NOTE ADDED NEAR END OF BUILD: If you have not read this thread yet, you might want to just skip to my web site where I describe the final product in great detail and post lots of photos.
http://davidelmore.com/Sportsmobile.php
My Sprinter has arrived and building starts next month so I am starting a thread to document everything. No, I don't expect to provide as many details and insights as Chumley, and I do expect that there will not be any big problems. After all I have visited Huntington five times and and made
detailed drawings so what can go wrong?
We picked up Vanessa from Rod Miller at World Wide Motors in Indianapolis last Thursday. Here she is:
Here are the options we selected:
http://davidelmore.com/Sportsmobile/Elmore%20v3.pdf.
I can only say great things about Rod Miller and World Wide Motors. This new Mercedes dealer in Indianapolis is not the one SMB Indiana uses, but from the start Nancy said we could buy anywhere and either pick up and deliver ourselves or have it shipped directly to Huntington. Rod has been easy to reach (he answers emails on weekends!), very knowledgeable (he only sells Sprinters), and very detail oriented (every question, no matter how minor, gets all his attention resulting in printed literature and advice for example on aftermarket services). If you are thinking of a new Sprinter SMB from Indiana, even if you do not live near here, I suggest you give Rod a try.
The ride home confirmed my choices for options. The ride was firm but smoother than our F550 hauler for our big rig (combined weight 25,000 lbs!), now sold. The dual rear wheels and stabilizer bars left me feeling very comfortable on curves, in contrast to the Great West Sprinter we rented a few weeks ago (
read here if you missed it).
When driving and parking it it is easy to believe that the van has a smaller footprint than the F550. When looking at it, however, it is hard to believe that it is smaller so I had to get a photo comparison:
The length is the same within a few inches, but the F550 is wider and has a longer wheelbase.
The construction specifications and equipment list for Vanessa that I have worked out with SMB Indiana are posted here:
http://davidelmore.com/Sportsmobile.php. I am not posting on the forum since they change every week. I will, however, post photos as things progress. Nancy last told me construction would start mid November and be finished by Christmas. However, the start date has already slipped twice from October to early November to mid-November so no telling when it will be done.
Questions and comments are welcome. Soon it will be too late to make changes, so now is the time if you have any ideas for me.
David