I have a 2000 Dodge Ram 1500 Sport 5.2.

I was wondering if anyone on here has had a gargling and squirting sounds come from the passenger-side of the truck? I am not spilling anything under the hood in that area. The sound is coming from behind the dash area...

Also, it only seems to happen when I am accelerating from a stopped position or a slower roll, it doesn't happen after that.

Any ideas would be great.

 

Air pocket in the heater core. Need to burp the system. (not the easiest exercise either... I think there is a thread in the faq section about it.)

 

Could just be a pocket of air if your system was recently opened/drained/serviced, but probably a leak that's allowing air in. Many trucks have developed this symptom over years. Mine was quiet for 15 years until last fall when it developed the "gurgle." It is the heater core that causes it from a hole. If you can live with it, and it's not leaking, just let it gurgle. If you can't, you need to remove the dash and change the core.

 

Check the radiator overflow to see if there's any coolant. Open the radiator cap and check the coolant level as well. As Ramman18 stated, there could be a pinhole (or more) in the heater core, so be mindful if the smell of coolant permeates the cab. That happened with my 97.

Also, when is the last time the coolant was changed? Most people don't realize the coolant should be flushed and replaced every three years.

 

Tell me about it. Would you believe I have had several shops refuse to replace coolant stating it's still good? I ended up buying a tester in 2013 and it was good. I just like to do as much recommended maintenance as possible. I know one place replaced coolant back in 2006 but that was it. This summer I finally dumped it all and flushed the heater core and put new hoses, t-stat, and pump on. So I'm on third coolant change in 17 years. Warms up much faster but still gurgles.

 

I'm betting there are pinholes in the heater core. Here's what mine looked like.

 

I'm sure mine is the same. But it has to wait. I have other issues with the truck and since it isn't leaking yet, I'll leave it. I replaced the dash in 3 years ago and so it won't be that bad of a job. Just not sure if I'll ever get around to it. . . everything else has been replaced already.