My wife is currently looking for a truck and found an 01 Platinum edition she really likes. It's at a dealer that "specializes" in used diesel trucks and has their "qualified" mechanics check each truck over top to bottom when they get them from the auction. (Can you tell I'm not impressed yet?)

They had 3 7.3's that she liked. 1 had a fuel leak in the valley (not to big a deal), 1 had oil in the valley, oil in the ICP connector, smelled of an oil leak, had oil stains in the degas bottle, was about 1 gallon low on anti-freeze, and looks like the HPOP was recently changed with the help of 6 tubes of permatex.

Now for the Platinum edition which she really likes. They had just finished detailing it and hadn't officially gotten it ready for sale yet, but the first thing I noticed was the MISSING filter minder. Just a hole allowing unfiltered air into the intake where that little thing was supposed to be.

Engine took about 4 seconds to start the first time, but after shutting it off for 5 minutes, it fired up quicker than my truck the second time. Absolutely no smoke coming out of the oil fill tube with engine running, oil on the dipstick looked clean, and the little oil change sticker on the windshield is a sign the previous owner had the oil changed at one of those quick lube places (possibly every 3k).

Ike was dumping too much rain at this point for me to do much else, and the fuel gauge was sitting on E, with the lie-o-meter saying 15 miles until empty.

So long story to get around to my question. The guy said I could come back when the sun was shining and pull the intake tube to inspect the turbo wheel, take it for a spin, and hook up the AE to check things out.

I guess it's possible they knocked the filter minder off while they detailed the truck, but I'm not really interested in going back there since I don't have a good feeling about this dealer. Am I over reacting here? Should I spend the time to go back and check this truck out, or just keep looking?

Truck has 120k on it.

 

Buying used is always buyer beware.
What I would do is remove the driver's side CAC tube and see if it has grit in it.
Not just look at the intake wheel.

 

If it's not to far at least pull the intake tube and check the turbo. What kind of warranty are they going to give you? Too bad you can't get an OA done quickly just to see if the filter minder was off longer than they said.

Kinda tough when Momma like the truck........

 

Thanks Dan. I'll check the tube out also. Is there anything else I'm forgetting?

Jim, I didn't even get around to talking about warranty after listening to his speech about how all the trucks on the lot had been inspected by their mechanics, then finding something wrong with all 3 trucks we looked at. I don't have a lot of patience with salesman that just give you a pitch. Between that and the rain I decided to call it a day.

 

If you look at the inside of the air box, with the filter minder off for a period of time wouldn't there be dirt or something out of the ordinary around there? I'm having a moment and can't remember if the filter minder is on the clean air side or the dirty air side.....

 

The filter minder is above the filter on the stock set up, so this would allow unfiltered air into the intake.

 

I just went out and looked at mine in the rain. If it has been off for a while there should be some signs inside the box.

 

You sound like you have a pretty good handle on it already and have indicated in your first post everything that I would have checked.
You are "gear head" enough to know to buy a six speed for yourself.
.

 

The Platinum Edition is one SHARP looking truck! I just say that cuz I got one.... but I would look at it again!

 

See if the salesman will let you take the truck for a day or two. A friend of mine wanted me to go with him to look at a 97 psd. I talked the salesman into let him the the truck for the weekend. Although after we got it to his house, I said take it back. Leaky HPOP, a bolt was broke off in the driver side exhaust manifold, k&n oil filter, and driver side fender had been replaced. Good luck Chris

 

It sounds like the guy is willing to work with yea. Pull the tubes, Plug in, and take for a ride. Even though your getting bad vibes from the dealer you might be missing out on a good truck if you don't go back.

 

Ask him for one of them carfax or other reports to see if there,s anything your missing. I can't really comment to much without seeing it but you know when a dealer is blowing smoke around. I would visit the lot again and really check it out and ask for them reports, good luck Chris and let us know....

 

I feel a little better about the truck today after looking at an 03 Lariat, 2" lift, 5" exhaust, gauges, superchip, wastegate delete, boost fooler, and of course the K&N drop in filter. There was only 1/16" of dirt on the intake housing on the wrong side of the filter, and while it still idled fairly smooth, the blowby was a steady stream of heavy smoke.

I've got a few more trucks (at a better price) I'd like to check out, but their farther away out in the middle of nowhere. Once I figure out my work schedule for the week I'll see if I can't get these others looked at, and maybe talk to the dealer about taking that truck home for a couple of days. We did that when we bought my daughters Jeep, I don't know why I didn't think of that now. Thanks Huck.

You're right Dan, I might miss out on a good truck. That's why I thought I would let ya'll try and talk some sense into me.

 

Your more than welcome. Let us know how you make out.

 

It will primarily depend on asking price...but if it runs good, looks good, and you can't find anything wrong with it as long as you have been around here I'd say you can't go 2 far wrong, and that my freinds is the view from the newb seats....besides, if momma ain't happy nobody is happy.