2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission I know I said I never would, but....

[FLynes]

There's a guy with a white 2003 3500 SLT 2wd, with leather, who wants to trade me for my '01. He's got a six-speed (NV5600, I assume) and a D-80 which is nearly toast (had it rebuilt twice). He really likes mine and asked me what I wanted for mine.



Here's my thing. I LOVE my truck, except for one thing... the rear seats don't have enough room, and when the kids get bigger we're going to have a problem. The '03 has four doors, and it's a long bed.



I told the guy that if I were to trade he'd have to give me what it would cost to completely redo the D-80. I called the Dodge dealer, and the service gal there told me that realistically it would be about $1800, but to ask for $2500, just in case.



I still have a relatively brand new RBQ 6-disc radio for the 3rd gen (took it out of my '05 and put the regular radio back in)



I've got 123,560 miles on mine... the '03 has 168,000 on it.



No more VP44 worries, and I can take the AirDog off of the '01 and stick it on the '03... kept all the original fuel stuff for the '01.



What do you think?

 

[JDiehl]

The agonizing choices of life! Have fun with that one. If it were me I'd make the trade.

 

[JLandry]

I told the guy that if I were to trade he'd have to give me what it would cost to completely redo the D-80. I called the Dodge dealer, and the service gal there told me that realistically it would be about $1800, but to ask for $2500, just in case.

Well I sure as heck wouldn't let a dealer touch my axles and instead would take it to a shop that specializes in driveline work. It can be tricky business getting everything setup just perfectly if someone isn't very experienced. Out here in Washington state Randy's Ring and Pinion in Everett does a wonderful job.



If you think the VP44 is trouble, have you looked at all the recalls applicable to the 2003 model year? Yikes! Hopefully with a truck having that many miles, everything has been addressed.



Also, keep in mind you *know* your truck and its history. With an old truck you could wind up inheriting a lot of unknown problems.



Good luck with your decision.



John L.

 

[FLynes]

John,



Actually, I have no idea about ANYTHING on the 2003s. I tried a search, using 2003 on the forum but came up with nothing. Living here in San Angelo, I'm not sure that there is a driveline shop around, which is why I called the dealer. Was the CP3 a problem in '03? The only glitch I can remember having with my '05 was that the ECM needed to be reflashed, because it looked like the injectors were bad... broke down in Hays, KS and had to take it to Lewis Dodge. They diagnosed the problem and ordered new injectors from STAR, which never came... . real mess.



Where can I find out what I need to know about the 2003 model year problems?

 

[Lightman]

The 03's didn't have dana axles in them, the rear would be a an AAM 11. 5 in that. If its been rebuilt twice whoever is doing the work is doing it wrong.

 

[FLynes]

Okay, several questions then:



1) If it's got an AAM 11. 5, how the hell did this guy fry it? In other words, did the AAM initially have defects/problems in '03? I had one in my '05 and it was indestructible.



2) Does it have an NV5600 or did they start using the Getrag in '03?



I was under the impression that the Getrag and the AAM didn't come into play until '04.











Okay I just went to dodgeram. info and got the link to Steve St. Laurence's write-up. I then googled 2003 Dodge Ram recalls and got three, and only one, Recall ID# 49601 (speed sensor control) would affect this truck.



The truck does have an NV5600, according to dodgeram. info. So now I need to call the two driveline shops I found in the phone book and see how much to completely rebuild an AAM 11. 5.



I seem to remember that, when I had my '05, the Dodge tech told me that Mopar wasn't allowing them to tear the AAM's apart... I wonder if that's still in effect.

 

[FLynes]

Bump. Need some more input from everyone, including women.

 

[CTD12V]

Ok, here's my thoughts on the newer Quad Cabs, FWIW, which isn't much.



I call them the "Neither Cab". I have ridden in the back of seat of some of them, and to my way of thinking, you get neither the benefit of a proper crew cab so an adult (at least someone with long legs) can sit back there comfortably, nor the shorter wheelbase of the older extended-cab style Quad Cabs. So you're stuck with a longer truck and still not decent leg room. However, if you are just worried about room for your kids in the next few years, then they probably will fit alright for a few years more. :-laf I assume your '05 was a "neither cab", so none of this may be an issue for you anyway.



As for the NV5600, keep in mind that the parts situation for them has supposedly gotten really bad since New Venture discontinued them. I wanted to swap one in to my '98, but got scared off at the reports of scarce parts and long waits if repairs were needed. If the guy with the '03 has tore up his rear end twice already, the transmission was probably flogged as well, and it may need to be rebuilt soon.



Just my inflation-devalued $0. 02. :-laf Good luck.



CTD12V

 

[FLynes]

And I just had my NV5600 rebuilt by Dodge (waited 3 weeks for it) at 95,000 miles... .

 

[FLynes]

Hypothetically speaking, if the NV5600 were to crap out, could you swap in a Getrag into the 2003 without doing anything else, or does the crossmember need to be changed?

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Well after owning both a 2nd and 3rd Gen 2wd truck I'll put in my two cents. . .

As for the NV5600 it's supposedly a little better transmission in the 3rd Gen since NVG made some improvements when the '03 came out (mainly to the syncros I think). I know my '03 shifted better than my '01 did.

I liked my '03 having a stronger stiffer cab, the body & cab flexing of the '01 bugged me a lot.

Sheetmetal on 2nd Gen seems a bit thicker/stronger

The main issues on the 2003s when they came out was a defective alternator bracket that tended to break (this was corrected by about Jan 2003), engine vibration felt through the steering wheel (fixed by adding a weight on the PS hose. . . my '03 didn't have the weight fix but I didn't have any vibration issue), and driveline vibes (mainly on the 4x4s). The issues were few and minor, I wouldn't have any qualms about buying a 2003 model built in August 2002.

I think the back seat room is improved enough on the 3rd Gen to warrant a switch, it's a lot better than sitting in the back of a quad cab (I'm only 5'9" so a 3rd Gen back seat is fine for me).

Brakes were better on the '03 but not dramatically so IMO. Steering. . . liked it better on the '01, the '03 tends to jerk the wheel back and forth driving slow on rough roads.

Lastly while the '03 truck is quieter and has less engine din on long road trips the truck seems to have less sound insulation, I noticed more road noise.

Anyway hope this helped a bit.

Vaughn