Ram issues... Should have listened to y'all
 

at 20k miles on the ram with the cummins; it's in the shop... Cel for emissions equipment. Had to wait two weeks for an appointment... been in the shop for three days now and they haven't even started work on it. First gear still pops out, and front the end is loose....

I don't know if it's worth it to delete emissions and put a clutch in it (stock clutch won't hold increased power), or just jump ship.

My dad has been very happy with his F-350 (has the 6.0 Harvester engine in it). But he has had to do repairs.....emissions crap. Those EGR systems are the devil.

Oh no! I am just about to get one. They cannot be all bad - there are so many of them out there.

I had the 6.0 International with the EGR and particulate filter and had nothing but problems. I had the 6.2 with the DEF system and it was great. No issues. I now have a 6.0 Gasoline engine and it was $10K cheaper!

Made out of 'broken'...

I have the only running example in North America :cool: 60,000 miles and running like new for some unexplainable reason. Just had the full 60K maintenance service done last week (1 day to schedule appt, 1 day to complete all service). Like all diesels, they are VERY expensive to maintain properly.

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Where do you guys head in FL? My parents are on Big Pine Key during the winter.

Sorry that sucks! My father in law had all of the same, ended up trading his Cummins in for a base model Hemi SLT and has been very happy.

Is there not an extended warranty option for these? May proove valuable or maybe just a waste of $?

We'll be in Winter Haven this winter - relatively close to my daughter in Kissimmee but far enough away from the general chaos of Orlando :rolleyes:

I was offered a factory bumper-to-bumper extended warranty. I think they wanted around $3000 if I recall correctly. I didn't buy it.

RE: DEF system. My truck had a CEL shortly after purchase while driving through Ohio. Pulled into the nearest dealer and the code was Contaminated DEF fluid. I had just filled the tank with fresh Peak BlueDEF the night before - probably the most popular DEF out there. Was subsequently told by 2 different RAM mechanics, the system is sensitive and to ONLY use Mopar DEF fluid. They had seen many problems related to aftermarket DEF fluid (not that the fluid is bad, the system just doesn't like it for some reason). Anyway, they just cleared the code and the system re-gen'ed a few times and it went away on the trip south. Have used Mopar DEF ever since and no more problems.

With DEF, there is a shelf life that depends on storage temperature.

Ever buy old stock on sale. Check the date on the box, it IS like milk.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1534387916.jpg

Hmmm I know the def has a shelf life and I'm very good at getting fresh fluid.

Kinda interesting that mopar has def. When I picked up the truck it was fresh off the train that morning, and the salesman actually drove the truck to the corner gas station to fill it up with diesel, and included a box of peak brand ad blue. (Def tank was half full)

Is it a fullsize RAM with the normal Cummins? That is a shame to hear.

I have 83K on my 2012 F350 wth the 6.7L and really have bot had any major issues with it.

Oh and I use the Peak Blue Def and we have few stations out here on the western slope that actually have pumps at the gas station that I have used and have never run into an issue with the DEF.

Yeah, DEF has a short shelf life and does not like heat and sunshine. Never buy it just to have some on hand. But there is something about the brand as well. Same exact issue with GM Duramax. Many DEF/CEL faults that magically go away when switching to GM DEF fluid. I had it explained to me by a mechanic but don't remember the specifics. OTOH, there are Cummins and Duramax owners who say they put anything they can find in there and don't have problems :confused: But when I have a mechanic tell me its a known issue that he sees over and over again, I listen. The Mopar and GM stuff might be a few $$ more, but it's not like you're putting this stuff in every week either. For me, it's every 3-6 months.

RE: dealers. I seek out rural dealers who sell lots of 3500 diesel trucks to farmers and ranchers. Never go to a dealer in the city who sell 2 diesel trucks a month. The mechanics there don't have a clue and, in the case of a DRW, might not even have a means of properly lifting the truck!

I think it's basically cow urine isn't it?:D

When I went to get a large truck for towing the 914-6 vintage race car I was told by my mentor to get one of the diesels that were made BEFORE CA put all that diesel smog stuff for diesels in effect. John was a Dodge man but I had always been a Ford truck man and he said get one before Ford screwed up with trying to make their own engines. Soooo I bought a 2000 F350 dually that already had 70K miles, not even broken in really, 5th wheel hitch and even a CB radio. Car fax showed no wrecks and it had been used in Arkansas by a fellow who did a small business moving cars and bought a new truck every 18 months. It was great and could haul 18,000 pounds of trailer and car with no problem. I did some mods I.E. larger exhaust, larger intake, on the fly engine computer and a Jake brake/trans locker for down hills.

I had to get it smog tested and the shop I used knew zero about diesels and failed terribly so I call the San Diego office of CARB and raised hell so the next day a man came out and gave me a life time pass on smog checks after he took all the info and pictures of the engine with mods that had reduced emissions 30% (all were approved by CA CARB) and did a writeup to make a memo for smog people to follow.


I think with trucks having a brand new one is immaterial as they are a work item and as long as no rust or wrecks all is well.

The happiest truck owners are the ones in the dealer service waiting area that have long term warranties on their trucks.

