Advice for my first Ram Truck - a used one - which years/models to avoid

huntergreen · Dec 13, 2018

Random_Walk said:
Also check Avis - at least in Oregon/Washington, the prices were very comparable.

Enterprise takes pretty good care of the cats they rent. Very rigid maintenance schedule as far oil changes. They also warranty the cars they sell. I can't speak for Avis.

huntergreen · Dec 13, 2018

Random_Walk said:
Paid around $23k in June for mine - It's a 2017 SLT QuadCab, seats 6 if I lift the center jumpseat.

It's a 6-banger with 3.21 gears -- about as low as you can go, powertrain-wise -- but I actually do pretty decent with light towing (4.3k lbs max), fuel mileage is astounding, and I enjoy the hell out of it. It holds up very well for what I do with it.

Fairly certain that you'll find similar for around $24k or so, depending on where you live.

Is that 4 wd ?

Not surprised your pstar engine is serving you well. It's a phenomenal engine. It's a shame Chrysler shelved the V8 Pentastar engine.

Random_Walk · Dec 13, 2018

huntergreen said:
Is that 4 wd ?

Not surprised your pstar engine is serving you well. It's a phenomenal engine. It's a shame Chrysler shelved the V8 Pentastar engine.

4x4, yes

(they have a v8 Pentastar? Never knew that...)

huntergreen · Dec 13, 2018

Random_Walk said:
4x4, yes

(they have a v8 Pentastar? Never knew that...)

From articles I read when it was in development, it was designed on paper and ready for prototype. It was shelved as the hemi is cheaper to manufacture.

theitguy · Dec 14, 2018

Hey All, sorry for jumping into this thread but i basically came here to ask the same question. I currently have a taco but my family is expanding and i need to be able to fit 3 car seats across the back and still tow a small boat and haul a deer once in a while so i am sticking with a truck. i found these 2 and wondering if they are good deals:

https://www.edmunds.com/ram/1500/2013/vin/1C6RR7PT7DS574652/

https://www.edmunds.com/ram/1500/2013/vin/1C6RR7PT8DS505453/

I am liking all of the features, especially the cooling seats.......only wish they were diesels ....

Your replies are very much appreciated!

huntergreen · Dec 14, 2018

theitguy said:
Hey All, sorry for jumping into this thread but i basically came here to ask the same question. I currently have a taco but my family is expanding and i need to be able to fit 3 car seats across the back and still tow a small boat and haul a deer once in a while so i am sticking with a truck. i found these 2 and wondering if they are good deals:

https://www.edmunds.com/ram/1500/2013/vin/1C6RR7PT7DS574652/

https://www.edmunds.com/ram/1500/2013/vin/1C6RR7PT8DS505453/

I am liking all of the features, especially the cooling seats.......only wish they were diesels ....

Your replies are very much appreciated!

.

Seems like a no brainier to me, the Laramie is a steel for under 20000. I suspect it has the 6 speed and 30000 mile plug change interval. Run a Carfax and have a mechanic check it over carefully.

theitguy · Dec 14, 2018

huntergreen said:
.

Seems like a no brainier to me, the Laramie is a steel for under 20000. I suspect it has the 6 speed and 30000 mile plug change interval. Run a Carfax and have a mechanic check it over carefully.

Yeah, just got to get my loan in order, hope its still there........Thanks for the reply.

Random_Walk · Dec 14, 2018

theitguy said:
Yeah, just got to get my loan in order, hope its still there........Thanks for the reply.

huntergreen is right - that first one is a steal-and-a-half. There's no Carfax record, so I would hunt that vehicle down on cargurus.com and carfax.com and see if you can find any info there.

As far as sales, I do know that Hemis don't last as long on the lot (in my case, two months after I first saw it, my v6 was still there, but that's because it seems that nobody wants a v6

) However, given that the price is still pretty high as far as used vehicles go on either truck (great for a truck, but higher than, say, a minivan or SUV of the same age), odds are somewhat good it'll likely still be there up to a month later. No guarantees, though

The only exception I can think of is in primarily rural areas, where trucks get snapped up faster than cars.

