I bought my first brand new car when I was 19 years old. But even by then I had already had 2 used ones. I never kept anything for more than 3 years and usually not more than 2 for the next 20 years. Then I went to the dealer to pick up a replacement sunglasses holder for my 00 Ram and saw this Silver SLT sitting on the lot. A few hours later, I drove it home and have had it ever since. Have not really had an urge to get anything else. It helps that, due to my job and working at home, I don't put near as many miles on as I used to. My son just turned 12 and I'm hoping to give this truck to him as his first vehicle.

Because I never kept anything very long, I never had to really worry or deal with some of the maintenance things you get into later on like changing plugs, or egr valves going bad, or washer fluid pumps going out. So, until recently, I just changed the oil regularly, rotated the tires, and enjoyed the best ride in a half ton truck I've ever experienced. Thanks to this forum, I realized I have to start taking care of it like it takes care of me. So, I recently switched to synthetic fluids, changed the plugs, put on a new exhaust, and bit the bullet and paid 90 dollars for a new washer fluid pump. That's got to be one of the few parts that can be changed in a few minutes with no tools whatsoever.

The only thing that doesn't work like it was new is the rear up/down adjustment on the power driver's seat. Fortunately it broke with the seat where I like it anyway. I just refuse to put a lot of money into fixing something that I wouldn't have ordered on a truck to start with. The seat is adjusted to me and still goes forward and back. It's just hard for my wife to drive it without being able to raise the seat up. Oh well...

It's finally paid for (another first for me) and looks and runs great. Hope it stays that way for years to come. Thanks for the advice and tips on this forum.

 

Nice post. Its refreshing to see something good about these trucks posted up.

 

Nice truck, but $90 for a new washer fluid pump? Wow.

 

congrats man!!! And that truck is looking dam good!!

 

Right on man. Your sons gonna be a lucky man when he gets behind the wheel of that.

 

Yeh, no kidding. And I've gotten by without one for over a year now. Don't need it much but when you need it, you need it. Went to Advance Auto Parts and they didn't even have it in their database to order. Nothing newer than 02 Ram and it wasn't the same. Went to local NAPA, which I dislike for past reasons, and they wanted 70 bucks and said it would be 3 days (been through that with them before - it's why I dislike them). Local Dodge dealer is no more but my wife happened to be out of town and I called and got the last one they had in stock at the dealer where she was.

My son is all for inheriting my truck. But I'm sure it will have to be leveled with some different tires and wheels to allow him to mix in with all the other 16 year olds around here. He's already saying the exhaust isn't loud enough.

 

That made me laugh, tell him to start saving for when he gets the truck cuz if he gets on here the mod bug is gonna bite him.

 

He's already bitten by the mod bug. There is a basic "template" for teenage boys around here and he intends to fit it. The only exceptions are most seem to drive Chevy extended cabs and he'll have a Dodge quad cab. In order to fit the template, he'll need at least 1 CB antenna, hunting and fishing decals on the back glass, as loud exhaust as possible, and at least a front end level with some taller/wider tires with suitable rims. LOL

 

That seems to be the norm here as well, most of the guys at my school drive some sort of truck. The most common one I see guys here driving is the mid 90's Z71's, then there are a couple who have their dad's old Furd F-150's and whatnot. There are only 4-5 Dodges driven by guys at our school. Most of em are second gens and I'm one of the maybe 2-3 3rd gens. I gotta CB antenna on my ol' Furd but I never drive it let alone use the CB. Plus I refuse to put hunting stickers on my vehicle until I can at least a kill while out hunting lol.

 

Yeh depending where you live, it's a fairly common "template". Those mid to late 90's Z71's just seem to be so available. I see a few Ford's mixed in and hardly ever a Dodge. Maybe that's because the Dodge dads don't want to give them up because I do see a lot of 2nd and 3rd gens around here, just not driven by the younger crowd.

My son plays on the JV baseball team and they often practice at the same time as the Varsity team. Every single boy on the Varsity team that drives, has a pickup, except for one that drives a Jeep Wrangler. Not a single car. And when practice is over and they all startup to leave, it sounds like I'm at a NASCAR race and someone just said "gentlemen, start your engines!". LOL

I don't quite get it but the CB antenna model seems to be a longer antenna mounted towards the back of the cab with a shorter one stacked midway the cab in front of it. I don't hunt with clubs or with dogs or with radios but I hear many hunting clubs now use marine band radios to communicate, so maybe that's the reason for the second antenna.