JWood

well it seems my good old Moose is gonna have to go.

there are too many expenses to list to keep it running, so im going to spend the money to upgrade to a 2nd gen.

Questions for you all:

what are some things to look out for in a second gen?

obviously, I would love to get a nice clean 98 12 valve 4 door with a long bed and built tranny for $10k. in case I cant, what should i look out for in a 95-97? obvious places for rust.... know suspension issues.... major design problem... things like that.

we have two kids and want one more so i have to have a back seat. the other major turning point away from a 1st gen.

thanks for any input, I appreciate any knowledge i can scoop up here, cuz for now, im riding to work every day in a Honda Odyssey....

Midnite

I was in the same boat as you 7 years ago when I had to trade off my 1992 W250 ext. cab for my current 2000 quad or ext. cab. I searched for a full year for a 1996 - 1998 12 valve quad cab 2500 with a long bed, 4wd, and manual transmission, even at one point offering a $100 finders fee on another forum if anyone could point me to a truck like that. I never did find one and ended up going with my current 24 valve.

You might keep an eye out for whether the truck has a 53 block, but that's becoming less of an issue (if the ones still on the road now haven't cracked by now, they're far less likely to).

There's not much in the way of suspension that can surprise you, other than obvious things like if you notice really loose steering/wandering while doing a test drive. There's certainly mods you'd want to do after buying a 2nd gen, like a steering box brace like the DSS, maybe a Thuren heavy duty track bar, etc.

One thing I'm running into on my truck is the high beam switch is acting up. The official name is "multi-function switch" because it's also the turn signal and wiper switch. What mine is doing now is when I switch from low to high beams, the headlights completely go out. It's a somewhat known problem apparently, and I just need to clean the contacts on the switch.

Maybe others will think of other things.

JWood

thanks midnite

so how do you like the 24 valve?

other than the added comlexity of the VP pump, what are the downfalls of the 24V motor? were there inherent issues or longevity issues?

there are a lot more options if I give up the P-Pump... is it worth it to go newer? i really dont want to tinker with it much. just a few basic performance mods.

Junk Man

What do you do with your truck? Quad cab is ok for 1-2 small kids. My 9 yr old doesn't know any better. It wouldn't work every day for 3 or more. Any 24V in the 100,000 mi or more will need quite a bit of repair to everything except the engine. VP, front end, syncros, standard minimal upgrades that most owners don't do - AirDog, gauges etc. A 24V on the brink of needing refurbishment is not for the faint of heart or those without extra cash.

Perhaps buy something for the kids and keep your 1st gen.

JWood

thanks junkman.

so did dodge cheapen up the rest of the truck when they went to the 24V cummins?

my 1st gen is fine for most things and I have the VW or the Wife's Honda for the FAM.

The 1st gen has taken quite a beating hauling fuel oil up to my cabin which i rent out to snowmobilers. the road is sometimes quite rough and I have a 300 gal xfer tank in the back... i just try to take it easy. plus we use a truck all summer for camping and I really dont mind driving it on long trips. however the VW is quite comfy and quiet just as confident since it weighs as much as my Dodge.

I like the 1st gen alot, but there is some rust, the entire front end is always giving me fits. the VE is leaking, the doors are trashed, the kids have to stare at each other on long trips, its needs some spring work, shocks, and tranny work, and a windsheild. It all adds up to more than the vehicle is worth and i dont have the time to do it myself anymore.

so would a clean 98 12V be for me? or should I go with a Ford body and give up the mighty Cummins???? I still have to have a diesel.

thanks, J

Junk Man

I don't think Dodge cheapened the truck. Perhaps built a 50,000 mi truck around a 500,000 mi engine. Before buying, I expected to fix everything & be done. Now, steering is almost done except for Redhead box (After multiple AGR boxes and 1 Cardone). VP is in. AirDog is in. Vac pump is rebuilt. Drivetrain seals are replaced. Oops, some are leaking again - shop will eat the do over - still in warranty. They should have installed speedy sleeve. Noticed axle leak the other day. 3rd gear syncro is going. Dash has gone from 1 crack to falling apart. Heater core needs replacing. That is a lot of expense for only driving 40,000 mi. (Bought @ 110,000, now 150,000.

