Hey guys New to the forum,

Today i just bought my first 12 valve. I have been looking for a while for a clean low mile, Ext cab long box. so when one came up for sale in my area i jumped on it.

Details:
1997 Ext cab long box
5 speed
laramie SLT
pretty stock, has fuel plate upgrade springs in rear, exhaust brake and intake but other than that shes really clean.
Only has 150Kmiles (254k kms)
Sitting on 3rd gen wheels with newer 35' mud terrains
came with about 2 grand worth of parts and spare set of rims and tires and stock exhaust
Truck is camper ready


I paid 10K US (13K canadian)
Truck drove awesome, only 2 previous mature owners and the second one was a mechanic
do you guys think its a good deal?





Just want to get your guys thoughts and maybe advice on what to work on next on look for.

thanks,
JF

Here are some photos

 

That's a nice clean truck

 

Thanks man

I picked it up last night,

the seller had it for 10 years and looked like he was going to shed a tear when I was leaving.

She drives perfect ,pulls really hard and I haven't found one thing wrong with truck.

I'm pretty happy with it

JF

 

You said the PO was a mechanic, so the likelihood of him killing the killer dowel pin is high... But a couple hours of work and a $35.00 replacement seal is cheap insurance.

I would recommend that you pull the front timing cover off your truck to see if the killer dowel pin has been tabbed off.

 

Sorry i should of mentioned what we work has been done. The killer dowel pin has been done. He recently did the front end and the clutch has maybe 20K on it. Heavy duty shocks and overload leafs in rear. Ive been driving it for 3 days now and it runs amazing.

I'm thinking i don't want to mess up this truck too much. I want to keep it reliable.
Only things i'm considering doing is maybe 3gsk and advance the timing a little.

I want this truck to last me a really long time.

 

May as well do 4K, it doesn't mean it'll spin that high and it doesn't cost any more. With the "BC" and all the KMs in your post I assume you're up in Canada? The only reason not to advance the timing would be cold starts, but mine is timed to the moon and fires right up every morning as long as it's above freezing, and it still starts fine well below 0F as long as it's plugged in. That said, you don't want to advance it too much if you do lots of driving around town and not much on the highway, as you'll time it right out of your use window. I drive mine almost all day every day mostly highway, if I didn't I'd be down around 17°-19°.

If it still has the original exhaust manifold, get a three piece one before the stocker cracks your head.

 

Thanks for your input, Yes i live in Canada.
I live on the coast right up from WA state and it rarely gets below freezing here but if it does i would plug it in.

I will check the exhaust manifold and price one out.

As for driving habits, i will be commuting to work 5 days a week i drive about 20-25 miles each way.

thanks

 

Well if that commute is mostly highway, bumping the timing will be well worth it. Not to mention timing can slip over time, and it always retards not advances. I've seen some trucks as old as yours that have slipped so much they'll barely run. That said, it's more about use than age, so yours is probably still spot on.
I always plug mine in at night if the temp will be below like, 45°F. Not because it's necessary, but because then it purrs like a big kitten from the second I hit the key, and starts making heat a lot sooner. But that's just me.

 

My 20 mile commute is 80% back road going about 50mph and the rest is sometimes really bad traffic. The truck currently starts and runs great idle around 750-800. I'm getting around 15-16 mpg city and just under 20 highway. one thing I've been researching online is fuel additives . Like I said its my first 12 valve and looking at all the threads online only confuses me more . Some say put 2 stroke oil some say ATF others buy additives and some swear by using nothing. any suggestions ?

Thanks

 

In a 12V? No. You could change your oil and pour the old stuff in the tank and it would be perfectly happy. I tried using Howe's Diesel Treat once, ran a whole bottle through over the suggested mileage and my mpg went down. Newer diesels benefit from additives, these... not so much. That said, half a bottle of Lucas break in oil with every oil change isn't a bad idea. These things love the zinc.