Metallic rattle with moderate throttle

[Bdacamano]

Hey All,
Just got into a 2019 Ram 1500 Laramie with the 3.21 and started to notice a metallic rattle like sound when I am under a moderate engine load but prior to the engine shifting. It seems to be coming from the mid/rear of the truck and I notice it more in gears 4-7. I tried to capture it on video but road noise made it hard to hear - I'll try again when I'm on a newer road. The repetition of the sound when happening is consistent (if that makes sense) so I'm not sure if it's exhaust rattle or from the driveline (or just the normal sound of the driveline). May be in my head but I notice it more when mds is on as compared to if I lock it out. Dealer said to bring it in when I hit 3k miles (about 1500mi on it now) - things are still breaking in until then which seems like an interesting follow up to "these things are definitely worth 60k" they were telling me two weeks ago when I bought. Also said they would not turn off MDS as it controls timing which also seems inconsistent compared to what I've read in other threads. Not the biggest issue but does kind of kill the sound of an otherwise great sounding truck. Thanks in advance!

 

[79 300]

Maybe a loose exhaust heat shield?

 

[silver64]

It can also be the catalytic converter. Sometimes the filter material can break loose and rattle like crazy. If you hit an animal and it bounces around under the truck it can hit the converter so hard this happens too. Don't want to over complicate things but just wanted you to know this is possible. It happened to me on the last Ram I had.

 

[RamCares]

Hey All,
Just got into a 2019 Ram 1500 Laramie with the 3.21 and started to notice a metallic rattle like sound when I am under a moderate engine load but prior to the engine shifting. It seems to be coming from the mid/rear of the truck and I notice it more in gears 4-7. I tried to capture it on video but road noise made it hard to hear - I'll try again when I'm on a newer road. The repetition of the sound when happening is consistent (if that makes sense) so I'm not sure if it's exhaust rattle or from the driveline (or just the normal sound of the driveline). May be in my head but I notice it more when mds is on as compared to if I lock it out. Dealer said to bring it in when I hit 3k miles (about 1500mi on it now) - things are still breaking in until then which seems like an interesting follow up to "these things are definitely worth 60k" they were telling me two weeks ago when I bought. Also said they would not turn off MDS as it controls timing which also seems inconsistent compared to what I've read in other threads. Not the biggest issue but does kind of kill the sound of an otherwise great sounding truck. Thanks in advance!

Hi Bdacamano,

We certainly understand why this would be concerning. If it would be of interest, we would be more than happy to provide you with an additional layer of support as you address this with your dealer. Our team is just a private message away.

Mark
RamCares

 

[Bdacamano]

Thanks for the input so far. I think I can knock out the heat shielding. When it was raining I could barely hear it so either the sound deadened the rattle or it lubricated the parts that are touching. Seems like there may have been a similar situation with older generations and it was the torque converter not playing nicely with MDS.

 

[silver64]

One last thing is a known issue with exhaust manifold bolts breaking and driving people crazy with the rattling sound.

 

[magic280z]

Could also be pinging. It would be a bunch of evenly spaced sounds kinda like tapping on glass that would happen just before each spark on each cylinder. Do you run 87 gas? This can happen under load. My 4th gen with 3.21 gears would do this occasionally on 87. I believe the manual even mentions this as a side affect of 87.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

 

[Bdacamano]

Thanks for the response- I'm running 89 but it's driving me crazy. I can now hear it 3-7th gear with MDS on or off. More when on. It sounds like it's coming from the rear end but given the car is moving I suppose it could be coming from anywhere and speed/wind is making it sound like it's coming from the rear end. I go to the dealership for round 2 tomorrow...

 

[silver64]

let us know what it turns out to be

 

[HKP7PSP]

Mine does it too, and it sounds exactly like pinging. I use 89, and have since day one. I had other cars that would do this, and just blame the crappy fuel we have with the ethanol cut into it. I'll try 91 whenever I feel like I've got some loose change laying around, to see if it makes a difference.

