this is my 1st dodge. I bought it used ,so far the auto tranny needed rebuilt,(at least twice now from new) the rear end spun the carrier bearings, the dash cracked in a ton of places, the clear coat peeled, there is still some play in the drivetrain somewhere. when i go from reverse to 1st it hesitates and then clunks pretty bad and then moves. the u joints are good. to top it off it never gets over 11mpg. I should have kept my 86 ford f350. it had a carbed 460 and got the same mpg. so far im not impressed. Is this typical of dodges or do i have a lemon? o yea it overheats in the summer

 

no, your u-joints should be bad too!

 

How may miles on your Ram?

 

around 150,000, the motor starts right up and seems to run ok ,(for a positive note) ther are more problems if i think about it, water leaks in the cab when it rains, the grab bar on the pass ceiling pulled off in my wifes hand, and shes not that fat. the leather seats are peeling.

 

Sounds like you bought a truck that's been rode hard and put up wet. I believe it is all from someone else's abuse/lack of maintenance...now you're left to pick up the pieces.

 

Dodge dashes cracking is incredible, amazingly common.

There are some reports of tranny problems being common.

My clear coat is peeling in some places, and paint peeling from other areas.

11 mpg is a bit low.

I'm not sure you have a lemon, it just sounds like its had the hell riden out of it which is how it goes for most used automobiles.

 

maybe it was abused , i have know way of knowing. what kind of mpg should i get, and if low , coukd it be the o2 sensor,? i did a complete tune up and plug wires. i run synthetic in everything.

 

the cracked dash is common.
the transmission problems are common.
clear code erosion is common.
grab handle is held on by a couple a little screws. they do come loose. common.
rear end bearings. i'd say thats not common, but might be caused by a lot of heavy towing.
leaky cab. not too common, but my 01 leaks on drivers left foot. others leak around the 3rd brake light.

you didn't mention leaky plenum - common.
or steering wander all over the road - common.
or front hub bearings and u-joints.
or weak dim cloudy headlights.
or defrost/htr air vent change.
or leaking heater core
or leaking ac drainage into the cab
or heater blend door malfunction and no heat
or abs and brake lights stuck on.
or 4wd not working
or t-case banging.
or cat clogged up.

hell, i'd say you got a good one.

 

15 mpg give or take. Its hard to say what it could be, but there is a common issue with the plenum pan gasket on the inside of the intake manifold. Also could be a plugged cat. Or it could be animal spirits have decided to take hold of it and lower the gas mileage out of spite for chopping their forrests down.

 

the head lights are suburned and the chrome on the trim peeled off the side of the body.

what happens when the gasget goes bad. and how do i check it without pulling apart?