DIY Tire Rotation on an 11,000 lb Sprinter 3500XD

[Captain Longbeard]

Hello all! Not sure which forum this belongs in, and searching didn't find anything similar. I would like to be able to do my own tire rotations on our Sprinter 3500XD which is weighing in at about 11,000lbs with full build-out. The idea of putting the entire rig up on four jack stands is feeling a bit sketchy. Does anyone have any tips / suggestions or do I need to bite the bullet and take it to my mechanic every time I want the tires rotated?

 

[booster]

Hello all! Not sure which forum this belongs in, and searching didn't find anything similar. I would like to be able to do my own tire rotations on our Sprinter 3500XD which is weighing in at about 11,000lbs with full build-out. The idea of putting the entire rig up on four jack stands is feeling a bit sketchy. Does anyone have any tips / suggestions or do I need to bite the bullet and take it to my mechanic every time I want the tires rotated?

Your mechanic would be the easiest by far, but it could be done with a 4-5 ton jack and same rating stands. That is how a lot of smaller shops work on heavy vans so safe if good stands and done properly.

The next question if if you are able to lift the tire/wheel into place to do the job. Many seniors with the vans have stopped doing the DIY rotations as they got older. Tire lifters are available, though.

 

[Captain Longbeard]

Thanks booster! I am still young-ish enough to lift the tires, and could use the workout! I have a set of 4-Ton jack stands for the (lighter) front end, and a set of 6-Ton stands for the back, but just getting the front end up on the 4s was not feeling fantastic. Maybe another set of 6-Tons would feel better.

 

[peteco]

Just rotated tires on Roadtrek 210P that weighs 9600 lb. I did a brake fluid change while the vehicle was up. Normally I have Discount Tire do the rotation. If you have a DT nearby you might ask them if they will do it. They started doing mine several years ago for free even though I hadn't bought the tires there. Since then I buy all my tires there. They lift it using a floor jack on each corner.

 

[jjrbus]

Not that many years ago I did my own rotations, could not trust shops to torque lug nut correctly! Now I hardly put enough miles on to bother rotating tires. However I bought tires at Discount tire and comes with free rotation! So I pull into Discount and remove my external TPMS sensors and then arrange to have tires rotated. They finish up and try to sell me windshield wipers or what ever. I put the TPMS sensors back on and they put the 80 PSI tires on the front and the 65 psi tires on the rear. Ripely would not believe it.

 

[peteco]

Not that many years ago I did my own rotations, could not trust shops to torque lug nut correctly! Now I hardly put enough miles on to bother rotating tires. However I bought tires at Discount tire and comes with free rotation! So I pull into Discount and remove my external TPMS sensors and then arrange to have tires rotated. They finish up and try to sell me windshield wipers or what ever. I put the TPMS sensors back on and they put the 80 PSI tires on the front and the 65 psi tires on the rear. Ripely would not believe it.

Like you I have TPMS sensors. I take them off before I go to DT. And like you they sometimes get the pressures wrong even though I give them a sheet with the pressures and how I want the tires rotated. Puzzling for such a simple item. It looks like they do the torques correctly with a torque wrench. The manager is great and he is constantly training the techs.

 

[youngnretired]

For us, unless its an AWD vehicle, I dont rotate tires and purchase them in pairs. Front tires are removed and replaced with new tires, and the new tires then are installed on the rear and rears moved to the front. This keeps the newest and best condition tires on the rear, because its easier to control a vehicle when a front tire goes flat v's a rear tire.

Our RT is going to get 2 new tires every 4 years so no tire is older than 6 years old.

 

[GeorgeKG]

The construction of the Sprinter 3500 makes generic tire advice potentially non-applicable. Jack and jack-stand weight capacity are a secondary issue.

The Mercedes owner’s manual shows four approved lifting points for the van. These lifting points are recessed into the body and are not compatible with a conventional floor jack. This is why Mercedes supplies a high lift hydraulic jack with the van. Pull yours out from under the passenger seat, extend it and you’ll see what I mean.

The problem is once you have lifted the front of the van, there’s no approved place for the jack-stand that will support the van’s weight. I do not want to risk denting the body by putting the jack-stand in an unapproved location.

The situation in the rear is a bit better. I have found you can lift the rear on the diff and put stands under the axle tube, but this doesn’t help with tire rotation to the front.

The other consideration is your wheels. The OE Mercedes steel wheels will work in any position so you could do a tire rotation front to back. Aftermarket aluminum wheels are location specific and would only allow you to rotate tires side to side.

The bottom line, in my opinion, is that Mercedes did not design this van for the at home mechanic.

 

[cowxie]

Okay thinking on this for a moment...