Like Curt have a 14 Ram 3500 diesel.
It's had a few recalls that have been fixed quickly without issue.
I have become good friends with my Ram dealer Service Manager.
He actually leaves his truck with me and takes my truck in for recall work.

No complaints so far, tows like a train!
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I bought a RAM truck "new". It had 5,000 miles. Loved that truck, but after about 200 miles, the "Incorrect DEF" warning came on. I took it back 3-4 times before they finally looked at the DEF fluid. Turns out there was diesel in the DEF reservoir.

They told me that voided the warranty. Well, I told them that whatever was in there came from Chrysler as I never added anything to the DEF tank.

Anyway, they replaced the whole system and I always put Mopar DEF in there after that and never had another problem.

That's crazy. Almost guaranteed some kid running vehicles down to the gas station for the dealer accidentally put that in there (although it would take real effort with the large diameter diesel nozzle). :rolleyes:

My daughter was driving one of my old diesel Jettas (only a few years old at the time) and - according to the sketchy story she tells - let a friend drive it who accidentally put gas in it. The car ran for about a mile and stopped. Luckily, it didn't ruin the engine and $400 later it was running fine :mad:

The RAM is a suck of a truck and I know all the problems.
If you elect to buy one you will get to buy several front end kits to end the endless steer problems.
Just check any of the forums
endless, endless and more endless.
Light switches that burn up is always a coming attraction too.
Air flaper to the heater that sticks-about 12 hours of serious labor
Power brake systems inop.
Chains in transfer cases...............
Ball Joints .Never mind covered that in steering.
I am serious look before you leap........
OH and OH!
The first gen with the VP 44 and lift pumps, and 2000 dollars more .
and ooppps did it again.
ya sure you want one?

Have a 2012 Ram 3500 pre DEF long bed crew cab. Have 125K+ miles on it, and the only issue was that I had to replace the muffler on it that rusted through back by the rear axle. I go over 2 mountain passes every weekend in the winter so that wasn't too surprising. Two sets of brakes so far, and had to replace the front calipers both times due to the winter issues. Other than that it's been great. Half the miles have been towing roughly 5000 lbs, nothing heavier. NO steering issues, NO balljoint issues. Maybe I just got lucky. But then again, I just got through paying it off, so maybe it will fall apart now!:rolleyes:

Afterburn.. would this apply to the 5500 or just the 2500, 3500?

Really, the GMS and Fords have their own sets of problems as well, right?

And about the DEF fluid. Would the Cummins fluid be ok as well as Mopar?

Why not just get the Mopar DEF and eliminate that potential variable. It's the least expensive thing you buy for a diesel truck, other than wiper fluid :D

Eric - just had my original brakes inspected at the 60K service. They feel excellent, but I really wanted the dealer to install new pads just to keep ahead of the game. They said the pads were perfectly fine and no reason to do any work :eek: Not bad for quite a few miles with 25,000+ pounds combined truck-trailer weight. But mine's never seen snow :cool:

I was hoping they would have gotten their front ends together by now. Truck has needed an alignment since 3k mi, but I have not had a chance to get it into the dealer until now... I'll have to price front end parts.

Called the dealer yesterday, still waiting on an open rack. No word today. Warranty work is prolly put on hold there.

Here she when she was brand new. Quickly put 500 miles on the truck so I could start towing.
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That explains why the local company that ferrys Featherlight trailers uses exclusively Dodge/Ram trucks. :rolleyes:

The 6.0 doesn’t have a particulate filter. That started in ‘08 with the 6.4.


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Obviously :D

Would anybody here who knows Cummins pwered trucks spend 6k to make a running truck again ? To fix the whole in the engine block my dad's 05. Or scrap it ?

If there's a hole in the block.... That block is scrap.

Price an used long yet?

4k used for a running scrap engine. 1k for no core. For the same money can get a remanufactured long block and I think it go that route. But it needs to be a decent truck when done. I'm not hearing that in this thread

I thought the pre DEF years would be less trouble but could be wrong about that

The rest of the truck is good. Straight body good paint. Interior is good except drivers seat. It has 143k miles.

Get at least 16GB, ECC is nice, and the price is coming down so plan on 32GB next year.

Low miles for a hole in the block... Did you run her dry? G56/4x4?


Dealer finally called for my truck. Def system needs to be replaced. Will be a couple weeks to parts in.

Hmm where do I plug in!?

Reading all this scares me a bit. I was ready to pull the trigger on a newer diesel but instead looked for a long time on a low mileage Duramax here in LA from an old guy. I gave up my 127000 miles simple, noise and smelly Cummins to one of my sub contractors. I will regret it one day soon. How can a 60,000 dollar diesel truck has so many issues. Are diesel trucks suppose to be hard wearing, reliable trucks? I know all the newer trucks has their issues but all the big threes?

A friend had similar issues with his duramax. Moderate towing, be bought it because of the mileage, said he planned to keep it forever. I think it took ~3 yrs for the $$$ bill. Wouldnt start, dealer seemed to not know how to fix it. Ended up trading it for a 1500.

I had a GM 6.5 diesel for a few years, all the old stuff wasnt great. :)