so if i'm looking for an extended cab short bed 12v, it has to be a '98. how good of a chance do i have of finding this? thanks

 

if you are looking for a '98 12valve 4x4 quad cab 5spd that is the "holy grail" of trucks and VERY hard to find

me personally i would go with a 2000-2002 in your price range and get guages FIRST

 

that's what i figured. on the 24v motor, you mentioned that there was a problem with the injector pumps. is there anything that can be done to fix this b/c i'd much rather have a short bed. are the 12v just that much better that i should just get a long bed? thanks

 

It all depends on wether or not you mind spending money on a pump every now and then. Its basically gauranteed that it will go out at some time or another unfortunatley. I would consider the 12 valves to be quite a bit better myself just because of that, but it really all depends on if you mind buying a pump or not. Its your choice.

Eric

 

it seems that just about everybody likes the 12v's alot better so i'm going to look around for one of those. i'll probrably have to get a long bed though. i did find a '99 2500 ctd quad cab short bed 4x4 slt. 1 owner and clean. they want $13,400 for it. sounds like a good deal to me but it's 3 hours away. what do you think? thanks

 

I'll post my 2 cents: I wasn't even in the market for a diesel really and a buddy told me where one was........I went and checked it out and it was a 98 12v short bed 5-speed quad cab. I got on here and found out it is highly sought after and went and bought it. It had 95k on the clock. Body was in good shape, no rust. I paid 14.5K for it and have been very happy with it. I don't know about the new dodges, but the older ones (1994-2002) have a poorly designed steering setup, but there are fixes for this that are reasonably priced. One thing I haven't seen mentioned is the track bar. I would go with this track bar replacement, but there are other fixes as well: http://thurenfabrication.com/stocktb.html

You will also most likely need a steering stabilizer kit you can get from here: http://solidsteel.biz/dss.htm

You will need to do some research on the "killer dowel pin" and fix it asap. In summary, there is a dowel pin inside the front engine cover that can work it's way loose and do some damage. The fix is an oval shaped washer that holds it in place.

One other thing I needed to do was repair the vacuum pump. It is not entirely uncommon for them to leak and you can buy a repair kit for $60 or so.

Some have touched on it and I will try to be more specific: The 96-98 12v 5-speeds have 215hp, 440tq. The mechanical injection pumps are referred to as the p7100's. Through the years, depending on auto or manual and year of production, the p7100 was either 160, 175, 180, or 215hp. What makes the 98 12v so special is that you could get the short bed with the quad cab, updated upholstery, and maybe some other plusses. The quad cab has the rear doors that open. This year's auto came with 180hp, while the manual came with 215. The manuals also came with the dana 80 rear end, while the autos came with the dana 70.

Pitfalls of the auto: if you plan on bombing (better off modified baby), the auto will take some serious cash (up to $5k, depending on hp level you want to go to) to handle a decent power increase. Some guys get by with the stock auto, but in my opinion, they are on borrowed time, and also not realizing the full benefits of their added power. The 5-speed can handle the additional power.......the limit here is the clutch. You can get a southbend heavy duty clutch that will handle 450 hp, 1000 tq for about $1100 plus labor. The main weakness of the 5 speed that some have experienced is the 5th gear nut backing off. There are a few fixes for this. This normally happens due to lugging with a heavy load........1600 rpm or below. If it does happen, you can still drive the truck normally, you just don't have 5th gear until it is repaired.

Some prefer to stay away from a truck that has a gooseneck or 5th wheel hitch in the bed, I view it as one less thing you have to add. These engines were really made to work and one that has been worked could very well be in better shape than one used as a daily driver.........so if the rest of the truck is in good shape, I would not let a hitch in the bed steer me away.

Like was mentioned above, the 53 block had some thin places in the casting that could crack and leak antifreeze, but from what I have read, most who have had problems had the 53 block with a 24 valve........due to different engine harmonics. There are at least a couple on here that have bombed 12v's with the 53 blocks with no problems.

