I have found a 91 D150 for sale on CL and I am wondering if anybody has an opinion on it. It is red, single cab, short bed i believe. It is auto and has the 318. He wants 500 for it. The posting says it has a cracked head gasket and wont go into reverse. The interior is perfect, exterior is fair, and it has duals out the side. Also has fair 32in tires. So my question is that is it worth it? Does the trans have to be rebuilt and how difficult are head gaskets?
I am not an expert or mechanic by any means, but i do try to work on my own trucks. Money is in short supply nowadays, but i have always wanted a first gen lol. Any comments are appreciated

 

2nd gen Rams aren't much harder to deal with. So the 1st gen should be easy. You could go two routes, fix the current engine and transmission, or get a junkyard engine and trans.


If it's in otherwise great shape for $500, you might have a nice truck after about $1500.

 

Wouldn't a d150 4x4 be a w150?

 

Technically yes, but people always advertise it wrong.

 

Now that i look back at the posting, he didnt actually list it as a d150, just a dodge power ram 150. This is what it looks like.

 

I agree with dodge dude, and that seems like a reasonable price. If ya got the extra space you should pick it up and then you can decide which route to take on fixing it. looks like a decent looking truck from that picture

 

Where's it at - I'll go pick it up if you don't. LOL

I'd say that's a good deal. Body looks to be in good shape, you said the interior is perfect and being a 4x4 is a plus. If it truly is a head gasket, thats just labor. If you have a hoist, pull the motor and do a gasket overhaul for about $100. If the tranny needs a rebuild, that's still a good deal IMO. Throw $400 at him and see what happens. Be ready to take it with you before he realizes you stole it from him. Whatever you do, please pull the camo tape - yuck.

 

If it were in my area this truck would be mine (if i could beat you to it). I need the interior and if its in as good a shape as you indicate i'd easily pay $500 for the dash, seat, and rug alone.



plus i wouldnt mind having that brush guard.

 

Yes indeedy! Buy it and replace both head gaskets, and all the top end gaskets and either buy a junk yard trans or have that one rebuilt. That truck here in perfect running condition would easily sell for 2500 or more. Oh, and BTW, I have a 1991 4x4 W150 and love it. Mine is also a short bed.

 

Double yuck on the camo tape . . . I'll be the dissenting opinion today:

It doesn't look like it's lead an easy life - Its taken a nice light little hit there on the passenger side. Its got crap leaning against it and laying on it. It is covered in camo tape. It doesn't look like it has a tailgate. Which of two major issues happened first? Was it driven with a cracked head, or driven with no reverse? What are the rest of the mechanicals like?

On the positive side it isn't rusty, and its only $500.

In my opinion, you can probably find an equal truck that you can drive away in without issue for $1200-1500. If you just want bones to build on, it seems like a great idea. But for the cost of what you would spend just to buy a motor and trans, you can probably pick up a truck with a solid powertrain.