dodge ram 2500 with v10

rock4fun

Active Member
Location
springville ut
OK I'm looking for a new tow rig that will haul my family of 4. I have been looking at a couple mid to late 1990's chev 2500 extended cabs with the small blocks in them. But I also keep finding ok deals on dodge ram 2500 with the v10. The thing is I don't now much about the v10 so I was wondering if any buddy has any thoughts or comments about these trucks. The one I'm really looking at is a 1995 dodge 3500 extended cab duelly with the v10 and 192,000 on the OD. I have also been looking for a good diesel truck but they are more then I can afford at this time.
 

Bart

Registered User
Location
Arm Utah
I don't know the longevity of ht eV10 motors, but I do know they are a work horse. I used to pull a 30' boat that weighed about 12,000 lbs. I pulled it with many different rigs, but one of the best was a Dodge V10 with a manual tranny.
 

anderson750

I'm working on it Rose
Location
Price, Utah
I have a 1996 2500 with the V10 and an automatic. Overall the truck does a good job towing. The biggest difference you will find is when pulling uphill. Where you could pull up a hill at 65 with a diesel, the V10 will probably be going 55 and working a little harder. On flat ground, the V10 will tow as fast as you want to go.

Without a load, it will get around 13 mpg, but as soon as you hook anything to it, it will drop to around 8 mpg. I get the same gas mileage towing a 12 ft enclosed trailer as I do a loaded car trailer.

Dependability has been great. I have owned it since it was new and it has 138K on it. Never have had a single problem with the engine. I replaced the tranny at around 130K after I toasted the clutches and lost first gear. That failure was more my fault than the tranny being wore out.
 

DAA

Well-Known Member
I put 120,000 on my '98 2500 V10. Never so much as a hicup from the motor. At 120K, it still wasn't using any oil at all, either. Had to get the auto replaced under warranty at about 40,000 though, and by the time I got rid of it at 120,000 the tranny was starting to go bad again.

Over all though, one of the better trucks I've owned. I liked it.

- DAA
 

Rot Box

Diesel and Dust
Location
Smithfield Utah
I have a Cummins not a V10, but I will say those years of Dodge truck have a few things to look out for when buying.

Keep an eye on the ball joints wheel bearings. They are not poorly designed, but they will most likely need to be replaced on a higher milage truck, and the wheel bearings aren't cheap.

The auto's have a bad reputation for sure so find out the trucks history there. A trans temp guage is a good idea or avoid it altogether and buy a manual.

Also I've heard horror stories about poorly casted V10 heads and them being prone to cracking. I don't know if there were certain years or if overheating had anything to do with it. Others will chime in on this i'm sure ;)

01.5 and newer should have rear disk brakes.

And lastly on the 4x4's. If the track bar isn't completely shot--look again :rofl: I think that they sat on the showroom floor with a worn out trac bar :( A bad one will cause the front end to wander.

I love pulling with my 01. It is very stable with any load i've hauled and I think that they are built to take some abuse. I think you'll really like these trucks. Happy hunting :)
 

LT.

Well-Known Member
Sprueitt runs this very engine in his T-Rex. 8.1 liters, 488 cubic inches, 300+ horse power and about 500 foot pounds of torque. I don't know the mileage but, I have towed my gooseneck trailer with it and hauled two cars from Portales, New Mexico back to Los Alamos, New Mexico.

LT.
 

GOAT

Back from the beyond
Location
Roanoke, VA
We've worked on a couple of these. Not bad overall. They can be pricey when it comes to engine replacement, compared to Ford V10s or Chevy 454s. Check for piston rattle. Pretty common on early Dodge V10s.
 

mikeh

Active Member
had a 97 pulled good but couldnt stand the ride nice truck but wouldnt get another one.
 
I have a 1996 2500 with the V10 and an automatic. Overall the truck does a good job towing. The biggest difference you will find is when pulling uphill. Where you could pull up a hill at 65 with a diesel, the V10 will probably be going 55 and working a little harder. On flat ground, the V10 will tow as fast as you want to go.

Without a load, it will get around 13 mpg, but as soon as you hook anything to it, it will drop to around 8 mpg. I get the same gas mileage towing a 12 ft enclosed trailer as I do a loaded car trailer.

Dependability has been great. I have owned it since it was new and it has 138K on it. Never have had a single problem with the engine. I replaced the tranny at around 130K after I toasted the clutches and lost first gear. That failure was more my fault than the tranny being wore out.

(i have a 94 and i get 16 around town and 20 on the interstate but when i pull i get 14 no matter what i pull and about that hill thing i pulled a 14 dove tail trailer with a 85 lincon on it at 90 on the interstate with no probs:greg:
 

toys4rocks

I didn't mean to do that!
Location
Lehi
I had an 02 with an auto, that b@#$% pulled everything I hooked to her. The only reason i never pulled up hill over 60? I didn't like the high RPM's with that much weight.

Mileage left a little to be desired. 14-15 empty, and 7-8 pulling. The later motors had a problem with the 2 back cylinders. At ignition, the spark plug ignites the fuel\air mixture and pushes the piston down. But the resistance coupled with the compression, flattens the piston in the cylinder.

I lost the 2 back cylynders going out to five mile. I replaced the motor with a reman. The saturday I got the truck back, It ended up doing the same exact thing. I wasn't pulling anything and the motor wasn't even broken in. :confused:

It was a great truck, but do your research. FYI, there is a Cummins Q cab on state in lehi for under $7k.
 

BlackDog

one small mod at a time
I agree with that ^, not from personal experience, but plenty of reading...

I drove a v-10, 99-00? 6 speed... for a drywall supply work truck, I think we could fit 6 pallets of mud on the back, 5 for sure, and it didn't falter. I know for sure I had 3 bunks of rock on the back, 4x8' and it didn't falter... never drove empty much, back tot he shop, but they loaded me well, was only unladen for 1/4-1/3 of each run... avg was a tick over 9, maybe 9.5...


IDI Ford diesels have come down in price, now that I own one, I am impressed. Not the fastest pony in the stable, but more than adequate power, 'bout like (well a little better) towing with a non Vortec 454/ any 7.5.. and better mpg.

Find em all day long for 2500- 4grand.

There is also the Ford crew with a 7.5 that was linked in the for sale part, red and black.. if on a budget, it's a good platform, and has to be a far sight cheaper than a v10 Dodge...
 
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