Howdy Gang! I’ve been thinking of picking up a tow rig and trailer. I’ve tinkered with the idea for a long time, but never pulled the trigger. Ive done a fair bit of research and have a bit of experience with older trucks, but would love some insight
I’m looking at stuff in the 13-18k range (for the truck), needs to be 4x4, and in running condition. I’m not spooked by manual transmissions or a lot of miles if the maintenance records are there.
I’ve been eyeing some clean 2000-2004 Dodge trucks but I have flashbacks of working at the parts store and selling steering components for these when they were 3 and 4 years old.
Anyhow, what am I missing?
Mine is a 2004 3500, with the 24 valve common rail Cummins, with the NV5600.
The engine and transmission are the best things about the truck, by far. I’ve towed a full 14K up to our place with it more than a few times, and the sketchiest part is always tying stuff down in the trailer—not the way it tows. Not just pulls, but braking, weight distribution, etc…. There’s just no stress to moving a big load with that truck. 100°F and going over Raton Pass? Just zips right up with the fan clutching and declining and the temp gauge hovers at the same spot.
That’s the good. The bad is EVERYTHING ELSE. You noted the steering: The factory “Y style” steering Dodge tried in that era is absolute trash. Just an absolute death wobble machine. As in: stop immediately, not even time to pull over death wobble. Good news is the fix is easy: Put in newer steering relay and tie rods, because they went back to tried and true T style setup.
The whole truck is controlled through a computer under the hood that is exposed to moisture and goes bad. When the TIPM goes, you suddenly don’t get left turn signals, or your horn just starts honking in the middle of the night, or any other number of electrical gremlins. Also, can’t get a new one. There’s a company that rebuilds them, and so far that has worked for me, but I’m waiting for the day it goes wonky again.
The HVAC controls are an issue, and time consuming to fix. I cannot guarantee that I get defrost, for instance. And if it does, a little bump on the road and it’s suddenly no longer working.
I also hate the Dana axles. I probably would like them more if I lived in a more suburban area, but as it is up our road, I seem to rebuild the axles every 10K miles or so (not exaggerating).
Stuff like that. But the engine and transmission are awesome, and it is awesome to know that I can chuck a big load on the truck and just go anywhere with it.
I like the flatbed, but get a better one than my Bradford bed. It’s like it was designed by people who couldn’t measure how big a standard pallet is. It fits one. But it’s about 3/4” short in two directions from fitting 4.
And towing a gooseneck is so much smoother. And a truck that size really opens up your ability to get better trailers.
Dan
side AC is nonexistent.
