Looking at selling my 03 Ram 1500 and buying a 90's cummins. What are some things I should pay attention to for wear, problems, etc.? I need a very reliable rig, and up in the Great White North, I need good cold weather starting as well. What is the typical lifespan of the tranny, axles, t-case, etc?

Aiming for a 4dr/ext. cab short box 4x4 with a stickshift.

 

Sorry, I'm of absolutely no help..

What are you refering to as 'the great white north'.. IIRC I'm still the most northerly on the member map.

 

Oh haha I'm referring to Canada. I'm from Alberta too, north of Calgary about 30 mins

 

Very cool to see another Albertan on here.

Good luck in your search...

 

Well when you says 90s you can go from the 12v to the 24v and from 1st gen to 2nd gen so what year are you looking at?

 

I'm fine with both, what are some differences/perks to each one? How are the 1st gen diesels for starting in the winter?

 

the 12v was from 1989-1998 and the 24v was from 1998.5-2007. The first cummins 1989-1993 used a Bosch Direct Fuel Injection which utilized a VE injection pump from 1994 until 1998 a P7100 injection pump was used. These are both mechanical style pumps which equals high reliability(minus the killer dowel pin aka KDP which i will explain later.) These engines are totally mechanical basically meaning if you took the battery and alt out the truck would stay running, which is great if your alt fails. These trucks do only have one battery which can be a problem in cold starts but it is easy to put in a second one. both the 12v and the 24v use grid heaters vs glow plugs which are alot better in cold weather starting and are also more reliable. The pro's and cons of the 12v are listed below.

PRO'S
Reliability
VERY easy to add power and cheap to add power(cheap meaning way cheaper and easier than the 24v)
Mechanical

CON's
will probabaly have more miles on it, but these engines will go 500k easy with out any major work
with out major mods won't make quiet as much power as the 24v
has the killer dowel pin(see link)
http://www.dieselbombers.com/dodge-d...l-pin-fix.html
One battery

Now for the 24v
This was from 1998.5 until 2007, but in the 2nd gen from 1998.5 till 2002.
This is also a very reliable tough engine like the 12v but it had the some what poor VP44 rotary injection pump setup. Which if it fails will cost you some cash upwards of $1000 bucks just for the pump, but that can be fixed with fass or airdog set up. The 24v makes more power stock and has some cool features such as high idle and 3cyl cold weather start up. It also has the ability to add chips/programmers which greatly increase power to a point(when you run out of air or injector space it will cost you $$$). The 24v comes with 2 batteries and will probably start better in colder weather. One thing to watch is the 53 block on the 24v's (link below) stay FAR away from that. If it was up to me i would try and find a 1998 12v which has the updated interior and the 12v motor with 2 batteries(if im correct now that i think about it 2 batteries where in the 94 and up diesel).
24v Pro
can add chips/programmers
can add high idle/3cyl cold weather start up
reliable with a few mods
more power stock
in newer body style
may have less miles than a 12v do to age

Con's
has the dreaded 53 block
has somewhat unreliable vp44 and lift pump
electronic injection(no juice=not running)
more expensive
cost more to modify

here is the link to the 53 block
http://www.stamey.info/Truck/Cummins53BlockFAQ.htm

Again i would try and find a 12v because i personally like how reliable they are and the fact they are mechanical.

Another thing if you get the 5speed see if any work has been done on the 5th gear as it has a problem with the 5th gear nut walking loose and spitting 5th gear out..

If you need any more info let me know.

 

I'm certainly no expert... but I thought my truck was a Common Rail.. post 24V.

 

Still a 24v truck(4 valves at each head)

 

Okay the 5 speed nut problem is on the 5spd auto or 5spd manual as well? Wasn't sure. Thanks for the help offroadjosh, that's very helpful! I'm looking for a 1st gen for less electrical problems, and I've heard they're more reliable too.