I am thinking about buying an 04 3500 with 155000k on the clock. I have talked the seller dow to $17200. It checks out well except intermittently it appears to pause beteen 2nd and 3rd when taking off from a stop.Like a dead peddle. It is an automatic 4x4. Any ideas on cause. The seller said it is minor but It might be a deal breaker for me

 

Tell him if it is minor,take it to a trans shop and have it fixed before he sells it to you and you will pay 1/2 of the repair bill up to $250.In other words,he is full of ...well..you get it.A jasper trans and conv is about 2700,and it only goes up from there.Would you feel comfortable actually having 21k in it if the trans fails completely?Thats not saying that a good tranny service and band adj wont fix it..but kinda like playing the lottery.The 48 is an excellent trans,mine has over 450,000 miles on it now and shifts as new,but I dont run power adders and do on time maintenance.A proper trans service will also show how much adj is left on the bands.

 

You have leverage now but you won't after the sale. I have zero mercy for those crooked SOBs - probably cuz I've had a couple of SILs in the car business who tell me the stories. My 03 had 25k on it and there were no signs that the trans was about to have serious problems so I bought it. In less than 5k more miles it needed overhauled and I had to fight tooth and nail to get it done and it was EVEN IN WARRANTY! You won't stand a chance with that many miles. Make them fix it now! I would sign an agreement to buy it after it's fixed but nothing else. Craig

 

It is a dealer and he has agreed to fix it at his cost. I was wondering if a lift pump could cause this. I saw a repair bill he showed me for a recent rebuild of the tranny. I have had a 12 valve for a long while and am not familiar with the 3rd gen Problems other than lift pump failures. Anything else I should be aware of ?

 

The 3rd gens are notorious for breaking the linkage on the hvac dampers. That's when they went from vacuum to electric and you'd think they never did it before. Make sure air comes out all the right places when you switch from defrost to floor to front vents to recirc/outside, etc. Craig

 

Not a tranny expert by any means..but..trans isnt really more than just a hyd pump that is timed.Most trans that got new steels and frictions will work fine for a while,but the actual problem is a defective valve body.Also remember that there is a rebuild as Goerand ect build,and then there are the one that are just made to work again.There is a big difference.If he is a dealer,and offered to fix it for you at his cost(I hope you mean he pays the bill) demand some type of a timeline/mileage wtty.If he meant you pay the amt that it costs him,tell him not to snag the rear bumper with toilet paper when he goes to the bathroom.

 

This tranny was recently rebuilt not at the dealer but at a trans shop by the previous owner. I saw the paper work. There is a huge stack of maintenance records of regular service. I am trying to see if there is a warrenty on the trans. work and if its transferable. Don't know what valebody was used. It just says heavy duty. Could the issue be from other source than the trans?

 

thanks for the input guys

 

I've bought many vehicles in my lifetime and have made many mistakes. The biggest lesson I have learned is that if you have any doubts or bad feelings about a vehicle then just walk away. That feeling becomes much worse when you buy it anyways and then it turns out to be a huge issue and the seller is nowhere to be found........

 

Yeah, I did walk away on this one. There were some other things about this I didn't feel good about. So------ will keep looking. Thinking about looking for a 6spd manual anyway.

 

One thing to remember:
#1-MOST CAR SALESMAN ARE LYING SACKS OF @#@#
as mentioned earlier-get it in writing even that may not work though
refer to #1 at dealerships.