Ram truck problems ?

68RFE or Aisin??? ^^^^^^^

kmbelt wrote:

mtofell1 wrote:
2014 Ram 2500 6.4 Hemi. A decent truck but have had some problems. Mainly, my transmission blew up at 38K and was rebuilt. It still feels as though something is wrong but I can't convince my dealer. I have the lifetime warranty so I'm kind of just in a holding pattern waiting to see if it fails again.

Otherwise, I had to have the thermostat replaced, had a TPMS tire sensor go out and have needed some software updates to keep the radio from glitching out.

I had far fewer problems with my 2006 Duramax but I'm not sure it's a fair comparison with all the technology of these newer trucks.

Why did your transmission blow? Symptoms?

No prior symptoms at all.... just sitting in rush hour traffic one day rolling along at about 5mph, traffic took off, I hit the gas, the tach went up and I stayed still. The tech said the valve body just blew apart.

I'm still having problems and suspect the failure was a symptom of another problem and it will fail again. I get a terrible harsh shift into 1st when engine braking. Also, an occasional violent shudder when trying to find a gear around 1st/2nd - like when coasting into a corner on a city block and heading up a hill. The 1-2 area of the tranny is also where it failed which is why I think there is still something wrong.

The dealer gives me the usual Ram, "they all do that" answer and I don't have the time or energy to keep going in to fight with them. My biggest fear is a failure when I'm out towing and get stuck on the road with my family. Otherwise, I don't really care.

Cad3dc wrote:
I have a 2015 2500 w/ Cummins w/ 31k on the odometer. Was heading out of town this past Friday w/ a 13k lbs 5th wheel in tow, and lost all forward gears in tranny. Was towed to Dodge/Ram dealership and was told due to backlog of transmission work, transmission tech won't likely fix/address for several weeks. I got a similar story from another nearby RAM dealership. Meanwhile, I'm out of pocket on a rental car b/c dealership hasn't cracked open the tranny to make a diagnosis, and I'm told only five days of rental car will be covered anyway. Despite being upside down on truck, I'd trade tomorrow for a 2017 Duramax/Allison combo if they were available on the lots. I've had it with RAM.

I'm sorry to hear of your troubles. Your story is NOT common with Ram trucks. I would be getting very vocal starting with the manager of the dealership all the way up the chain of FCA if I were you.

I have a 2015 2500 w/ Cummins w/ 31k on the odometer. Was heading out of town this past Friday w/ a 13k lbs 5th wheel in tow, and lost all forward gears in tranny. Was towed to Dodge/Ram dealership and was told due to backlog of transmission work, transmission tech won't likely fix/address for several weeks. I got a similar story from another nearby RAM dealership. Meanwhile, I'm out of pocket on a rental car b/c dealership hasn't cracked open the tranny to make a diagnosis, and I'm told only five days of rental car will be covered anyway. Despite being upside down on truck, I'd trade tomorrow for a 2017 Duramax/Allison combo if they were available on the lots. I've had it with RAM.

I think it is easy to look across the fence and see greener pastures. I have had a few issues with my 06-3500 LBZ. I did have the pump rub issue taken care of before it became expensive and of course the tranny lines. My recent GM trucks have all been trouble free. 2011 6.0 2500 to 65K no service calls, my 2015 3500 6.0 to 15K no trouble and my current 2015 3500 Duramax which is at 32K has not had a service call. All of these trucks did or have routinely pulled 30K combined. I recently had a GMC 5500 which washed a cylinder at 90K and ruined the motor. Every OEM has their issues and sometimes it is hard to keep that in perspective. Now if your always in the shop than that is different, but chances are regardless of what it says on the tailgate your gonna spend some money on it, especially if your working them hard.

Mine is a 2004.5 CTD 2WD with 81k, 19k since I bought it. I had the same clearance light leaking problem but some silicone fixed it for me. I had the front end aligned to factory specs and the truck wanted to steer into the ditch. My tire shop tech did some magic and since then it tracks perfectly. Dodge routed the fan motor through the ignition switch. Too much current and it fries the switch and the fan motor doesn't work. 40 bucks and 30 minutes later the new installed switch fixed the problem. When I bought the truck the engine was coarse, really noisy and with a rough idle. 2 tanks with Optilube XPD sweetened it up. Other than that no problems.

Cummins12V98 wrote:
I don't think the Cummins or 6.4 will make a bit of difference with a Camper on board. I am sure some of the weight will hit the front axle but I really don't see a problem with the Cummins up front.

x2. I know the 6.4 has higher payload "on paper" but a quick look at the Ram towing and payload guide can be telling. First, the one 6.4 truck with highest payload was the 6.4 with 4.10 gears. The same truck with 3.73 gears has a lower GVWR by 700 pounds despite having the exact same FGAWR and RGAWR! That makes no sense at all, gearing should effect GCWR but not payload. Anyway, the Cummins trucks have an extra 500 pounds of front axle capacity to help offset the weight of the diesel. The real take home is all of the trucks in the config I checked out (4WD crew cab DRW) have the same RGAWR and the empty rear axle weight was within 100 pounds on all 4WD CC DRW models. So in reality they can all handle about the same weight camper. Now, I know the 6.4 will move down the road just fine at GVWR, but if you would prefer a diesel, don't let the 'on paper' difference of 1000 pounds in payload sway you, because when you break the numbers down to what counts the difference is much less.

