You do not want to purchase an ICE pickup truck now (ask me how I know)

[Quicksilver]

Today the Boss Lady and I went to Atlanta to pick up something.
She has an 04 Dodge 3500 dually.
The truck has been nickle and diming her to death but we have kept it on life support because she doesn't want a payment (she has limited income).
She's gotten into a deal where she will have to make a 400 mile round trip every week pulling a stock trailer to get free feed for her cows and other animals.
The truck has started overheating when you get into a pull with it. Not into the red but in the upper limits. I have added coolant to the radiator twice in the last two weeks.
We have put two radiators and one heater core in this truck over the years.
I can't find any coolant leaks which may mean coolant is going into one of the cylinders.
That would mean major engine work and a big repair bill. The engine has 250,000 miles on it which is not high mileage for a Cummins diesel.
While she was driving I got on line on my phone to check on some prices for a plain Jane four door 3500 with a flat bed.
I called Texas and North Carolina (two of the cheapest places to buy Dodge (Ram) trucks).
None of the dealerships had anything close to what she wanted. Both blamed the chip shortage which I thought only affected gas engines but I was wrong.
Then I called the dealership in Birmingham where she bought the 04.
I told the salesman exactly what we were looking for and he said he would check inventory at their sister store and get back to me. Never heard back.
On the way home we stopped at a volume dealer in Georgia to see what they had. Not one new 3500 with a flat bed.
He had a slightly used 2020 4500 with a flatbed that we liked but it would have been 75,000 with taxes.
I called USAA to check on the insurance rate between the 3500 and 4500.
The 4500 is considered to be a Commercial Vehicle and even tagging it as a farm truck the insurance would have been 280 a month for full coverage.
She pays 80 a month now for full coverage.
The payment with no down payment would have been well north of 1200 a month. Even with 12,000 down the payment would be north of 900 a month for 72 months which is my preferred duration for a vehicle payment.
Needless to say we walked away.
Like the housing shortage has made real estate a sellers market for homes the chip shortage and low inventory has made trucks a sellers market.
A 3500 like we want would be over 60,000 if we could find one.
I guess we will take the 04 to the diesel doctor next week and see if I have to sell a kidney to get it fixed.

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[madquadbiker]

Today the Boss Lady and I went to Atlanta to pick up something.
She has an 04 Dodge 3500 dually.
The truck has been nickle and diming her to death but we have kept it on life support because she doesn't want a payment (she has limited income).
She's gotten into a deal where she will have to make a 400 mile round trip every week pulling a stock trailer to get free feed for her cows and other animals.
The truck has started overheating when you get into a pull with it. Not into the red but in the upper limits. I have added coolant to the radiator twice in the last two weeks.
We have put two radiators and one heater core in this truck over the years.
I can't find any coolant leaks which may mean coolant is going into one of the cylinders.
That would mean major engine work and a big repair bill. The engine has 250,000 miles on it which is not high mileage for a Cummins diesel.
While she was driving I got on line on my phone to check on some prices for a plain Jane four door 3500 with a flat bed.
I called Texas and North Carolina (two of the cheapest places to buy Dodge (Ram) trucks).
None of the dealerships had anything close to what she wanted. Both blamed the chip shortage which I thought only affected gas engines but I was wrong.
Then I called the dealership in Birmingham where she bought the 04.
I told the salesman exactly what we were looking for and he said he would check inventory at their sister store and get back to me. Never heard back.
On the way home we stopped at a volume dealer in Georgia to see what they had. Not one new 3500 with a flat bed.
He had a slightly used 2020 4500 with a flatbed that we liked but it would have been 75,000 with taxes.
I called USAA to check on the insurance rate between the 3500 and 4500.
The 4500 is considered to be a Commercial Vehicle and even tagging it as a farm truck the insurance would have been 280 a month for full coverage.
She pays 80 a month now for full coverage.
The payment with no down payment would have been well north of 1200 a month. Even with 12,000 down the payment would be north of 900 a month for 72 months which is my preferred duration for a vehicle payment.
Needless to say we walked away.
Like the housing shortage has made real estate a sellers market for homes the chip shortage and low inventory has made trucks a sellers market.
A 3500 like we want would be over 60,000 if we could find one.
I guess we will take the 04 to the diesel doctor next week and see if I have to sell a kidney to get it fixed.

Is it the same over there and this is a definite first here, second hand vehicle prices are going though the roof, never happened before, had a cracking cash deal to buy my 5 year old Smart ForTwo.

 

[ÆCIII]

Checking the oil to make sure no antifreeze is seeping into it (possibly through the head gasket) might be an idea. Also just re-torqueing the head bolts down might be helpful (if indeed some coolant might be going into cylinders as you mentioned). Could be the engine is basically sound but, if you've overheated it a lot the head may have become slightly warped which would have compromised the head-gasket seal and would be exacerbating the over-heating problem. Good Luck in your repairs or solution.

