Do I want this '05 Dodge Diesel?

I have been toying w/ the idea of stepping up from my 1/2 ton w/ a 318ci & an open trailer to a 3/4 ton w/ an enclosed for a while now. I do SCCA/NASA club racing in a Spec Miata and WRL/Chump in a VW GTI, soon to be a BMW e36. I put a mere 3~6000 miles on my truck a year. I have the option to buy this truck, help me decide if this is the one:

-2005 Dodge 3/4 ton, automatic, diesel, 4wd, it spent its entire life on a ranch in Texas. -it has 235k on it, BUT the PPO put a rebuilt motor in w/ ARP hardware (paperwork is over $5k) like 5000 miles ago, then the transmission "started acting funny", a friend of a friend drove it home to MN, and had the trans. rebuilt and new injectors put in.

I can buy it for $16k. KBB.com says private party excellent resale is only $14.5. FWIW every truck I look at is priced over KBB, but I digress.

It has a zombie killer front bumper which I would return to stock. It has a 315/70/17 newish tires, which I would return to the stock 265/70/17's. It has a 4" straight through exhaust w/ a 6" tip, which will need some attention. It has a leveler kit, which I want gone. Rancharo shocks. It does have a spot for a 5th wheel. It is really clean, sure some scratches, and the occasional ding from being worked, but the interior is mint, no squeaks/rattles, everything is in its place. I'd almost rather have 2wd. It has a tuner box on it, i forget the brand, but we know it does 30psi. The EGR & cooler have been deleted. My buddy who is a mechanic has had it all week and gives it his blessing.

I am kinda weary of diesels, and their expensive repair bills. Honestly I was thinking about GM 6.0 LS trucks, until this one showed up.

TIA...

16 grand seems like a pretty big chunk of change for an 11 year old truck with 1/4 million miles on it. Even with the rebuilt bits, Dodges are notorious for having bits fall off and break.

For the limited use you'll see I'd say spend 10 on a gasser with half the miles.

Minnesota vehicles rust like they do here in New York. Would I pay $14,500 for a 200,000 mile truck with NY rust and unknown history; or pay the extra $1500 for a rust free truck with a newly rebuilt engine and tranny?

If the truck did what I wanted and my financial advisor (SWMBO) was OK, I probably would.

Dan

I don't think the price is out of line.

But it's a lot more truck than you need, and you want an LS.

Tuner box and big exhaust? No, you don't want it.

As of right now there is no rust on it! It was in Texas until 9 months ago. I won't drive it much at all in the winter, so long as it doesn't act like a time bomb and explode with rust. I did a bit of research on rust for this generation, sounds like there is a lot of inner pockets of metal that was never treated from the factory. So I'd prolly spend an entire Saturday spraying Fluid Film or another rust preventative in all the little holes.

I have a flexible budget of $15k anyways. So the alternative is some sort of GM 6.0 3/4ton, that will be a a bit older w/ 100~150k range. At least that is kinda what looks like is in that same $ range. The other thing is I don't NEED a bigger truck/trailer, I WANT....

What kind of miles will you be doing, and how often? I've heard it said enough times on here, diesels don't like to sit.

What you WANT is a maintenance nightmare.

A Dodge that has been "upgraded" (read: abused), being moved to the rust belt, with a diesel that is going to sit for half the year?

Do yourself a really big favor, and buy the GM.

In the 5 year window, you could buy 2 GM 6.0L trucks for what you will have in that Dodge.

This is not the truck for you, but I have a feeling you are going to buy it anyway.

I drive a diesel, but I drive 20X as far as you do in a year.

I just went to Dallas craiglist and put in Rwd, diesel, under 15k. There are a ton of what seen like better options. I wouldn't get a 4wd personally.

How do you feel about driving it? I could see it being an acceptable deal if it means your truck moves from a necessary evil penalty box you only drive when you have to (i've driven plenty of 90s 318 rams, and for the record i dont even strongly dislike them, they just aren't great at.. anything), to something that's a little fun to drive and presentable and roomy enough to actually go out in with family etc if you so desired. If that's the case i'd say go for it.

I'd warn you about the transmission issue if you didn't already have a truck with the same basic trans anyway. Diesels are a lot harder on them but ultimately the only difference between the reliability of this trans and the one in the truck you already own comes down to your right foot and the proficiency of whoever just rebuilt it.

If this won't be a weekly or more driver I wouldn't, diesels really do hate sitting around.

In reply to jungle:

Here's what I am hearing you say:

• Might be $2K overpriced.

• Rebuilt motor of unknown history. (What happened to the first motor?)

• I hate the front bumper.

• It need new tires and wheels.

• It needs new exhaust.

• I don't want the leveler kit.

• Jacked up after market shocks, plus 5th wheel means it's been worked harder than it should.

• I'd rather have 2WD.

• It has an unknown tuner box, has been boosted to 30 psi, so, yeah more abuse.

• I'm tired of diesels.

• I want a GM 6.0L.

You actually didn't say anything positive at all about this truck in your first post, except for the fact that your mechanic has given his blessing and the trans has been rebuilt.

Am I missing something?? Why are you talking yourself into this truck?

I love a diesel for towing. I have a big block 3/4 ton burb and a dually with the duramax/Allison....the burb just sits to the point I may actually sell it. If it's going to be doing a significant amount of towing I'd definitely go diesel.

People automatically assume the worst when trucks have a box on them. Mine has an edge and I leave it on tow all the time....it doesn't smoke, has better fuel economy, and more power over stock.

Well, it fits the "bill". It's a 3/4 ton, extended cab/crew cab, in my price range ($15~18k), it's from the south (I hate rust). Having a rebuilt motor and trans. are sounds good in my mind (especially considering we have the paperwork).

