Passenger van roof AC water leak

[J Thorpe]

I have a 2007 10 passenger van with eth roof mounted AC. I have a chronic water leak at the AC unit to roof seal. The dealer has worked on it 4 times and it keeps reocurring. They have installed several new seals. It is OK for a few months and then starts leaking again. Has anyone else had this problem? I'm suspecting this is a problem with the seal material.

[AJM]

I recently purchased an 08 with the roof top AC. Had the same problem. Took it to the dealer to have it fixed. They said one of the seals were istalled incorrectly and they installed a new one. Let's just say, everytime it rains I am looking for those drops of rain on my seat. My fingers are crossed!

[A Schnug Union NJ]

I have a 07 with the roof AC, it leaks on my brother that sits in his wheelchair under the AC unit. I took it to the dealer 4 times. still leaks and now the headliner is stained, they orderd it 4 times and still get the wrong one. Is there a competent Sprinter dealer that knows what they are doing. Can someone please help me

[Hit The Road Jack]

A Schnug Union NJ wrote:

I have a 07 with the roof AC, it leaks on my brother that sits in his wheelchair under the AC unit. I took it to the dealer 4 times. still leaks and now the headliner is stained, they orderd it 4 times and still get the wrong one. Is there a competent Sprinter dealer that knows what they are doing. Can someone please help me

You'd think for nearly 3k these things would perform properly. I personally don't trust dealer installed options...Jack

[Jason]

2007 2500 passenger with rooftop A/C unit leaking water 2nd time. New headliner, duct and seal and same problem at 30k miles. Headliner stained AGAIN, so it's going back to the dealer BEFORE the 36k warranty expires.
Has anyone determined EXACTLY what is leaking and how to repair it properly?

[OCBrad]

'04 Sprinter passenger 2500 had a small leak into the rear cabin. They replaced the headliner and took nearly 2 weeks to fix the leak. We just had a few big rain storms here and it was raining inside. My headliner is heavily stained and have gnats flying around! With such little rain in Southern California and what little water may hit that spot while washing, How am I to know that they even solved the problem in the first place. The bottom line is it is past the miles/time limit for labor warranty.

The problem seems to be, from what I understand, that these units are installed in the states after import, not by the MB guys in Germany. They are obviously doing something different

[A Schnug Union NJ]

Hi, My roof still leaks going in for the sixth time has anyone solved this problem?

[Sno dog]

roof leaks, rust damage, overall paint failure on passenger 04. Home town dealer in Co inept. Good luck on chasing this, I've been at it for 4 yrs.

[snodog]

Here I am 4 yrs later still wrestling with the dealership over factory defect in rust proofing and paint failure. Vehicle leaks at roof seams and around windshield. Dealership has given me such a runaround that I finally had enough and contacted BBB and the Co attorney general. Waiting on reply, I don't expect much but have registered the complaint formally for the umpteenth time.

[Greg]

I have a 2006 Sprinter that has been converted by Sportsmobile. I had a leak and was told by Sportsmobile that it is fairly common that the seam across the roof of the van will separate and that is in fact what mine did.Just a small crack but enough to let a lot of water in. I'm waiting for it to be fixed right now.

[joe roberts]

My conventional A/C has gone out for the 3rd time in my astro van, and i'm told that compressor and evap coil needs replacement the 2nd time in 675,00 miles and only used eight months of the year. I am thinking of installing an electric roof top unit. Does anyone know a manufacturer of a less problematic unit?

[joe roberts]

Re: joe roberts, that's 65,000 miles, sorry

[Corwin Bennett]

I am a fleet manager in Virginia. At the time I took over fro the previous manager, our Sprinters were already past warranty (we have 2 of them). Both have had recurring leak problems. The headliner of one of them is now stained. A dealer has worked on them with no success, and several in-house jobs applying various sealants have failed to take effect. Ultimately I believe the seal to be defective. It's far too common a problem to just be dealer incompetence. And any sealant used will come loose over time because of the vibration of the vehicle at freeway speeds.

We are most likely getting rid of them come next budget year.

[KSprinter]

Corwin Bennett wrote:

I am a fleet manager in Virginia. At the time I took over fro the previous manager, our Sprinters were already past warranty (we have 2 of them). Both have had recurring leak problems. The headliner of one of them is now stained. A dealer has worked on them with no success, and several in-house jobs applying various sealants have failed to take effect. Ultimately I believe the seal to be defective. It's far too common a problem to just be dealer incompetence. And any sealant used will come loose over time because of the vibration of the vehicle at freeway speeds.
We are most likely getting rid of them come next budget year.

Try Windex on the water stains. I have used it on my Sprinters and it gets them out except for the very heavy stains.

[Mark]

Work for a fleet transportation service that now runs 11 2007-2010 Sprinters. All but 3 have terrible A/C roof leaks.#1 Customer complaint in the winter and rainy seasons. Another brilliant design from German engineering! Have taken the roof units apart to caulk everywhere, but this process usually yields no results.

[Bo baran]

2011 sprinter w roof ac, leaks bad long beach sprinter fixed it once now it leaks again. 3000 miles is all there fix lasted.

[Kathy]

We bought a brand new Mercedes Sprinter in August 2011 and have had it in twice to the Mercedes dealer in LIttleton, CO to have the gasket "fixed". It gushed water 3 months after the first AC gasket repair/ ceiling replacement due to water staining. And we shall see if it continues to leak with this latest "repair'. This is ridiculous b/c from forum posts this problem has been going on since at least 2007! WTF Mercedes???? Fix the problem.

[carlos]

We bought a brand new Mercedes Sprinter and has been to the dealer to many times we have a leak on the rear a/c unit . Water is coming out from the vents on top and nobody seams to know how to fix the problem. Can somebody please enlighten me .

[Seamweaver]

I have had my 2007 in 3 times for water pouring through the air conditioner to the inside.(factory installed AC) My current understanding is that there are drainage tubes which extend to underneath the body of van on either side from inside (alongside?) the air conditioner and if these plug (live under Fir Trees ?) the water comes inside. Apparently, if They don't respond to being blown clear, the whole conditioner comes off to access the top drain entrance. They tell me it is a simple but very expensive procedure due to time involved in removing and replacing the AC.

[Rainwater]

We have a 2011 Sprinter that is noe leaking again. I'm nervious about going back to the dealer for fear of denial. I hope and pray they don't try to make me pay. The first time I went they fixed it and they explaind that the factory made a boo boo.