Forum Discussion

imq707s's avatar
imq707s
Explorer
Oct 12, 2016

Preventative Maintenance on 100,000+ mile Tow Vehicle

My 04’ Ram 1500 Hemi Quad Cab 4x4 has been a great truck…..140,000 miles on it and the only issues I’ve ever had as far as part failures were an EGR valve, ball joints, and a front wheel bearing.

Recently on my with my family, I was pulling our 19ft camper trailer back home (around 4,000lbs) when something let loose in the rearend and chewed the hell out of the gears. In order to get us home, I ended up having to have a rebuilt rearend put in…..not cheap. I think it must have been a fluke deal, because those 9.25” rearends are supposed to be bullet proof…..and I keep my truck maintained very well as far as fresh fluids. Long story short…we were stranded for 4 days, 500 miles away from home with a 14month old.

So that got me thinking……I have no plans on getting rid of my truck any time soon(should I?), and over the next several years I plan on taking our trailer on many more trips across the country. What items should I replace as “preventative maintence”? Things that could go bad, might go bad, or are pretty common to wear out when towing long distances?

It’s got the stock oem fuel pump……should I think about replacing it?
How long are they good for?
It’s got the stock u-joints on the rear driveshaft. Should I replace those before they leave me stranded?
It’s got the stock front CV joint axles. How long do those usually last?
How long should the 5.7 Hemi last?

Should I have the 545RFE transmission rebuilt? Nothing wrong with it….but how long do they usually last? Should I put an aftermarket cooler on the transmission lines in addition to the oem cooler?

You get the idea……

When the rearend whet out and I was stranded with my family for 4 days and 6 hours away from home…it was a nightmare. I want to do as much as I can to prevent something like that from happening again. I’m a little spooked now to say the last……don’t want to go through that whole ordeal again if I can help it. Not sure I could have done anything to prevent the rearend from eating itself….I Think that was just a heavy dose of bad luck.
Tow Vehicles
  • Chuck_thehammer's avatar
    Chuck_thehammer
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2016
    go to the Dodge truck Forum. and check the sticky on problems for the 2003 to 2007 Dodge trucks.

    the 9.25 has had problems for years.... mostly 2003, 2004 changed suppliers for 2005...

    my 04 Dodge 1500 had lots of problems. wheel bearings. computerized fuse box. major Rust to bed of truck,top of bed rotted in 4 years. then Transmission at 55,000 miles, wheel bearings again.
  • time2roll's avatar
    time2roll
    Nomad
    Oct 12, 2016
    You just have to keep an idea of what to do on the road. Such as transmission... do you get a Jasper exchange, OEM rebuild, or just stop at the local rebuilder? No right or wrong just don't get caught not knowing what to do.

    At 140,000 review the rubber parts like hoses, belt, bushings etc for soft spots, cracking etc. I would not just tear into things but if you need coolant replaced consider doing ALL hoses. Or if you need brakes be sure to do a fluid flush and maybe brake hoses. Just go a little extra when you do need work especially if doing it yourself.

    190,000 on my truck and I have replaced on the road a battery, fuel pump, and an alternator over the years. All seemed to work out OK with not too much disruption. I would not hesitate to take my truck cross country.
  • korbe's avatar
    korbe
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2016
    I have been following my listed maintenance schedule and so far so good. Not gonna let the "what-if's" ruin our trips. Now if it was a money pit, that's another story.
  • Grit_dog's avatar
    Grit_dog
    Navigator
    Oct 12, 2016
    I do the same since my stuff is higher miles now. Things like water pump, fuel pump etc. idk if there's any hemi specific things. This summer before our big trip I replaced the water pump because seems avg life is about 150k and was at 140k.
    My suggestion would be read a bit on a Ram pickup forum. Scan thread titles for 3rd gen pickups and whatever you see as a common "xxx just broke on my truck" occurance, think about fixing it.
    Also start a couple threads on there where everyone has a similar rig. Ask the same questions as here.
    Then add up all the stuff you "think" you need to do and see if is worth it to you to do all that or dump the truck.
    My other theory is do that he work yourself = fix it. Pay someone else to do repairs = sell it.
  • boogie_4wheel's avatar
    boogie_4wheel
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2016
    Just stick with normal scheduled maintenance. Don't go spending a ton of money fixing something that isn't broke.

    I got 244k miles out of a 1/2 ton GM when I sold it. Had original u joints and cv shafts. I've got 255k on a ford escape and it has the original cv shafts front and rear, but did require 1 u joint and a carrier bearing a few years ago.

    Usually you will get a warning before something fails such as abnormal noise or a slipping transmission, but there can just be a sudden catastrophic failure.

    I carry the old serpentine belt and maybe a tensioner with a noisy bearing just in case, but don't pack around spare parts, and surely don't replace something when the current something is working correctly.
  • Grit_dog's avatar
    Grit_dog
    Navigator
    Oct 12, 2016
    Dude I get it. And IMO you had a total fluke failure based on info you gave. If it makes u feel better I had 2 rear ends blow up on the same truck, 2 weeks apart, both times on the road with h trailer hundreds of miles from home. And the truck was Brand New!!
    First don't freak out about the big ticket things like engine and trans. Yes older, high miles = anything is possible, but typically there are symptoms before all out failure and if you're going to spend thousands on rebuilding serviceable major components for peace of mind then spend that $ on a newer truck and let this one be someone else's baby.
    That said I do think it's worth replacing what's likely newer the end of its service life for ancillary components.
  • Murphsmom's avatar
    Murphsmom
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2016
    Our Dodge is just a year newer, but otherwise sounds like about the same unit. A few weeks ago we were on the highway between Florence and Eugene OR when the serpentine belt shredded due to a failed power steering pump. We were fortunate to get a tow to Eugene and only have to spend one night in the parking lot at the repair facility. They had us back on the road in 24 hours despite having to order a part from Portland.
    [img][/img]

    Sorry...apparently the photo downloader does not like iPads.
  • stew47's avatar
    stew47
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2016
    I get what youre saying. I'm looking at a tranny rebuild now. had u joints done while in Hilton head this summer. had fuel pump go out coming back from Hilton head another year. blew a tire in Princeton wv....once again freaking Hilton head. think moral of story is don't go to Hilton head. looking back at each one though.... the u joints gave me warning by vibrating month before. the tire should've been changed on our class a...I was stupid. the tranny has had issue for couple months. i probably fried the fuel pump by running on fumes through charlotte. I think new vehicles can break especially the more advanced they get.

    anyways back to your question. the hemi is a great motor...shouldn't worry. fuel pumps just go out. i don't think its a preventative thing just don't let level get low so it over heats. my u joints went 170000. might want to have them looked at. as for your tranny keep fresh filter and fluid. look into billet torque convertors. good luck!
  • clarkster's avatar
    clarkster
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2016
    "I have no plans on getting rid of my truck any time soon(should I?)"

    You're spooked...14 month old baby...nightmare....don't want that ordeal again"

    Yes you should.

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