I'm looking into another pickup to play around with, not sure if it will be a 12v or 24v. Most of the trucks I've seen have over 250k, and I'm a little worried about that. I'm not going to be building a hardcore sledpuller or drag racer, but I'd like to have around 400 hp to play with. I'm obviously going to need upgrades in the drivetrain department. Will the motor be ok? Or will it need to be gone through? Thanks.

 

ive got 232k on mine and you can see in my sig what mods i have but i have had no trouble out of mine besides my tranny which is limping right now...but i dont know if i should get mine worked on but it runs good to be that old

 

Get a 12v. Yes, it will be ok with 250k miles. If the engine is tired to begin with, then bombing it will just put it to death quicker, but if you get a healthy running engine then no problem!

 

I bought mine with 299K on it, but it had meticulous maintenance records and a fresh tranny, so I figured it would be fine to mod it. Granted, I haven't done much, but it runs just fine

 

I'm hoping to find one like that, but most of what I've found have been used pretty hard and put away wet so to speak. Not in a huge rush though.

As far as 12v vs 24v, I'm still not sure. I'd like big power, but I really don't want alot of smoke. At the same time, I'm not really keen on the electronics of the 24v, or the VP44. Every 12v I've seen that made good power produces just as much smoke it seems. Hard to say what I'll end up getting.

 

Its hard to kill these motors. I know a boy who bought a 97 not long ago with about 280k on it, and he puts it through heck. No problems other than the KDP so far. It never misses a beat. He has a plate and DV's in it. Mine has 208k now with no problems. Teddy Bear's truck we just did a cam, bigger turbo, studded head, etc to has over 220k miles, and it runs like a new one(except better ). These motors are tough. If they have been taken any care of at all they will usually run 400k no problem.

Eric

 

My truck feels like it has about 100k on it. I think that if you're going to get one with high mileage you need to wait to find one that's been maintained really well.

Brad

 

Our 96 had 279k miles on it when we picked it up.

It now has DDP3s, 3 piece manifold, htt quick diesel 64, & a modded 215 pump will be going on pretty quick. It also has a Con OFE clutch thats holding well.
At about 1k miles (the miles we've put on since the mods) the oil is still honey colored..

It leaked a couple of drips on the sidewalk yesterday and the spots aren't even black.. They're a dark clear LOL.

 

It's very apparent now that I won't really have to worry about the motor, just the rest of the truck holding up to the power. I guess now all I have to figure out is if I want the 12 or 24v.

 

I worked on a truck a little over a year ago...384K on the clock and stock, when I was finished he was making 404hp to the rear without the pump being removed. I know I could have squeezed more out of the truck but I will never know. Some "ase" certified installer put in an air compressor in my customers truck, did not fuse the power wire, and well it caught fire and burned all the wiring. Well it burned out the entire engine compartment along with it. I was upset at that....I was proud of what that truck was doing. He also pulled a 22K trailer on a daily basis with it! Unreal what these trucks can do.

Richard

 

Go for it! You'll just find out what you need to fix a little quicker! Good Luck.

 

I bought my 95 with 203K on it...about 225K I started BOMBing it, went to twins and over 400hp, never touched the headbolts or anything! Today it has 330K, and is down to about 250hp, but still runs like a champ! Actually better than when I bought it!

Chris

 

all mine have 250k plud. the short bed reg cab has 266k and is still on the stock head gasket. with 60 pounds or so of boost.

 

I owned a 1990 2500 4x4 it had 25,00 when I baught it I had it in high school. mudded it and treated it like ****. my cousin owns it now and pulls 5,000 lbs 75% of the time it has 400,000 miles on it and has never and still doesnt show any signs of giving up. I love the cummins Im on my third one, and I wont own anything else!!!