What to look for
 

Hey guys Ive always drove fords and im pretty familiar with them but i came a accross a dodge pick up for sale that im thinkin about possibly buying and i need to know what all i should look for, its a 1995 Dodge 2500 12 Valve Cummins, automatic trans, 4x4, 256,XXX miles, i looked at it today and it started up after sitting for a few months, sounded really good, as far as i know the only mod thats been done is a straight pipe. im going to drive it this weekend, what are somethings with these trucks i should keep my eye out for, i heard the transmissions in these trucks arent the strongest, and a very clean truck, bed is a little used being that it is a farm truck. just as far as the motor, tranny all that stuff what should i look for

I would look under the hood and see what has been changed from stock and how well it was redneck engineered, if at all, I am a big fan of having a vehicle in stock condition, I am not opposed to improving performance but not at the cost of longevity ,

normal wear stuff is front end stuff , ball joints tie rod ends and hubs, take a look at the tires and see how they are wearing to get a grip on what might be a issue, cambered worn tires are a sure sign of worn ball joints but not always the entire story, extreme wear on inner or outer edges can be a sign of tie rods being bad and total toe being out of whack

u joints are fairly easy to spot, front axle u joints are a failure point
checking the fluids in the diffs is something I do when looking at a prospective vehicle I am interested in, if anything it lets the seller know you have some game and wont be fooled easily

trans fluid, smelling burnt or very black in color is a sure sign of neglect if its a auto
oil will obviously be black but if it has a diesel smell it could be a issue, air filter

it is true there are some issues with the 47 trans but they are small issues and easily and relatively cheap to fix if u have a little but of mechanical skill and google
during a test drive, check for for slipping in the TC, or in any single gear

this is a good start on what to look for , im sure others will have something to add
good luck
scott:hellox:

A buddy that owns one and knows what he would watch out for.
:hellox: