I'm looking to buy a new truck to upgrade my old Nissan D21, not legal to have the kids in the back plus the wife can't drive a manual.
My budget is limited to around 10-12k, so I'm looking into older models. There isn't much for Chev's around here and what there is is high priced. Lots of Fords but I've heard some stories and read up on the net about the problems with the Triton engines spitting out or breaking off plugs.
So I'm leaning towards a 3rd gen 1500 crew cab. My workplace has supplied me with a 2009 Ram 2500 that's been pretty good so far.... hard on fuel and on tires but that's sort of expected. Only issues have been a gas cap light that won't be fixed, balljoints at around 60,000km and exhaust studs that have to replaced every 40-50,000km (and I don't bag on the thing...) So, few questions...
- what years should I be looking for and why?
- in general, how many miles/km is too much?
- any common problems I should be expecting (front ends, exhaust studs, etc)?
- any important maintenance I should be asking the previous owners about (like spark plugs with the Fords....)?
avoid 03 hemi, it was the intro year, valve spring issues at high mileage, also expect rear end issues with any year especially if high mileage, take it for a test drive listen for an whining on the highway, etc. Make sure maintenance was done on the rear.
high mileage is anything over 15000 miles per year X 2 on maint But I would always recommend a 2500 quad cab or 1500 mega cab minimum over a used 1500 truck there are less things to wear out and they are a lot more DIY friendly not to mention just tougher.
Thats just a few and I bet with cash in hand you could take another 1-2 grand off by bargaining and there is the auto trader too. and for the price you will be getting it for you can do a few mods to save gas and make future maint costs lower like free spin hubs tires and maybe a lift pick up a low mileage motor to play with and have lots left over to do surprise repairs
The Mega cabs have the same straight axle the 2500's have. The straight axle trucks seam to wear out ball joints more often. And parts to fix are more expensive. I have never understood the reasoning for the 1500 Mega, just get the 2500 if you want the HD.
If you go with the Quad cab, highly recommend the 5.7 Hemi vs the 4.7 due to the ones I have seen in the shop. Most 4.7 are ok, but the 5.7 is more common and typically have less issues.
All good info on here yes Mega can get worse fuel mileage than some 1500 but I have seen 1500 trucks get worse than mega especially when MDS acts up and that's expensive to fix. As for straight axle being more expensive to repair that's not true ball joints are within a few dollars of a IFS the rebuild-able or grease able last almost forever if they are greased every 3000 miles a ujoint will cost 25$ for a good grease able one a CV axle will cost 150$ they both last the same if maintained with factory sealed hubs. The sealed hubs cost about the same to repair on both, however with the straight axle you have the option of going to a free spin hub kit which is about 250$ more than just replacing both front hubs. The advantage is your front drive line can be disconnected and will not rotate in 2wd therefore making your front drive shaft and ujoints last for 500,000 miles for guys that don't use 4x4 often, with the added bonus of gaining 2-3 mpg increase due to decreasing parasitic drag of front drive line this is not available for IFS trucks. Then the price due to its massive size and conceived low MPG the resale price can be lower than a similar gas 1500 quad cab. Now if you were looking for the diesel they fetch alot more because they do get better MPG than a gas truck but 10,000 can buy a lot of gas especially in Canada where diesel is a lot more expensive. With the money you are thinking of spending you can buy a nice mid to high mileage hemi truck and do the mods to make it bullet proof and lower future maintenance costs and increase fuel mileage. As for your company 2500 if they did the ball joints with quality ones that got grease every 3000 miles (most lube shops don't do proper grease jobs since most new vehicles are sealed I know this because I retrained many new techs that just assume the original parts are replaced with sealed parts). Tires wearing out can be cured by adjustable ball joints being used to get front end alignment dead on for camber and running a high quality E rated tire that has a 60,000 mile warranty cheap tires wear fast due to soft rubber and shallow tread save on the front pay on the back. your exhaust bolt problem must be where the work is being done but an easy fix with a set of shorty headers and good gaskets header bolt locks plus better power curve and MPG gains. Plus I just love the Mega cab and you and the kids will love all the room it will be years before they can kick the back of your seat and if you find one with the rear entertainment system plug in a movie turn on their head sets and drive.
Status
Not open for further replies.
You have insufficient privileges to reply here.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
DodgeTalk Forum
4.7M posts
289.9K members
Since 2002
A forum community dedicated to all Dodge owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about Hemi’s, RAM trucks, Mopar performance, modifications, troubleshooting, maintenance, and more!