2019 Ram Hemi Engine Failure.

[Gemlin]

My 2019 Ram 1500 with 5.7 with approximately 48k miles developed a ticking noise. It sounded like a exhaust leak, but as the engine heated up, it went away. The noise was quite loud. I thought it was an exhaust leak on the exhaust manifolds.

Well I took it to the dealer and the tech thought the same thing. That is until he went and checked the exhaust manifold bolts. None of them are broken. Informed me that it sounded like a bottom end issue with the engine.

Today I got the news that a lifter/camshaft failure, caused shaved material to tear up the bottom end. Dealer informed me that they ordered a new engine (Which is back-ordered for two weeks).

At least the engine is still under the factory warranty. I do have a 8 year 100k Maximum Care warranty on the truck with a 0 deductible.

My question is, has anyone else had this happen? Is there anything I can do not to have this happen in the future? I have always had the oil changed with Mobil One Synthetic 5W20 with the Mopar Filter.

I'm not really upset, the way I look at it is that I get a brand new motor and that it happened under the factory warranty. Dealer has been good and informative. I'd rather not have to go thru this again.

I've read that I should NOT allow this motor to idle for long periods of time. Is this true? A motor that can't sit and idle?

 

[silver billet]

There's a guy on youtube "Truck Central" that has almost 1000 idle hours on his 2019, thats with 100,000 miles on the truck as well.

Lifter failures have been common on hemis between 2009 and 2014, FCA was supposed to have fixed that but there will always be some lifter failures on these engines, just like the GM 5.3 and 6.2's as well (couple guys on the GM forum have busted 6.2s too, same type of lifter problem).

So yes it used to be more common on these hemis than it "should" be, I don't know if there is enough evidence one way or the other to know if it's still above average or expectations.

 

[Gemlin]

I"m not sure if it was only common from 2009 to 2014. At the dealership, theres more than just my truck there getting a new engine. Yes when I search the internet, I can find many examples of 2019+ trucks and cars having the same hemi cam/lifter failure. I was just wondering how many people on this forum had it.

I was looking for suggestions to avoid having it happen again. I already use total synthetic oil.

 

[Gemlin]

Well now I"m a bit upset. I guess because the engine failed and theres a two week back-order on the engine. The dealer does not give out loaners. FCA said I would have to rent a vehicle on my own and they *MAY* reimburse me for it.

 

[silver billet]

I don't believe idle hours by itself will necessarily cause it, since there are many (like the truck I mentioned) that are going strong with many idle hours and no issues. Dirty oil will definitely be a problem since it can gum up the needle bearings in the lifter; so a high quality oil filter from Royal Purple or Wix might help mitigate it, as well as changing your oil on time.

Myself I run Redline 5w-30 oil, as many user reports suggest this oil removes the lifter tick. This oil is outside of factory spec so if you run it and a lifter goes anyway, if they catch you running it you void your warranty. I run it anyway because I believe it is a better oil and I'll take my chances on preventing damage with this high quality oil. If it really is a better oil then I'd rather give my engine the best shot it has to prevent wear etc.

I also get my oil tested from Blackstone, the hope is that if my engine is starting to go, the analysis would show high and unusual amounts of metal/minerals in the oil.

 

[Dr. Jim]

In 1974, I factory ordered a new Cougar with a 351 Cobra Jet engine (Q code for you Ford muscle car guys). With less than 5000 miles on it, a valve let loose, fell into the cylinder causing the piston to crack the block. The dealer questioned whether I had been racing the vehicle. I had not. Ford replaced the engine but it took about a month to get approval, order parts, get the work done and return the car to me. I drove that Cougar for the next seven years without any more problems.

So, Gemlin, hopefully everything will work out well for you!

 

[The Critic]

How many idle hours do you have?
My understanding is that HEMI's do not do well when idled excessively due to inadequate lubrication by design. Supposedly some of the police HEMI vehicles are programed to have a higher idle speed to somewhat alleviate this issue.

 

[Gemlin]

How many idle hours do you have?
My understanding is that HEMI's do not do well when idled excessively due to inadequate lubrication by design. Supposedly some of the police HEMI vehicles are programed to have a higher idle speed to somewhat alleviate this issue.

