Fitting a Sprinter into a container

We are collecting some examples of folks shipping their Sprinter Vans to various locations. Here’s how they did it. Hopefully this will help out when you want to ship your rig out.

general rule of thumb: Containers are just at 2.57m high, the max height for the entrance (inside the container is a bit higher)

Panama 🇵🇦 to Colombia 🇨🇴

🚐 2020 Sprinter 170 2500 VS30 high roof

👩‍💼 Emilie Walker

“Thanks to help from The Overland Embassy in Panama! 😃

We made some wooden wheels, took off two suspension leaf springs (when we couldn’t ratchet the suspension.. don’t bother on a sprinter), and the maxx fan off the roof. We needed a mechanic to help get the springs off. On the other side we will need a mechanic again too. The goal is to get the van below 2.57m… we started at 2.9m before modifications!

We made the wheels a bit too small (like 1/4inch, recommend 15” diameter) so there were some ends of bolts from our water tank and the lower end of the front suspension touching the ground, so we had to make some plywood rails for loading onto the tow truck and into the container. After a few hours during a very exciting afternoon our container buddies loaded in about 15 minutes 😂.

📷 PlannedSpontaneity

Laem Chabang 🇹🇭 to Piraeus 🇬🇷

🚐 2013 Sprinter144 2500 high roof 2WD

👩‍💼From: SilkRoad 20

I requested some quotes: for RoRo (Roll-on- Roll-off), Open-Top Container, Flatrack, and highcube Container shipping from companies in Thailand and Europe.
In the end, we decided on the 40ft highcube container, because it was the cheapest and safest option. We decided for Best Global Logistics, which was recommended by our overlander-friends Roderick and Marleen.
Here is their story

I heard some horror stories of Ro-Ro shipping, where half of the belongings were damaged or stolen. The open-top and flat rack container seem a good option, but it was more expensive and the vehicles are more exposed to the weather and (salty) water.

Plywood Wheels

The only problem with the Highcube container is the height of the Mercedes Sprinter.
The door to the container is 258cm high, whereas the Sprinter is 272cm (already without LED bar, solar panels and Fiamma awning).

So I had to lower the van and make smaller wheels. I bought some plywood in a small shop on Koh Chang, cut it with my jigsaw, drilled holes, and mounted it on the van.

The first test on our beach on Koh Chang failed – the wood broke under the weight of the van. So I bought another plywood and glued it together.

• Costs for Highcube Container + port fees + customs fees: 3500EUR
• Shipping Agency: Best Global Logistics
• Duration of shipping: about 4 weeks
• Wheels are self-made, out of plywood
• Diameter of the wheels: 36cm