Hey guys,

I've been lurking around this forum for weeks, trying to become an educated buyer.

I've been a MOPAR lover since, well since Dad's Dodge in the late 70's early 80's..and his little D50 he had in the early 80s when we moved into the city and didn't need the big truck anymore. My first Dodge was my 3rd car bought in the late 90s, a 1995 Dodge Dakota that I drove until a tornado broke it around 2005...well, I drove it for a little while after the tornado broke it.

I've always loved the 2nd Gen rams...like everyone else I had a first rate freak out at the new body style that was a departure from everyone else's pickup. Always wanted to have one...but for one practical reason or another haven't. Finally decided I wanted to get one while I could still find them for a somewhat fair price, not completely driven to pieces.

I'm looking at a V10, I know the Cummins is better on gas, and much more popular. However the gas engine should be sufficient for my towing needs, and these days I only drive a little bit of around town driving once a week...so the fuel bill doesn't hurt as much. The cummins is a highway and towing monster - but I only tow during the summer, my boat is less than 5000lbs...and I only get on the highway for more than 5 miles about once a month...and don't get on for more than 15 miles more than every 2 months....bottom line the V10 will do, and generally speaking the difference in price between a V10 and Cummins is 10K on any given truck in similar shape (not on similar miles, but with a 18 year old truck it's less about the miles and more about how well it was cared for).

So first, I'm not a mechanic. I can do most small jobs on an engine with the help of chiltons/haynes (which is better has varied from car to car over the years) and some youtube videos, and some cursing. Whether or not I do something myself is usually a function of how much time will it take to do it, and not having to buy a special tool. If I'm going to take 8 hours and have to buy a $100 tool I only use once...it's likely better to let someone else do it...generally speaking a mechanic in a shop can work 8* faster than me...so my 8 hour job they did in an hour.

Here are my questions, which I appreciate any advice with:

The truck is a 1999 Ram 2500 V10 with 96K miles on it. Low miles, but I find a surprising number of V10 with low miles so far....I'm guessing no one could afford the gas on them.

Here are my questions:

1) This isn't ram specific, but maybe you folks have a thought: the rear chrome bumper has some discoloration in it...is this possibly a sign it was repaired rather than replaced from a fender bender - and should I be concerned that it wasn't simply replaced...does the bumper lose strength if repaired?
2) The intake manifold has some oxidation/discoloration (not rust, not black, just oxidized looking) (the part that has 8.0L V10 in risen letters on it...I believe that's the intake manifold...told you, not a mechanic) is that normal? I've looked at 3 V10 and most looked bright silver...I know they had been detailed, but the rest of the engine compartment looks really clean on this one, except the manifold discoloration...anything to be concerned about?
3) From all that I read the automatic transmission is basically made of styrofoam peanuts, and I should have a budget to replace it....what will by be listening for? I've been driving automatics for the last 10 years, before that they were all stick, back to my first car in 1990. I know what a clutch sounds like when it needs to be replaced...but have no idea what an automatic will do.
4) any other V10 specific advice.
5) any other ram specific ram 2nd gen advice you wish you heard before you bought one?

I'm not an aftermarket part guy...I'm not a 'tinker with it for more performance' in reality I'm a "keep it stock, why the hell did you put a weird looking paint color and fancy wheels on it" guy. I know the V10 get flack for lack of aftermarket performance parts, but I really don't care. The engine has more than I need already. I just want it to run a long time....be dependable....and do what a truck should do 4 months out of the year. The other 9 months I'll likely not put more than 5000 miles on it...but in the summer it's boat and camping time. I need to be able to fill the back with all the gear needed for everyone to camp, hook up the boat to tow for 3-4 hours down the road...yes I'll cry about gas those months...but only those months.

thanks for any thoughts about my questions folks.

Ray

 

The rear bumpers tend to rust out before the rest of the truck. I have two Rams, neither one has much of the rear bumper left. (this is especially true if you live in the rust belt.)

