What to look for in a Dodge Ram?

I'm looking at an '01 Ram Sport that my buddies parents are selling. It has 116k, a 318, 2WD and needs some minor cosmetic stuff.

Besides the glass transmissions, what are other things to look out for?

Now before I get all the bad mileage crap everyone boo-hoo's around here about, my DD barely leaves my driveway. Gas mileage isn't my concern. I kind of want a truck right now, especially if I'm moving in the next 6 months.

I know the 318 isn't the most ideal full size truck engine, but it's only 20 less HP than the 360 in my Durango, so it can't be that horrible especially if it's 2WD.

I also don't need 4WD, I have the Durango, that I can drive in the winter if the snow is bad.

Thanks in advance.

Glass transmissions? Since when? If you service the damn thing it will last just as long as the rest. I always saw way more burnt up 700's and e4od's then anything Chrysler made in the same time werkin the trans shop.

Front suspension is a biggie.

I know there is more, but dinner calls.

Yeah I don't think I would call the transmission glass. The 46RE in my 01 2500 van is a very durable unit,even when really low on fluid like the other day when I realized the pan was rotted,and leaking. My guess is the truck you are looking at has the same transmission.If the trucks are anything like my van you can expect to be doing wheel bearings religiously and the ball joints aren't the strongest known to man.

In reply to Ranger50:

What I do know is that I hear more about Chrysler truck transmissions failing than Ford or GM in the same era. But when is it too late for adjustments? My 46RE went out at 120k. I hadn't heard anything about the adjustments until recently, otherwise I would have been on top of that.

SyntheticBlinkerFluid wrote: In reply to Ranger50: What I do know is that I hear more about Chrysler truck transmissions failing than Ford or GM in the same era. But when is it too late for adjustments? My 46RE went out at 120k. I hadn't heard anything about the adjustments until recently, otherwise I would have been on top of that.

When you change the filter, 60k or so. You would have been surprised after a band tightening up how bad they get. The GM and Fords have a solid pin with a servo applying the bands. Chrysler does kind of the same thing, but it is completely adjustable.

As to what I said earlier, I worked in a trans shop and when plow season came in MI, easily 2-3 GM to 1 Ford/Chrysler. It was very RARE to see a Chrysler truck trans, I would see Fords before Chrysler.

Oh and back to the truck in question, belly pan gasket. Those were a biggie. Typically if you have an exhaust leak, you broke one of the front exhaust bolts/studs. Normal BS like water pumps and PS pumps.

I see no issue here, +1 for 2WD.

a ford body?

rednecks?

a diesel?

This is pretty much the exact truck minus the tool boxes. Same wheels even.

Check the ball joints. They are a weak point and rather expensive to replace.

As far as the transmission goes, I've heard the same sort of thing. I think the bad rep comes from the fact that the same tranny went into the diesels and duallies up through 2003. Those vehicles tend to do some heavy duty towing and the duallies are heavy just running down the road empty. I know a friend of a friend that has gone through three trannies in his dually. I think failures there have given the tranny as a bad rep, though it may be perfectly reliable in a half ton.

I've had a 2003 3/4 ton since new. It has about 120k on it with some moderate to heavy towing and it has been dead reliable (knock on wood). Only complaints are a plastic dash that failed before its time, sticking a/c doors inside the dash, a leaky rear pinion seal that took 3 tries to get fixed right, and a driver's side sun shade that failed. Other than that, just regular maintenance.

I agree that the trans are not total crap and they are better than a gm 4l60. Imo they are not better than a ford 4r70 unless you are talking about upgradeability..

The trans is still the sticking point you need to check out. The motors are pretty dang durable.

The motors are prone to leaking gaskets on the bottom of the intake manifold which leads to oil burning and horrible mpg. Easy way to check is to disconnect the pcv and the crank breather (on the valve covers) and hold your fingers over them while the engine runs. If it develops a vacuum in the crankcase you will need to take off the manifold to fix that gasket.

The motors are also prone to timing chain noise (it slaps the cover) unless they have the factory tensioner installed. It is not really a dire thing to worry about, but i have had one get so loose that it jumped a tooth and made the engine stop running (lost SYNC between cam and crank sensors). It didnt hurt the motor but they ARE interference if it gets far enough off. the tensioner is a ~$50 part and the timing chain is standard old v8 fare.

2001 i believe will have what is known as the 'death tune'. If you already have a 360 durango you might be familiar with this. Short story, if you dont like the power, buy a programmer and that will likely fix it.

