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I some how came across a 1997 Ram 2500 HD 4x4 with the Cummins 12-valve 5.9 and a rare hard to find a 5-speed NV4500 as well as a Dana 60 front axle and a Dana 80 Rear.
I love my custom gasser ZF-5 F-250 that was built more as a trail rig for the PNW and not for fwy or towing on trips through the cascade and rocky mountain ranges without being underpowered and chewing through fuel with 6-8MPG.
So did a bit looking underneath any major rust beyond normal surface rust or leaky gaskets and seals and it seems to be in decent shape of and some online research confirms that it has the NP241DHD Transfer case.
Now the negative the bumper from the factory is rusted through and being a Ford truck guy is it common for the rear bumper to have rust issues when the rest of the frame and body are pretty clean and it is priced at $6500 but needs new shocks and tires which is no big deal.
I meet the guy after work to go take it for a test drive and going to take to a local diesel repair and performance truck shop that my friend who has a 07 mega cab DRW 3500 goes to and get it up on a lift and go through the major trouble spots and really see the condition it is in but if it turns out to be just some normal wear and tear item or something I can fix myself or replace.
I am quite capable around my F-250 but new to diesel so many pointers on things to look for on them that are common in your experience working and maintain yours would be great
I might just give in and go for it but since chances are I will haggle him down a bit for the price as well as finding the truck that has the options and HD parts and it being a stick shift it is one where it is as almost this truck is supposed to be bought by me or could be me thinking it is too good to be true since I am never that lucky and something has to be wrong with it.
Like you said, that's a very coveted power train in the diesel world. I didn't know squat about diesels before I bought my first one less than a couple years ago. But, once you understand the basics, they're almost simpler than a gasser, especially the one you're driving now with all that emissions equipment (I would know. I'm a huge Ford truck fan, especially the 87-96 eras).
If your buddy in the know gives it a clean bill of health, I'd probably go for it. If nothing else, when the truck falls apart around the power train (something I've heard the Dodges are known for), you could always swap the motor into a Ford, lol! Plenty of places online to buy kits that allow you to put the 12V into a pre-96 chassis. It's a surprisingly popular move for guys with the pre-Powerstroke diesel when things go south with the current motor.
I have the same exact Ram you are looking at. And I bought it purely for the (indestructible) drivetrain. I wouldn’t worry about the bumpers too much, if you need to replace they made millions of these trucks and a front bumper can come from any same (and I believe, next) generation 1500, 2500 or 3500… same for rear but not entirely sure on the 3500. The brackets are a bit “soft” for the bumpers, I am now using Reunel winch bumper I found.
How many miles? The very first thing you would want to do is address the KDP pin (look it up). Other than that I promise you that it will need front end work. I put in about $2500 in front end/steering upgrades (all DIY) and now it is essentially bullet proof. There are many upgrades that I have done to fix Dodge bean counter issues, most upgrades I found on Cummins forum, others I decided on my own.
In general $6500 is a good price for one under 200k. I bought mine with 160k on it for $8k, now has 200k on it and I could sell it fairly easily for 10-12. As I mentioned… the main pitfall is the front end/steering components. However there is massive aftermarket and various conversions for making it bulletproof but it will take some time and money. After that the truck is roughly as good as an equivalent Ford body. The conversion would be nice but I don’t care who you are, what capabilities you have… it is a massive undertaking.
thanks Lux will take your advice and the Ram forums checklist of what to look for and see how well the person kept it maintained and get some more info on it but it has just over 240K Kilometres on the odometer so right at the 150K mile mark but the owner used it to tow his and Camper and from what I get is an out doors retired snow bird that went to visit friends of his in to AZ for the winter and come back up here for the summer.
From what I got from the owner is his wife wants to buy a house down their and fly and he already sold the travel trailer and wants to sell it and not let it sit which is a good sign that the owner must of taken some amount of care and maintained it to a acceptable level.
I will update this after I get to really see what it look like and I figure I will put another $4-5K to get it up to a truck I know will be able to do what I need from it and be capable to do the towing and be the vehicle that I use for long freeway trips so it will stay pretty much just a beefed up version of stock.
You can order a brand new bumper (aftermarket but stock looking) from a body shop or auto body supply for around 300.00 or so.
Make sure the ECM hasn't had any recently cleared codes. Get the VIN number and have the service history run at a dealer so you can see if it was dealer serviced AND that there are no outstanding recalls on it.
The only thing that ever crapped out on that era Dodge was the fuel 'lift' pump. We did tons of them under warranty. That's the pump under the hood that 'lifts' the fuel into the intake. The can be had pretty cheap now. I had guys that kept a spare in their trucks at all times.
Make sure the ECM hasn't had any recently cleared codes. Get the VIN number and have the service history run at a dealer so you can see if it was dealer serviced AND that there are no outstanding recalls on it.
"ECM" is a bit of a misnomer for this era of Cummins Rams. The only electric control of the engine is to the fuel cut-off solenoid and grid heater. That is literally it, and even they are really only a function of the starting/key-cylinder circuit. These 12 valves are otherwise 100% mechanically operated and controlled. My beliefs were that the "ECM" was purely to modulate alternator output and send engine sensor signals (tach, pressure, voltage, etc.) to the dash. That is why they are great!
Main recalls are for the secondary hood latch and the throttle linkage... both safety issues that I highly recommend you address immediately. My throttle cable was hanging on by thread when I got it.
The other (somewhat big) thing I forgot to mention is the 5th gear issue of the NV4500. Other than this problem they are very robust gear boxes. The 5th gear, in some cases, backs off of the main shaft... usually from many miles of lugging in that gear combined with the process for which they installed the gears (splined gear shaft pressed onto smooth mainshaft), further combined with a less than stellar locking nut to keep it from backing out. If it fails, not a huge deal, you just lose 5th until it is fixed. I took preventive measures and rebuilt my trans with an upgraded mainshaft, 5th gear and locking nut kit from a company specializing in 4500s and 5600s... wont have to worry about it ever again. I think the kit was under a grand and the rebuild was fairly straightforward as they have step by step manuals.
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