i am getting rid of my ford f350 after owning it since new. i was fortunate to have one of only a few good trucks that had no problems (except a turbo), but i just cant get over the whole "who knows if it'll last" thought. now that the warranty is up i have convinced myself to get rid of it and come back to dodge. i am looking for either a 2004 or 2005 2500 or 3500 srw lwb crew cab with a manual trans. i have a few questions though before i commit. was the 6 speed the only manual made in these years? i have seen some adds that state a "5 spd". also what should be avoided or looked at? like any known problems on these years that i should be aware of? thanks in advance.... j

 

Six speed have been on the trucks since at least 2001. I don't know of any major problems on these trucks. About the only thing I would avoid is the auto tranny . Flame suit on!

 

Nothing major, but major may be subjective. Many will have worn ball joints, shocks, and/or u joints. I think there were some lift pump problems, but that may have been earlier models. Some are prone to DW. A few may have have had an injector leak and more or less filled the crankcase with fuel before it was noticed.

Otherwise its the typical wear and tear, accident, under water recovery issues you always deal with.

 

'03-'04 manual trans. could either be a 5-speed (standard output) or 6-speed (H.O. engines only). '04.5-early '05's were all 6-speed NV5600's (no more S.O. engines).. '05-up are G56 6-speeds. got it?

 

Thanks for teh clarification. I forgot about the standard output engines - there were that many of them (outside of CA that is) were there?

 

See them around here (PA) once in a while.. most are H.O. 6-speeds though. Also, J., if you're on the highway at interstate speeds a lot, you may want to look for a NV5600 truck due to the lower 6th gear the G56 has

 

also forgot to mention, '04's do not have a cat. or 3rd injection event.. these305/555 engines tend to get better fuel mileage. '04.5-up trucks have a cat/3-rd event and generally get slightly less fuel mileage, but have a little more power. Any year, you should probably upgrade your lift pump.. especially if your're doing any perf. mods. Very happy with my truck the past 3 yrs... just wish I could put the drivetrain in a F-350 like yours

 

Me Too!

Ideal Truck: Cummins ISB 5.9/NV5600/NP271 (manual T-Case)/11.5 American Axle W/ F350 CC COACHWORK

The only thing I wish my drivetrain had was manual Hubs up front so the front axle was not spinning all the time.

I keep hearing how the pre 2004.5s get better milage because of the lack of a 3rd injection event. Don't know, but on my truck in the summer I get 23 MPG on teh highway (at 65 mph) & 18 in town. And that's w/ the meaty 315s it has on

 

Mark_H.. you goin' by the overhead or hand calc? Just wondering 'cause the best I could get w/my 245's was 19.5 mpg/all highway. With the 35" MT's, my best was around 19 mpg/all highway hand calc. Sorry didn't mean to hijack the thread!

 

No. In fact, I have been keeping track of ALL the fuel that has ever been put into my truck so there is no fill up error. The attached graph MPG is all based on hand calculations. The red line is the actual calculation for that tank, and the black line is a rolling 4 sample average (but still based on the hand calculated values). In summer of '06 I was averaging 21 mpg with five tanks above 22 mpg. I'm pretty happy with that - Not bad for a 4X4, '610' w/ 315s on it! See the attached graph!

 

Kind of long but heres a post I foundhttps://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...njection+event

What to check: Put it up on a rack and look at it from bottom to top looking for any obvious abuse or leaks. Check service records if he has them. The auto transmission fluid and filter should have been changed at every 30K miles. What were oil change intervals? Has differential fluid been changed in both units? What warranty work has been performed if any? Does engine have most current flash (look on radiator cross member for update sticker). Look at oil dipstick and smell it. Make sure it is just oil, no diesel smell. Best way would be to take an oil sample for oil analysis to check for any unusual wear metals, since you might not know 1st or 2nd owner's maintenance history. What is fuel mileage in town and on hi-way. Typically mileage should run somewhere between ~14 mpg to almost 20mpg on hi-way. This really varies depending on driver style and terrain, tires, etc. However if its in the low 10 - 15 range it may be one of the more thirsty engines.

Weak Points: Does it still have stock lift pump? If so, its getting up there in mileage at 70k miles. Some fail early, some go well past 100K. Check U-Joints for play and tie-rod ends. Being an auto, it is not DC approved for an exhaust brake. I tow 10,000 lbs and there are times I wish I had an EB decending long or steep grades. But with tow-haul and good trailer brakes you can manage it just fine if you don't allow speed to build up on those type of decents. BTW, 2006 was first year for factory approved EB on the auto.

Take it out and drive it for a while to get it warmed up. How does it shift? Any unusual vibrations at Hi-way speed. Make sure it goes into 4 wd easily. Try out everything.

That's pretty much all I can think of off the top of my head. All in all, the 2004 models were pretty solid. At least mine has been. FYI - I bought mine new in Oct. 2004 and it has 42k miles on it now and has been problem free except for an initial leaky hydro-boost pump that was repaced in first 100 miles.

 

I would look for a truck that has doesn't have a plastic intercooler.

 

well i am looking for a 6 speed manual for sure. i had a 2002 with an auto and blew up the tranny at about 24,000 miles with just an edge ez box and 4" exhaust... lift pump failed at 22,000 and again at 26,000 along with the ip which was replaced under warranty then upgraded to a fass system... all in all i liked the truck but needed a bigger cab and didnt like the local dodge dealers so i went with ford. i have had good luck with ford, but still cant trust the engine.... literally everyone i know with a 2003-2005 ford has had problems with it and 3 of my friends have had their trucks lemon lawed. i know the cummins has a great track record, but i have been away for a while so wanted some opinions on the 2004-2005's.