Newb with some questions

[mapitts]

Just picked up my very first Dodge yesterday. 1996 Ram 2500 12V Cummins, 2WD, auto, & 3.54's. First couple of questions are these. The radio only plays out of one speaker, the front passenger door. The second is the fuel gauge does not work, and sets on empty. Are these common problems? I did about as much research as I could when buying this truck, and did not see these as problems. Now I will set and plod through the forum. Thanks.

 

[HolyRamBatman]

Welcome to RF.

Radios and speakers go out all the time. Take the good speaker and hook it to the wires of a bad speaker and see what happens. Head Unit and speaker upgrade time?

Fuel gauge has a few possibilities. Check fuses and relays first. Does it work when you fill it up?

 

[mapitts]

I am thinking the same thing on a head unit / speaker upgrade. That will solve a lot even if I have to pull all new wire. The gauge is on empty and the low fuel light is on. When I got the truck if had about a half a tank of fuel. I filled it up and it is still on empty. You can slightly see the fuel gauge "bounce" when you stop. I am wondering if the sending unit is bad. Is it part of the tank fuel pump? This is my very first Dodge, sorry for simple questions. I do not have the owners manual. The guy I bought it from had everything else though. It has been well serviced and he kept about every record known to mankind. Probably should have bought a Haynes manual before I went out and started asking questions. If you Google it, you get all kind of crazy answers. I needed a home so here I am!

 

[HolyRamBatman]

Yes the sending unit is in the tank. $220 for the pump and everything with it and about 1 1/2-2 hours to replace. You need to make sure thats what it is before changing it. Mine only worked on a full tank and after 50 miles is dropped to empty. So I knew my wires and everything else was fine. I think the 96 had problems with this. Supposedly mine quit working at 14,000 miles and the previous owner didn't want to pay the money to fix it.

If you go to the DIY in the 2nd gen section, there is a parts list and a service manual for our trucks. Check it out before you get a haynes manual.

You found a great landing spot here.