Dodge Sprinter – Photo Gallery: The 1970s are long gone, and full-size vans have lost their cool. Today they're the preferred ride of plumbers, airport shuttle drivers, and obsessively procreative types such as the 16-kids-and-counting Duggar family of Arkansas. Which goes to show that unhip doesn't mean unusable, or more importantly, unprofitable. For the past few years, Dodge's Sprinter – a rebadged Mercedes-Benz van – has made significant inroads into the full-size van market against the likes of Chevrolet's Express and the segment ruler, Ford's E-Series (formerly Econoline). Yeah, it looks funky, and maybe the name is a cruel joke, but as far as 20-plus foot long vans go, the Sprinter is about as sweet a ride as you can get.

The Sprinter comes to Dodge by way of Mercedes-Benz, via Freightliner. It's easy to forget here in the States, but in the rest of the world, Mercedes-Benz is a leading manufacturer in the heavy duty truck market, making everything from semi trailer haulers to, well, Sprinters. The Sprinter first made its appearance in the U.S. as a Freightliner called the Sprinter, and was subsequently sold as a Dodge Sprinter after Daimler mergered Chrysler into submission. What it offers is obvious from one glance: height. The Sprinter is one tall mutha, and the new one is even taller, with vertical interior room ranging from 65 inches to a whopping 84 inches.

With 25 possible variations, we can't possibly go into all the different models of Sprinter available. There are three basic types: passenger, cargo and chassis cab, available in three-quarter ton 2500 and one ton 3500 models. Two wheelbases are available (144 and 170 inches) and three lengths thanks to the 170-extended version, which offers an additional 15 inches of space behind the rear axle. Then there's height: Standard, high and mega roofs are available. Passenger versions are only available in the 2500 models with the 144 or 170 wheelbase versions and with the standard and high roofs, however we're sure there's an outfitter there somewhere who could bolt seats into an extended mega roof 3500 if you really wanted to.

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