NEWS RELEASES
New Sprinter Factory Opens In South Carolina
Editor's Note: This news item was retrieved and first published through Trucks.com International's website.
On Sept. 5, Mercedes-Benz cut the ribbon on a new factory in North Charleston, SC, where it will build the latest generation of Sprinter van. According to reporting on Trucks.com, the $500 million expansion of a former facility includes two new buildings, a 450,000-square-foot paint shop and a more than 500,000-square-foot body shop, with a 1.2-mile conveyor connecting the two. The plant’s 1,300 workers and 182 robots will build an estimated 40,000 vans annually. Mercedes will avoid a 25% tariff by building the vans in the U.S.
The new 2019 Sprinter van, unveiled earlier this year in Germany, will be available in both diesel and first-time-ever gasoline engine models. Other updated features include a new generation of safety features, including automatic braking and adaptive cruise control, increased storage, ergonomically shaped seats, push button ignition, the new multimedia system dubbed the Mercedes-Benz User Experience (MBUX), new connectivity services, new navigation software, and an extended 5-year warranty, according to company press releases. The United States is the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter’s second largest market worldwide, and the van is a popular choice for conversion to a recreational vehicle, with some 30% built for the RV trade.
Read more about the new factory and the new Sprinter 2019 models here.