evan4434

I have a 2009 2500 with a 5.7 hemi 37K miles, and a dealer wants to trade me straight across for there 2004.5 3500 srw cummins fully loaded truck 76K miles. I have owned many Dodge cummins trucks a 2002, 2004.5, and a 2008 the 2004.5 had I liked the most. This hemi truck has a zero issues, and they are very cheap to maintain. I only pull a 6K lbs fifth wheel now, so the hemi does fine. When I bought my 2004.5 brand new I didn't hear of to many problems, now since a lot of these have miles on them a see a lot of threads about injector issues. How concerned should I be?

TexasCTD

If you don't really need it, then you probably won't come out ahead by driving the diesel. Diesel is more expensive anyway.

If you want a truck you can drive for the long long haul, or if you plan to upgrade RVs, or if you just want a diesel because of the "cool" factor, then go ahead and do the trade.

I would closely check the blue book values of each on their own merits though. The dealer wouldn't trade you unless they thought they were going to make some money on the deal.

I'm very happy with my 04.5. It's been a great truck for 180,000 miles. Be prepared to spend some money on the front end with higher miles but that's probably true with the hemi too.

..

C Schomer

I've never traded down so I'd have to think about that awhile. The CTD MIGHT get enough better mpg to offset the price of diesel. Plus you have a problem free truck and you can't tell about the other one. There has ALWAYS been something wrong with every used vehicle I bought! My 03 only had 25k miles and the rev. synchro went, shortly afterwords. Good thing for 7/70 warranty! I really doubt if I would trade, just to tow 6k unless I towed a LOT. Then the recoup in fuel savings would probably be better. It's more of a personal choice... how badly do you want another CTD? I'd check out the book price and the 04.5 really closely! Craig

evan4434

They retail book (KBB) out about the same, that is why I am very nervous about trading seems like something is up. They are giving me a bumper to bumper warranty with this truck for $650 which they retail at $2,000 2 years 24K miles. So it would be my truck and $650 out the door. Plus my wife does not want me to trade since the truck that I have now has had zero issues. So if this thing breaks down a lot I will never hear the end of it. My previous 2008 6.7 had a TON of issues, and I had it for 3 years because I could not get rid of it.

C Schomer

I would be all over that warranty but... When mama ain't happy - ain't nobody happy!

evan4434

Oh, I know I have been trying to sell her for 3 days now. That is why I am dead meat if I get this, and it does end up being a problem truck.

whiteeye42

Something sounds fishy to me it make me wonder why they would discount the bumper to bumper so much sounds like they are trying to unload it as fast as they can i don't think i would touch it but that is just me

evan4434

Ok I looked over the truck again today, and have a few questions. When I started it cold it idled up after a bit, but it kind of looped almost like it was missing a bit. The test drive went fine except for some slight drivetrain noise. I brought my thermal gun with me to measure the temps on the exhaust manifold, and here were the results from front to back 208, 208, 210, 208, 265, 285. Why were the back two so much hoter? Do you thing an injector is starting to go out? I also drove the truck about 20 miles at 65 mph then let it idle for about 3 minutes, and checked the tranny level it was about 1.5 inches above the second dot and a light pink/brown color.

Needless to say I did not get the truck, so I could think it over more. I ask the dealer when was the last time the fuel filter was changes, and he did not I know.

Any thoughts?

slacker 24/7

i would think hard about that swap, which it sounds like you are, that ctd might cost ya more day to day than your current 5.7 i had a ford 2000 f250 v-10 4x4 that was probably the best truck i have ever owned.. zero issues up to 200,000 miles when i had the tranny go out, other than fuel, that truck cost very little to operate, i sold it and bought my current 07 5.9 i love it but have spent more on maintaince than I would hoped to in the 7 months i have owned it.. drive shaft balance, u-joints, injector replacement and i still have a door wind noise that i need to fix, if you are happy with your truck and you know its history and it does what ya need it to do, why swap ?

evan4434

I really love the 2003 - 2005 cummins Dodges, but this hemi is darn cheap to keep on the road. Almost no issues, and VERY low maintenance. Right now the deal is down to $650 they want plus my trade. I told them to do it straight across, and I will do it. I know what you are saying about those Ford V10's I looked at one when I got the hemi, but the MPG on those trucks is very bad. The best I could get on my test drive was 11 mpg I get 15 to 16 mpg with the hemi otherwise I would have bought the Ford V10 which was a 2008. I really like those years of the Fords to. When the heck is Ford going to put a ecoboost V8 in a superduty truck? I would be all over that.

Grit Dog

Not knowing everything about the the 2 trucks, I assumed Laramie for the 04 since you said it was loaded and SLT for the 09, both qc/4wd, the 09 actually books for about $3k more. Given the popularity of CTD's I'd expect the gap on value to close a little, but it doesn't make sense.
Why would the dlr want to give away a hot selling ctd for a gasser of "equal" value?
2 reasons. 1. Either they think they have someone on the hook for your 09 that is willing to pay a premium. Or 2. there's something wrong with the 04 that they think will make it tough to sell.
JMO, walk away. Car dealers are never out to do you a favor. Sometimes they mess up in the customer's favor, but it's not intentional and not often.

evan4434

Well I thought it over and if the truck is still there Wednesday I am going to get it. It comes with a 2 year 24K bumper to bumper warranty, so I guess if I have issues it will be covered. Final deal is my truck and $653 wish me luck, but I really want another 5.9 ctd and this is the best deal so far.

C Schomer

Luck!

EDR

Another thought, that I didn't see mentioned, would be to have the CTD checked out by an independent shop. I've had all my used cars checked out before I've bought them. For gassers it's usually $100-$200 for the inspection, but I'm sure a diesel would be more. I think it's money we'll spent, especially since it has saved me from buying a couple of lemons.

Also, what kind of warranty is it - factory or aftermarket? I would be cautious about some of these aftermarket warranties - as they say, e sure to check the fine print? And while you may get a warranty that should cover the cost of parts/labor, don't forget the downtime. Will they give you a loaner or will you be on your own?

Just a few thoughts. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

SOhappy

If you were going to keep either truck for awhile the CTD will depreciate at a much slower rate. In 5-10 years it'll be worth twice what the Hemi will.

I paid $28k for my 2003 new out the door and sold it last year for $18.5k. A comparable Hemi was $24k at the time and last year they were going for about $11k.

People say you pay too much for the diesel option up-front, but it actually pays you back over time compared to a gasser.