Take someone who knows how transmission fluid should look and smell with you. Wipe the fluid from the dipstick onto something white like a napkin or piece of paper.. it is easier to judge color than just looking at it on the stick.

Also, they have check valve in one of the trans cooler lines near the radiator that is known to clog up and burn up the transmission. You just take it out and punch the rubber ball through the housing and pull the spring out with a pick, and you have one less thing to worry about.

plastic dashes fall apart, dont buy one with a heavily damaged dash unless you KNOW that over time it wont make you hate the truck (im serious).

I got my '95 318 2wd at 114k, it now has 136k on it...mostly towing/hauling. The first thing i did when i bought it was to install a transmission cooler and Amsoil fluid.

I got harland sharp 1.7 roller rockers, it helps a lot in the mid range power band, and if you drive nice it actually helps mpg!

repairs so far: -lots of A/C & HVAC work -ball joints -rear axle bearings -breaks fricken suck... -rear brake line broke

prevenative maintence/upgrades; bilstien struts adco rear sway K&N air intake low temp t.stat front bearings 1 ton rear brake cylinders wagener sever duty brake shoes heater core/evaporator core roller rockers plenium gasket tstat timing chain oil pump (old one was noisey & made me nervous).

Those transmissions (and engines) will last forever if you take care of them. I miss my old '01 Ram, but it ate too much on my 60-mile daily commute, so I sold it.

Much like the joke about what you look for in a woman.Hint: The answer is "my dick", you look for a Cummins in a Dodge. Pretty much the only reason to have one. And before the haters come out, my daily driver is a 1996 Dodge Ram 2500 CTD with 262k miles on it. Runs like a swiss watch.

93gsxturbo wrote: Much like the joke about what you look for in a woman.Hint: The answer is "my dick", you look for a Cummins in a Dodge. Pretty much the only reason to have one. And before the haters come out, my daily driver is a 1996 Dodge Ram 2500 CTD with 262k miles on it. Runs like a swiss watch.

What to look for in a Dodge Ram? The keys to an F-150! Hiyo!

A Cummins

What to look for in a Dodge Ram? The keys to an F-150! Hiyo!

If we're talking 6 cylinders i can agree with that.. the only reason i wont say the v8s is because i hate pretty much every v8 put in an f150 for the last 15 years.

Osterkraut wrote: What to look for in a Dodge Ram? The keys to an F-150! Hiyo!

ditto. QFT.

The Trans situation must be from lack of maintenance from owners.

If you guys went over to DodgeForum.com in the 2nd Gen Ram section, you can't get through a page without seeing someone with a Trans problem.

Apparently the shift solenoids are an issue too.

If you guys went over to DodgeForum.com in the 2nd Gen Ram section, you can't get through a page without seeing someone with a Trans problem.

That is not surprising considering how 99% of people maintain their vehicles.. so i dont think that says anything, really, other than that buying a vehicle with an unknown history has risks.

Shift solenoids ARE an issue but they are an easy one.. $65 for the parts, and maybe an hour round-trip to install unless you are working really slow.

I think a big part of the problem is driving in town & towing in OD vs D. Also fluid/filter changes. I just read about a "hack" to delete the restrictor in the return line; aparently it gets clogged w/ junk, and the fluid doesn't circulate, which ends up destroying the gear box.

Also, they have check valve in one of the trans cooler lines near the radiator that is known to clog up and burn up the transmission.

I see you have a ram in your profile, have you done yours yet? It's pretty easy.

SyntheticBlinkerFluid wrote: I know the 318 isn't the most ideal full size truck engine, but it's only 20 less HP than the 360 in my Durango, so it can't be that horrible especially if it's 2WD.

The biggest difference between the 318 & 360 is the torque. 360 has more, especially lower in the rpm range. Oddly the 318 doesn't get better gas mileage. My Dakota R/T gets 16-17 mpg while my Dads 92 Dakota gets 15 mpg, even though his truck is 200 lbs lighter, has taller gears (3.55 vs 3.92) and I have wider tires. Towing a trailer you can really tell the difference between the two.

The 318 is a great engine though, it hasn't given my dad any problems and runs as good as when he first got it new. Even the transmission (A518) is original, we did a an external cooler which helps. My Dakotas tranny (46RE) hasn't given me any problems either. Good coolers and changing the fluid at least every 2 years will help them last.