Looking to buy a 3rd gen. Anything I should look out for ?

[SMalafy]

I had a 2nd gen 95 that had the frame rot out so I was looking to upgrade and seen quite a few 3rd gens with some low prices and some of them had 4 or 5 owners so I am wondering what I should be aware of before I buy. Can anyone tell me what usually goes bad on these things and what to watch out for so I do not get burned ? Thanks.

 

[KOG]

Injector prices can cause a heart attack.


And injectors don't last nearly as long as the earlier trucks. But third gens can make much more power, have larger nicer cabs, better brakes, are stronger all around and can thus tow more. You'll have to use a wiring converter for trailers because of the split turn/brake lights and my experience with those converters has been uniformly poor so far.

 

[NIsaacs]

I had a 2nd gen 95 that had the frame rot out so I was looking to upgrade and seen quite a few 3rd gens with some low prices and some of them had 4 or 5 owners so I am wondering what I should be aware of before I buy. Can anyone tell me what usually goes bad on these things and what to watch out for so I do not get burned ? Thanks.

Get at least the '08, that way you get the 6spd auto and exhaust brake.

Nick

 

[jgillott]

Keep in mind that even the newest 5.9l is now going to be 11 model years old. Unless you are extremely lucky, you are going to be dealing with some issues simply due to the age of the truck.

Some common areas of concern.

- HVAC Door operation
- TIPM and other electrical/wiring issues. Pay close attention to the back door wiring coming out of the B pillar on the quad cabs. Very common failure area.
- Ball joints and front axle u-joints on the 4x4 trucks.
- Bedside rust over the rear wheels
- Injectors as mentioned above

 

[SMalafy]

Keep in mind that even the newest 5.9l is now going to be 11 model years old. Unless you are extremely lucky, you are going to be dealing with some issues simply due to the age of the truck.

Some common areas of concern.

- HVAC Door operation
- TIPM and other electrical/wiring issues. Pay close attention to the back door wiring coming out of the B pillar on the quad cabs. Very common failure area.
- Ball joints and front axle u-joints on the 4x4 trucks.
- Bedside rust over the rear wheels
- Injectors as mentioned above

Not sure what area you mean or where these wires are located when you speak of B-pillar. I tired to google it and no success. Are these wires above the back door or below under the plastic molding or in another location. I wanted to look at the buyers guide but it is still not up on the site yet ! Thanks for the info

 

[jgillott]

It is the wire bundle that comes out of the back doors and in to the cab through the B pillar. It will be between the hinges.

 

[jonny d]

Check out all the front end stuff, u joints, ball joints, track bar, tie rods. The stuff on my truck was worn out when I bought it at 80k, and I had to replace it about every 50k until I put on my hub kit. My truck has 350k on it. I have done the clutch once, the high pressure fuel pump, 1 injector, 2 water pumps, all the front end stuff way too many times, the carrier bearing on the drive shaft twice, and the alternator once. The door wiring got me on all four doors. Inside the little rubber boot that goes from the bad to the door the wires get pinched and cut. Over about 2 years I have to fix the wiring in all the doors.

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

I put a 2003 in the classifieds for a friend. It is in good condition, 89,000 miles. 6 speed manual, dually 4x4.

 

[Sean Gates]

Have an 03 rwd dually six speed manual 341000 trouble free kms...best truck ever! Lots of power and wicked on fuel. Do not get an automatic It’s not worth it. That six speed manual is a cherry!!! As far as the truck...I have not had a single issue mentioned in this forum.

 

[WalterJ]

Keep in mind that even the newest 5.9l is now going to be 11 model years old. Unless you are extremely lucky, you are going to be dealing with some issues simply due to the age of the truck.

Some common areas of concern.

- HVAC Door operation
- TIPM and other electrical/wiring issues. Pay close attention to the back door wiring coming out of the B pillar on the quad cabs. Very common failure area.
- Ball joints and front axle u-joints on the 4x4 trucks.
- Bedside rust over the rear wheels
- Injectors as mentioned above

Also look underneath at the formed steel under the door thresholds. Mine are rusting & fav body shop said that repair is $$$ as it involves rocker panels, etc. I've had rear fender lips repaired, but that's all for rust on mine. Not bad for a Wisconsin truck, eh. Also had "Heater Treater" HVAC door replaced to.
Ditto on the back door wiring, a little tedious for 2 hours, but easy skill wise. Ask for details/pics if you get there. Good luck.

 

[jghflys]

Engine piston ring blowby. Lots of broken rings out there if the truck was worked hard, not just used for daily transportation. If the vapors coming out of the cap and the vent tube are mor than wisps, pass on the truck.

 

[mfurrh55]

07 5.9. 6 speed standard, pretty much trouble free, track bar bushings caused death wobble 164,000 miles, upgraded front end , fixed it put new front axle u joints at same time, put rear u joints in at 170, 000 miles, no injector problems, no door wire problems, did away with dual mass flywheel at 125, 000 miles, overall, best truck out of 3 dodges I've owned, I have 194k on it now. would not buy a 6.7 or a 4th gen. Dodge

 

[EricViviano]

As someone else mentioned, blow by. If you do find a mint 3rd gen 5.9 with under 100,000 miles youll have to pay 25K or more. But it's doable if that's what you really want. Do not buy an automatic.

Unfortunately there are a lot of dishonest people who know something is wrong and try to unload there problem onto someone else.

The 10-12 4th gen's are pretty good. Delete the EGR, tune it, and away you go.

 

[sfpcservice]

I'd get an 07, 06, or 05 in that order. Reason being is if down the road you decide to put a tuner on it, that is the order of best computers these trucks had in case you decide to run a tuner. The 07 and 06 autos can also control an exhaust brake with ecm pins 39 (as cab switch) and 42 (brake relay ground). The 05 auto can control a brake the same way but requires custom tuning to activate it or a standalone controller.

 

[crcr]

If it isn't too far from you, look for a used 3rd Gen in the Southwest or West. No rust on local vehicles here in Southern AZ. I live here, and am second owner of our 04.5, local truck, already had a PacBrake on it. We've had it 5 years now, and only had to do relatively minor expected repairs. It has barely depreciated as prices for clean ones are still very good. It serves our needs and we don't drive it a lot of miles per year, so we plan to continue owning it for a long time.

We have the automatic, and though I would rather have more than 4 speeds, the transmission does its job.