Looking for a solid family / road trip van. Metris a unique and solid choice?

Is it a viable road trip van? Yes.
Is it more capable than other minivans in terms of load and capacity? Yes.

Unfortunately in the US market, we get the US Metris with a limited feature and option set that MB USA / VANS controls; and not the EU Vito with its full range of features and options. Which of course leads to some less favorite ratings in minivan comparisons and of course that #1 let's bash the Metris video.

If a person wants the very latest features, lots of bells and whistles, chrome accenting, stow and go seats, maybe more current exterior trends ... Metris is a no. Even if the load capacity is more limited for road tripping and true multi purpose use on many main stream minivans.

If a person is satisfied with a spacious people hauler first and foremost that has extra headroom, extra cargo and load capacity. Then a Metris may be suitable.

Having driven a multitude of vehicles of all kinds and minivans for 20 years as a primary vehicle, often as a loaner and rental. Undeniably the Metris is old school. I personally find it refreshing to not be " on trend ". I wish mine had a few extra options, but the market being what it was and not being able to custom order at the time I wanted to purchase, nor being able to wait 6 months for delivery; I just prioritized my options and got most of what I needed / wanted.

I have no doubt I would buy another Metris, when the time comes, after MB USA / VANS update the model and gives the US market a Metris that we all deserve to be able to buy. The passenger model deserves to be stepped up in the direction of the V-class. The cargo model should optionally get access to more tech as well. If they can do it with a Sprinter, they can do it with a Metris. The vans exist, the parts exist, it is one factory, they're all made to order ... just open up the option list. The next option on my list would be a Sprinter, but that requires me to have a commercial garage space.

FWIW. We have a 2016 Metris passenger as our main family hauler. No children in the family. 3 adults routinely, 5 on occasion. More in a rare circumstance. Mostly local town and country driving, but we've made plenty of trips with 3 to 4 adults of over 1000 miles. It fits our needs very well. We love it. It fits in a standard garage, has plenty of people and cargo room, seats are comfortable and adult size, AC and heating system is powerful, I can put my music in the audio system, performance is more than adequate. Biggest plus for me is how well it drives and handles, biggest minus is the sets don't fold. I actually like the fact that it does NOT have the latest tech. We also have a 2022 mid-size SUV and the driver "safety" systems are obtrusive and work inconsistently. Hate them. If prices don't rise too much there's a chance I'll buy a 2023 when my ELW is finished. Dave

BTW, the front wipers are the best I've ever had on any vehicle and the standard cruise control is a marvel. I also hate adaptive cruise control systems. Yeh, I'm an old fart.

What Icerabbit said…

I have a 2021 passenger with almost every option. I like it, but I am not hauling a family around. I feel like it is a bit noisy inside (more road noise than wind) and the climate control system a tad primitive (no separate controls for passenger or rear seats). I haven’t had passengers yet during extreme weather to see how they fare in the rear seats…. There is a lack of cup holders, reading lights, and USB sockets compared to regular minivans.

I needed to be able to remove seats easily, so I aftermarket upgraded the two rows of seats (Metris seats.com) with the Euro version and the longer rails. I find they are more sculpted and comfortable, easier to remove because they are foldable, and they also slide so I can position them according to my load. They also recline nominally. Still, they are harder to remove (heavy!) compared to my Suburban’s seats.

I drive my daughter‘s Pacifica sometimes and that is much more family friendly, but the visibility is not as good, the load capacity not as good (no motorcycle will fit in her van), and the build quality doesn’t feel the same. I think my van will last longer than hers, but probably cost a lot more to fix. The Metris feels much roomier and it’s easier to climb in the back row - the Pacifica back row is tiny! I don’t feel as trapped in the Metris as it is roomier and better via. I also have 8 passenger capability.

The adaptive cruise control is really good. Better than the ones in my other vehicles. Blind spot monitoring is good too. Apple Car Play crashes all the time - still no fix for that. The turning radius is amazing.

Another thing to think about is that there are not a lot of MB dealers if it breaks down on a road trip. Not all MB dealers will work on a Metris or Sprinter. Of course, independents probably will.

I found one for sale on a dealer’s lot and took it for a test drive. If you did that, it would give you a good sense of what you were getting into.

The engine feels like it has enough get-up-and-go. Seems to pull my 2000+ lb. trailer with ease.

Pacifica does have a hybrid version is you want something like that, but you lose the stowing rear seats if you go that route. By the way, those stowing seats are pretty awesome…

Looks like you've received plenty of comments and perspectives, feel free to direct message if you have specific questions.
We bought a 2016 passenger new & well- fitted, as a primary shuttle, and have been happy with it coming up on 60k. Our 3 (pre-teens then) are driving age now but have no trouble getting in and out, and don't need the gadgetry, because they have their own. Plus plenty of lights, vents, plugs, etc for long trips.
Safety features were ahead of market competitors up until the last refresh, and this van still has a solid quality feel that everyone who rides in it is impressed with - and it's still very unique on roads around Chicago.
We've taken a number of long road trips, including towing uhaul trailers, and it's performed well in all types of weather. It's also surprisingly quiet at max speed , both the engine and the wind noise.
After the unexpected PCV replacement, the only issue has been trouble with motorized sliding doors, but that's not unique to MB. So I routinely recommend the van to folks wanting to seat 8, and anticipate our's lasting well past our Sienna's 215k.

I was originally not going to comment, as it seemed like you would get plenty of responses. You have gotten plenty of responses, but I feel like I could add and echo to this discussion.

I use my van with my family of 6, one of whom is severely disabled. The ride height, headroom and seating positions have made this a very good vehicle for my family. As others have mentioned the backseat is the best you will find in a minivan type platform. For that matter the second row is also likely the best you could find as well. Both will easily accommodate three grown adults, or three car seats, or any combination. Three car seats in the second row does make access to the third row a little more difficult, but it can be done. I have also done the euro seat and rails swap, and recommend it. It makes the whole vehicle much more versatile.

As for tech, the metris is certainly no slouch. There is likely as much or more tech in the metris than your run of the mill minivan. However, it is definitely lacking in gadgetry; no DVD player, no headrest monitor, no built in cooler, no built in vacuum, no mood lighting, no heads-up display, etc. I traded in a tippy top of the line sienna for my metris. I did miss the gadgets for the first week or so, but the metris is so much more capable and interesting to drive that I quickly forgot about those things. Besides, our kids all have their own iPads anyway, so most of what we had in the Sienna was duplicative.

Is the metris capable? Absolutely! We have traveled with all six of us and all of our gear (young kids require an absurd amount of “gear”) and a 4000+ pound trailer all over the mountains of Idaho, Utah, Washington, and Oregon. It drove almost the same as it does empty. The ride may have actually been better. I could not have done that with any other minivan on the market.
Do you want to use it like a truck? You can! With the seats out it is absolutely cavernous. For example, I have transported: plywood, lumber, firewood, bricks, bagged gravel, river rocks, two different riding lawnmowers, several tracked Honda snow blowers, 5 arcade cabinets, and an endless list of household furniture. The nice thing about the metris is the truly flat floor. No other minivan gives you a truly flat floor, the dodge has fold flat seats but you have these flappy things that you have to fight when you are sliding things in or out. You can remove seats and fold the back row in others, but you still have obtrusive anchor points to deal with.

In the end, you just need to find the right fit for you and your family. As others have said before, this van just works for me and my family. I sold my dodge truck and traded in our sienna when we bought the metris, now I use it for everything!