okay heres a toughie, im currently looking for a 1998, 12v, manual, ext. cab ,3500 dually. i would like an SLT Laramie package with fog lamps, clearance lamps, power everything, and AC. i have lots of dealerships, myself and like 4 other ppl on the lookout with no sign of one after 3 weeks.. does anyone know where i can find one or know of one i can buy ideally im only looking to pay about 12,000-15,000 for one mileage isn't too important as long as its clean. if anyone has any clue where i might be able to snag one please share.. PM's are taken if you'd like

 

Took me 3 years to find mine lol.

 

Took me 2 1/2 years to find my Quad Cab 12v auto 4x4 shortbox

Well one that I could afford anyways

 

LOL no kidding, 3 weeks? Weak! I looked on and off for 2 years before I found the right one.

 

You are being pretty picky (not that that is a bad thing) and want a pretty desired truck.

I was not quite as picky (2500, 96+ 12v, white, manual, 4x4, long bed, extended cab) and I got lucky, found one w/o a gooseneck, stock with 100k in 3 days.

3 YEARS, he wins

 

MDLP412....

I know where one sits as we type right now for sale..

-1998 Ram 3500 Quad Cab 4x4 12v 5spd.
-3.54 anti spin
-Flame Red Pearlcoat
-SLT+
-Leather,loaded,heated seats.
-power windows,locks etc.
-Mopar Bedliner-Lund Steps
-100,363 miles
-Am/Fm/CD(I think,LOL,do not rmember for sure)

The truck is being sold by a friend of mine for a family who he is friends with.The owner of this truck has passed on and his daughters are trying to find a good home for it.Its a nice truck,runs and drives smooth.The truck has a some scrapes on the right dually fender and a crack in the fiberglass on the bottom,nothing hateful and can repaired easily.It also has a small dent in the tailgate on the right side,again nothing major.The drivers seat is worn and tore at the seam from the owner sliding in and out as he was a large man with bad legs.Its missing one stainless wheel simulator and could use some new sneakers.The exterior paint is very nice and shine well and it has no rust in the doors at all.

They are asking 14k or best offer,so if its something you may want to pursue drop me a pm with a way to call you and I will fill in with anything I can to help you.The truck is located here in York,PA about 5 minutes from where the Harley plant is at.I was going to but it but I want a automatic as I do not need another 5spd 12v as my knees are shot and I am tired of rowing my truck now.Let me know if I can help.........Andy

 

I just did a quick look. Here's how to get an idea of what's out on the market right now, as far as '98 12v is concerned:

go to autotrader.com

Select Dodge in the make field and enter your ZIP

Fill out the form as desired, then under year range put 1998 to 1998

click "View more search criteria"

Choose the options you're looking for (diesel should be one of these choices)

Under keywords put "12"

The 1998s with a 12v that are within your search criteria come up!

 

I would just search under the diesel key word. If you go 12v, you may be excluding trucks that aren't fully described. I know when I look for trucks online, most don't say 12v if they are. I try to see a pic of the door badge, or engine pics if they have it. Most of the trucks I see listed as 12vs are usually priced up since the owners know what they have.

 

Also don't believe the door badges alone, I have run into a couple that had 24v emblems on the passenger side and 12v on the driver side. I have heard that late in the 12v production they could have ended up with 24v emblems on at least one side.

 

You'd hope that they would have better QC than that. But I'd still believe it.

 

There are alot more mid year quirks with the late mid year 98's than just the funky door badges.I have seen the Sport models with Non-Sport door badges on one side and Sport trucks with chrome rear bumpers.

Other quirks that I have seen or know about due to mine being a late Dec 97 build truck are...
-The wrong P-Pump installed for a non-egr motor.It was found when we had the pump on the stand and my 913 pump had the incorrect barrels and plungers in for a non egr built truck.
-Incorrect oil pan for a 12v by them using the newer 24v oil pans on the motors.This was found when mine was changed after I had a correct pan chromed for my motor to replace the one which had the drain plug area compromised.
-Crossmember below the motor was changed for the 24v motor and the 12v installed.That was found recently when we went to change out a failed A/C compressor and the guide holes in the crossmember did not allow access to the compressor bolts as the were higher than what the compressor was mounted.
-12v trucks with exhausts that utilized a resonator instead of a cataylic convertor.The 24v motors had resonators instead of cats.

Those are just some of the strangeness which Ma Mopar did while in the mid year switch......Andy

 

Unless you really need a quad cab get a '97 instead.
Better truck and a lot more are available.

 

Please, inform me how a '97 is a "better truck".

 

The '98 was supposed to have a 24 valve in it but it wasn't ready yet so it ended up with a 12 valve in it. Makes for different engine components just to make it fit plus squeezed in tighter makes servicing harder.
Basically the truck was designed around the wrong engine.
I've worked on all years of these trucks but now refuse to work on '98 12 valves, not worth the PITA.

 

Huh? Where there weren't any engine bay changes between '97 and '98, were there?