I am selling my truck soon due to the fear of something else tearing up... The truck has had way too many problems for my likings.

I found a 1998 12v dually with 186000 on the clock, 5 spd, VERY clean, rust free, one small dent on the fender, but other than that, it is very clean looking. the only problem, it is 4 hours away and i havent been able to go check it out yet. It is a dealership and they are asking $12,900 for it, but I might be able to bring it down some. Is this a fair price for the truck, or should I be cautious, or what?

Never owned a cummins, but I've heard all the hype about them, especially 12v's.

if i do go for a test drive, what should i check for? what were the common problems for this year? need to know as much info as i can before wasting gas on the drive to go see it.

heres the link, check it out first! Shook Auto

 

Sounds fair. Is it 4WD? I've seen them go for more than that around here if they're clean and tight. If it's the extended cab with suicide rear doors and the 99+ interior (which is a good bet, I haven't seen many that aren't) and the 12V/5spd, then it's pretty much the holy grail of these trucks. They're almost impossible to find this old with that mileage and not be rusting along the bottom of the cab/doors/fenders, so if it really is rust free then it's a rare one indeed and has been exceptionally well taken care of.

Other known issues are either few or too trivial to mention, and none are really a deal breaker. Main thing is the killer dowel pin, which a quick search should net you a host of explanation for if you need it. They odds are slim that the dealer will know if it's been addressed, but it's not a huge deal if it hasn't, you'll just want to get it taken care of. Once that's set, a properly maintained 12V should still have most of it's life ahead of it with those miles.

The other big one is a wandering steering. If it's goes down the road nice and straight with minimal focus required, you're ahead of the game. If not, it can either be because of worn front end components (mileage is getting about right for it) or the inherent flaws in the design. The steering box is mounted to a flexible member, so over time it can start to move as the frame gets tired. If it hasn't yet, you can nip it in the bud with a reinforcement kit for a couple hundred bucks. Hell, it should be done either way, but if it goes too long without being addressed it can damage the steering box, which isn't huge money, but it isn't cheap either. So if it feels like there's excessive play in the steering over say, 35-40mph, you should be able to run the price down a bit because despite what they'll say about how normal it is for these trucks, it should be fixed and it's not free. You DON'T want them to offer to sell it to you "fixed" for the same price. It could be as simple as adjusting the setting on the steering box, or it could be anything from worn rod ends to a bad center link to the pitman arm to the worm gear in the box itself- and chances are whatever they replace won't be the problem, you'll still have to figure it out yourself and it'll be better to keep as many hundreds in your pocket to do so as possible.

That all being said, prices aren't necessarily valid from state to state, but if I saw a rust free, stock (a.k.a. "not whupped on") 12V/5spd 4WD ex-cab dually with the 99+ interior and suicide rear doors anywhere near $12K, I would buy it in a heartbeat.

 

thank you a ton for the info! hopefully i can go up there this weekend and check it out. i believe it DOES have the 99 interior, although ive never seen the 99+ interiors, check out the link i posted if you are curious! id love to have this versus my 6 LEAKER... hopefully they are willing to trade for 1k + my truck which seems fair to me since mine has exact same milage, decent body, and 5 years newer...

 

Def looks to be a clean truck. It does have the 24v though. You could always p-pump it😊

 

so if thats the first year of the 24v, then should i be cautious? cause the first year or 2 of everything seems kinda bad.. or was there not many differences? can i still do the mods like fuel plate and stuff?

 

98.5 and up is 24v but the first part of the year is 12v. all depends when its made. if it is a 24v look at the cast number on the block. the 53 block will blow a hole in the side of the block. and as for price it all depends on condition and how much you want the truck. i paid $8k for my 12v 5spd flatbed but its got its issues im fixing. id say if you can get it for $10500 to $11500 its good. and thats only if its 4wd. if its 2wd you can get those for around 6-8k in VA

 

Yeah, the 24V is far, far more common around here. Still a good truck, and still hard to find clean ones, but not quite the same grassroots free power potential.

 

and the famouse vp44 problem!

 

Yeah, I think you meant "notorious"

 

I wouldnt shy away from a 24v. The biggest issue with most vp failures is the owners neglecting the fuel supply system. When you buy a 24v the first thing you need to check is the fuel pressure from the lift pump going to the vp 44. If the fuel easily drops below 5psi the lift pump needs to be replaced with a aftermarket lift pump like a fass, air dog, or raptor.

And the most important gauge that you need to get with a vp truck is a fuel pressure gauge. And one those trucks i like to see no more than 20psi and no less than 10psi. Even though most people say you want to see no less than 5psi. Even at 5 psi you can still cause damage because the amount of fuel returning through the pump is not enough to properly lubricate and cool the electronics.

On my 2001 I took it over 600hp with the original stock HO VP with 170,000 on it. And it had seen 0 fuel pressure a lot before i got my fuel supply issue figured out "this isn't recommended to try" .