am debating selling my truck and buying a 1996 2500 ext cab 12v 5 spd. All stock except the pump has been turned up and has a single stack and a bhaf wheels and tires. Charcoal grey in color good interior. 156,000 miles. Am I crazy, or would this be a good change for me? It will be a daily driver, I plan on upgrading injectors, the pump, fire ringing the head, turbo, and maybe a port and polish by piers. Will it be dependable?

 

It will be very dependable and powerful with a few mods, the only question u need to ask is if u want to loose the comforts of ur 04 for a louder, more rugged truck. Take a very good test drive to make sure u won't be complaining later about loudness, or smooth ride, shifting the 5spd all the time, etc.... Not trying to stear u away from a great truck like a 12v, but u do have a 04' which are pretty nice trucks.

 

Your crazy.........unless you need the money. You can make good HP with what you have. The p-pump is good for raw dirty HP,however it can not do the things your 04 cr can. IMO

 

you'll have to consider the fact that your shirt will be lost on your newer truck, since unless you have a firm buyer you're likely never get what you spent out of it. What's wrong with the '04?

As to the '96, and since I have one, there's the illusion that they are cheaper overall. The problem is, it's now an 11 yer old truck, and since most of these have been used & driven hard, the rest of the truck is more of your consideration. It's quite likely, as 96_12V has in the past year, that this "new" truck will nickle & dime you in other areas. These wear out failures get quie expensive and they put a fine point on use and care. I'd consider it carefully, is this really what you want - or an "impulse..."??

 

Sounds like you have a pretty nice truck now, I heard you say daily driver so if I was in your shoes I would keep what I have because with a 12v its pretty much you got what you got except for a valet switch but you got to love the adjustability of the CR.

 

12 valves are great, but you already have a nice truck, why would you want to get rid of it?

 

I'm in the opposite camp, I can afford a new unit and the price on a 04 would be even easier to swallow.

I chose my 12V for a reason, and that reason is seen in several threads here with people stuck in the middle of BFE with a fuel issue that killed some very expensive stuff.

Yes, mine may nickel and dime me at times, but overall, I am sure I can keep her on the road for a very, very long time with nothing other than my time and tools.

 

I own both an '03 and a '98, and they are very different trucks. The '03 is much more comfortable to drive and makes smoother power; I use it for long highway trips or when towing trailers heavier than 5,000#. The '98 is more coarse and the ride can be rough even with the new shocks. I use it for my daily 100-mile commute to work and for highway trips up to 5 hours. My goal is to keep the local miles off the '03 so it will last until I retire.

They each have their place, although from a reliability standpoint I wouldn't hesitate to drive either one across the country. But from a comfort standpoint, the '03 is the winner hands-down.