving space.
Well, it’s not exactly a full life and a half. It’s more like the remnants of two lives, things you want to keep but don’t need to access very often. The box creates a natural divider between my model cars, magazines, and car books and his guitars, amps, and survival gear. With everything packed, there’s still plenty of room.
Mercedes-Benz eSprinter 2024
Mercedes-Benz eSprinter 2024
Loading had no noticeable impact on the eSprinter’s range or limited power. The 83.9-mile trip to my mom’s house and back, half loaded and half unloaded, used 48 percent of the range, and the trip computer said I had between 85 and 98 miles of range left, depending on my driving style and air conditioning usage. With the A/C running and most of those miles on the highway at 70 mph to a top speed of 75 mph, I understand why it’s a little behind the expected range.
The truck has no problem keeping up with city traffic or accelerating onto the highway. However, loaded or not, passing on the highway is still a challenge. This powertrain is tuned to perform as needed in the real world and doesn’t offer much more than that.
Another 28.7 miles to my niece’s house and back, mostly on the highway, totaled 112.6 miles and the eSprinter had 73-85 miles of estimated range left and the battery had 37% capacity. Overall, the truck averaged 1.7 miles per kwh for the entire trip, which seems perfectly reasonable since it’s a big monster that cuts through wind like an impossible brick.
Mercedes-Benz eSprinter 2024
After I recharged the truck overnight using a Level 2 home charger, the trip computer reported a range of 192 miles at 100% charge. The system apparently learns how the truck is driven and adjusts the range estimate based on recent mileage. A lighter load and slower speed will definitely increase the range estimate.
The 2024 Mercedes-Benz eSprinter strikes me as a smart choice for fleet buyers. At $77,611 with $3,430 for the larger engine, it’s about $16,000 more expensive than the gas-powered car. It has enough range for a workday, and electric power will make it much cheaper to operate, though it takes a lot of time and miles to add up to that price. It’ll also be much cleaner to drive.
It’s especially helpful when you get this service just in time for your mom to move her belongings out of the basement.
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Mercedes-Benz eSprinter 2024
Basic price: $74,181, including $2,295 destination charge
Tested price: $77,611
Transmission system: 201 horsepower engine, 113 kwh battery, rear-wheel drive
EPA effectiveness: Estimated range 200-220 miles
Hits: Just enough capacity, plenty of cargo space, efficient for a fleet
Girls: Power ends where speed limit ends, big and bulky, much more expensive than petrol version