I am somewhat change averse, not much of a gambler, and just slightly scared of potential problems. I have heard some horror stories on newer diesels (I have no personal experience), but then again every make/model has some sort of achilles heal.

Even if it was beat on/worked hard, does it matter since the motor and trans. have been freshened? The interior is mint, I didn't see rock chips in the wheel wells (I got to ride in it, not enough time to climb around it).

I am not afraid of de-modding it, especially since I prolly trade for OEM equivalent for less than what I could sell/trade in stuff for.

I didn't get a chance to look at the tuner, i know the LCD thing can do EGT's, boost, has a few different modes. I know it isn't a BullyDog, as that is the only brand that I know of.

Honestly I don't know what I want...other than the 1st paragraph, and to not get stranded 6 hours away from the house w/ the racecar trailer. The less amount of time I spend working on the truck and the more time working on the project cars/house the better! I am information gathering (which I appreciate everyone's posts!!). So far the collective hasn't come down on either side of the fence.

You're right at some level- if the motor and trans were roasted, it makes no difference if they were replaced. At least if they were replaced WELL.

But I am not sure they were. This truck has all the warning signs of a truck owned by an owner who does NOT take care of his vehicle. Why would he go overboard on replacement parts?

Receipts are great, but $5K does not go very far for a motor swap in a modern diesel. Can often be twice that.

ARP parts are nice. But did he pull the heads, resurface, change the gaskets, and re-torque evenly, or did he swap bolts one at a time?

You are buying from an owner who appears to make questionable decisions about his truck- I'd want to dig deeper. Who did the engine rebuild? How many miles on the core? Was it leak down checked? Any warranty? Specifically what is on the receipts? All 8 injectors? How about the pump?

I don't mind demodding a truck either, but this is not a bargain. Is it worth the effort to demod? You are gonna hit $20K by the time you get it the way you want it.

I am not convinced it checks your boxes. Do you feel confident about the reliability checkbox?

Cotton wrote: People automatically assume the worst when trucks have a box on them. Mine has an edge and I leave it on tow all the time....it doesn't smoke, has better fuel economy, and more power over stock.

I used to be the guy who denied warranty payment to specific dealerships for Cummins diesel turbos. I will say it is entirely possible that there is a sane person out there using a tuner box. I will also say that seen too many broken engines and turbos to buy a truck with a tuner or any sort of mod(beyond an nicely done EGR/DPF removal). There is just so much that can go wrong.

A modified vehicle that's more reliable than a dead stock one is a pretty rare case.

Fueled by Caffeine wrote:

Cotton wrote: People automatically assume the worst when trucks have a box on them. Mine has an edge and I leave it on tow all the time....it doesn't smoke, has better fuel economy, and more power over stock.

I used to be the guy who denied warranty payment to specific dealerships for Cummins diesel turbos. I will say it is entirely possible that there is a sane person out there using a tuner box. I will also say that seen too many broken engines and turbos to buy a truck with a tuner or any sort of mod(beyond an nicely done EGR/DPF removal). There is just so much that can go wrong.

I can see how a warranty claims guy might be of that opinion after seeing the worst of everything, but I'm just going by my personal experience. I don't abuse my trucks or run insane amounts of boost, but the extra performance and mileage of a mild tune is nice. I like keeping a warranty intact, so would not run one on a new truck, but once out of warranty it would be fair game.

In reply to Cotton:

Are we reading the same thread?

You are defending the diesel, based on the "extra performance and mileage of a mild tune", and on the fact that you take care of your truck and don't "run insane amounts of boost".

But THIS truck runs 30 psi, has an oversized exhaust, jacked up suspension, blown 1 engine in half it's normal lifespan, blown 1 trans, etc. etc. What's the purpose in defending this? - the signs are there, and there is no reason to ignore them. It is perfectly reasonable to conclude that this truck may not be an optimum example, and FbC is not the enemy because he is a "warranty claims guy" who "sees the worst of everything".

I am glad you take care of your vehicles, and I am sure I would be happy buying one from you. But I don't see how that information is at all useful to the OP, or relevant to this truck.

SVreX wrote: In reply to Cotton: Are we reading the same thread? You are defending the diesel, based on the "extra performance and mileage of a mild tune", and on the fact that you take care of your truck and don't "run insane amounts of boost". But THIS truck runs 30 psi, has an oversized exhaust, jacked up suspension, blown 1 engine in half it's normal lifespan, blown 1 trans, etc. etc. What's the purpose in defending this? - the signs are there, and there is no reason to ignore them. It is perfectly reasonable to conclude that this truck may not be an optimum example, and FbC is not the enemy because he is a "warranty claims guy" who "sees the worst of everything". I am glad you take care of your vehicles, and I am sure I would be happy buying one from you. But I don't see how that information is at all useful to the OP, or relevant to this truck.

I wasn't talking about this particular truck. I was just making the point that not all trucks with a box are garbage, which seemed to be an implication in the thread. Just because this truck might not be ideal, for obvious reasons, I'd hate for the OP to run away from any truck he sees with a tuner on it. That was my only intent, and I do feel it's useful info if the OP continues shopping for diesels.

I'll say this as someone who bought a high mileage Dodge diesel truck and then used it sparingly:

DON'T DO IT.

My truck HATED sitting for long periods. And would repay me for my lack of use with expensive repair bills. Often.

Driving it that little you will never recover the premium that you pay for a diesel, and like others have said that one seems to have seen some abuse.

I would stick with a 6.0 GM 2500, or if you want a little more towing power and a better trans look for one with a 8.1 and the Allison trans. You won't ever equal the MPG of the diesel, but you don't use it enough to worry about that.

You can find a 6.0 with the Allison if you look hard. My supervisor has one.

Don't do it. Looks like a money pit to me.