 

[raven_DT]

Hey All,
Just got into a 2019 Ram 1500 Laramie with the 3.21 and started to notice a metallic rattle like sound when I am under a moderate engine load but prior to the engine shifting. It seems to be coming from the mid/rear of the truck and I notice it more in gears 4-7. I tried to capture it on video but road noise made it hard to hear - I'll try again when I'm on a newer road. The repetition of the sound when happening is consistent (if that makes sense) so I'm not sure if it's exhaust rattle or from the driveline (or just the normal sound of the driveline). May be in my head but I notice it more when mds is on as compared to if I lock it out. Dealer said to bring it in when I hit 3k miles (about 1500mi on it now) - things are still breaking in until then which seems like an interesting follow up to "these things are definitely worth 60k" they were telling me two weeks ago when I bought. Also said they would not turn off MDS as it controls timing which also seems inconsistent compared to what I've read in other threads. Not the biggest issue but does kind of kill the sound of an otherwise great sounding truck. Thanks in advance!

Can you replicate the sound with MDS off "select 8th gear/ engage tow/haul mode)?

 

[DesertRebel]

Could also be pinging. It would be a bunch of evenly spaced sounds kinda like tapping on glass that would happen just before each spark on each cylinder. Do you run 87 gas? This can happen under load. My 4th gen with 3.21 gears would do this occasionally on 87. I believe the manual even mentions this as a side affect of 87.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Mine does it too, and it sounds exactly like pinging. I use 89, and have since day one. I had other cars that would do this, and just blame the crappy fuel we have with the ethanol cut into it. I'll try 91 whenever I feel like I've got some loose change laying around, to see if it makes a difference.

That was my first thought when I read OP.... Curious about update/resolution.

 

[rraulston]

Mine does it too.....and under medium throttle. I think its pinging.....too....

 

[HEMI19]

Mine does it too.....and under medium throttle. I think its pinging.....too....

what RPM range does the noise occur for you? I have a pinging / almost wrapping sound around 3,000 RPM under moderate load

 

[rraulston]

what RPM range does the noise occur for you? I have a pinging / almost wrapping sound around 3,000 RPM under moderate load

same as yours. Then it goes away. I wonder if we have lots of timing under part throttle, we get ping, the knock sensor/ECU retards timing and it self regulates and goes away....... That's just a guess, but makes sense to me... Since gas prices are tanking, I am going to run my tank down and fill with premium and test it again...this should tell us if its pinging. Problem is AZ has crappy premium. I think its 91 octane..

 

[HEMI19]

same as yours. Then it goes away. I wonder if we have lots of timing under part throttle, we get ping, the knock sensor/ECU retards timing and it self regulates and goes away....... That's just a guess, but makes sense to me... Since gas prices are tanking, I am going to run my tank down and fill with premium and test it again...this should tell us if its pinging. Problem is AZ has crappy premium. I think its 91 octane..

I’ve found that mine runs best on 93 Octane (RON95) but it still makes some noise (could be because it’s mixed with 89 right now) I’m sure the fuel trims have to adjust to the higher octane rating too before any noticeable changes.

 

[HKP7PSP]

Mine did this until I started going to 91 and 93 octane fuel exclusively. It's definitely pinging.

Makes sense though, as the 6.4L Hemi needs minimum of 91 octane, whereas the 5.7L it's based off of / has similar compression ratios to, is supposed to "be able to"use 87 but "recommends" 89? Nah, that's pure marketing - who wants to buy the standard engine in a truck, and have it take premium?

 

[Bdacamano]

Mine was diagnosed as MDS noise. Normal operating condition but wildly annoying.

 

[rraulston]

I used Costco premium on my last fill. My tank was less that 1/4. It mostly went away. So, I think its pinging..... What makes me hesitate 100% is I get it way more at a part throttle like when getting on the freeway. When I hammer it getting on the freeway, I don't hear it...But then the engine is louder...so dunno….

 

[rraulston]

After my second premium fill, it definitely was pinging. Mine has all but disappeared. My truck runs better too. I used to do quire a bit of ECU tuning back in the day (EVO8) and learned that some ECUs had adaptive learning. If our truck have adaptive learning and adjusts the timing map due to pinging, then it can revert back to the baseline with no pinging. I honestly think that's the case as my truck has never ran better with using a few tanks of premium.... Thoughts???