The Dodge Sprinter Passenger Van has an interesting, perhaps even odd, history. In 1998 the Mercedes-Benz parent company, Daimler-Benz, bought Chrysler. (In the vernacular of the times, they "merged", but it was actually a purchase.) Things didn't work out as planned, so in 2007 Daimler sold 80% of Chrysler off their hands, retaining the remaining 20%.

Three years before the merger, Daimler launched the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van. It came to America in 2001, while Daimler and Chrysler were still one, under the Freightliner name. In 2003 a Dodge version was introduced. All are essentially the same van. The Sprinter is primarily a business vehicle with multiple versions including passenger van, delivery van, work van and minibus, although RV conversions are available.

The difference, by the way, between passenger vans and minibuses is in the seat configuration. Passenger vans have normal, front-facing seats. Minibuses have inward facing bench seats built along the outside walls of the vehicle.

The decision was made to go with the Sprinter instead of redesigning the Ram Van, already a popular Dodge vehicle, for several reasons. First, the Sprinter is more fuel efficient. Second, it would be cheaper to design and produce since the Mercedes and Freightliner versions were already available and only cosmetic changes were necessary. The Ram Van would need to be redesigned from the ground up. Finally, the Sprinter offered a factory built tall roof, which didn't matter so much for the passenger version, but was great for the delivery and work versions.

The passenger van configuration is one of the more limited uses of the Sprinter, but they are very popular as church vans and do have some appeal for personal use. The current van seats twelve passengers and, unlike some of the other versions, has glass in all the normal positions where it can be factory installed. Usually they are only sold at "Business Link" certified dealers, a certification normally only awarded to five Star dealers.

For 2007, the Sprinter underwent a complete redesign. Currently, Sprinters are assembled in South Carolina. They are offered in either a V6 gasoline or V6 turbo diesel engine, with a five speed automatic transmission.

The newest Dodge Sprinter Passenger Van comes with, or has available, all the amenities you would expect from Dodge. Base price starts at $41,120 and with all the bells and whistles can run more than $50,000.