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2006 Ram 2500 Thoughts?

D

dka99burb

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Location
Reidsville, NC
I may be looking at an 06 Ram 2500 4x4 quad cab short box today. It is a Cummins and has 230,000miles. Recently had tranny rebuilt and new injectors installed. It has been used for business where he towed quite often. 1 owner.
Thoughts?
 
Are you looking to replace the burb?

Common rail cummins aren't the most economical. Like all cummins the power plant is solid, there is a cat on the 06 but it should have 4" exhaust stock.

front wheel bearings and the Half shafts are common wear problems.

front wheel bearings and the Half shafts are common wear problems.
 
Considering it. The burb is in pretty good shape due to all the work I have done but I miss having a truck. I am back and forth a lot.

Anyway, I drove the truck this evening. Pulls awesome! Harder than others I have driven. But, there was a sound from the engine that I don't recall hearing in other late 5.9s. And, he informed me that he towed, heavy, most of the time. Said he got in trouble with DOT once weighing in at 26,500lbs. This still wouldn't bother me if the knocking sound wasn't there. Oh, and the interior may not be cleanable. It wasn't in bad shape just the upholstery is cloth with dirt and sweat ground in. Smells strong... I will still consider it if the price drops some more. Junkyard seats and carpet would probably be required.
 
Has 30K too many miles on it to start out with. Find something with under 200K on it.
Over 200K you take a gamble if the engine will make the 500K 'recommended' overhaul mile mark. The rest of the truck has 2x the designed life used up so the engine may be trouble free, but, the rest of the truck will $50 and $100 you to death.

You can run 200K without grinding sweat into the seats, just clean it once and awhile. Shows you the overall lack of care given to it.
 
x2 If the interior wasnt cared for how do you think the rest of the truck was treated? My 95 and 06 both have nearly new looking interiors, both are leather but still very clean with no rips, both are work trucks.
 
Thanks for the feedback guys. The price was appealing. $11k OBO.

I talked with his mechanic today. He said that the owner knows nothing! He fixed anything that needed to be fixed. Recent trans rebuild, BDD +90 injectors, light tune, ball joints, tie rods, u-joints, etc, etc, etc... Says that all his car interiors are nasty but he bought the guys last truck because he sells them cheap. It's the 'thunder road' edition but doesn't have towing mirrors?? :WTF:

Anyway, I am pretty sure that I am passing on it.
 
Thanks for the push. I am a cheap skate so low price is hard to pass. I just need to think 'Walmart/Chinese Product Quality & Longevity' and I will feel better.... :hihi:
 
Just remember, a Dodge truck is like a Snickers bar. The Cummins is the candy inside, and the rest of the truck is the wrapper that's best thrown away...
 
Dad's 05 LLY said:
Just remember, a Dodge truck is like a Snickers bar. The Cummins is the candy inside, and the rest of the truck is the wrapper that's best thrown away...
Click to expand...

I will disagree with that. The wrapper appears to be holding up to Space Shuttle miles with known issues like every brand has. Have you seen the number of 300,000, 400,000, and up mileage for sale ads the 2500 Dodges have? You might want to give Dodge (RAM) a fair shake esp with their current models. After all some of their innovations made GM play 'catch up' like a better reliable and fuel efficient diesel engine under load, rear disc brakes, brakes that were not undersized, factory air suspension, rear coil springs, Megacabs, a longbed Megacab long hauler, CNG available from the factory in 2013... GM decided to go back to obsolete rear drum brakes in 2005 on 1/2 ton models. (Yeah, I burned up the 2005 rear drums in under 12000 miles. First time I loaded up the pickup the next day the brakes were pulsing the pedal from the drums!) Combine obsolete drums with the LLY throttle and overheating and one may start looking hard at other brands... Cooling isn't one of GM's strong points for both the engine and AC. Ever have a conversation about what extreme oil temps does to synthetic engine oil because you are seeing the extreme 300 degree temps?

Even a 4.7 in a 1500 Dodge held up well at 6 MPG when I had to rent it to haul the trailer on a parts route. It was getting 18 MPG not towing. I rented it because my 6.5 GM diesel blew up and the transmission on the TrailblazerSS only held up for a week on the route. Granted I got the route back because someone with a Dodge blew a $1000 computer they couldn't afford to replace. I would NOT have used a GM 1/2 ton rental because likely the rear brakes would have burned up and warped the drums the first day alone.
 
I have heard that about Rams too. But, I have to agree with WarWagon. I have done nothing but work on the Burb since I got her. It was a daily driver, mostly highway, for both of the POs but it is still annoying me. My Dad says I will sell it when I get everything fixed. LOL.. The PO sold it to me because he was fixing it too often and now I am considering the same. I have to do the door hinge pins and there is a leak on the rear deck lid seal now, just for example. I like the space for the family but I have never worked on any of my vehicles this often and I usually have very high mileage vehicles. I have friends with 99-2004 Cummins Powered Rams with 300-400k miles on them who tow heavy 95% of the time and they are still going strong with one trans rebuild, one set of injectors replaced, one universal joint replacement, and 2 sets of ball joints. One of them said he had to replace a starter and an AC compressor once. I drove that Ram the other night and DANG! Ive been driving the burb for a while but I thought I was in a Corvette compared to my old girl. Based on my $$ I will probably continue with the Burb for now until everything is fixed and then someone on here buys it from me trouble free...LOL
 
Just the condition of the interior in combination with the high miles is all the reason to walk away from this one. Obviously not a caring owner. Best to walk.
 
The wierd noise you hear in the engine is more than likely those injectors that were put in. Many aftermarket injectors are noisy.
 
I have a couple guys here that I trust to listen to it. Depending on how I feel the end of the week I may lowball him and see if he bites. He must be in a hurry to move since he dropped his price 1k after I declined. If it is cheap enough I can flip it if I don't like it.. I want to feel comfortable with the engine first though. It is the value of the truck. If it's crap, it's scrap.
 
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