Yes its auto. it can tow that much with a 1500 ram 5.2 motor?

 

Yep. That's trailer weight, total combined gross vehicle weight is around 12,500. Of course, the truck itself weighs around 5K or so..... Yeah, I know, the numbers really don't add up.

 

any ideas why it doesnt start and then when it does it dies?

 

Smell the oil. If it smells like gas, like you have a bad temp sensor, or a bad injector. hell, the truck is worth almost that much in scrap.

What does he say about the trans? That's the only part that would make me nervous.

 

man for 400 bucks even if it needs all new drive train that's not a terrible price. At least for around my parts, I can't say much for what it's like in Jersey.

Agree on the consensus you need to smell the oil and see if it smells like gas. It should not smell like raw gasoline. Worse case, it won't turn over because the engine is seized. The click is the starter gear engaging the ring gear but the engine won't turn over. Like I said, that's basically worse case for the engine.

 

^Scrap is way down, well under $100/ton. Still a good deal though, rust free trucks for cheap are rare.
I'd say try tapping the starter while having someone crank it, could be a starter or just a bad contact. Could also be a bad ground, try running a jumper cable from the battery to the engine block and try starting it. But I agree, just buy it before someone else does.

 

Scrap varies by area too. Even still, he could part it and make a good bit of money too. All around for the price it sounds like a no brainer. buy buy buy! lol.

 

Bad connection-weak battery i would suspect. Second jens don't like weak batteries. I have first hand knowledge on this!