With a truck of that age, and that few miles, oxidization on the aluminum parts isn't a surprise. What WOULD be a surprise is if it WASN'T there.

The trans behind the 8 liter, and diesel engines, is MUCH more reliable than anything found in the half-ton trucks..... Should be a 47RE, and I regularly see them around here with well over 200K miles, and still going strong. When you test drive the truck, just make sure it shifts reliably, when it is supposed to.

There is very little (if any....) aftermarket support the 8.0..... even some of the factory 'critical' parts are getting to be hard to find. (crank sensor is right up there on the list....) That said, the 8.0 is already pushing near the limit on torque for the 47RE trans, and so far, I have not had ANY trouble pulling whatever I want with mine.... Bear in mind, mine has 33" tires, and 4.56 gears... so towing at freeway speeds just isn't going to happen. The engine is screaming at 60 mph in third gear...... (overdrive disabled, you really don't wanna tow in O/D, smoke the trans pretty quickly....)

The engine has plenty of power, runs smooth as glass, and even in a stock configuration, it will barely notice a 5000 pound boat behind it.

Go over it like you would any other used vehicle you were looking at. If the body is good, it drives decent, shifts right, you are golden. Get the VIN number, and pull a build sheet. That will tell you everything that came on the truck from the factory, including gear ratios in the diffs.

Aside from the gas mileage ("fuel economy" really doesn't fit here......) I love my truck.

 

Aside from the gas mileage ("fuel economy" really doesn't fit here......) I love my truck.

That's funny.

Good to hear the transmission is stronger than I've heard. Everyone 1500 with a 5.9 V8 I've seen has a rebuilt transmission...some around 80K, some longer, but all have. Good to understand it's a different transmission.

The discoloration/yellow surface on the rear bumper...I wouldn't have guessed rust, but I didn't have a guess at all, so sounds plausible. The good news is that if that's it for rust, it's pretty easy and relatively cheap replacement.

3.5 ratio

I have no desire for non standard tire sizes...if I buy it, I'll be looking to take the aftermarket wheels off and find some old original wheels to put on.

-Ray

 

also, thanks for the reply, much appreciated.

 

I have the '99 2500 V10, it is a real tow monster, came with heavy duty tow and camper package. It pulls my modified Jeep CJ which weighs around 4500 lbs. quite well, It doesn't stop it too good though. My last set of rear brakes came out spiderwebbed. Good info on the tranny btw. What really killed me was a cracked head at around 80k. A friend with a similar Ram w/diesel got a cracked block. I understand these issues are not that uncommon. Other common issues are dashboards cracking and headliners falling down. Kudos to the guys that come out unscathed. I am sure the other makes of tow monsters have similar issues, but the Ram is still a good choice. This is a great forum also.

 

The 47/48 RE are very similar to the 46re but with better internals. You can bullet proof a 46RE if you have the money. If you look at the internals of a mega viper a lot of the parts are for the 47/48re. Another thing is heat will kill your trans in no time so no towing in overdrive. Not sure if the V10 came with the trans coolers but if not it's a good idea to add one. If it has the tow package it will all ready have it.

 

Some people swear by the V10s, others swear at them. Some engines have lots of problems, others last 300,000 miles or more with no issues. They have more power and more torque over the complete range than the 12 valve Cummins, but they can burn almost twice as much fuel to produce it. Having said that, fuel economy really isn't much worse than the Chev or Ford big block. The 2500, especially the 4x4 is a big heavy truck with a big frontal area so it will burn fuel.The major downside to the V10 now is that parts are getting hard to get, some are simply not available. The engines were only built from '92 to '01 (I think) and were not all that popular, so don't expect to find a lot of help on the internet. Because of the relatively short production run there aren't that many in the wrecking yards as a parts source. If you really like the V10, like I do, buy the truck, but don't pay too much for it because of the reasons I have stated.