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New to the tow rig scene, HELP!

buckmtn

buckmtn

1/2 ton status
Joined
Oct 17, 2005
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Location
Stokesville,Va
Alright, getting close to having my 85 k30 trail rig on 44s done. Picking up an 18ft 10k trailer this week. My 2000 1/2 ton dodge is not going to cut it with pulling 8k-9k down the highway. Mostly looking at dodges with the cummins, but not really against anything, don't really like the ifs of the chevys though. My questions are.. Do I need a single wheel or dually, got a lead on a nice 98 3500 cummins dually ext cab with 80k miles for 16k. What kind of excessive mileage should I stay away from. Everyone says that 100k miles is nothing on a diesel but what about the running gear and motor acceserioes. Want something reliable not need to work on all the time. Not a daily driver, got a car for that. Don't really know much about diesels, point me in the right direction...
 
I've been doing some reading on there, just to lazy to register to ask a question. Thought maybe someone on here had some advice. Sorry
 
Whats to be sorry for ?

Someone here may have what your looking for , they just haven't posted up yet .

I just offered a link to a place with more Dodge owners , is all :thumb:

Hope you find a nice one , several of my friends run those and they work well .
 
A dually isn't necessary,but if you want one go ahead. There's nothing wrong with excess capability. 100k is nothing to worry about on these engines. Be aware that they changed from 16 valve to 32 valve, I think in '98. Not certain, since I don't work on them any more. 16 valve had a tendency to wear out rings and cylinders faster, due to a canted injector design. 32 valve went to centered inj and hydraulic lifters (less adjustment needed). Unmodified, the 32 valve has more power and better driveability, but if you plan to really pump the ponies up, the 16 valve is easier since there's less electronics on it. I would recommend a manual trans either way, since the autos in the Dodges were less than spectacular. Just my advice, I'm sure somebody would disagree, but that usually happens anyway.:D
 
I have a 2005 Dodge 3500 dually quadcab 4*4 with the Cummins and tow my 1 ton Blazer on a 14K deckover gooseneck trailer and love it. If you don't need to park in a garage or squeeze your truck in a small lot at work I would do the dual's. It is nice not having to worry about hitch weight and since I have other heavy trailers I would not go to a single rear wheel. I have kept my truck's motor unmodified and the auto is doing fine at 40K miles, with about 1/2 of them towing something.
 
Didn't they change trans model in '05? Anyway, I think he's looking for an older truck than that. I'd be interested to know which auto was in an '05, 4sp or 5sp.:D
 
A 98 might have the 12v or the 24v....they changed mid year
 
Yea, I also thought that they switched for 12v to 24v around 98. I've heard some say that duallys don't go very good in the snow, any truth? Also not to crazy about having to buy six tires at a time. Single rear wheel will do what I need to. Like the reliability of the manual trans also. Putting a clutch in is alot cheeper than rebuilding one of these new autos. Drove a nice 03 3/4 ton cummins yesterday it was sweet but way to nice for me. I am the type that washes and cleans his truck once a year. Just want a no frills truck to haul truck, firewood,kids,deer, and be reliable. If it gets a scratch, OH Well!!
 
Yes, mid year in '98 they switched from the 12v to the 24v. Just look under the hood at the valve cover and it will say which it has. Dually's are rougher in the snow when trying to get traction, but a little extra bed weight and 4x4 help out a lot. Personally, I'd get a '01 or '02 if you can find one because the braking system was upgraded to rear disks and the fronts were also made substantially larger. Makes for a much more pleasurable tow time. The '98 with the 24v are good though. And the auto's are ok, and can be rebuilt to handle the loads by most shops. They are fairly easy to work on.

As with any dodge truck, expect to have to do ball joints and axle u-joints around 100K. Thats about all you get out of them.

Overall they are good trucks though. If you find one you are particularly interested send me a pm with the vin and i'll run it on Chrysler's database for any history on the vehicle.
 
buckmtn said:
Yea, I also thought that they switched for 12v to 24v around 98. I've heard some say that duallys don't go very good in the snow, any truth? Also not to crazy about having to buy six tires at a time. Single rear wheel will do what I need to. Like the reliability of the manual trans also. Putting a clutch in is alot cheeper than rebuilding one of these new autos. Drove a nice 03 3/4 ton cummins yesterday it was sweet but way to nice for me. I am the type that washes and cleans his truck once a year. Just want a no frills truck to haul truck, firewood,kids,deer, and be reliable. If it gets a scratch, OH Well!!
Click to expand...

Yes shopping for tires was a pain, ended up being $ 1600 for some Cooper's ST for six. The truck does fine in the snow, not as well as my Excursion but good enough for the little amount of snow we get here, (Western Oregon).

