Hi everyone,
I'm new to the forums, well at least posting here, and I'm looking at getting a 96-98 Dodge 3500 DRW for towing. I've never had a diesel truck before so I've been doing a lot of reading about them and it seems that a 2nd gen Cummins would probably be my best choice. I like to work on cars but I don't have much knowledge other than problems I have fixed on my cars over the past few years. I've read that the 2nd gen is mechanical and one of the simplest and most durable engines ever so I'm leaning towards that. The problem I've found is that where I'm at (eastern North Carolina) they are still pretty expensive for one without 300k+ miles. So I'm looking for advice on them like: what mileage should I look for? Is 250k+ too high to consider for around $8k-9k? Should I stay away from trucks that already have mods on them? What is the towing capacity on them (from what I've read it is only rated around 10,000 lbs)? Should I consider a newer truck like 03-04 since they are only around $3k-4k more?
Any input would be helpful.

Thank,
Nick

 

I have owned a5.9 04 for several years andI pull an RV and equipment trailer, I have never had a problem pulling anything up to 12000lbs. mine is a 2500 short bed 4by4. I belive cummins is the best engine around......