Should I buy or avoid this Ram 1500

mason168

I recently found a beautiful 2014 Ram 1500 SLT 4x4 in supposedly in excellent condition. The used car dealer is quite a long way from where I live so I haven't gone to see it for myself yet. I don't want to travel 8hrs one way for nothing, so before I do, I have concerns on its history. I am not a mechanically inclined, so I'm hoping someone with experience can offer some advise.

The carfax shows one owner, no accidents, low miles, and timely service records. The red flags for me are that on 6/04/14 the Computer reprogrammed (no specifics), on 10/22/15 the Transmission computer/module reprogrammed and it was finally sold at auction on 2/22/16. Because of this, the dealer has no information on the previous owner, so I can't contact them to find out for myself what problems it may have had. If it was such a good truck, why would it be sold at auction and not a dealer? And are the Computer reprograms a concern?

I have a 3 kids (one in college) and a tight budget. I'm only looking for another vehicle because I have to. But I can't afford to purchase this truck and then turn around and have to invest more on repairs. So I would appreciate any advise from someone knowledgeable on the subject.

Thanks....

kyfdx

Car dealers will never give out previous ownership information, so unless you are buying from a private seller, that is information you won't have.

Any vehicle out of warranty can possibly cost you a lot in repairs. If you can't afford to buy this vehicle, then also cope with a possible repair bill, I'd look at a cheaper vehicle.

Also, if shopping for a used vehicle, I'd confine my search to something that I can go look at, and get home the same day. There are thousands of pickup trucks for sale within 200 miles of you, I'd guess.

Mr_Shiftright

I wouldn't shop that far out of town unless the vehicle you were looking at was very hard to find elsewhere (not the case here). For one thing, that long drive might compel you to make a deal without sitting on it overnight.

If your heart's still set on it, try a google search for TSBs related to reprogramming on this model. The NHTSA website has a TSB search engine, for instance. If this reprogram was done to all, or most Ram 1500s that year, then I wouldn't be so concerned.