i need a truck before winter and have been searching around checking different brands/models...etc out over the past week. price range is ~5 grand. the 1500's look nice and i've heard good stuff about them (reliability, good in snow...etc) so my searches have centered around them. haven't really found one i'd be satisfied buying yet....either the exterior is chewed up with dents/rust, or they have auto trannies (wouldn't be psyched about that), or there's quirky stuff about them (only start on __ amount of tries, lights blink on the dash...etc), or it's a sketchy owner.

this one looks nice so far though....but maybe i can get some more input?
1998 ram 1500, quad cab, 4x4, short bed, 5 speed (manual), slt, 5.2L
$4500

pictures look great & clean. the truck's functionality seems like a great fit for me.
onlyissue is that it has 200k (highway, apparently) miles on it.

how much more can i expect out of the engine?
what are some other issues with owning/maintaining a truck with that many miles?
is it a good deal?

also, as a side question....it'll need new tires in the next couple months. how much would i be spending for an average set?

thanks!

edit: bought it....more a couple posts down.

 

sounds like a decent buy if the truck is in good shape. check out the front driveline parts for wear, cause those can get spendy to fix. also tires will set ya back 400-800 bucks depending on what ya want. good luck

 

Not abad price if it checks out.
If there's problems that price will need to be adjusted.
Have it looked over real well.

Good luck!

 

just by laying down and looking up at the axles/joints...etc?
anything/part specific to look for/at?

thanks again.

 

look at ball joints and the trac bar. the tie rod ends are a common problem.

 

picked it up today.

 

looks good

 

looks good. now you get to work on it
awesome mountain across the road.

 

That drieway's too clean, get under there and start spilling some oil!

Nice looking truck! Heck of a view too!

 

truck looks good. you can go up to a 285 tire size w/ out any problems.