Failure mode - Mercedes-Benz 3.0L V6 Diesel (Sprinter 2007-2022)

Fuel system: hard start / long crank and injector complaints

Reliability tier: aggregated - verify before ordering, see /disclosure/

Symptoms

extended cranking before start, worse cold
stalling or rough running under load
injector DTCs / cylinder-balance complaints

Compare with the other causes of the same sign on this engine: hard start, long crank or no-start (2 causes) · stalls or dies while driving · misfire, rough idle, hesitation or surging (4 causes)

Root cause

Bosch common-rail at 23,000 psi (DieselHub spec): the NHTSA fuel cluster (17 complaints, spread 2007-2012 with a 2012 bump) reads as hard-start/no-start and injector behavior. No single pump/injector defect is documented in the pulled complaints - keep this a diagnosis-branch record, not a parts-verdict record, until a parts check anchors the hardware.

Diagnosis

log rail pressure during cranking - distinguish supply (lift/low-side) vs high-pressure control
cylinder balance / injector return-flow test where supported
verify fuel filters and water drain first on fleet units

Fixes

fuel-system diagnosis-driven repair: filters, supply pump, injectors or high-pressure pump per findings ()

fuel-filter - more than one option: OM642 Fuel Filter (2012-2013 window, 642-090-64-52), OM642 Fuel Filter (facelift, 642-090-63-52), OM642 Fuel Water Separator (642-092-03-01)
OM642 Reman Common-Rail Injector (642-070-12-87-87)

Prevalence

occasional