Pick up for TC

Listen to burningman on the 53 block

99 with long beds are harder to find, but not impossible. Autos are more abundant than the manuals. Which are you looking at?

I assume by "towing a 5th" your concern is all the stress on the truck. True, but how many mile did the PO actually tow? I would be very weary of buying a truck with a 5th or gooseneck hitch in the bed. Those hitches are great for towing very heavy loads. The Cummins can tow 30,000 lbs, way over the rated limit, and there are people who will do just that.
Though, my truck has a gooseneck hitch I put on and have never used it. I went another route..

Other than the 53 block, the Cummins is a great motor. The tappet cover will leak, so see if that has been replaced, the original ones just dry up and crack. You will have oil leaks, this is not detrimental, actually normal for diesels, but you also do not want one that leaks like a spigot.

The injector pump is the VP44 and will fail. $1,400-1,500 for a new one plus labor, but not hard to do yourself.

The stock lift pump (what sends fuel from gas tank (diesel) to the injector pump) is junk. You want to see an aftermarked one which will be installed on the frame between fender and frame in front of the left rear wheel. FASS or Air Dog is typical. There are other good fixes, but these two are best.

The drivers seat cushion will be worn out. Genos (genoes) garage has all these parts. The dash board top will be non-existent or will have been replaced.

If 4x4 you will want the more rare CAD front axle, otherwise the front axle spins all the time into the diff and the transfer case.

Back to the trans. On manual there are a lot of issues with the NV4500 5 speed trans. The 5th gear was a major issue and cause of many trans end of life. The 5th gear nut can be fixed. Ask for proof of this. Otherwise budget the price of a new trans in what you plan to spend (about $3500-4000 installed) The trans itself is about $1.500 for a rebuilt NV4500, there are no new ones.

There are a lot of bad rebuilt units out there. I got one where the KY rebuild shop welded in the 5th gear, so that one was ruined after only 80k of driving. Just avoid anything that originated from KY to be safe.

If it has been "chipped" then that may or may not be good. Depends on the owner. Chips are Edge programmers or other brands that alter the CPU, mostly increase the fueling to the injectors to increase power. More power means more stress on that already stressed trans pulling a giant 5th wheeler.

I see trucks pulling giant trailers up mountains blowing by me doing 70-75mph. The cummins can do that, but the trans is screaming, help me. I would not want to buy that truck.

Go look at dodge cummins forums, or do internet search for info on that 2nd gen truck to get an idea what you are getting into. There were a lot of issues with the truck, but if those were fixed then would no longer be an issue. Some people fix them with upgrades, some just replace with the same problem part and hope for a few more miles.

The OP seems to be a complete newbie by asking the question. He seems to think there is problem with pulling a fifth wheel initially and then using the truck to haul a TC at some later time. In my opinion there is no problem.

Just answer his question and quit berating him.

ryoung

While I’ve kept vehicles 20 years, I wouldn’t buy a 20 year old vehicle.

jimh425 wrote:
My used truck had been used to pull horses across the country. It was well maintained, and there were at least regular services done.

They showed horses and generally those people are easy on trucks. I don’t know much about 99 Dodges, so maybe it’s ok, or maybe not even if it didn’t pull a fiver.

Maintenance is everything..The op might consider talking to a diesel mechanic or have them look at and drive it before making the jump..

When I was looking for a truck to put a TC on,diesels was an option..My neighbor owns a diesel shop and I see them towed in almost daily..I definitely would have asked him about what I was considering and even better,let him check it out before buying..

Good luck to the op in buying a truck for a truck camper.

My used truck had been used to pull horses across the country. It was well maintained, and there were at least regular services done.

They showed horses and generally those people are easy on trucks. I don’t know much about 99 Dodges, so maybe it’s ok, or maybe not even if it didn’t pull a fiver.

There’s no such thing as a single rear wheel ‘99 Dodge 3500.

From the factory,your right, but there are quite a few conversions out there, just as I considered an F-250 DRW when looking for my truck.More and more people are converting to DRW and from DRW for whatever reason..It is more common than known..

To the op..Yes,a '99 Dodge used to pull a fifth wheel would certainly be an option worth looking at for using it for a truck camper..It simply means he was able to put the weight of the fifth wheel in the bed of the truck somewhat like a truck camper..He may already had some mods on it for the fifth wheel..

