Dwayne N

Hey All,

Great forum! I'm going to be buying my 1st diesel, hopefully in the next couple of weeks. I'm looking for a 94-98 12v 4x4/auto ext cab/club cab and I'm wondering what specific things I should be looking for or at in my hunt.

I have one in particular I'm looking at with low miles (1997, 2500 ext cab, auto, 143k, 1 owner unless you include the dealer, SLT model) everything looks pretty stock as far as I can tell. They're asking 10K. It's a couple hundred miles away, so I haven't been able to take a good look at it yet.

What I've been told by the owner is that everything works fine, but she looses a lot of power when climbing up hill. I suspect tranny issues???

Anything else that you think I should look at that may be an issue would be helpful.

If it is the tranny, any thoughts on what I should consider for a decent rebuild? What should the average cost to rebuild be?

I appreciate all thoughts and suggestions.

Hodge

It sounds like a stock 12v with an auto. With comparably low horsepower and torque, and a heavy truck, a stock truck will struggle on hard climbs. You may have it checked, but it isn't unusual.
You need to spend TIME studying this forum- your question is a loaded one, and very hard to answer. The best way to know what you are looking at is to know what you are looking at. Read other posts (your question gets asked all the time), and not only learn the ins and outs of these trucks, but learn what models/options suit your needs, and what doesn't. And, the more you know, the more you can discern if the truck you are looking at is worth the money.
No way, in my area, would I pay 10 grand for a 97. Even if it is spotless and hardly used, that is high to me. To you, and in your region, it may not be. That is one reason why it can be difficult to get an unbiased answer. Another reason is that we all have our opinions, and not all of them are unbiased. So, again, the best way to answer your question is for you to educate yourself. Even if it means waiting a little while longer- you don't want to waste/lose money, and you don't want to make a decision based on someone elses preferences. This forum, given enough time, will answer all your questions, and then some. It is a great place. But, we can't answer your question in one post. Good luck, and read on.

Load Hauler 04

10K is pretty steep unless the truck is spotless. 7 - 8k range is more like it. I just bought a 2001 with 140K on the clock and paid 8K for it. I live in SE arizona.

patdaly

10K is out of line, I just sold Brownie for 5800 with 132K on the clock.

If you get him down to 8K for a REALLY clean one, then I might consider it if the Trans checks out.

97's were bad about KDP, and the Automatic is problematic unless you build it right with a good VB and Converter, figure 28-4500.

That being said, I love the 97's better than any other, last year of the old interior, and first year of the Hydraboost brakes........

Look in the classifieds here, there was at least 1 nice 97...

Dwayne N

Thanks all! Learning more every day. These rigs are a bit different than my 73 IH. The search continues.