Devocamper wrote:
Thank you for your helpful reply would like to ask if you know how much your buddy with the 6.4 is towing weight wise? my trailer is around 12K most of the time could be up to 15400 which I would not expect the 6.4 to do well at all with even for the short trips and usage we plan for the firth wheel. The ram configuration I would be looking at would be rated 15900 with the 6.4 and 4.10's.
Mike

His 5er has a GVWR of 12000 lbs. He normally carries firewood and a host of other stuff in his bed as well. He also has the 3.73 gears... he wanted the 4.10's but his desire for a new truck was stronger than his desire to wait for the truck that met his needs =)!

If you are doing short trips up in New England, I can't imagine having any troubles at all with that kind of weight. Not too many mountains up there, certainly not any excessive altitudes either. In terms of a gas engine truck, I think the 6.4 Hemi has the most HP and torque.

goducks10 wrote:
Couldn't your friend just use the toggle shift button and drop it to 3rd himself?

I believe that is what he has started to do. We go to the same campground about 3 times a year, beautiful lake front spots and he and his wife have a boat up there =). I think on this last trip towing, he manually shifted. I think it worked better, but he is understandably annoyed at the programming that causes it to shift that way...

spoon059 wrote:
I have a 2015 Cummins. That gave me the redesigned frame and DEF exhaust treatment. I am very happy with my truck. I have had 2 issues with my truck.

#1 is the stock Transforce tires are garbage... not that big of a deal, but I will have to shell out some money to replace them earlier than I expected.
#2 was a DEF quality error message. I ran my tank down pretty low and filled up with 5 gallons of DEF and got a P207 error message. Searching the forums I saw all sorts of horror scenarios... the truck will go to limp mode within 200 miles, you have to pay several hundred dollars to drain your DEF tank, etc. Stupid me, I just cleared the code and kept driving with nary a problem. Its been several thousand miles with no ill effects. I have a company vehicle, so my Ram is used for towing and occasional errands.

Other than that, SUPER happy with my truck.

My good friend has the 6.4 Hemi and is annoyed at the transmission ratios. Pulling his 5er in the eastern mountains, he struggles to maintain speed in 4th gear, then the trans drops into 2nd gear and RPM's race. Truck moves the weight fine, but he is annoyed that the trans wants to stay in 4th too long, then skips 3rd and goes straight to 2nd. Other than that, he loves his truck which is also his daily driver.

We have a camping partner with a pre-DEF 2011 Cummins 6.7. Because his EGR is more involved, he tends to have a dirtier engine and shorter oil life. He also has a more frequent maintenance schedule with his EGR valve cleaning and other items. His fuel mileage is a little worse because it uses diesel in the regen process. Though he has the older frame, he has no front end issues. He tows a moderately sized 5er and drivers his truck as a daily driver. He likes his truck and has no complaints.

We have another camping partner that had a 2014 Ram 2500 with the Cummins and towed a massive 40+ foot 5er with either 3 or 4 slides on it. Coming back from a trip to the mountains at the end of the summer he destroyed his rear axle. I'm not sure what exactly went on it... but I know he was overloaded by a substantial amount... I'm sure he was over his axle rating by a bunch. Plenty of engine, transmission was fine, brakes and exhaust brake were always keeping him in control going up and down the mountains... but rear axle couldn't handle the weight.

I've got another camping partner with a 2006 5.9, stock engine, trans and tires. This is his towing vehicle only, he has a small car for commuting. They tow a 26 foot bumper pull trailer and love their truck. No major issues, no front end issues, no trans issues. No odd sounds, no rust, no body issues. He has a beautiful clean truck and loves it. People literally come up to him at gas stations and campgrounds and ask him if he is willing to sell it... That is pretty impressive!

Are the Rams perfect...? I don't think so. I like my Ram quite a bit though and am happy that I found my truck used (8 months and 10K miles). I have been super happy. Sometimes I miss the peppy quickness of my Tundra, but the Ram feels more solid, weighing in at 2000 lbs heavier. You cannot go wrong with any of the big three's current offerings.

Thank you for your helpful reply would like to ask if you know how much your buddy with the 6.4 is towing weight wise? my trailer is around 12K most of the time could be up to 15400 which I would not expect the 6.4 to do well at all with even for the short trips and usage we plan for the firth wheel. The ram configuration I would be looking at would be rated 15900 with the 6.4 and 4.10's.
Mike