Truck in question: imgur: the simple image sharer 1994 Dodge Ram 2500 turbo diesel 12 valve cummins, 272k miles, manual transmission, 2wd

I come from the world of imports, my daily driver is a fairly modified 95 miata that doubles as a track car. I picked up this truck off craigslist because it was super cheap and I always wanted a diesel, plus it could tow and haul stuff when I needed it. It has some body damage to the bed, but no where important. It's also completely stock besides the stupid wheels.

I picked it up for $2000, inspected it for rust and everything I could think of. It drove great, shifted perfect..seemed to run really well. All the locks and power windows worked, the only issue is that the tires are rubbing. The PO included the original set of wheels which I can hopefully mount back on to get rid of the rubbing, I don't know if you really roll the fenders with all this thick steel.

So now that it's in my possession, I should change the oil and what else? I really don't know much about diesels at all.

 

Hindsight is 20/20. If I had to do it all over again, I would set my timing at 18 and move the fuel plate forward and put a 4" straight exhaust and cold air intake. And leave it at that. The more power you get the more money you spend and the more problems you have. If the truck runs good just do minor work to it. You can nearly double the hp with the stuff I mentioned and not have to upgrade the clutch. I never had an oil leak until I did the mods and as soon as I fix one another pops up. Unless you want to make a drag truck that's all I would do.

 

yeah .... 350 is about all a good tow rig needs .... anything more and you're talking big bucks ...

 

First thing I'd do is make sure the KDP has been taken care of

 

Umm yeah .. KDP will ruin ya quick on a cummins ... Studs if you intend on going for bigger HP numbers ... like over the 3-350 mark .. just good insurance

 

In addition to the KDP, I would also check 5th gear if you are going to use it for a tow rig.

 

Good call ... i missed that it was a 5 spd .