No clue how many hours I have idle. Its at the dealer and I have no access to it. Some people insist on this forum that idling has nothing to do with this issue. Silver Bullet says theres no idle issue with these motors. I have always run 5w20 Full Sythetic Oil in the motor. I suspect these motors have a MAJOR Design issue where they are not lubricating the lifters at idle, but MOPAR will not admit it. Theres many videos on youtube showing this issue.

I find it ironic that the truck has the Ap and key fob that will allow me to remote start the truck and it will idle for 15 minutes. If remote starting the motor and letting it run to cool down the cab in texas or heat it up in the winter is an issue, MOPAR isn't telling anyone. The dealer assured me that allowing the truck to idle is not an issue.

I'm not dumb, I have researched my issue and discovered that these motors have a major design issue. I posted curious on how many others have had this issue. By videos on youtube you can't get a accurate number. But at the dealer I dropped my truck off at, the tech said this is VERY COMMON PROBLEM. They had more vehicles in the shop with the cam/lifter issue being repaired under warranty, hence why a two week backorder on a new engine.

 

[Willwork4truck]

My question would be, what's the definition of "a very common problem", like how many trucks in at a time? If it's like the Ferd 6.0 turbodiesel failures then yes, that was a "very common problem" with that motor. I've not seen this forums members all up in arms about it though.

Not taking anything away from your experience at all...

 

[Fatherof3]

No clue how many hours I have idle. Its at the dealer and I have no access to it. Some people insist on this forum that idling has nothing to do with this issue. Silver Bullet says theres no idle issue with these motors. I have always run 5w20 Full Sythetic Oil in the motor. I suspect these motors have a MAJOR Design issue where they are not lubricating the lifters at idle, but MOPAR will not admit it. Theres many videos on youtube showing this issue.

I find it ironic that the truck has the Ap and key fob that will allow me to remote start the truck and it will idle for 15 minutes. If remote starting the motor and letting it run to cool down the cab in texas or heat it up in the winter is an issue, MOPAR isn't telling anyone. The dealer assured me that allowing the truck to idle is not an issue.

I'm not dumb, I have researched my issue and discovered that these motors have a major design issue. I posted curious on how many others have had this issue. By videos on youtube you can't get a accurate number. But at the dealer I dropped my truck off at, the tech said this is VERY COMMON PROBLEM. They had more vehicles in the shop with the cam/lifter issue being repaired under warranty, hence why a two week backorder on a new engine.

I don’t know if I’d call it a “very common problem“ I mean there’s literally millions of Hemis out there and there’s certainly not millions of them having the problem . I think there’s more than there should be but not as common as say the transmissions in the earlier Caravans .

 

[silver billet]

It's important to remember that all those videos are feeding off eachother in one major feedback loop. One guy starts the conjecture and the next guy builds on it and then just feed on eachother like a snowball going down hill.

There is not necessarily a design problem, nobody has proved that; its all conjecture and speculation, based on the stats that show lifter failure. Then people jump on to you youtube and think they have the answer, but FCA's answer was to provide a new partnumber (new part) for the lifter itself.

There is no proof anywhere that idling is the reason why lifters fail. It's speculation. Some cop cars had this problem, so people think "cop cars = idle = reason for failure", but that's speculation. FCA says if you idle your car a lot you need to replace the oil every 320 hours, which is 2 weeks for a car that is never off (like a cop car) or only a month if it's only running half a day at a time. How many cop cars do you think get an oil change every 2 to 4 weeks?

Anyway, this guy has just under 1000 idle hours on his hemi; if it was a design flaw, I have to think that he would have lost a lifter by now:

 

[Willwork4truck]

Good point on popo cars. If idling was so bad then most of those surplus P71 Crown Vics being sold would have trashed motors.

I have read that excessive idling is bad for any motor but what constitutes excessive... "Anecdotally, I've seen a number of (and been in one) car(s) that has overheated while idling. Without airflow, you're depending on the fans and thermostat for more than if you were driving. If all's well with the car, you should be perfectly fine idling for some time. However, if the cooling system has an issue, or if the oil pump is getting weak, you may end up with a breakage that otherwise would not have happened (or at least wouldn't have happened as soon). Think of extended idling as a stress test for the car, no problem all is well, but if not, you'll find out about it!" https://mechanics.stackexchange.com/questions/1772/is-idling-bad-for-your-engine

Older non-emission diesels idled for long periods (semi's overnight, construction vehicles, gensets). While it kills DPF systems nowadays, prior to that nobody seemed to care much.

