Hey guys, first time poster! I'm looking at my first truck and came across this sharp 04 Ram 1500 quad st/slt 4x4 leather.. black on black.. the works, 5.7 v8 SFI Hemi with 118,586 on it. The dealer was asking $11,700

What can you tell me about this truck? Is that a good or bad price? and how many miles should I get out of the engine? I heard 250k easy. Also what is this I'm hearing about if you're on the highway some of the cylinders shut off and you have to down **** to get the power back?

Thanks in advance!

 

You're looking at an 04 so you don't need to worry about cylinder deactivation (MDS). But pictures or a link to the truck would help us determine if the price is good. For the age and miles though I would probably price it closer to 10k

 

Good to know about the cylinders! Heres some pictures, does are just decals the guy said, as it's not the HD edition

 

Looks clean to me. Just make sure you test drive it and check it mechanically. Then I would offer them 11k

 

thanks brother! just out of curiosity, what's the ballpark life time out of a hemi if well maintained, milage wise

 

I'd lowball the offer at 8K. Wouldn't go higher than 10K. Remember, the truck is almost 10 yrs old and over 100K miles. I got my 03 Ram 5 years ago for 8K 5.7L Quad Cab with 86K miles.

 

Make sure you inspect those rear fender wells and adjacent area for rust. Bubbling paint is the tell tale sign.

 

There are guys that get well over 200k on here. Dodge even sends you a license plate cover for every 100k miles. I know of one guy on another forum who regularly takes his truck to the drag strip and is well past 200k on the original engine. I think he upgraded his tranny though

 

with proper maintenance there is no reason why you can't get 200,000 out of it pretty easy. Depending on what part of the country you are in that price is not far off. If you can get it under 12 out the door thats a decent deal. If you can get it closer to 11 out the door thats a good-great deal. The only bad thing about the 04's is that depending on when in the year they were made they have weak valve springs. Im pretty sure that's right, I know 05 you are in the clear, and 03's have weak springs but can't remember exactly the specifics for the 04, maybe someone else can clarify. Other than that, looks like a good truck.

 

Looks clean, i wish trucks went for this cheap in good ol iowa