There’s no such thing as a single rear wheel ‘99 Dodge 3500.
If it has a manual transmission, it has a Dana 80 rear axle rated at 11,000 pounds, so if it’s a single rear wheel (2500) it’s limited mostly by the tires. If it’s a dually (3500) stock size tires will handle 10,800 pounds on the rear. That’s plenty.
If it’s a single rear wheel 2500 with an automatic trans, it has a Dana 70. Those have enough capacity for single rear wheels, but if it has a lot of miles on it, beware the Dana 70 is known to fail and need rebuilding a lot sooner than the 80.
The single most important thing about a ‘99 Dodge with a Cummins diesel is what engine block casting number it has. Specifically, whether it’s a “53 block”.
If it is, DON’T buy it unless you’re ok with replacing the motor. 53 block Cummins have a very common nasty habit of cracking and they aren’t repairable.
They were cast too thin and crack at the right rear.
Look under the truck at the engine block. On the driver side, toward the front, down low. If there’s a “53” cast into it in inch high numbers, run away.
If it says 54, 55, or 56 it’s fine. If it has a long series of 1/4 inch high numbers and letters, it’s the least common and most desirable Mexican block. (The 50-series blocks were cast in Brazil.)
Seriously, read up on how to identify a 53 block Cummins and DON’T buy one. I’ve had two of them crack in my own truck.

If it’s an automatic, it really needs some expensive upgrades. Plan on a $4000–$5000 performance-built transmission. Trust me, it needs it. If it was a 5th wheel hauler it may already have that done, but it’s hard to verify unless it has paperwork.

The Diesel engine (I’m assuming it has that) does not lower the payload as so many people and even the factories tell you. All the camper weight goes on the rear. A lighter engine (gas) up front does not help carry a heavier load, you can’t get the weight of the camper up front anyway.

There’s a lot more to pickup trucks than the length of the bed.
How big a camper you want to haul changes a lot about what truck you need for it.

intravino wrote:
Hello,

First post.

I was looking to get a pick up with 8 feet bed for TC and I found a nice 99 Cummins. The problem is that owner is saying that he used to pull a fifth wheel.

Would you consider a pick up that was used for a fifth wheel ?


Thanks,

Yes,they can be used for both..When living full time in a fifth wheel I had a TC I used to hunt and fish with..I just used 2X4's in front and behind the bed rails to load my TC on..

Fifth wheels and truck campers kinda act the same on a pickup except for the top heavy part a TC gives..Larger fifth wheels have higher pin weights(3300# plus directly over the rear axle)..Ever seen that 3/4 ton truck with a big'ol fifth wheel in tow with the bumper almost dragging on the ground..That's an overloaded 3/4 ton without mods to make it level..You need the same things with a TC..Mods..

A '99 Dodge is a capable truck, but the payload numbers for older Dodge trucks,especially diesels, are less than there real capabilities, but that is another can of worms on the internet..

So it boils down to,is that '99 Cummins a 2500 series or a 3500 series/single rear wheels or dual rear wheels?..Each one of those makes a bigger difference with a truck camper than with a fifth wheel..Fifth wheels in general are the better choice for easy towing compared to all the other RV types..

It is much easier to haul a fifth wheel than a top heavy truck camper tho..

Well first off what does a 5th wheel prior to use, and a TC have in common? Is this a troll post? It doesn't make sense...if it was a 5th wheel carrier prior.. where is the 5th wheel bed hitch? ...come on! what kind of question is this??...it is about the truck not the way it was used in the past... I think this a fake post.IMHO,,LOL it does not matter what the truck is ...it is how it is set up to carry a load whether a 5th wheel or a tc...many different hold downs and hitches...is it set up for a tc? like hold downs or just a 5th wheel? Im confused regardless Im not getting this..what the heck kind of truck are we talking about....that is the the first question right?? Well welcome to the forum we will teach you that is what we do just ask...not to sound brass but you will fit in we are her to help....just be real. Your questions are not ignored...we as a TC family want you to have the best experience that we can help you with..jump in and ask.

Does it have enough payload for the projected camper?
Really, that truck is 20 years old today. I would think its overall state (mileage, wear, rust) outweighs anything it may or may not have carried in the back.
A bit more information might still be interesting for the crowd. Mileage? SRW/DRW? Automatic or manual?