1995 Dodge 3500 Camper Van

[David Smith]

I am considering the purchase of a 1995 Dodge 3500 camper van. At first I thought the '3500' referred to engine size, ie. 3500 cc. but now realize this was way too early to classify US vehicles this way and I now believe the motor is 5200 cc. The van has an automatic transmission with overdrive feature. Can anyone advise me on this model, the good, the bad and the ugly?

[Hallibagger]

The 3500 refers to the load carrying capability. All pick-up trucks and vans have a similar rating Ford F-150, F-250, F-350 etc. Dodge ratings run in the 2500, 3500 etc. I think the 3500 is a 1 ton rating and the engine is probably as 360 cubic in capacity.

Some Dodge van years have a reputation of being a bit 'squirrelly', I am not sure but I think they were a little later than '95. There are lots of postings on the subject and the 'fixes' that have been tried and the best solutions to the problems.

Someone will be able to tell you which years were affected.

[SilverFox]

Hi,

Hallibagger is right about the 3500 being a 1 ton load rating.
But not necessarily a 360³ in engine.
I have a Dodge 3500 (year 1999) with a 318³ in engine.
HTH
Bob

[LesM]

The Dodge 3500 van is indeed the 1 ton version of the (Ram) series trucks. The available engines were the 360 cubic inch and the smaller block 318 cubic inch. Your reference to 5200 cc (5.2 litres) refers to the 318. My 1995 PleasureWay is built on the Ram 3500 chassis with the 318 engine. Either of the two Dodge V8's has a pretty good record for reliability/durability. My van currently has about 125K Km. With the 318, I have no complaints about insufficient power and I get about 20mpg (Imperial gallons) on the highway as long as I stick to about 95 - 100Kmh and avoid jack rabbit starts.
When Dodge produced the Ram 3500 through the '90's, they saved a few bucks in manufacturing cost by using a rear axle from other Dodge trucks. This results in a rear wheel track (distance between the two rear tires) that is 4 inches less than the front wheel track (distance between the two front tires). Some people have experienced a decrease in highway stability because of this (a tendency for the vehicle to wander within the lane) and have corrected the problem by installing wheel spacers on the rear wheel hubs to bring everything in alignment. I have bought a set of the spacers (from supplier in California) but have not really experienced any handling problems and I have not (yet) installed them.
I've owned the van for about 18 months and have not had any mechanical issues. I'll be taking it south (Arizona, New Mexico) next month for a week or so.
Side comment: although my vehicle is a Class B camper, should I need any repairs/parts for the basic vehicle, I can get what I need at either the local Chrysler dealer or the auto wreckers, since there were quite a few of these vans on the road, mostly in commercial service. Before purchasing mine, I took it to a Chrysler dealer for what they called their "piece of mind" inspection. Wasn't very expensive and gave me reaonable piece of mind in buying it.

Les

[David Smith]

Thanks for the responses - great comments! This particular van has beaucoup kms. on it; 265k but is in perfect shape and is a great camper conversion by Greatwest in Vancouver. I am concerned about the kilometres on the motor and transmission but my European car has the same kilometres and I expect the motor to last into the mid 400k range with my TLC and a little fixing once in a while. I know the van has been cared for both physically and mechanically but I am not familiar with Dodge RAM motors and automatic transmissions in general and I don't want to get stuck with an expensive bill for rebuilding either one. Any thoughts on this?

[g1g]

Mine is as 1994 Dodge converted to MH by Coachman and issued as a 1995 model. I never cared for Dodge but I couldn't pass up the deal I got. Bought it used with less than 40,000 miles. I have to say it gets a lot better gas mpg than my chevy work van. That gets 10-12 where the dodge gets 15-16 once I got 17 something. I never liked them because they always seemed harder to work on but the 318 is a good motor. I haven't been able to use it much but I am happy with it. At least I can say I never had a problem in the 10,000 miles I have been driving it. We will see when we have big trips I can find the time and money for them.

[Hallibagger]

My '89 318 cu in Dodge 2500 Roadtrek 190 Versatile has about 285k kilometers on it now and it continues to run just fine.

[David Smith]

Hallibagger: Your post makes me feel a bit better - any problems with the transmission?

[Hallibagger]

With my fingers crossed I can say that I have had no problems with the transmission!

Being retired I try to travel at off peak periods and not be in a hurry to be anywhere.

It is after all a van and it was designed for commercial use and should be good for a longer life and mileage than a car.

[Ron J. Moore]

Yours is proof that when a vehicle is properly taken care of it gets a long life. As for not being in a hurry, the secondary and backroads are the way to enjoy travel - interstates and superhighways have their purpose, but for me the old roads have the appeal. Safe travels.

[Hallibagger]

It's not a Dodge, but I ran into a guy today in the park who has over 400k kilometers on a Chev camper van, it is an old Curtis built product, long since gone out of business. I have known him for several years and he has never mentioned any serious problems except for a bent exhaust valve stem! How do you bend a valve stem?

When I commented he said that he has another friend who has over 600k kilometers on his. Since they are both in kilometers i would assume they are both Canadian units. I cannot say if this one's travels have been trouble free.

Although I am Canadian I am in Florida for the winter, otherwise I would not be chatting to folks in the park!

[dan wilson]

These vans can do over half a million miles so you should have no problems with reliability!

[MCFillion]

Could any one tell me how I could find the specifications of a 1995 Dodge Great West Camper Van 3500 ?
I would like to know the dimensions (Length, Height and width) of this camper van but I don't know where I could find it ?

Thanks a lot for your help !

MC

[Bruceper]

Without knowing a model or length all I can provide is general information

https://www.vehiclehistory.com/vehic...e/ram-van/1995