The reason I got duals was so no matter what Toy Hauler, Slide in camper, gooseneck equipment or dump trailer I was towing I would not have to be to concerned about weight. Just my personal prefernce for towing heavy since it is my tow vehicle and I don't have a parking issue.
 
So what type of high mileage is to much. I mean for lets say a 2000 2500 cummins with 150k on the clock, good to go no problems for another 100k or trannys be shot differentials and so on. I've always had a thing for the 96-97 ford f350 crew cabs powerstrokes, any experience with those? I use my truck driving through our deer lease and through some tight trails some and a dually with the wide fenders would get torn off..
 
Have a look at that '98 again.

Despite some info given, the 12v is actually the one prefered when you are looking at '98's since the early part of the production year used the mechanical 12v 6BT and the later part of the production year with a mid season switch to the new 24v electronic ISB. In most cases, a '98 12v gets slightly better mileage than a '98 24v and you can get 300HP out of the mechanical pump for nearly free.

The nice thing about a 12v 1998 is Dodge updated the truck itself in 98 that included a new sleek interior, new aluminum radiator, quad cab with 4 doors, and more stuff that I probably don't know.:wink1: Yet, you still get the mechanical motor that is really reliable and many folks still like better.

If you go with a 24v truck, go with the latest one you can afford. There were a bunch of bad engine blocks , code "53" that were cast incorrectly and left with too thin of a wall and eventually it cracks and leads to a coolant leak. Usually the only real fix is a new block. :rolleyes: These bad blocks are found randomly in 98-early 01 trucks.

The 2001.5 is likely the best 2nd gen Dodge Cummins out of the 94-02 run. It had the 235HP programming (98-00 are 215HP when equipped with an auto) and rear disk brakes where 2001.0 were still drum. '02's are a good choice since they have electronic cruise control where everything pre '02 uses your vaccuum diaphram. The thing I don't like about '02's is that Dodge randomly started removing items from the cab and going "cheap. My '01.5 was quieter than my dad's 02, I had a hood blanket, dad's didn't. They changed the vanity, I have a nice flip down mirror in the visor, dad doesn't.

'01 was also the first year for the high output Cummins that had the NV5600 6 spd behind it. My dad has one of these ('02 3500) and the NV5600 is MUCH better than the NV4500. It's stronger, no problems, and has a tight shift pattern like a car compared the 4500 that is like rowing an 18 wheeler. If you want a manual shift truck, get an H.O. if you can afford it and find the right truck.

Here's the scoop on the autos. They have a bad rep because they were just strong enough to stand up to a STOCK Cummins pulling RATED loads. So.... when people started hopping up the 12v's AND pulling around goosenecks with backhoes on them and totally shredded the stock trans, born was a bad rep by dummies that couldn't understand how the mechanics of machinery work.:rolleyes:

Stock engine, stock trans, change the oil in it every 20K and don't drag around D10N's with your Dodge and your auto should last 100-200K.

If you do buy an auto, you just need to be in the mindset that *when* you mod the motor, you'll eventually need a trans with some good stuff inside. Figure $5K ( no, that ISN'T a lot of money, the Allison and Torqueshift cost even more, these aren't your Th400's and C6's anymore.:o) and you'll have a trans that should handle 500HP, accelerates the truck faster, and can run circles around the Dodge guys wasting time rowing gears.:D

Mileage has SO many variables to these trucks. Some are basically worn out at 100K, and some still look new at 100K. I've seen dairy and farm owned trucks that are basically wrecking yard bound at 80K, yet my Ram at 161K looks about as good with a fresh detail as it did when it left the dealership, and runs better too.

You'll have to decide if the mileage matters or not by how it's been taken care of when you go and look at a potential purchase.
 
I think he told me it was a 98 1/2 year and sure he told me it was a 24 valve. Nice truck but I fairly sure I don't want or need a dually. I probably will mod the motor some but nothing crazy. Think I look mostly for one with the manual tranny, mostly because 5k for a tranny rebuild is scary. I know they can be done for less but I have never had alot of luck with autos especially when put under alot of stress. I looking for the non modified stock cummins in good condition. Anyone with thoughts on the 95-97 powerstrokes?
 
You are correct, I don't think you need a dually either. My Ram is a 3/4t SRW and my dad's is a DRW, and both use the same brakes, frame, and even front springs. The only real difference is 4 back tires, one extra leaf in the rear spring pack, and you get a Dana 80 regardless of trans in a 3500, compared to a 2500 using a D70 with an auto and a D80 with a standard trans.

My dad's dually is a little more stable pulling tall loads in the wind, or when a load isn't balanced well on the trailer, otherwise they handle basically the same.

Most people don't mod their engines all that much, it's easy to get 300-400HP and they do it reliably on a stock turbo, as long as you watch the pyrometer. Little engine life is sacraficed at that power level and seem to do fine.