 

[Crissa]

The chip shortage is causing all sorts of things to fail to be supplied. Elon mentioned they had trouble getting chips for airbag control systems. Others have mentioned ABS control systems. These are a problem no matter what kind of vehicle you want.

-Crissa

 

[Quicksilver]

Checking the oil to make sure no antifreeze is seeping into it (possibly through the head gasket) might be an idea.

No oil in antifreeze and no antifreeze in the oil.
She says she has not let it overheat so maybe no engine damage.
She has a shop that usually does repairs and cuts her a lot of slack on repairs.
Next week we'll prob run it over there and let them check it out.

 

[Quicksilver]

Update.......We found a 2022 Ram 3500 cab and chassis with 4WD and the Cummins diesel near us and bought it.
We had a flatbed with storage boxes installed and financed 63K after the 10K down payment.
Yep the beast probably cost more than my CT will but we have a working farm and have to have a reliable truck to pull trailers with.
This will prob be the last ICE truck she buys. Hopefully by the time this one is put out to pasture (the old one lasted 17 years) Tesla will have a one ton dually chassis version available with a huge battery that will allow long distance towing.
If I cut out the cocaine and hookers I can still prob put a grand a month in the bank for the down payment on the CT.

 

[OneLapper]

I had a 2004 Ram 3500 Cummins. I kept my 2002 Ram 3500 Cummins 6spd manual 2wd and have no regrets.

So, you likely need(ed) a Cummins OEM thermostat. I had the same issue with both trucks.

The Dodge dealer can't buy parts for the 02 or 04 from Dodge so they will put whatever they can get. I fought overheating for a year after having a dealer replace the waterpump in Ohio on a trip.

I bought a Cummins water pump and thermostat and boom, runs perfectly. NEVER gets hot.

The Cummins thermostat was $108, but it's beautifully made. It's not stamped steel junk.

I loved my 2004 Ram but the 2002 6 spd is SO reliable. Never have issues with it.

 

[ObjectiveReader]

Today the Boss Lady and I went to Atlanta to pick up something.
She has an 04 Dodge 3500 dually.
The truck has been nickle and diming her to death but we have kept it on life support because she doesn't want a payment (she has limited income).
She's gotten into a deal where she will have to make a 400 mile round trip every week pulling a stock trailer to get free feed for her cows and other animals.
The truck has started overheating when you get into a pull with it. Not into the red but in the upper limits. I have added coolant to the radiator twice in the last two weeks.
We have put two radiators and one heater core in this truck over the years.
I can't find any coolant leaks which may mean coolant is going into one of the cylinders.
That would mean major engine work and a big repair bill. The engine has 250,000 miles on it which is not high mileage for a Cummins diesel.
While she was driving I got on line on my phone to check on some prices for a plain Jane four door 3500 with a flat bed.
I called Texas and North Carolina (two of the cheapest places to buy Dodge (Ram) trucks).
None of the dealerships had anything close to what she wanted. Both blamed the chip shortage which I thought only affected gas engines but I was wrong.
Then I called the dealership in Birmingham where she bought the 04.
I told the salesman exactly what we were looking for and he said he would check inventory at their sister store and get back to me. Never heard back.
On the way home we stopped at a volume dealer in Georgia to see what they had. Not one new 3500 with a flat bed.
He had a slightly used 2020 4500 with a flatbed that we liked but it would have been 75,000 with taxes.
I called USAA to check on the insurance rate between the 3500 and 4500.
The 4500 is considered to be a Commercial Vehicle and even tagging it as a farm truck the insurance would have been 280 a month for full coverage.
She pays 80 a month now for full coverage.
The payment with no down payment would have been well north of 1200 a month. Even with 12,000 down the payment would be north of 900 a month for 72 months which is my preferred duration for a vehicle payment.
Needless to say we walked away.
Like the housing shortage has made real estate a sellers market for homes the chip shortage and low inventory has made trucks a sellers market.
A 3500 like we want would be over 60,000 if we could find one.
I guess we will take the 04 to the diesel doctor next week and see if I have to sell a kidney to get it fixed.

You do the kind of objective analysis that more people should do. Numbers are vital. If I may suggest something: if at all possible, start setting $ aside in a separate account that will be part of the future purchase funds. Hopefully this and time will work to your advantage before this 3500 reaches the end of its usable life. I drove a Lexus LX 470 (basically a Toyota Land Cruiser with more features on it) for 224,000 miles over 14 yrs until the suspension failed and the brake lines were in need of replacement and would not pass inspection. I believe in trying to get as much use out of a vehicle as possible, since cost per mile is *generally* lower the longer one owns a vehicle.

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