I have a 2000 ram 1500 5.9 4x4 SLT , yesterday while trying to switch lanes I ended up getting alot of smoke come from behind me. I freaked out and pulled over and popped the hood, I see the oil was coming from what my friend tells me is the PVC valve , seemed to puke out oil. Now my problem is the transmission seems to make odd noises and I keep getting the (O/D OFF) and (TRANS TEMP) lights coming on and the truck shuts off. I'm in college for welding and can't afford to do much, let's just say the parents are the ones who pay for parts... Any suggestions or DIY ??? I'm freaking out

 

If you are blowing oil out the PCV valve, you have some serious issues..... Check oil level first.... if it's over-full, you'll have problems. If it's low, you will have even MORE problems. Basically, if you are actually blowing oil out the PCV valve, the engine is pretty much done. Make sure the valve isn't clogged. (replace it, get one from the dealer please, they are actually the correct flow rate.)

For the trans, get rid of the check valve in the cooler line going to the bottom fitting on the radiator. (its right up by the front of the motor, where the line changes from metal, to rubber.) There are some DIY's in the FAQ section for various methods of 'repair'. Make sure your fluid level in the trans is correct as well. (Check in neutral, you can't check it in park.)

 

Along with the above.... If the College teaches automotive shop... Ask them to take a look at the truck..

 

sounds pretty bad, get it looked at by an honest mechanic, new pcv valve might help....can't say I've ever heard of an engine puking oil out of the pcv....how many miles and was it maintained well? My 95 truck has 224k but is probably the best all around vehicle I've had, I guess it was maintained ok at least from old owners... I heard that check valve is a common fail point. Check the oil and trans fluid levels too. I heard if you remove the check valve if the truck sits overnight before cranking it you need to put it in neutral to let the fluid circulate all around, something vaguely I remember about it all just sitting there in the torque converter -shrug-

these magnum engines were known to be good and last a really long time though, unless it's crazy high miles I'm guessing if the fluid levels are ok and pcv valve is ok then it was maintained very badly

 

Only time I have seen engines blow oil out the PCV, or other holes in the valve covers, was when there was a hole in one, or more... pistons....

 

a junkyard engine without sky high miles seems to be in order then....I wondered, on the earlier ones that had EGR, can you ever put a newer non-egr engine in the vehicle or will it not run right? One page I bookmarked claimed the later ram engines actually had more HP and torque than the earlier ones, although that was the first I had ever heard of that...I always figured a 5.2/5.9 stayed the same throughout the gen...

seems counter productive, but on the other flipside, could you swap out a bad later model (for example 2001) non egr engine with an earlier (say 95) egr one?

web site I found showing later ones had more HP/torque than the earlier ones if you scroll down a little to their chart http://www.allpar.com/model/ram/1994-ram.html

either way, my condolences OP, having both major engine and trans trouble at once is no bueno indeed...

 

Some folks have simply disabled the EGR to no ill effect, not even getting a code for it. Others have spent the money to have the PCM modified to delete the EGR. (disable it in programming.) Some have gone so far as to convert there OBDI systems, to OBDII. That seems a tad extreme, but, you get the better programming from the later models, which is where the additional power comes from.