yellowhemi

My daughter needs another truck. She pulls a horse trailer and has killed her F150. I found a 2001 SLT quad cab, long bed, 2wd, Cummins with 132,000 miles on it. White with charcoal interior. Very good condition, asking $7500.00. Is the 01 a good reliable year to own? I have only had 3rd gens myself. Thanks for any advice.

dodgehotshot01

I Purchased An O1 Same Truck With 200,000 On The Od, Mine Has 6 Speed Man.got It For Hot Shot Work. The 2nd Gens.were Recommened To Me By A Cummins Cert. Mechanic Due To The Reliability Of The Motor. I Did Have The Fuel System Redone Except For Injectors(their Next) And I Did Have Some Tranny Issues But It Did Have A Lot Of Miles..except For That So Far The Thing Has Started Every Time. I Have Driven It As Far As Rock Springs Wy With Out Fail(i Reside In Ok). I Would Have It Looked Over And Find Out Who Abused It Prior. Got Mine For $6200

imbodie

Great price, I paid 10k for mine with 240,000 miles on it....
HOWEVER.... I don't think I'd own a diesel that wasn't a 4x4, you can get stuck on wet grass with a 2wd.... maybe not while towing a trailer.
-Tim

dodgeguy71

That sounds like a great price to me. I did a kelly bluebook check on mine(2002) and it's worth $11-12,000, sad cause I paid $22k for it.

96_12V

Sorry to hear that, in 7.5 years of owning the truck in my signature, I've never been stuck in it, and I prefer the handling of the lower 2wd unit overall. However my next rig will be a 4wd.

Now - to the original post. This isn't a bad year, check to see if the rear brakes are drums or (hopefully) disk brakes...the disks indicate it's a later 2001.5 model. It's a vast imporvement over the marginal rear drums these second gens came equipped with.

Unfortunetly, there's a dark side to these 24-valve units, and it's spelled VP-44 or more specifically Lift Pump. When the lift-pump dies, and it WILL, without warning, the electronically-controlled VP-44 will soon run out of fuel (and it's lubricant) and sieze up. When this goes, it's about 1100 for the part alone, not to mention the possibility of dealing with a stranded veichle. Consider that a simple needle-type fuel pressure gauge is required and needs to be monitored closely. Any deviation from the norm (do a search for this) and the lift pump needs to be changed at once.

Finally, the 47RE automatic isn't able to handle this engine, and will require rebuilt, if it's not been done already. They can be built to take the torque of this engine, but even a "standard" rebuilt transmission for this runs over $4k.

I guess what I'm saying is that's not a bad truck for the price, I would take it to a reputable diesel tech to have it looked over carefully. There may be a reason for the price being what it is. Good luck...

Fern

I think $4K is a bit overstated. I have found a "built" rebuilt trans for under $3K installed. You can find a name brand transmissions for around 3K not including installation and core charge. Just do your research before you go down that road. And yes the VP44 is something to be aware of. Other than that they are solid trucks. Definatly a good deal.

dozer12216

Price sounds reasonable for what you describe. Check for codes (key 3 times on and read odometer) and have lift pump fuel pressure checked immediatelly.

yellowhemi

Thanks for the advice, I will get it checked out.

johnh

i'm sorry for the highjack, but i have never been stuck

Junk Man

You will need to install gauges & upgrade the fuel system (FASS, AirDog or??) and perhaps fix the front end. I downloaded the 01 FSM somewhere but don't remember the link. I don't know about suspension differences between 2 & 4 wheel but Gauges, Thuren track bar, adapter bracket, ball joints, steering box, & DSS Brace were not inexpensive. It does pass cars when going uphill loaded. $7500 seems like a good price but check kbb.com & autotrader etc.

yellowhemi

KBB is giving it $11K

nkennedy

Seems like a good price to me. I have a 01.5 with 103Kmiles, and wouldn't sell it for anywhere near $7.5K.

vrj

I've got a 2001.5 4x4 and love it. I bought it used with 82K miles and it runs strong. I would ask the current owner to pull a service report on the vehicle from Dodge/Chrysler. This is somewhat helpful in regards to the service work that was done on it (assuming the prior owner took the truck to the dealer for repair work).

I took mine to the dealer after I purchased it and was asking questions in regards to the truck and the service tech. printed me a service report on the truck. I'm not sure if they are supposed to give these out but I got one on my truck.

Listed in the report, my VP-44 was replaced at 78K miles and also an axle seal was replaced not to long after. Also listed was ALL the info. on what my truck came with (i.e. paint code, front/rear axle, battery size, transmission ect..) Awesom info. !!! I've made about 20 copies so in case I lost the paperwork, I'll have copies for future reference.

Very good info. to know but it would have been nice to know this prior to purchasing the truck.

513yj

bring them 2wds to da U.P. and you better not get off a salted paved road.

wcbcruzer

The 47RE is really not that bad. As long as you upgrade the valvebody and add a billet TC, it can be pretty stout.