i am looking to buy a 99 2500 diesel. it was made in aug 98 so does that make it a 98.5 or 99 any problems i should know about it. it has 103,000 miles on it quad cab long bed 4x4 do you know where i can find any specs on it. great forum thanks for any help

 

tracbars suck and the VP44 injector pump fails more often then one would like. if it's been replace, all the better, start by using the drews brew (info at the top of the forum) to help lubricate the pump. Drew is the expert and can tell you about any other issues.

the only other thing I can think of off the top of my head is the 53 blocks have been known to crack... do some research on it and you should be able to dig up the symptoms & the fix for it.

i wouldnt be scared off... as long as you know what to look for and how to address any of the issues, you'll be fine.

welcome to df btw...

 

to tell if you have a 53 block crawl under the engine with a flashlight, near the front just above the oil pan you will see some cast markings, if you see "53" then you need to start looking for possable leaks, if it has something else cast, small numbers/letters then your good.

the "53" block was a casting snafu in brazil where the water jacket on the exhaust side of the block only measures 5.5mm instead of the required specs frrom Cummins of 11mm. some blocks cracked and there is a way to fix it, but it rather time consumeing, others have not cracked at all. there is no rhyme or reason to how and why they crack, only they do.

the lift pump is a problem as well. they tend to die out of no where. when this happens if you try and start the engine without fuel going to the VP44 injector pump it will die very quick. however if you catch it in time you can save yourself mega bucks.

if it has the NV4500HD manual, there are issues with the 5th gear cog falling off, a tranny shop and a mig welder can fid that little problem. the 47RH tranny is alright and can hold the power under stock conditions, however go much over stock and you'll be sliping better then a greased up hog on a slip-n-slide.

there is a slight issue with the radiator, and if you notice the engine ever overheating take the radiator to a shop and have them rod it out. there was an issue with dissimilar metals and the NOAT antifreeze causing corrosion.

thats about all I can think of off the top of my head.