hi everyone,
im thinking about buying a dodge. my 1997 mercedes e420 just broke (tumbler and steering lock issue that i dont really wanna go into) and im selling it AS-IS. im thinking about buying a truck and the first make that comes to my mind is dodge. im looking for something from the 90's and early 2000. i dont have too much money so i cant buy anything too new... what size engines do you guys recommend the most when it comes to reliability? what year model do you recommend the most? im looking for something reliable that wont be consuming all my money like my mercedes did (the past 6 months i put $2000 into it in parts and now my ignition broke...). would this one be a good one http://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/cto/2427150513.html?

any help would be appreciated.
matt

 

Welcome to DF. First, before anything else, please read this.

I will move this to the 2nd gen section for you.

 

thanks

 

Honestly, these trucks aren't known to be cheap to maintain... The second generation of Rams started in '94 and went through '01, and that's probably what you are looking for.

Here's a quick short list of common problems:
1. Cracked cylinder heads
2. Plenum plate leaks
3. Weak transmissions
4. Cracked Transfer Case (due to broken output shaft snap ring)
5. Sloppy front ends (causes "death wobble", made worse with larger tires)
6. A/C Evaporator Leaks - PITA to get to (see #7)
7. Heater Core leaks - PITA to get to under the dashboard ... which reminds me...
8. Cracked dashboards
9. Poor MPG


I'm probably missing something, but browse through several pages of this forum, or do a few searches for the above items to get an idea of what you may be getting into.

Having said that, I enjoy my Ram and I am still very happy with my purchase. It's a great looking truck. There's just something about it...

Everything out there has it's problems...It doesn't help that Mopar parts are more expensive than other makes either.

Hopefully others will chime in about the CL ad. Good luck on your truck search!!

-JT

 

are these trucks generally worse than fords f150's? my dad has a 1994 f150 xlt with a 5.8L v8 and almost 140k miles. when he first got it last year he just rebuilt the tranny and got new spark plugs, cables and the distributor. ever since then it ran like a dream.

 

Varies.... some are better than others. Just depends on how well the previous owners took care of it.

 

Bingo. HeyYou hit the nail on the head. With a truck that is at least 10 years old, if it wasn't taken care of, it's weaknesses can show up dramatically.

Having said that, between two similarly optioned trucks, with similar maintenance records and similar condition, cost, and age... One being a Dodge Ram, and one being a F150... I would probably pick the F150 (I'm a little biased, I also own a 1976 Ford F250 Highboy and I have family that works at the local Ford Dealership).

But after finding my Ram for the right price and with the options I wanted, I was sold!

I haven't regretted it yet!

-JT

 

I've put about $1,000 into my 1998 Ram that I bought for $3,300. I don't regret it one bit though. I love this truck and I've wanted a 2nd gen Ram since they debuted when I was a kid.

One thing you will want to check on any 2nd Gen is the plenum. The first thread at the top that's been stickied has all the info you'll need about it.

 

thanks for all the replies guys, you really helped me out!!