Who can school me on common genII problems?
#21
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well thats gonna bruise some egos and get things fired up AGAIN....
I do agree about the v8's being under performers compared to new trucks (including newer dodges) but the design is like 20 years old....the chevys of that era werent thats great either.....your comparing new to old I think...
the blocks on these trucks seem to be pretty well built and hold up well after the flaws are fixed with things like the plenum.. and well see how well those toyotas or nissans hold up after 15 -20 years like our 2nd gens...again apples to oranges. they may still run great but it will be tough to keep them from rotting apart on you...and when something like the tranny does go the repair costs are usually astronomical.
I do agree about the v8's being under performers compared to new trucks (including newer dodges) but the design is like 20 years old....the chevys of that era werent thats great either.....your comparing new to old I think...
the blocks on these trucks seem to be pretty well built and hold up well after the flaws are fixed with things like the plenum.. and well see how well those toyotas or nissans hold up after 15 -20 years like our 2nd gens...again apples to oranges. they may still run great but it will be tough to keep them from rotting apart on you...and when something like the tranny does go the repair costs are usually astronomical.
Last edited by Augiedoggy; 12-13-2009 at 07:27 PM.
#22
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well thats gonna bruise some egos and get things fired up AGAIN....
I do agree about the v8's being under performers compared to new trucks (including newer dodges) but the design is like 20 years old....the chevys of that era werent thats great either.....your comparing new to old I think...
the blocks on these trucks seem to be pretty well built and hold up well after the flaws are fixed with things like the plenum.. and well see how well those toyotas or nissans hold up after 15 -20 years like our 2nd gens...again apples to oranges. they may still run great but it will be tough to keep them from rotting apart on you...and when something like the tranny does go the repair costs are usually astronomical.
I do agree about the v8's being under performers compared to new trucks (including newer dodges) but the design is like 20 years old....the chevys of that era werent thats great either.....your comparing new to old I think...
the blocks on these trucks seem to be pretty well built and hold up well after the flaws are fixed with things like the plenum.. and well see how well those toyotas or nissans hold up after 15 -20 years like our 2nd gens...again apples to oranges. they may still run great but it will be tough to keep them from rotting apart on you...and when something like the tranny does go the repair costs are usually astronomical.
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#27
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if you get a ram from a dealership, you should check for a couple of the common problems.
the main one being a plenum leak. take the air box off and look for oil residue, if the intake isn't spotless (which it probably won't be) then you should tell them that the plenum gasket needs to be changed.
if it is 4x4 then you should grab the track bar and the front axle shafts and feel for play (bushings on the track bar and u joints on the axles).
also, if it is 4x4, you should get into some grass or dirt on the test drive and make sure that the 4x4 will engage.
the main one being a plenum leak. take the air box off and look for oil residue, if the intake isn't spotless (which it probably won't be) then you should tell them that the plenum gasket needs to be changed.
if it is 4x4 then you should grab the track bar and the front axle shafts and feel for play (bushings on the track bar and u joints on the axles).
also, if it is 4x4, you should get into some grass or dirt on the test drive and make sure that the 4x4 will engage.
#28
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Yeah I think the rear ends only have the LSD issue. That's usually what seems to fail.
I've not had all of the issues on that list but I've had quite a few of them and had to fix them. I know how very expensive it was to fix the issues I had. I'd hate to see what it would cost if I had all of those happen.
Basically I just don't see a good thing about these trucks. I know this is a Dodge site where most people own them and love them but honestly it's nothing great about these. All issues of stuff breaking aside. A buddy has a Chevy 2500 with a 6.0L. It gets way better gas mileage than my truck and has way more power. Makes my truck feel like a moped. Does it not seem odd that a engine that's not much bigger has so much more power and gets so much better gas mileage? I find that crazy. Why get a underpowered truck that doesn't get good gas mileage either.
Then you come down to the problems. I agree every truck has it's problems but damn I've never seen any other brand that has as many issues as Dodge vehicles seem to. It seems like most vehicles have one or two common problems. However, when it comes to these Rams it's a page long list of common problems and most of them are expensive to fix. It's not like it's 1 or 2 problems like the other brands seem to have or even a bunch of cheap problems. It's a bunch of expensive problems it has.
I highly doubt I'd buy a Chevy or Ford either. If I did buy another truck from the big 3 again it would most likely be a Ford. However, I'd be very hesitant to buy another vehicle from any of the others. Why would you even consider one unless you needed a 3/4 ton or 1 ton truck. Then they are really your only options. If you just want a half ton why not look at Toyota or Nissan and get a much better truck? If you need a car once again why look at a Ford, Chevy, or Dodge. You could get something much better from Honda, Toyota, Subaru, Nissan, or one of those.
I've not had all of the issues on that list but I've had quite a few of them and had to fix them. I know how very expensive it was to fix the issues I had. I'd hate to see what it would cost if I had all of those happen.
Basically I just don't see a good thing about these trucks. I know this is a Dodge site where most people own them and love them but honestly it's nothing great about these. All issues of stuff breaking aside. A buddy has a Chevy 2500 with a 6.0L. It gets way better gas mileage than my truck and has way more power. Makes my truck feel like a moped. Does it not seem odd that a engine that's not much bigger has so much more power and gets so much better gas mileage? I find that crazy. Why get a underpowered truck that doesn't get good gas mileage either.
Then you come down to the problems. I agree every truck has it's problems but damn I've never seen any other brand that has as many issues as Dodge vehicles seem to. It seems like most vehicles have one or two common problems. However, when it comes to these Rams it's a page long list of common problems and most of them are expensive to fix. It's not like it's 1 or 2 problems like the other brands seem to have or even a bunch of cheap problems. It's a bunch of expensive problems it has.
I highly doubt I'd buy a Chevy or Ford either. If I did buy another truck from the big 3 again it would most likely be a Ford. However, I'd be very hesitant to buy another vehicle from any of the others. Why would you even consider one unless you needed a 3/4 ton or 1 ton truck. Then they are really your only options. If you just want a half ton why not look at Toyota or Nissan and get a much better truck? If you need a car once again why look at a Ford, Chevy, or Dodge. You could get something much better from Honda, Toyota, Subaru, Nissan, or one of those.
I'm sorry you haven't had much luck with your dodge, but that doesn't mean that no one has. My family for one has had great luck with Dodges. My dad owns a small business and our income depends on these trucks. They have done their job from day 1. Of course they have had issues (mostly just routine maintenance sort of things), but what truck doesn't have ANY issues?
Not everyone has every single one of those issues. In fact, I'd say probably MOST don't get a lot of those issues. My truck has has the tranny replaced (about 130k on it) by the previous owner, and it is going to need the plenum gasket replaced finally, but it's been well kept and I plan on running it for quite a lot longer.
#30
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sorry about my ignorance, i was just going by how long theyve been down the road, this was one of the first plants in the u.s. though