Attention: TDR Forum Junkies 
Posting for posterity and reference.
History:
Last I week I purchased a 96' 12V with only 124K miles on it. Unusual for a 25 year old truck. It was reasonably priced. No disclosure by the PO. They were dumping it. So, I knew I would be putting some $ to sort everything out. Visual inspection revealed dark transmission fluid, leaking rear main, leaking t-case, leaking valve covers, looked like original fuel filter, engine oil OK, no evidence of front seal leaking, no known history of KDP fix, and looked like a 4" exhaust, but no evidence of fuel pump/injector/turbo modifications. Not sure about serpentine belt, but felt soft with no cracks. No pyro or boost gauges. Very, very clean interior and dash board.
Problem:
Upon test driving and driving home, the truck had a rattle/thump/ coming from the rear. Sounded/felt like a broken leaf spring. However, I did not see any visual issues with my initial inspection. It drove/rode very ruff.
I live in the Denver metro area and we are required to have a smog test to register vehicles. While on the dyno, the techs immediately stopped the testing. The rear end was hopping all over the place and would not stay on dyno. We quickly discovered both rear tires had internal belt separations, it was visible and bad. Tire treads looked great. It would have been a challenge to sort this out with out watching it on the dyno. The low miles makes me think the truck was parked a lot. To complete the test they strapped it down with 2,000l bs of weight to keep it on the dyno. Smog test passed with flying colors - whew.
Fix:
New tires all around. Tire shop also checked alignment and front end. Everything tight and straight. Very happy about that.
Also, while on the dyno engine quickly overheated under the load. Now trying to sort that out. The PO mentioned he had a recent radiator flush. Will post findings in the future.
History:
Last I week I purchased a 96' 12V with only 124K miles on it. Unusual for a 25 year old truck. It was reasonably priced. No disclosure by the PO. They were dumping it. So, I knew I would be putting some $ to sort everything out. Visual inspection revealed dark transmission fluid, leaking rear main, leaking t-case, leaking valve covers, looked like original fuel filter, engine oil OK, no evidence of front seal leaking, no known history of KDP fix, and looked like a 4" exhaust, but no evidence of fuel pump/injector/turbo modifications. Not sure about serpentine belt, but felt soft with no cracks. No pyro or boost gauges. Very, very clean interior and dash board.
Problem:
Upon test driving and driving home, the truck had a rattle/thump/ coming from the rear. Sounded/felt like a broken leaf spring. However, I did not see any visual issues with my initial inspection. It drove/rode very ruff.
I live in the Denver metro area and we are required to have a smog test to register vehicles. While on the dyno, the techs immediately stopped the testing. The rear end was hopping all over the place and would not stay on dyno. We quickly discovered both rear tires had internal belt separations, it was visible and bad. Tire treads looked great. It would have been a challenge to sort this out with out watching it on the dyno. The low miles makes me think the truck was parked a lot. To complete the test they strapped it down with 2,000l bs of weight to keep it on the dyno. Smog test passed with flying colors - whew.
Fix:
New tires all around. Tire shop also checked alignment and front end. Everything tight and straight. Very happy about that.
Also, while on the dyno engine quickly overheated under the load. Now trying to sort that out. The PO mentioned he had a recent radiator flush. Will post findings in the future.
