Buying a '99-'02 7.3L - What to look for?

[BirdmanSD]

All,

I apologize in advance if this has been covered before....

I'm looking to buy a '99 - '02 SD with the 7.3L. As I start looking at trucks, I'm curious what are the main things I need to look for in the drivetrain so I don't end up getting a dud. Never owner a diesel before so any info would be great.

What do I look for when test driving? Are there certain things I should or shouldn't hear? Anything I should look at that a visual inspection would indicate something in the "bad/don't buy me" category?

To make the truck affordable, I'm most likely looking at trucks with over 100k miles already....

Thanks in advance!

 

[01platinum]

i'd suggest geting an oasis report before you buy, might give you an idea of any previous problems. and also a carfax. i know they don't always report problems but they do show previous ownership. someone will chime in and tell you what to look for in the vehicle inspection

 

[BirdmanSD]

Yeah, I plan on getting CarFax reports on anything I'm lookin at... but what is an Oasis report? And where do I get one of those?

 

[fgtex]

Yeah, I plan on getting CarFax reports on anything I'm lookin at... but what is an Oasis report? And where do I get one of those?

An Oasis report is from a Ford Dealer. This is like the history of any dealer service that has been done to the truck. Dates, mileage, service performed, etc. Not always helpful, but you would be able to see if the person had all of the regularly scheduled maintenance done at the dealer on time. Big Plus.

 

[BirdmanSD]

Cool deal! Do they usually charge to print that out for you, or no?

 

[fgtex]

Cool deal! Do they usually charge to print that out for you, or no?

It depends on the dealer, some do it for free and some will charge you an hour of labor for it. If you are looking at buying a truck from a Ford dealer, I would think that they would do it for free, to help persuade you to buy the truck from them.

 

[bushpilot]

if the ford dealer WONT do it for free walk away...their
either hiding something about the truck or their gonna
be hard to deal with for service in the future

if the sales man plays dumb or doesnt know what oasis is,
ask 'em to walk back to service and the two of you can
watch the report print together

carfax is worth checking but in my experiance it only contains
info about previous ownership, crash data (that was reported)
and title info (flood car? / salvage)...itll also show SOME annual
inspection data (w/ odometer readings).

you need the oasis to determine how much its been in the shop.

 

[fgtex]

if the ford dealer WONT do it for free walk away...their
either hiding something about the truck...

Exactly!!

 

[bushpilot]

id even go on to say id take the vin number into ANY DEALER...if they
wanna win your confidence and furture SERVICE they can start w/
the oasis reports !

IMO knowing that there is an oasis report and using it as a part of
your purchase criteria shows any dealership (and sale rep) that youre
educated and youre not gonna be messing around/wasting the time
of the sale rep !

 

[BirdmanSD]

Very cool... thanks guys! Will the Oasis report also show any warranty work that was done, etc?