PS: Get a mechanic to look it over nose-to-tail, just in case the price is indeed too good to be true.

Puba08 · Dec 14, 2018

Look for an express? I have 3.92, back up cam 32 gal tank, and 6 person seating. However I went from a sport to an express. Definitely would have gotten the big horn due to the lack of toys (8.4 screen, heated seats etc.) if I could afford. Plenty of returned express leases with the options your looking for. I would not purchase any fleet or rental vehicle IMO.

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BWL · Dec 14, 2018

huntergreen said:
.

Seems like a no brainier to me, the Laramie is a steel for under 20000. I suspect it has the 6 speed and 30000 mile plug change interval. Run a Carfax and have a mechanic check it over carefully.

I wouldn't be concerned about the 30000 plug interval. I've gone 100,000 km on 2 sets and the plugs looked fine both times they were changed. As far as the 5 speed goes mine has been solid, but I have done the trans fluid flush every 60,000 km since day1, which may help. I think the common problem on them is shift solenoid failure, which happened on mine once, but valve body replacement wasn't really that expensive.

huntergreen · Dec 14, 2018

BWL said:
I wouldn't be concerned about the 30000 plug interval. I've gone 100,000 km on 2 sets and the plugs looked fine both times they were changed. As far as the 5 speed goes mine has been solid, but I have done the trans fluid flush every 60,000 km since day1, which may help. I think the common problem on them is shift solenoid failure, which happened on mine once, but valve body replacement wasn't really that expensive.

I was just trying to justify the low price. I agree, plug change and the 6 speed are not a reason to shy away from this vehicle. The 5/6 speed trans are solid. IMHO, they fail when folks add power as they are maxed at HP and torque level from the factory.

KeithStone76 · Dec 15, 2018

I just purchased a 2017 1500 SLT Quad Cab 4x4 with the 3.21. 28,000 miles on it. Paid 23k. The used car dealer I bought I from got it from Enterprise. He has like 6 Ram's from them on his lot. This truck is like new.

Random_Walk said:
I can triple-confirm that... mine was an Enterprise truck; bought it at 19k in June, the odo just passed 25k this week. Had exactly one issue - active grille shutters, which were covered under warranty, costing me $0.00.

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KeithStone76 · Dec 15, 2018

Mine has the pentastar as well. I really like that engine so far. It's kinda snappy.

KeithStone76 said:
I just purchased a 2017 1500 SLT Quad Cab 4x4 with the 3.21. 28,000 miles on it. Paid 23k. The used car dealer I bought I from got it from Enterprise. He has like 6 Ram's from them on his lot. This truck is like new.

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Sent from my Moto G Play using Tapatalk

Random_Walk · Dec 15, 2018

KeithStone76 said:
I just purchased a 2017 1500 SLT Quad Cab 4x4 with the 3.21. 28,000 miles on it. Paid 23k. The used car dealer I bought I from got it from Enterprise. He has like 6 Ram's from them on his lot. This truck is like new.

Sent from my Moto G Play using Tapatalk

Precisely. Even better, it came with the uConnect 5 (RA5) set, which has just enough features to be useful, but not so many that it gets all distracting (though Android Auto would be cool to have...)

Masdix Dragon · Dec 17, 2018

Our new 18 Crew Cab Laramie also came with the bench seat /jump seat...Not a popular option I guess but we like it and tons of room anywhere honestly ...8.4 with no nav but also didnt need it with droid auto and google maps on the touch screen with the usb port in the center seat console

Porkbutt · Dec 17, 2018

I bought a 2016 Big Horn last year. It has chrome bumpers and no center console, I absolutely love it!

mopareg · Dec 19, 2018

2014 with the 6.4 built between aug/oct have bad connecting rods.

Craw · Dec 19, 2018

Get 14+, as 13 and down like mine a 2013 its a 30k spark plug change interval where 14+ is 100k

Advice for my first Ram Truck - a used one - which years/models to avoid

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