I am seriously considering buy a 2004 1500 4.7L ST CB. Has 102k on it and it is very clean and well taken care of was used as a commuter in SoCal. Garage kept. Can't beat the price @ $9800, Car is owned by older couple and is bone stock!

What things should I be looking for on this model year? Wear and tear items and common failure items etc..buying with the idea to mod it a little.


theDogger

 

What are you going to be doing with the truck, that 4.7 is prone to overheating and is under powered for the Ram. I had it in a Dakota and it did ok, Probably a great truck but too bad it doesn't have a Hemi.

 

If gonna tow or haul with it, find one with a hemi. Prices vary from location to location but in my area, a clean 04 hemi could probably be had for that price and mileage. Before i started putting money into mine recently, i am not sure i would have turned down 10k and i only have 96k.

 

Definitely get a hemi, 4.7 is underpowered and prone to overheating, you will inevitably get to a point where you wish you had got the hemi. Search around, you will find a good one for not that much more. Also there's a list of common problems listed in one of the stickies, take a look at that, good info.

 

since you're new, here's the link

https://dodgeforum.com/forum/3rd-gen...e-posting.html

 

Ya not planning on towing anything other than a small trailer for wood and such but mostly more of a show type truck. Leaning towards a pre-runner style. 2.5" lift, larger tire and beadlock rims. I use to do custom audio installs so that would be in order also. I would prefer the Hemi for sure..but this will be a daily driver so better gas mileage and after chipping, true cold air, throttle body and exhaust mods should be good. Going for more looks.

theDogger

 

Good link

 

I just bought a Ram, so I guess Ill chime in with what Ive learned.


1. Everyone here is going to say get a Hemi over a 4.7...I have a v6 so Ive got no dog in that hunt but I will say this...in my search I saw SEVERAL 4.7s with white smoke from the tail and overheating issues on test drive that would absolutely lead to me to avoid the 4.7...

If that is too coincidental for you...got a tire replaced last week, sure enough there was a 4.7 that was smoking from the tailpipe...I asked the tech if it had been overheated...he was all "I dunno, this guy just bought it and im troubleshooting the taillights." Pretty funny he wants his taillights working on a block with a blown head...

Also, went to the dealer last week as well to get new floormats, there was a guy in the parts dept with, you guessed it, an overheating 4.7 that he was trying to troubleshoot.

One more...the guy I bought my Ram from also had a 4.7 quad cab in the lot, so I was talking to him about these issues, sure enough he had overheating issues with his...which he supposedly fixed, but nonetheless the fact stands.

2. Rear ends are a common trouble spot on these trucks...only way to find out if yours has issues (assuming it works as it should), would be to open the diff and inspect.

3. Make sure to do the so called "key dance" to pull any codes before you buy

4. Inspect entire front end...ball joints, control arm bushings, tie rods, sway bar bushings and endlinks, hubs for issues....if worn these components can add up when you inevitably want to "refresh" your suspension...use this as a negotiating point to knock off a few hundred or more...again very common from what im seeing on these rams but not a deal breaker if the owner is willing to drop the price accordingly.

5. I seem to see a lot of lifter issues with the Hemi (and some 4.7s) as well, seemingly independent of mileage (tho usually at 100k or more)....people complain about strange valvetrain noises on cold start and low RPMS...again I dont think any way to check other than making sure to get an honest cold start out of the motor before you buy, AND IF YOURE FEELING HARDCORE...you can offer to do an oil change for the guy, take an oil sample and have a used oil analysis done. I do this regularly on my sports car to check for premature wear...its like having a blood test done...the contents of the used oil (trace metals, etc) can be telling of engine health.

6. If you really want to be **** and already have it at a shop to inspect, get him to do a compression test...labor intensive but again the only real way to know if youve got healthy heads bores and rings...

Thats all Ive got for now again a lot of this info is discussed ad nauseum in the links provided but a leg up never hurts...cheers!

 

The 4.7 gets the same if not worse mileage then the Hemi for the record. And even with all those mods you'll only be making like 290 hp at the crank, not the wheels. Where the Hemi stock will make 55 hp more plus have a lot more torque which is what a truck needs.

 

Almost word for word what I was gonna say about the mpg's, so +2 on that. Also if you are gonna do the cai and exhaust, you will be happy with the hemi's contribution to your overall sound too, mmmm mmmm good...