Looking to Buy a New Truck

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

Joined
Aug 17, 2014
Posts
81
Reaction score
13
Location
Mississippi
Ram Year
1998
Engine
3.9L Magnum V6
Alrighty guys.

I posted on here several weeks ago about my desire to go to a V8 engine in my truck. I got some feedback, and most said to either sell my current 2nd gen and get one with a V8, or buy another truck.

For those that don't know, my truck is a 1998 1500, regular cab, long bed. It's got the 3.9L V6 in it, and it was purchased by my grandfather in 1998, and was handed down to me when he passed. The truck means the world to me. It's got its bumps and bruises, and I'll fix them, but I'm leaning towards keeping the truck as stock as I can. I'll replace what's broken with OEM parts.

However, I want something I can toy around with on the weekends, and modify and really make my own. I know it's gonna be a V8. What I don't know is which V8 I want. I'm leaning 318 (5.2L). I also know I want that pretty blue paint that Dodge had for these trucks. I really like the dash in the '98 and above models, so I'm gonna stay in that year range too.

Is there anything I should look for in particular when I go to buy a truck? I know to look for obvious things like paint damage, scrapes, interior quality, etc. I'm in Mississippi so rust really isn't a problem, but my truck squeaks like hell so I'm assuming the bushings going bad is a common occurrence. Is there anything engine-wise I should look for?

I encourage your input,
Brandon
 

dudeman2009

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 9, 2016
Posts
1,562
Reaction score
208
Location
Arizona
Ram Year
2001 1500 Sport with enough electrical modifications to make my brain hurt
Engine
Magnum 360
There's the basics, dings int he body, cracks in the frame, parts missing is a good indicator of a home gamer doing his own work.

Then there are things that aren't so obvious that you really only pick up after working on vehicles for awhile. When you check the oil, look for black specks on the dipstick, remove the oil fill cap and check for foam/white crap on the bottom (that usually indicates a head gasket issue and stopleak won't remove it as well as most people not knowing to clean it off before selling it) Also smell the oil fill hole after warming it up and running it, if it smells at all burnt run. check the trans fluid, if its anything but solid red, its rebuild time, you cant go by burning smell on that though. Brake fluid should be nearly clear and shouldn't have any debris in it, if it's deep yellow or has anything floating in it, its time for a fluid flush. Power steering can be anything from gold to light brown, if it looks like oil that has 3000 miles on it, its time for fluid replacement there if you don't want all the seals or pump to blow out. Coolant is difficult, but feel the heater hoses both going into and coming out of the heater core, they should be just about the same temperature or slightly hotter than the upper radiator hose and almost exactly the same between the two. Inspect the rubber and plastic lines coming from the passenger side of the engine for cracking. Something that most people don't think about, check the roof for dents or buckling, when there is a major accident body shops will fix all the siding, but unless its asked will rarely fix any issues with the roof.

Something that I check but most people don't. Intake and valve cover bolts, if they look like they've been touched, ask for the story behind it, if they rub their chin or take more than a second or two to answer with a simple and believable answer, they are hiding something. No one pulls the intake or valve covers without a good reason. Unless the answer is immediately plenum repair or 1.7 rockers, they tried to fix a bigger problem and are hiding it. When people are lying its easy to get them to walk to the deep end and catch them in a lie if you keep them talking enough. I've been burned on a couple of vehicles because I was a little younger and quite a bit more naive and trusting.
 
OP
OP
MCIntoDarkness
Joined
Aug 17, 2014
Posts
81
Reaction score
13
Location
Mississippi
Ram Year
1998
Engine
3.9L Magnum V6
There's the basics, dings int he body, cracks in the frame, parts missing is a good indicator of a home gamer doing his own work.

Then there are things that aren't so obvious that you really only pick up after working on vehicles for awhile. When you check the oil, look for black specks on the dipstick, remove the oil fill cap and check for foam/white crap on the bottom (that usually indicates a head gasket issue and stopleak won't remove it as well as most people not knowing to clean it off before selling it) Also smell the oil fill hole after warming it up and running it, if it smells at all burnt run. check the trans fluid, if its anything but solid red, its rebuild time, you cant go by burning smell on that though. Brake fluid should be nearly clear and shouldn't have any debris in it, if it's deep yellow or has anything floating in it, its time for a fluid flush. Power steering can be anything from gold to light brown, if it looks like oil that has 3000 miles on it, its time for fluid replacement there if you don't want all the seals or pump to blow out. Coolant is difficult, but feel the heater hoses both going into and coming out of the heater core, they should be just about the same temperature or slightly hotter than the upper radiator hose and almost exactly the same between the two. Inspect the rubber and plastic lines coming from the passenger side of the engine for cracking. Something that most people don't think about, check the roof for dents or buckling, when there is a major accident body shops will fix all the siding, but unless its asked will rarely fix any issues with the roof.

Something that I check but most people don't. Intake and valve cover bolts, if they look like they've been touched, ask for the story behind it, if they rub their chin or take more than a second or two to answer with a simple and believable answer, they are hiding something. No one pulls the intake or valve covers without a good reason. Unless the answer is immediately plenum repair or 1.7 rockers, they tried to fix a bigger problem and are hiding it. When people are lying its easy to get them to walk to the deep end and catch them in a lie if you keep them talking enough. I've been burned on a couple of vehicles because I was a little younger and quite a bit more naive and trusting.

Thanks for the advice! I wrote those things down and I'll watch out for them. I even applied some of them to my current truck, and it looks like a brake fluid flush may be in order. Oh well. It'll give me a chance to service the pads and shoes as well as finally paint my calipers. :happy107:
 
Top