Ok so im getting a '96 2500 2wd auto ctd (257000 km on er) as soon as the used car dealer stops dragging their feet on the repairs for the safety inspection and get her uprighted! i have a few questions, and i hope i am asking in the right part of the forum! im sure lots of u will tell me if im not

The longer i have to wait for this friggen truck the more things i get thinking i should do to it.

I've heard the auto trans is a little fragile in these trucks. I have owned several vehicles with "fragile transmissions" (99 crown vic police interceptor put 150,000km on it, '00 z28 put 90,000km on it) and never had an issue, and i tend to have a heavy foot but i change fluid before it gets sh@tty. trans fluid looked and smelled cherry in the truck and it shifted fine. would a shift kit and or a oil to air cooler be worthwhile investments to keep the trans working fine? also how do you drain torque convertor? i will likely wait till i change all the other fluids/filters before i do a trans svc as fluid seems so good.

I was told by a buddy of mine about the killer dowel pin, i guess it happend to a guy he works withs father and his took option three and went between the gears and cobbled the engine. i have no way of knowing if it has already been adressed and dont want to tear the front cover off for no reason. is it possible to use a borescope through the oil fill or something to inspect the little kamikaze bastard to see if its already been fixed?

Also i live in Canada and it gets cold here, i Cant plug the truck in while im at work, would a lower vicosity oil help cold weather starting? im pretty sure the grid heater is working but i know this isnt always enough. i am thinking of putting an emergency bypass in for the heater so i can use ether (IN MODERATION) in a situation when cycling the heater doesent work. I know people are going to tear my head off for saying that i associate with the ether bunny, but imo anything goes on the side of the road, and its better then walking home!

Also i am thinking of removing the fuel solenoid and replacing it with a mechanical "t" handle/cable in the dash. There is a little peckerhead in my town that likes joyriding in chryslers, i know he is little cause everytime i got called out to tow neons, intrepids, durangos, that were recovered stolen the seat was all the way forward. im sure he would not figure out a handle on the dash that said "vent" (or i guess i could just pull the seat fuse so he cant reach the pedals) usually they steal silverados, sierras, trailblazers, envoys, escalades here but if it was an older chryco it was always this guy, and it happened enough to concern me.

anyway im rambling here sorry, thanks for your help!