diesel4life

If the title states according to VIN it is an 01 than the truck should be an 01. Providing the VIN has not been tampered with I would go by that. If you want to know for sure what year the engine is look at the data plate on the front gear case cover on the engine. I think it should state the year on the plate, but if it doesn't grab the ESN off of the plate and I can figure out what year it is with that number. If it is a 98.5 engine it needs the crank sensor to run and I don't think there is any way around that because the early VP44 trucks had the tone wheel on the crank and the later VP44 engines only had the tone wheel on the cam. Did this truck run before or did you buy it with this problem?

Its not anywhere near enough to make a difference. Your talking a sealed hunk of steel with a very small cavity. If they did get hotter being packed solid they would weep out the pressure relief on a regular basis, or the seals would prematurely blow, and neither occurs. All I can tell you is they 100% work. I got my first pair from a friend who owns a large oil field maintenance company and has them on all of his flat deck and dump trailers. They all see daily use heavily loaded on secondary paved and dirt roads and muddy lease roads, and he hasn't replaced a bearing in the time I've known him, which is several years. Brakes and tires yes, but no bearings.

Ethanol is 10%-15% cheaper to manufacture than gasoline. I'm sure there are still subsidies and "green" credits on the table to make ethanol more enticing to purchase at the wholesale level as well.

Nothing to over pressure as there is a 3-4 psi pressure relief at the front. Worst case scenario I have seen a minimal amount of grease dribble out the weep 2 times on a hot summer day. Other than that,never had any over pressurization issues or seal issues. As to annual checks, that goes without saying and nothing you can do or add will ever negate the benefits of hands on check ups. I typically only do around 3k a year on my trailer now so I pull and inspect the brakes and repack every two years. Im pretty anal about checking wheel and brake temps when im travelling to catch any potential problems before a full blown failure occurs. A bearing buddy does not take that aspect of maintenance out of the equation, it just adds an extra layer of protection with positive displacement.

Probably has something to do with the higher weight ratings of the new wheels? Tires I believe are around 3600 lbs and I would guess the wheels are rated for slightly more as a safety buffer.

I highly recommend the bearing buddies for your hubs. I initially only had 2 of them on my front axle (bought them from a friend for next to nothing) and the fronts actually ran slightly cooler than the rears which I had just repacked by hand. They also prevent dirt and water from being able to contaminate the hub by maintaining a slight amount of pressure. After seeing the difference, I bought a set for the rear axle as well.http://www.bearingbuddy.com/how.html When I bought my former 2000 CTD the PO had 8 ply tires on it (factory size). Even empty the truck felt squirmy and it was amplified the heavier I loaded it. Installed an E rated tire and it was night and day difference. I wouldn't run D rated on these trucks if they were given to me.

Can I ask what part of the state your in? (Just a general location if you don't want to disclose your exact area). I live in the very north eastern corner, and prices are generally a little higher locally due to being such a rural area. I took a trip across the state to Toledo last week and was amazed at how much lower the fuel prices are once I got out of my area. Ashtabula county is mainly an agricultural county, makes me wonder if the prices are also reflecting that as well...

Sigh....still $3.45+ here. Last I paid attention to gas, it was around $2.25 for 87. It really chaps me they've allowed such a gap between the 2 fuels. You know dang well there is as much a surplus of #2 as gas, which says someone is doing some real price fixing.

They definitely don't stick out 2" though with the offset of the wheels, at least from what I can see. Would love to see a shot in the daylight when you get a chance! Thanks for being a pioneer!

Hee hee, between cutting and splitting wood for my grandfather for the last 12 years when he could no longer do it and the last 2 years doing 90% of my fathers because he blew his back out, I have no desire to do it for myself. Granted it is cheaper than anything else, but I still invest in a fair amount every year on gas and maintenance for the equipment, not to mention a lot of time. I generally have to go no further than a 12 mile radius from dads house but a lot of the woods are inaccessible by my truck, which means extra trips loading up the tractor and wood cart and hauling it to the location, which costs more gas. And more time. None of it really matters as my grandparents are on a fixed income, and seeing how appreciative they are every time I bring another load to them is priceless. I just need pops to get that back of his healthy again, or I'm going to be at this a really long time!

