I am done putting big $$ in to keeping my 98 1500 on the road. I haven't even had it a year and put in about $5000+ in to repairs. Wife is PISSED at me for getting it. I am now looking in to getting a 2003, 4dr, 4x4, 1500, 5.7L with low miles and what ever the remainder of the Fact Warranty is.

Now, I know all things break and wear out, but.. seems like my Dodge Ram truck was been the worst purchase of my life. So, I am hoping this other RAM is going to change my opinion of Dodge Trucks.
My 2nd Gen had (has) all the symptomatic issues, like...
tranny, bearings, axle seals, u-joints, A/C, Door Rot, and soon I am sure my plenum will go.

Have these issues been taken care of in the 3rd gen?
are there new issues with this seriese of trucks?
is the gas mileage any better? I get 13-14 city, and 18+ or so HWY

I am also considering a 4dr Dakota also... I have 3 kids and need the extra cab space.

Thanks for any information you guys can provide...

 

MPGs are really not any better. For a 5.7 QC you can expect almost the same numbers, just with more power.

I have had no major issues with my 05. PS leak would be the biggest issue. I also had the door seals replaced. They made a new design as the originals had a flaw that resulted in the seal ripping.

To bad you do not want an RC, my 05 is for sale.

 

here is what I am looking to get.
I live in CT so prices tend to be higher than any other place.
http://gerard-toyota.ebizautos.com/w...px?iid=3004433

 

how many miles does that truck have? you should be able to get an 05 with <40k for that price

 

have you looked at a new ram? cause where i live, they are soo cheap, and you get a lifetime powertrain, and possabally get into a new one for in the 20K range.

 

CT is sooo expensive...
but I just need to keep looking, there are better deals out there than that truck.
here is a year newer and with the SLT package for less.

http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp?paId=278223268

Edit:
I am more than likely not going to be getting anything until tax rebate time in 09.
but I just would like to know so I don't jump out of the frying pan into the fire.

 

I had a '98 1500 RCSB 5.9 4x4 that was virtually problem free. Although I bought it new and traded it in at 4 years old with 68k miles on it. Maybe I got rid of it before any of the issues that seem to plague the 2nd gens had a chance to start.
My '04 1500 QCSB Hemi 4x4 has also been relatively problem free to date (four years old in June and right at 40k miles). Much more HP than the 5.9 and about the same torque. MPG's for me are quite a bit better as well. With a lift and 35" tires on both vehicles, the 2nd gen usually got about 11 mpg in everyday driving and I could squeeze 13 mpg out of it on trips if I kept it around 70 mph. The Hemi with the same size tires yields me about 13 in everyday situations and about 15.5 on trips...

 

just check out the 2nd gen forum, tons of issues. thats all we discuss is what is broken and how to fix it.
I wish I found the forum before I got this truck, ugh.

Yes, that would seem to be the cut off point, most of the 2nd gens start to fail around the 80K mark. If you towed something then the tranny would be first to go. Mine went about 2 months or so after I got it. Edit: I got it last year around October with 102K

I like the idea of upgrading to the Hemi, I have heard nothing but great stuff about the power and performance.. best of all about the same MPG so its not a loss.

If not a Ram, then a Dakota... they put Hemi's in those yet?

 

I know that you are saying CT is really expensive. Have you looked on ebay at the Brand New trucks on there. Some of the dealers will even ship them to you for free, and that way you don't have to put up with the CT prices. I have seen some really good deals on there myself, but I am just not in the position to buy new yet. Anyway I have only had one problem with my 03 and that was the rack and pinion was leaking, cost me 550 for the fix.

 

Thats a good idea, I think I will do some research on out of state purchases. I do know its cheaper anywhere else... Most people around here go up to Maine or NH.

I take it the leak wasn't covered under the warranty. well, thats still better than my dilema.

I paid $6200 for the truck... and...
$2800 Tranny Rebuild, with shift kit and Heavy Duty Torque Converter
$800 Front Bearings, and driver's side half shaft + U-joint
$800 new Catalytic converter and 2 new O2 sensors (I got robbed on this deal).
$700 new AC Condensor Core

$5100 in repairs... but need to get...

$300 (might be less) for passenger side u-joint
$600 (might be more) fornew front axle seals (this can wait for a while, Icantop off the oil every couple of months).


its just killing me... LOL