Thanks for the replies...just got back form looking at and driving it the 02', street only, has a minor rear tranny leak to where you can see the the droplet formed on the bottom of the output shaft not the tranny oil pan, owner said he'd lower the price a couple of hundred to get the rear seal done, runs strong and straight tires are worn evenly interior in clean. no oil around the bottom of the motor oil pan etc. and the owner met me half way about a 50 mile drive for him. He said he's replaced the power steering pump and radiator, lifted the truck at 110,000 miles, still has original ball joints, so ummmm...telling myself to pass on it , im also going to look at a 98 crew cab leramie with 103,000 same lift tow pakage same size tires alot cleaner body for 4500$ that owner says the only thing hes done is the water pump and the themostat, no other problems, I like the look of the third gen but think the better buy is the 98. Keep the advice comming, i'm going to get something for sure this week end





http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sfv...304378344.html

 

if thats all hes replaced then your in for a hefty repair bill cause thats where the problems ar gonna start with a 2nd gen personally id pass on both and find a better deal there out there just be patient and look hard.....

 

Personally, I'm not too scared of miles. Mine has 162k on it and my buddy's 05 has 157,000 on his.

 

Looked at the 98 today besides what i had mentioned before that the owner replaced, he's also done the rotors hubs front brakes, fuel pump which is in the tank, he said fuel filter but i dont think thats in the tank, he mention the tank had to dropped for that repair, really clean truck, only fault and to me its a major one is the streering has ALOT of play not sure on the cause maybe someone here can enlighten my i'm thinking its the rack and pinion or steering box, my old chevy dually had the same problem and i was told it was the idler arm.....any way the truck is almost perfect i'm ready to buy exept for that one issue Steering wheel play

Thanks a bunch for any and all replies.....

 

On a Dodge, the pump and filter are in the tank. He wasn't lying about that. I would run it by a shop and have the whole front end inspected.

 

I would take a newer one with high miles over older and less miles. Highway miles are a lot easier on a vehicle. In my opinion at some point driving a vehicle on the highway is better for it than sitting in a driveway for long periods and making short trips. My truck has 130k and they only thing I have replaced is the spark plugs and tires at 110k.

 

I completely agree!!

 

Welcome to the world of second generation rams. As LX stated, the pump is in the tank, followed by a coarse filter that will pick up large containments. The actual filter is on top of the fuel pump on the outside of the tank. It's coupled with the fuel regulator.
The steering is another bad thing about our rams. Granted, they can be tightened up considerably with a very easy adjustment to the steering box.

There are some big things that you need to look out for on that 98 that some guys here in 3rd gen may not remember, or know.
1. Transmission. Very prone to dieing at an early age. If it's the stock tranny in that 98, then plan on an $1,200-$2,000 repair in your future.
2. Trac bar, pitman arm, ball joints, U Joints, and LSD rear ends, were all very weak, and easily gave out, even on a stock rig with little to know mods.
3. Under powered fuel guzzlers. IMO, this should not be an issue when looking at MPGs. Fact is, your looking at a truck, so don't expect great mileage.
4. The Magnum motors had two hit and miss engine issues, 1. Plenum gasket, this is a gasket in between the bottom of the intake manifold and belly pan. This wouldn't have been an issue, had the great minds at Chrysler decided to make both the belly pan and intake manifold out of the same metal. Of course, they did not. The manifold is Aluminum, and the pan was steel. The two metals expand and contract at two different rates, and that causes the gasket to get pressed out. 2. Another less prone issue is head cracking. It's seldom seen over in 2nd gen, but it still happens.

5. The truck could also have the death flash. This was an authorized PCM software update, that Chrysler issued in response to the plenum issues. Apparently, it's cheaper to hide the problem than fix it.

Besides those few major issues with the motor, the magnums are stout. Just never forget that the Mags are a left over design from the late 60's.

Let's move into the body....
Only really two things to look at here.
1. Dashes on the 1998 rams all the way through to 2001 were very prone to cracking. What looks like a hair line crack to day, can become a great canyon in two months.
2. Door rot. Seems that the bottoms of these doors were very good at trapping water and they will rot out over time, becoming an eye sore. Not an issue if that truck has lived in CA it's whole life.
3. Same as number two, the rear bumper is also prone to holding mud and water, creating some rust problems there as well. Again, not an issue if this is a CA truck.

Let's face it, the 98 is a solid truck, and my post will probably make you run far far away, and to some that might be a good thing, but if you can look past it's problems, repair the issues right, it will last. You just have to keep in mind that it's an 11 year old truck, so problems are to be expected.

 

Thanks Laramie1997, Went and paid for and picked up the 98' just this morning before reading your post...... 103,256 on the clock, seems to run good it was a 68 mile ride home all highway wasted about 1/8 of a tank according to the I think optomistic fuel gauge...LOL. My sister said she could see the front wheels moving a bit on the freeway from side to side...as to be expected since the play at the wheel is about 4 in. going to my local alignment shop on monday. also when parked I can move the front tires about 1/2 an inch with my hands, The front end is my main concern....


Laramie1997 what are some of the symptoms of the plenum gasket failing??

Tranny seems to be o.k. we'll see how it holds up...

Here's some pics

Has a Fabtech 6 1/2 in lift
Procomp 35 inch tires and 17 in. Procomp wheels almost new including a spare Procomp wheel and a brand new Procomp tire sticker still on it.

Proline sprayin bed liner

Flowmaster

and the little side steps drop down when you open the door and fold back up when the door is shut electronicly not sure on the brand.

One ding on the driver side door is about the only noticible blem and the front bumper looks like it gently kissed a pole just above the front plate..

Othe than that its clean and straight the guy bought it new i'm the second owner..

pics...

 

I welcome you into the second generation section. You are still in 3rd gen, but oh well, I'll answer.

Plenum blow out can sometimes show symptoms, but not always. If the truck has the death flash (I'll tell you how to find that in a moment), you may not notice symptoms.
Symptoms:
1. Excessive oil usage- Noticeable regardless of the PCM update.
2. Pinging under WOT runs.
3. Extreme lack of power- Hard to judge since this is really the first time you've driven the truck a long distance.
4. Spark plug fouling.
5. Later down the road with the leak, it will eventually trash your Cat.

There are ways to check the plenum, firstly the easiest way is to pull the air intake off and the throttle body off, and peer down into the manifold with a flashlight. You're going to be looking for pooling oil. A better way is a pressure test, and the DIY can be found in the 2nd gen section.

If you look at your PCM, if it has had the authorized update, there should be a sticker with some numbers on it and it should say "authorized PCM update" You can get away from it by putting a tuner on it. Hypertech- mainly for fuel mileage not speed. Superchips- Noticeable power increase.

Welcome to DF and the 2nd Gen Rams.