Take an 11000 pound fully loaded van. Consider that those pounds are supported by tires at each corner (a safe assumption, no?). And for the sake of a starting point, assume a 60-40 weight distribution rear-front.

So the rear corners would each 'weigh' about 3300 pounds, and each front corner would weigh about 2200 pounds.

That's not even 2 tons per corner.

Not suggesting in any way that this tire rotation should not safely be done. But if the van is lifted one corner at a time to a height that allows that tire to clear the ground, and jack stands are used one per corner and rated at 4 tons (let alone 6) and these stands are perceived to be challenged, then I would seriously question the stand ratings.

Just saying ...

 

[booster]

Okay thinking on this for a moment...

Take an 11000 pound fully loaded van. Consider that those pounds are supported by tires at each corner (a safe assumption, no?). And for the sake of a starting point, assume a 60-40 weight distribution rear-front.

So the rear corners would each 'weigh' about 3300 pounds, and each front corner would weigh about 2200 pounds.

That's not even 2 tons per corner.

Not suggesting in any way that this tire rotation should not safely be done. But if the van is lifted one corner at a time to a height that allows that tire to clear the ground, and jack stands are used one per corner and rated at 4 tons (let alone 6) and these stands are perceived to be challenged, then I would seriously question the stand ratings.

Just saying ...

Yep, kinda, I think. One big thing is when you lift one corner, you almost always are lifting more than the wheel weight do to body rigidity, swaybars, spring rates, etc. But, it still can be done, and you do have to be careful on lift points if it is a unibody van.

I would rarely if ever do one corner lift as it is easier to lift on complete end on most vans, especially the rear drive ones where you can lift from the rear axle center. Fronts commonly can be lifted from the center also, but the post 02 Chevies don't want you to, so I use two jacks on the front crossmember at the same time to do that end. Everything comes out more stable for me when I am not trying to perch one corner on a stand.

 

[mck150stone]

Yep, kinda, I think. One big thing is when you lift one corner, you almost always are lifting more than the wheel weight do to body rigidity, swaybars, spring rates, etc. But, it still can be done, and you do have to be careful on lift points if it is a unibody van.

I would rarely if ever do one corner lift as it is easier to lift on complete end on most vans, especially the rear drive ones where you can lift from the rear axle center. Fronts commonly can be lifted from the center also, but the post 02 Chevies don't want you to, so I use two jacks on the front crossmember at the same time to do that end. Everything comes out more stable for me when I am not trying to perch one corner on a stand.

Hello all! Not sure which forum this belongs in, and searching didn't find anything similar. I would like to be able to do my own tire rotations on our Sprinter 3500XD which is weighing in at about 11,000lbs with full build-out. The idea of putting the entire rig up on four jack stands is feeling a bit sketchy. Does anyone have any tips / suggestions or do I need to bite the bullet and take it to my mechanic every time I want the tires rotated?

For what it's worth I've had a 2012 Pleasure Way on a Sprinter 3500 for 10 yesrs. I rotate my own tires using a 3 ton floor jack on the rear and Mercedes supplied jack on the front. Start by putting the spare on the left rear. Have to jack it up 5 times. Never have but one tire off the ground at one time.

When bought the Sprinter in 2016 I removed and replaced each tire to make sure I could do it on the road. First time I needed a rotation figured; why not.
*don't have to deal with a shop
*Take less of my day than going to shop.
*Get to find out if th OEM jack still works.
*Good time to test my 12 volt pump
*Get to find out if I can still change a tire (In my late, late 70's).

I've one flat on the road the practice came in real handy.

Having to jack it up 5 times probably isn't for everyone.

 

[Roadtreker357]

I found that tires should be balanced at normal pressure. That is 65 front/80 rear for me. So every 5,000 miles, I just lift the front and swap the tires side to side. Then lift the rear and do a three tire rotation so the spare gets used.

 

[PreciousRoy]

Shortly after I got my van, I bought a 5th OEM wheel and matching tire so I could do 5 way rotations. This last van had to have a rear door mount since the factory mounting position was taken up by the grey water tank.

I do my rotations as simple as possible because I have to do it in the driveway. Unmount the 5th tire and roll it to within arm's reach, jack up one corner, quick off and on, then back down. The tire that came off gets rolled to the next position and repeat. Last one off goes back onto the spare mount for next time. It might get washed before getting put back if I'm feeling awesome.

A 1/2" battery impact makes it super fast. Once it's back down on all fours, retorque and set pressures. If you have a bigger Transit or Sprinter with dual rears it gets more complicated, of course, but the general procedure is the same.

Personally, I wouldn't lift the whole van at once unless I had a lift. I do the jack one end-put it on stands-repeat for other end with the miatas all the time, but the van is so much heavier and already stressing the body and suspension near the limit just by existing.