I am looking at buying a dodge ram 1500. I found an 04 SLT Hemi 4x4 quad cab ($10988) on a local dealer website. The truck has 103,340 miles on it. Is this too high? Will I be likely to do a lot of repairs? The dealer claims it is a one owner that was purchased new from them and serviced regularly. Is it worth a chance? I would definately offer them a lower amount than they are asking.

 

anything you buy with that much mileage will take repairs, and the asking price should reflect that. that price is too high. i got the same truck with almost all the bells and wistles and 70k on it, would be lucky to get 12k for it.

 

go to kbb.com and you can see what the truck is actually worth, after you put in the make, model, and year, click on "suggested retail value" and just plug in all the information that the truck comes with (power windows, power seats, mileage, etc.)

 

my '02 has 116,000 on the clock and still strong

I did plugs last fall, and I need to fix an axle seal up front that is starting to seep, but nothing major.

 

Well, I just bought an 06 1500 Hemi with 16k miles on it for $14995 if that says anything...

 

Be prepared for the dreaded tranny issue. 2nd prime blow-out.

Also, going to KBB and getting a price is merely a guidance. The market is so crazy, the only true numbers are based onwht they are going at acution which isn't much. That specific truck I seen at an auction in NY sell for $5800 wholesale and it had only 85kmi

ALL, i repeat, ALL buyers at the auction use NADA never KBB. KBB usually prices their figures a bit high for most cars on retail and low on trad-in because it's a dealer savvy program and because they are priced based on consumer reviews and dealer pricings and not actual auction figures. So, whenever a dealer brings piece of paper out with a KBB price I laugh and tell them to get it outta my face. They use the KBB paper to show the buyer, yet when they go to the auctions, they use the NADA book for true guidance.

 

mine is an 03 and I have 113,000, and I have had no major problems, as long as it was taken care of and serviced. I would expect their to be a trany or other big thing to go out between 150-250K <(that's a lot of miles!)

 

The truck is 5 yrs old by model year and has an allotment set for 60-75K, so its high mileage and priced too high. Just because he may have bought it there, serviced it regularly doesn't tell you if he abused the vehicle, drove it cold a lot. I would say stay away, unless you want someone else's headache m8.

 

Doesn't matter how often it's serviced. The 2nd prime gear in the trans is very weak. If they constantly hammered on the gas to pass someone or to get up a hill, especially when towing, that specific gear is weak and breaks easily. That's why a bunch of us have been all over Diablo so they can disable the truck from using that gear and shifting directly to 2nd gear which is as strong as every othere gear. The 2nd prime gear was made for cruising speed and is capable of being used up until 85mph which is not your typical 2nd gear ratio.

The price is way too much prob because they have too much money into when they brought it in on trade. If your still serious and they will come down considerably, get an Oasis report. That will tell you every repair dome by warranty and every repair done at any major dealership. It's basically a carfax for repair work.

 

If the tires are in great shape, the brakes have more than 1/2 life left and the overall appearance is really nice. Try to get them to throw in a warranty and that would be a great deal. Even if it's a 1yr/12kmi warranty. That will be enough time to make sure the truck is fully sound.
I just wanted to bring the trans issue to your attn. Not that you shouldn't buy a vehicle because of that type if problems because we all know, there's something wrong with everything out there! That said, getting into a full size 4x4 truck for $240mo. for a 5yr term with nothing out of pocket is pretty reasonable