You can do a few things to save on the cost of an auto rebuild, like doing the R&R yourself, that is worth 4-500 bucks. Goerend can build them for around $4000 if you don't load them up too much with goodies. Most people spend a little extra and overbuild them anyway, just to be safe and to save money in the long run. If you were rebuilding a small block and had aluminum heads, forged pistons, steel crank, a hot cam, you likely at that point aren't going to put the stock rods back in right? Thats my point. Most people have pretty good luck with the built Dodge autos, and most reputable builders have good warranties too. For example, Goerend trans has a 2 year, 100,000 mile warranty, unlimited HP and use.

The standard transmissions aren't a guaranteed economical way to go either. 350HP usually can slip the stock clutch pretty bad. A good clutch is usually $1000, not including R&R. And.... The NV4500 had a lot of problems with the 5th gear falling off and loosing overdrive, the cost of that fix varies depending on the shop, and how good someone wants to fix the nut, and the root cause of why it falls off. If you chew a syncro..... you could have as much or more into a standard as you would a good auto rebuild.

I'm biased, but I wouldn't buy a standard behind a Cummins, unless ALL I did was tow.

The 95-97 PSD's are really good trucks also. The only thing is drivetrain strength on those trucks. An F250's front end is considerably weaker than a Ram 2500, due to the TTB front suspension design that uses a rather light duty D44 for a diesel like a powerfull PSD, IMHO anyway. The F350 is a lot better. It uses a D60 strait axle, like the Dodge, up front. Both the F250 and 350 use Borg Warner cases (IIRC) and a Sterling rear axle that is comparable to a D70 and 14BFF. It's just that TTB D44 under the 250 that bothers me, I've seen a couple guys have suspension, tire wear, and alignment issues with it. I wouldn't go sled pulling with one either, when compared to the Dodge and F350 that is bullet proof. I also think the suspension under the Dodges is better than the F350, 4 link coils under the Ram vs. leaf springs on the 350.

The early 7.3PSD is a great motor, but it's a noisy sucker. Louder than the Cummins, and harder to make power with. The E40D auto is in the same boat as the 47RH/RE in the Dodges. Marginally strong enough in stock form for the PSD but can be built up well. The manuals are ZF's (IIRC) and I think are not as stout as a New Venture standards in the Rams and GM's.
 
Thanks for all the info shared. Went and looked at(didn't drive) a 93 F350 crewcab longbed with non-turbo diesel and standard tranny today. 73k orig miles no 5th wheel hitch or frame hitch just a ball on the bumper that wasn't used much. Int. and ext. in good condition. Dealer asking 10k but negotiable. Long sucker. I question my self the power output of the engine but after looking at some dyno runs on banks website the motor actually puts out in stock form close to later powerstrokes and pre-2000 cummins. What ya think? http://www.dealerslot.com/lotdetails.asp?id=69776&R=1&offset=0

Have to loose the gay topper and side steps...
Banks dyno tests...http://www.bankspower.com/test_results_AF04.cfm
http://www.bankspower.com/test_results_AD01.cfm
 
The early Navistar 6.9 and 7.3 engines did fairly good, I think anyway. My neighbor has a 6.9 in an 80's F250, that motor has fine power, seemed to have decent acceleration when I rode in it and he was always pulling a gooseneck trailer around.

The turbo'd 7.3 in 1994 (not the PSD version), doesn't have all that much more power than the N/A version you are looking at. Some people thought that Ford did that on purpose to build up the hype for the PSD in '95 and show a big jump in power numbers.

As far as how that engine does compared to the same year Cummins.... the graphs can show what they like but 6BT Dodge could outrun everything else on the mountain pulling trailers. The 6BT was still top dog through those years, it was only the PSD in '95 that really gave the Dodge competition in the mid-late 90's.


You have to be carefull with Banks. People's independent dyno tests seem to not match up to Bank's claims at times. Many people are dissapointed in his electronics when compared to other products on the market. BUT.... Banks has spent a lot of time building turbo kits fo rthe 6.9/7.3 and the 6.2 GM. Those kits seem to be pretty good kits. If you do buy the truck and want more power, do a lot of research. You likely should find other people making kits also that are likely cheaper than Banks (their prices are high for what you get) and should yield the same or better power improvements.

That Ford looks like a pretty good truck, I don't think you could go wrong with it at all if you like it and feels tight and is clean.

$10K seems really high for that truck though, private party value is probably only around $6K so. I'd work the dealer over like crazy on that price.
 
rjfguitar said:
Mileage has SO many variables to these trucks. Some are basically worn out at 100K, and some still look new at 100K. I've seen dairy and farm owned trucks that are basically wrecking yard bound at 80K, yet my Ram at 161K looks about as good with a fresh detail as it did when it left the dealership, and runs better too.
Click to expand...

so what you trying to say us dairy farmers dont know how to take care of our trucks:rolleyes:
 
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