Hey guys,

I am new to the forums and new to Dodge. I checked out a 2004 Ram 1500 Hemi SLT today, of which I am not 100% sure whether to buy or not.
It ran fine, body looks good too but I noticed some issues and pulled some codes. I negotiated 7700$ Canadian for it. Mileage is 86.000



Here's the not-so-good-list.

- Slight leak at the front diff.

- ABS does not engage. ABS light does not come on during braking or driving (ABS light works though, it comes on when you put your keys in, along with the other lights)

- Interior light/door locks: light goes on and off and door locks lock/unlock all the time when driving

- Coolant leak: some coolant squirted somehow onto that crossbeam (not sure what else to call it) - could not locate where it was coming from

- Codes:
P0307 - Cylinder #7 Misfire
P0406 - Exhaust Gas Recirculation Sensor A Circuit High
P0157 - O2 Sensor Circuit Low Voltage


The truck has the following mods:
- Muffler replaced with straight pipe
- Volant CAI
- Intake spacer

Any input appreciated. I'm looking to buy my first Dodge here and I don't know much yet about those trucks. Thanks!

 

I wouldn't touch a truck with a cylinder misfire unless I could get it cheap AND could have a compression test done to determine there are no head issues ESPECIALLY if there was a coolant leak...

 

The exhaust and O2 sensor codes could be related to the pipe change maybe? But I agree with Hammer, that misfire would scare me away unless I could satisfy myself that it's repairable (easy/cheap) or could get a mechanic to do so. Same with the leaks and ABS. Perhaps the misfire is a bad wire or plugs. I got a misfire code on my daughter's old Mazda once and it turned out the car just needed a tuneup (plugs, wires, coils). Plugs are supposed to be changed in the hemi every 30k miles. Does the truck have any service history?

Could turn out that all the issues are little things, but they could also be major or leading up to something major. I like a good deal but I try not to buy somebody else's problems. I have basically the same truck with almost the same mileage on it and have never had any of those issues. I had a CEL once and it was for a PCV valve. Replaced it and that was that. My guess, and it's just a guess, is that this truck has not been maintained very well. I'm not as much of a stickler as I should be about my maintenance and my truck has still held up super well. And they should hold up really well if maintained properly.

 

Thanks for the input, guys. Decided against it.
I had a weird feeling from the start with the guy, sometimes it's better to trust your feelings. No service records, nothing.

On another note, how much "better" is the Hemi over the 4.7?
All I tow is a 20' camper a couple times a year, but for 90% of the year no towing. It's going to be my DD, and what counts to me is fuel economy (HWY) and reliability.

 

IMO if you can get a Hemi, get it. Aside from initial cost being a little higher it has NO disadvantages over the 4.7 right down to fuel economy. If you could pick up an extra couple of MPGs (which IMO would be the ONLY reason to opt for a smaller, less powerful engine) then maybe, but the Hemi will get the same (or maybe slightly better) fuel economy AND give you gobs more HP & Torque.

Read through the posts in this section, there are literally hundreds of threads by guys with a 4.7 wanting to know how to replace it with a Hemi engine but find me ONE by a Hemi owner wanting to drop in a 4.7.

Now I ain't trying to **** in the corn flakes of any 4.7 owners, it's a pretty solid engine (as long as you don't let the thing over-heat) but if given a choice, HEMI...