Ford and Mercedes have both seized on the van life trend and made changes with camper conversions in mind. For the 2023 Sprinter, Mercedes dropped the 3.0-liter V6 turbodiesel engine in favor of a 2.0-liter four-cylinder turbodiesel and a gas-fueled 2.0-liter four-cylinder.
Ford introduced the 2023 Transit Trail, which comes in three sizes and includes a power inverter and 4G LTE modem with a built-in WiFi hotspot. While this is an enticing add-on, the hotspot only includes service for three months or 3GB, after which Transit Trail owners will have to subscribe to a compatible AT&T data plan.
The Transit Trail’s network hardware, power inverter, and a standard 400-watt 110-volt outlet are advantages that the Sprinter doesn’t have, and Ford now offers those extras in its regular Transit cargo van models, which start at $44,455 in comparison to the Transit Trail’s base MSRP of $65,975.
The 2023 Sprinter 1500 is priced slightly higher than the base Transit model, starting at $45,795. The Sprinter 2500 costs about $1,000 more, and the larger 3500 starts at a little more than $52,000.
The Sprinter 3500 comes in three sizes: a 144-inch wheelbase model with a 102.8-inch roof as well as two 170-inch wheelbase models, one with a 114.2-inch roof and a high roof extended version that boosts the total interior capacity to 469.4 cubic feet. The biggest Transit, the Long-EL model, has an interior volume of 536.4 cubic feet. The high-roof extended Sprinter 3500 costs $63,235; the Transit Long-EL high-roof model is priced at about $53,000.