Gotcha.

I'm not sure I'm following you when you say you would have to cut the studs down with 1" spacers but not with 2". Can you explain this to me? I'd be very interested in pictures once you get em mounted, I really like the looks of the 18" wheels

6.5x25.4=165.1mm. 5mm difference is about .19 inches.

Dang, that's too bad. I like the looks of those wheels and have been watching for a set locally.

If no vacuum there go back up to the junction block at the top of the transfer case. From there the lines go along the top of the trans to the firewall under the hood where there is a small manifold where the vac line splits off from the pump and goes to the defrost controls and 4 wheel drive. Not sure how bad corrosion is in your parts, but I've had to replace the metal lines underneath where they run along the frame rail to the CAD.

What is the clearance issue in the rear?

All years up to 14 share the same wheel pattern. 2012 was the year they went to metric wheel studs. I've got a set off of a 12 Laramie on my truck and I used my lug nuts. I'd like to be able to find a clean set of 18s off the 13+ trucks, but every set I've come across they want an arm and a leg for.

I know people who have over 50k invested in 15 year old trucks,and they are doing good to get 2/3 the fuel economy and ride horrible compared to a brand new 1/2 ton with air ride suspension. Not to mention a bumper to bumper warranty. I love my 2nd gen and have no plans to sell it ever but it is becoming very outdated compared to the power and handling of today's trucks.add the fact that my kids are outgrowing my back seat and a low mileage 4th gen 13+ 3500 is in the cards for me as well. We have always lived with the attitude that if you can not pay for it up front, you probably don't need it and we have went many many years without any car payments. Rather than making a payment to the bank we put that money away each month and it does not get touched unless for an emergency. I can not justify the cost of the new ones but if I was in a different position, you bet I'd have one.just one of those things where each has to be comfortable with their decision.

Pictures or it didn't happen!!

In case you haven't seen it yet, a fairly unbiased opinion of the new Ram EcoDiesel http://m.motortrend.com/roadtests/trucks/1501_comparison_2015_ford_f_150_vs_ram_1500_chevrolet_silverado/

The half ton Ram is assembled in Warren Michigan. The Cruz is assembled in Lordstown Ohio, but being it is a global platform parts are shipped in from all over the world. In the world of global manufacturing, there are very few parts actually made in the US anymore.

The VM Motori platform as well as a variation of the ZF8 speed has been proven reliable in many European vehicles. It's far from a new engine/trans combo. The ZF has been in vehicles like Range Rover, Masserati and Rolls Royce. I'd actually feel more comfortable buying it over a brand new production engine, not to mention I don't think the Cummins will touch the 3.0 VM in fuel mileage.

This along with choice of diet is the key. And a little JD on the rocks never hurt anybody!

I went 12 years without seeing the inside of a dentist office and only in the last year have I started going again. Same reasons as you, no insurance (until I landed my current job), putting my wife through an EXPENSIVE 4 year degree, and raising 2 children. Through it all I kept my due dilegence by brushing twice a day, flossing most, and rinsing with fluoride daily. What landed me back in the captains chair was a crown that went bad and ended up having to have it pulled because I let it go too long. Fortunately it was my rear molar, but it was the first tooth I've ever lost and it did not sit well with me. So I'm back in the routine of 6 month check ups. Aside from that one tooth I lost, I had one tooth that was beginning to show signs of a cavity but they were able to polish it up and did not require a filling, so all in all I was very lucky. The dentist told me the fluoride rinse is a big deal and helped keep my teeth in the condition they are, especially since I don't drink chlorified city water that has trace amounts of fluoride in it.

For future reference, you can not shift the transfer case into neutral with an automatic trans before going into 4lo. You have to go straight from the high side to the low side without pausing in neutral. If you do stop in neutral, your have to shut the truck off and then shift to prevent gear clash. Both auto trucks I have owned have been finicky going into 4lo and the smoothest transistion is rolling at 2-3 mph, throw trans in neutral and shift directly from high to low side.. If I am stationary and it doesn't want to go, I'll shut the truck off and shift into 4low (trans in neutral) and restart. The key is to avoid that gear clash.