Hi. Old member on 2nd gen forum that hasn't posted in years. I sold my 98 ram years ago and haven't been in a Dodge since. Mainly this was due to a 46re trans that gave me fits lol. I've owned several trucks since the Dodge, but am currently truckless. I'm looking at a 2003 1/2 ton 4wd with a 5 spd right now. I need a truck, but will keep using a car as a daily driver, I guess. Anyhow, I have a few questions:

Is the 4.7 a decent engine? This one has 180k miles. I've heard they have oil sludging issues and are prone to overheating..

What manual trans will this truck have (4.7, 4wd)? Is it particularly problematic or ok?

Anything else I should be aware of that's a common issue (other than the busted dash)? Maybe I can get the guy to knock the price down enough to buy a dash overlay.

Thanks for any input.

 

If it has been taken care of it will last. It says 5sp, but it may be a manual or an auto (auto is a 5sp as well). Just sucks it's so low on power.

 

I've been mostly a Chrysler guy for decades. Loved the 318/5.2L Magnum engines. When the 4.7L AMC engine became a magnum, I was skeptical at first. Glad I was. The folks I have known personally that have that engine regret ever owning a Dodge.

A co-worker of mine just had his 4.7L rebuilt for $5,000. He hopes it will last 5 years if he is lucky. Then he plans to unload the truck then. He loves his Ram, but not the 4.7L.

It took from December till June to find the right truck in great shape, low miles and the 5.7L Hemi. The wife made the issue harder because she wanted quad-cab too.