Disclosure: This site may receive compensation when you click on some links and make purchases.

Nice One Left? 1993 Dodge Power Ram Turbo

The 1993 Power Ram LE W250 may be the godfather of all Dodge pickups. The Ram Series was created in 1981 and the first generation carried through until 1993. The LE was the most luxurious of the pickups and this one comes with the Cummins Turbo Diesel which was in its last year. For a 30-year-old truck with 146,000 miles, this might be the nicest example still around as the body, paint, and interior are all well above par. Located in Westfield, New Jersey, this beautiful workhorse is available here on eBay where the bidding has reached $14,069. The seller hints that the reserve might be $30,000 as that’s his/her real asking price.

Dodge trucks took on the Ram moniker in 1981. The Ram designation applied to 2WD trucks while the Power Ram was reserved for 4WD editions, which includes the seller’s snappy pickup. The 150 stood for ½-ton trucks while 250 was for ¾-ton load capacity. Besides the standard cab, an extended “club cab” was also offered which provided limited room behind the front seats for small people and other stuff. Though popular enough, this generation of Dodge pickup was unable to break the stronghold that Ford and Chevy had on the truck market, seldom breaking 100,000 units in any one model year.

Starting in 1989, the Cummins diesel engine was added to the options list. It consisted of a 359 cubic-inch inline-6, which helped out the folks in the sales department. They came with direct fuel injection, which differed from what Chevy and Ford were doing at the time. With a turbocharger, these engines were rated at 160 hp and 400 lbs⋅ft of torque. This powerplant was offered in the Ram through the rest of the generation, which ended in 1993.

This truck has had just four owners during its 30 years, and the seller makes a point of stating “adult ownership” which implies it’s been better cared for. Maintenance records will be provided, though we don’t know how far back they go. Besides the LE option, 4WD, crew cab, and more, this truck has a long bed for greater capacity and a 5th wheel set-up though this looks to be little more than a hitch ball in the middle of the bed.

We’re told this truck runs well and the drivetrain, including the upgraded TorqueFlte automatic transmission, is original. It was serviced not long ago and should need nothing but a diligent owner. The interior looks to be quite comfortable with captain’s chairs, power accessories, factory air conditioning, and other goodies. The seller says the original bumpers and taillights will go with the truck, which implies what it wears are replacements. For a truck at this age and mileage, it might be hard to find one any nicer than this pickup.

Comments

  1. Avatar geomechs Member

    These sure took the world be storm but then they were an outstanding performer, even in original livery. Of course there were always those who figured if a little was good, more was a lot better. People turned the pumps up and essentially enjoyed more power–for a spell. Then those VE pumps just couldn’t hold up.

    The camplate and rollers were the first to go, followed by those super tight plunger return springs. Bosch did update the rollers and springs which definitely improved things but even they failed. 180 hp was the maximum safe limit you could turn them up. You could go up to 220 hp but you were playing Russian Roulette, not to mention the more you turned them up the more sluggish governor response became. Of course there are those who claim to have theirs turned up to 400 hp with no problems; they’ll get no argument from me. I worked with VA and VE pumps for 40+ years…

    One of the worst things you could do with any fuel injection system (especially the VE pumps) was to run it with low fuel. The VE pump has such a high injection rate (beginning to end of injection) that they generated a tremendous amount of internal heat, which, I might add, contributed to premature failure of the internal components. Maintaining a good flow of cool fuel through the pump definitely helped keep it from meltdown.

    One thing I would want to know with this truck is if it had the updates done to the injection pump, and if they were done by an authorized Bosch service center. They’re not cheap to perform.

    A word of caution about the VE pumps: The first wave of non-aftercooled engines used a different “Cold Engine Advance” system AKA-“KSB.” They used a wax pellet that when cold allowed the transfer pump pressure to rise incredibly high to advance injection timing by about 10 degrees. When the temp reached approximately 125 degrees the power to the KSB was energized–the wax pellet closing off the passage and allowing the pump to operate normally.

    The next wave (with aftercoolers) had the KSB wiring working the opposite way, being energized cold and turning off hot. The pumps almost readily interchange and that can affect the performance of the engine if you’re using the wrong one. You can tell the pumps apart by the length of the stub lines that run back from the hydraulic head to the high pressure lines. First generation are about 3 inches long while the second generation is barely 2 inches. You can also tell them apart by the KSB; the first version is long and slender while the second is somewhat bulky.

    There, I got a little long-winded. These are good trucks and this one looks really good but it’s a good idea to be informed when kicking the tires on a diesel because that part of the engine can cost mega-dollars without a hiccup…

    Like 11
    • Avatar Stan

      Great info 👍 Geo.
      Absolutely love the looks of these long box crew cabs.. if I won the lotto id repower one, w stick shift and cruise it.

      Like 3
      • Avatar Jason

        Crew cabs have four doors. This body with four doors is extreamely rare

        Like 0
  2. Avatar Burrows ronald

    is diesel class over yet?? take a breath!!

    Like 2
    • Avatar Fred

      This is a CLUB CAB 2 DOOR LOOK AT THE PICTURE WITH YOUR GLASSES. CLUB CABS HAD TWO
      FOLD DOWN JUMP SEATS IN THE. REAR PARALLEL TO THE FRONT SEAT!!!!

      Like 1
      • Avatar 370zpp Member

        willllllmmaaaaaaaaaaaa !!!!!!

        Like 0
  3. Avatar Kent Krueger

    In general I am a Mopar freak. That being said, I would not be interested in this truck. Might be OK at $13-15K but at the suggested $30K, I would pass. Also not a fan of the early diesel engines either. Too noisy for my tastes.

    However, Nice looking truck.

    Like 1
  4. Avatar John.MStecz

    Take it easy guys ,we can all see it’s an extended cab,geeze.chill out

    Like 3
  5. Avatar eric22t

    russ, for the record that ball hitch set up is called a goose neck hitch.

    sweet lookin ride but no way could i bring myself to spend that much on it.

    Like 1
  6. Avatar Yblocker

    There’s a reason why these trucks didn’t sell well, the 72-93 bodies were tinny and flimsy, but they still had the traditional styling, with wing windows and drip rails, no longer with the new body style of 94, but they were better made. Nice looking truck though.

    Like 0
  7. Avatar eric22t

    i’ve run these square bodies a lonnng time and in stripper form they are tinny.
    once you get to the dressier versions they are very quiet. unless of course you get a cummins in front of you, then they needed double padding everywhere.

    personally i’ll take the fly window and the square body any day over the gen 2 rams. i sit low in the gen 2s and feel like i’m peering between the wheel and the dash. i also did not care for losing volkswagens behind the a pillar and mirrors.

    Like 2
  8. Avatar Bigrig Mike

    Bought a ’93 le regular cab long bed auto for a work vehicle for a co. I worked for in ’99 It had 175k on it. Had a fuel tank/tool box in the bed. Put a metal shell on it. Pulled trailers most of the time up to 12k all the time. Had fuel pump rebuilt the 2nd year I had it. Replaced accelerater linkage replaced as well as a tps. Drove it for 7 years. Parked it when it needed fuel pump rebuilt again(not cheap)at 462k still running great with no smoke. Best hard working truck I ever drove.

    Like 1

Leave a Reply to eric22t Cancel reply

RULES: No profanity, politics, or personal attacks.

Become a member to add images to your comments.

*

Get new comment updates via email. Or subscribe without commenting.