I bought the truck @ 110,000 mi for under $10,000 & expected $2000 to make it good. Apparently only the engine minus the VP is good for 300K. (This truck is on at least the 3rd VP because the one I took out was reman.)

I'd like a 12V in a 3rd gen body or at least 2nd gen body as the VP is a weak spot not entirely taken care of by AirDog & lube. I also like 1st gens & would go that route for when I need to haul something. Friend of mine drags his camper all over the country with a 92. Last year, he stayed for $15/night in Big Bend under the stars drinking wine with his wife. Not a bad deal.

Local shop transplants commonrails into Ferds, adds twins & claims that is how they should be built. Cost of mods starts at $10k.

What should you do? Get whatever you find a deal on. Negotiate hard. Be aware of what it takes to repair ALL of the common problems. You're likely to have them all. A 100,000 mi vehicle needs work even if it has the Cummins.

JWood

how reliable are the front end components of the 4 wheel drive?

is there an aftermarket kit to put in manual hubs?

what years are easiest if any? Im in and out of 4WD every day.

d-rod

only problems i've had is with wheel bearings once. you can look at spyn-tec or dynatrac for conversion kits but $$$$$. never had any kind of engagement problems but their are a few that have problems with lines on cad but i haven't. prob will since i said that.

u2slow

The 94-00 models can be fit with locking hubs using Ford Dana 50TTB or 60 hubs & spindles. EMS offroad's kit is essentially that. Not a bad swap. I have helped 3 trucks get converted with junkyard parts.

Hodge

Where are you located, JWood? I know of a 99, extended cab long bed, 200,000 miles, built ATS tranny, all kinds of goodies on the engine, $9000. In Virginia. I don't know the truck- the guy saw me pumping diesel, and asked if I was interested in another truck. It does run, though. That's always promising...

rustydeeretech

ill be honest i own 3 first gens and 1 second a 96 and i will say that you cant beat the first gen and i dont plan on buying another second gen the thing i do like is the ride but that is it i would buy another first gen though on the first gen every thing is bigger as far as the steering goes, it doesn't have unit bearings or ball joints a lot less to replace

gorms

All I can say is I get a ton of work out of my 98 12V, for pretty minimal repair costs. It has 4 doors, and while the back seat isn't great for full grown adults for more than 1/2 hour or so, it still does the trick without making the truck super long. I plow during the winter, while running 33x12.5 tires, and it seems about once a year (20-30k mi) something in the front end needs to be replaced. If you do some searching before buying parts, there are better parts out there for fairly reasonable prices, cheaper than dealer, and will most likely last longer then OEM parts. I tow/haul a few times a month in the warmer weather, anywhere from 2 tons in the bed to 4-6 tons at the hitch and it's never let me down.

I don't think I would get a 24V just because of the VP! Some get tons of miles out of them, a lot do not get over 200k out of them it seems. I like the simplicity of a 12V and I think I'll be burried in this thing! For even simpler approach, 95-97 seems to be good years, but these truck are getting old and they will need some up keeping unless it's been meticulously taken care of. Door bottoms/rockers rot in the salt belt. Seals do leak after 15 years. And the motor probably will outlast the truck, so if you can be patient a good truck will come up. Good luck.

JWood

thanks everyone for the replies and great info. after serious debate and a stroke of luck, i decided to get a 97 F350 quadcab powerstroke. i checked out a lot of trucks and for the ave price it looked the the ford was the way to go, and that back seat is just the bees knees!!! I found a real peach with a 5 speed tranny and its not friggin white!

Ill really miss my first gen, but im keeping the cummins to put into my 49 hudson commodore. so the cummins lives and will do some time on the salt flats.

still tons of good info on the cummins here so im not going anywhere.

thanks again. justin