I know it sounds like alot of work on the older truck, but the stuff that I did to mine didn't happen all at once. The steering was the only thing that was sloppy when I got it.......due to the track bar and lack of a steering stabilizer. If I had it all to do over again, I would have gotten the same truck in a heartbeat. I can't imagine going back to a gas burner.

If you do decide to go with the 24 valve, 1998 to 2002, there are some aftermarket suppliers of higher quality vp44's (the 24valve, 2nd generation electronic injection pump). That along with a fuel pressure guage and you should have a much more reliable rig. Anyway, good luck, let us know what you find. Everything I have posted is either from my experience or hours of reading on this forum.

Waylan

 

i don't mind extra work if it's a better truck. i'm used to that. i'm going to put a wanted add on here and see what i can find.

 

also, is there more power available from the 24v? it seems as though more valves = more flow.

 

Not exactly. The 24 valves can get away with the stock turbo for longer than a 12 valve can because they do flow a little better, but the stock injection pump on a 96-98 12 valve will flow quite a bit more than the stock pump on the 24 valve. Really; they will both make way more power than what could ever be streetable, so either one will easily make whatever amount of power you want. Both need bigger turbo's anyway once you add very much.

Eric

 

i found a couple trucks that are a bit out of my price range but i'll take a look at if you say they are good deals. if you could take a look at a few of these for me and tell me what you think that would be great. i'm still looking for a '96-'98 but they aren't exactly easy to find for some reason.

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...dist=19#vdptop

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...ng=&cardist=19

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...ang=&cardist=5

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...ng=&cardist=19

 

I have a 99 24 valve with 147K. I had a problem starting the engine after it sat overnight. The lift pump was replaced with a new Cummins pump but I still had the same problem. I discovered there was a problem with a check valve located in an assembly inside the fuel tank. It was replaced with a fuel pump assembly inside the tank and the lift pump on the engine was removed. So far after a month it starts everytime without a problem.

 

Those are all nice looking trucks, and it is hard to find one you like for cheap, but those all seem overpriced to me. I know sometimes around here they have specials on the new plain jane reg cab 4wd stick or auto trucks for $26,000. I wouldnt pay anything over 24k for a used one unless its just immaculate with no miles hardly at all on it. No way I would give over 20k dollars for a truck with close to 100k miles. It would be worth spending the little extra and getting a brand new truck for that kind of money. You should be able to find a 24v you like for 16-18k in good shape if you ask me. When dads 98 was only about 2yrs old he payed about 22k dollars for it; but it was immaculate, and hadnt been driven/pulled hard at all and only had about 30k miles on it. Not trying to discourage you; thats just how i feel. Good luck

Eric

 

well.. i was looking through the paper and saw an ad for an '01 CTD 2wd long wheelbase with a 6spd for $18500. it turns out to be a dealership. i get down there and the thing is immaculate. 73k miles. i got them to give it to me for $18k out the door indlucing taxes and everything. i haven't bought it yet but i did get them to let me test drive it over night. i have to either return it or buy it tomorrow. i want to give the thing a full inspection tomorrow after school so a list of crap i should look at would be great. if you want to know anything else about it let me know. i spooled it out through all the gears and it never stumbled or anything. it still has a warrenty until the end of this year or i can get an extended one. i think it's a good deal. let me know. thanks alot

 

they told me they were going to replace all 4 balljoints on the front end. never heard of all 4 going out at once but whatever. they said this work would cost $2k and if i wanted to do it myself.. i could have the truck out the door for $16. how about it now? '01 CTD with 73k miles. 6spd manual very clean. runs and drives good. 2wd long bed. thanks

 

$2k is a bit high. I had a local shop out in the middle of nowhere Wyoming do the lower ball joints on the 01 (I just sold yesterday) for $600 including labor. I bought the 97 12-valve in sig for $8,000, cuz the guy's wife wanted it gone. We're putting on a new bed and fuel tanks today. It has less miles on it than the one I sold.