 

[Ramtrx]

Mine pings like crazy. Dealer said it’s nothing. But my 2013 died from cam failure. My 19 runs 91 octane but pings on any octane. It’s pings pretty bad on moderate acceleration. I know it won’t last as long as it should. Love my ram but sure wish they would of fixed this issue.

 

[Fatherof3]

Mine pings like crazy. Dealer said it’s nothing. But my 2013 died from cam failure. My 19 runs 91 octane but pings on any octane. It’s pings pretty bad on moderate acceleration. I know it won’t last as long as it should. Love my ram but sure wish they would of fixed this issue.

This is my third Ram with the Hemi and I’ve never had a ping in any of them .

 

[mikeru82]

This is my third Ram with the Hemi and I’ve never had a ping in any of them .

Same for me, third Ram with the Hemi and I never heard any of them ping. And I used 87 octane for the first two.

 

[Gemlin]

I would take the vehicle back to a different dealer for the pinging noise. I would have it fixed under warranty before your warranty lapses.
I'm happy that my motor is being replaced under warranty. I would hate to have to shell out for a new motor if this had happened when it lapsed. I've done a lot of research, talked to techs, etc.. The one thing that keeps coming back is people tell me not to let the hemi idle for long periods of time. The camshaft sits too high above the crank to get reliably splashed at idle.

 

[BowDown]

No clue how many hours I have idle. Its at the dealer and I have no access to it. Some people insist on this forum that idling has nothing to do with this issue. Silver Bullet says theres no idle issue with these motors. I have always run 5w20 Full Sythetic Oil in the motor. I suspect these motors have a MAJOR Design issue where they are not lubricating the lifters at idle, but MOPAR will not admit it. Theres many videos on youtube showing this issue.

I find it ironic that the truck has the Ap and key fob that will allow me to remote start the truck and it will idle for 15 minutes. If remote starting the motor and letting it run to cool down the cab in texas or heat it up in the winter is an issue, MOPAR isn't telling anyone. The dealer assured me that allowing the truck to idle is not an issue.

I'm not dumb, I have researched my issue and discovered that these motors have a major design issue. I posted curious on how many others have had this issue. By videos on youtube you can't get a accurate number. But at the dealer I dropped my truck off at, the tech said this is VERY COMMON PROBLEM. They had more vehicles in the shop with the cam/lifter issue being repaired under warranty, hence why a two week backorder on a new engine.

OMG LOL

 

[Gemlin]

Well dealer called, apparently now, I'm on Engine #3. Engine #2 failed, now I'm on a wait again (Another MONTH of waiting)

 

[tfitz44]

My 2019 Ram 1500 with 5.7 with approximately 48k miles developed a ticking noise. It sounded like a exhaust leak, but as the engine heated up, it went away. The noise was quite loud. I thought it was an exhaust leak on the exhaust manifolds.

Well I took it to the dealer and the tech thought the same thing. That is until he went and checked the exhaust manifold bolts. None of them are broken. Informed me that it sounded like a bottom end issue with the engine.

Today I got the news that a lifter/camshaft failure, caused shaved material to tear up the bottom end. Dealer informed me that they ordered a new engine (Which is back-ordered for two weeks).

At least the engine is still under the factory warranty. I do have a 8 year 100k Maximum Care warranty on the truck with a 0 deductible.

My question is, has anyone else had this happen? Is there anything I can do not to have this happen in the future? I have always had the oil changed with Mobil One Synthetic 5W20 with the Mopar Filter.

I'm not really upset, the way I look at it is that I get a brand new motor and that it happened under the factory warranty. Dealer has been good and informative. I'd rather not have to go thru this again.

I've read that I should NOT allow this motor to idle for long periods of time. Is this true? A motor that can't sit and idle?

I’m pretty sure I just had the same thing happen on my 2021 RAM Rebel with the 5.7 HEMI. The truck has about 7800 miles on it. It’s been at the dealership since Oct 7th, and FCA is still trying to figure out what to do. They haven’t even taken the oil pan off or nothing. My guess is they are stumped as to why this happened with such low mileage. Hopefully it gets resolved soon and I get my truck back. And not to mention, the week before this happened, I had it in for its first oil change. Weird.

 

[RamCares]

Hello @tfitz44!

We would like to offer our additional support in tandem with your dealer appointment! Please send us a private message with your vehicle's mileage to get started. Let's work together to address this matter.

Hannah
Ram Cares