Mercedes Sprinter vs. Volkswagen Crafter - What Are The Differences?

Is the Mercedes Sprinter the same as a Volkswagen Crafter?

Both Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen are brands you instantly associate with reliability and quality, and with the largest van from their commercial vehicle line-ups, expect exactly that.

Boasting impressive capabilities, these large vans are both very good at their job. Ready for whatever you need to throw at them, the Sprinter and the Crafter are popular vans fit for a hard week's work, accommodating passengers comfortably and long-distance trips when needed.

If it's been properly maintained, an old Sprinter with 150,000 miles on the clock will readily give you another 150,000 miles. Featuring premium interior details and a range of high-quality drive systems, the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter is built for the long run.

If you're after the something smooth and confident on the road, the Volkswagen Crafter also offers excellent stabilisation and steering, plus it features the lowest aerodynamic drag in its class. Pair this with a stylish and comfortable cabin, and the Crafter delivers a very easy drive.

The Mercedes Sprinter and the Volkswagen Crafter are premium, quality vans but don't let their polished, professional look fool you! Both the Sprinter and Crafter are heavy-weight champions, prepared for the hard graft.

With a range of engine options to suit every business, plus a good variety of dimensional specs, choose either the Sprinter or the Crafter and expect a dependable, capable and comfortable van.

Here are some more specific similarities and differences between these vehicles:

- Outside

From the exterior, there isn't a huge amount of difference between the appearances of these two premium, heavy vans. Both the Sprinter and the Crafter come with smooth lines and sport a confident stance. Neither go overboard with exterior styling but come with plenty options to make it your own.

The Sprinter comes in two forms, with four varying wheelbase lengths available: the Panel van and the Crew van. The Sprinter's build does allow for a slightly higher payload than the Crafter (see specs below). You can also choose from five solid paint options or five metallic paints, plus with three different trim levels (PURE, PROGRESSIVE and PREMIUM) and three different heights available, the Sprinter provides many options to suit you perfectly.

The Crafter varies in shape too; with three different wheelbase lengths, plus three different heights available, it's easy to pick the perfect fit. With the Volkswagen Crafter, there's also two different trim levels available: the Starline and the Trendline. These can be chosen in a choice of five solid paint colours, two metallic paint options or a pearl effect paint finish.

With both the Sprinter and the Crafter, you're presented with many opportunities to personalise the exterior of your van.

- Inside

When buying a van, it's just as important to consider the interior as it is to consider performance and exterior - after all, cab comfort is key when your van becomes a large part of your workplace. Luckily, both the Crafter and the Sprinter score really well in this department.

With the Crafter, you'll immediately notice stylish finishes and innovative technology, such as ergoComfort suspension seats. With the Sprinter, the cab is very smart, sleek and functional - quite typical of the brand.

Enjoy Mercedes' renowned MBUX infotainment system in the Sprinter, or Volkswagen's We Connect in the Crafter. Both systems offer excellent smartphone connectivity and intelligent navigation.

These vans score equally on leg room too, both for driver and passengers, plus in offering handy storage spaces and sizeable cupholders in convenient places.

- Spec, weight, dimensions etc.

Despite having very similar exterior dimensions, the Sprinter offers 17 cubic metres of load volume versus the Crafter's possible 18.4 (if you go for the optional Super-High roof height).

Although the average height of the Volkswagen Crafter is generally taller than the Sprinter line-up (due to VW's High and Super High roof height options), the tallest Sprinter variant offers 2,243mm of load height over the Crafter's highest load height of 2,196mm.

In terms of wheelbase length, the longest Crafter van available will actually offer you 4,490mm of length, whilst the longest wheelbase offered with the Sprinter is 4,325mm.

However, what's also worth noting, is that the heaviest Volkswagen Crafter, which comes with a gross weight of 5,000kg, can support a 2,454kg payload. Whereas the heaviest Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, with the same gross weight of 5,000kg, can haul an impressive load of 2,529kg.

In terms of engines and performance, the 2.0-litre Crafter and 2.1-litre Sprinter stack up evenly, however the Sprinter really living up to its name; the Crafter reaches 177bhp and 410Nm of torque, whilst the Sprinter achieves 190bhp and 440Nm. Both offer automatic, manual, plus front, rear and all-wheel drives.

The verdict

At the end of the day, both the Sprinter and the Crafter are dependable, quality vans with a lot to offer.

From strong, confident performance to an outstanding selection of driver assistance systems on-board, they're both extremely prepared to get you through a busy working shift.

The Crafter definitely scores highly for driver comfort and great levels of standard tech, in addition to offering excellent loading dimensions. The Sprinter additionally impresses with premium interior finishes and an incredibly strong payload.

With plenty of options in terms of body style, engine and accessories, the Mercedes Sprinter and the Volkswagen Crafter are both vans that can easily be tailored to fit you and your business best.

How Vansdirect can help you

Your choice of either the Sprinter or the Crafter comes down to exactly what you need out of your new commercial vehicle. Ultimately, there's not much between these two exceptional vans.

At Vansdirect, our friendly team of experts are more than happy to talk you through these models further and help you come to a decision based on your particular needs.

With fantastic finance options available, from leasing and contract hire to hire purchase, we offer you great flexibility too.

Get in touch today - we look forward to speaking to you.