I agree with a lot of folks on here including Hammer and Rich ... You kind of asked for it. My 2003 Ram has been one of the most dependable vehicles I have ever owned, even moreso than my old Honda Civic. I'm sure my truck will see it's hay day but until then, drive it until the wheels fall off!

 

doesn't matter what car you buy.. you will sometimes have issues.

this thread is a waste of time.. you just wanted to come on here and whine and bitch about your problems and say that because of your issues the dodge ram is a POS..

Almost any vehicle out there has known issues and some are built worse than others.. if you seriously think that every GM truck that was ever built was perfect... you might be the stupidest individual I've ever heard in my life.

thread should get locked... nothing is ever going to come from this.. it's just a troll trying to **** people off because he feels that because of his issues every other ram on the road is junk.. rather hilarious to be honest

 

My 03 Ram is now 8 years old and has had zero issues. I have yet to change the original plugs & wires (73k miles; ordering them today). I haven't touched a damn thing but oil changes & gas fillups and it's been perfect. This truck -- in particular its drivetrain -- has encouraged me to choose a 300C SRT8 as my next sedan. Nothing brand new of course but the low-mid 20k range has some beautiful cars.

Heater cores go on any product, and if you think Dodge is the only one that requires dash removal you're mistaken. There are dozens of vehicles that call for dash removal before the core can be removed. My 92 GMC truck did not, and I was thankful, but it wouldn't have surprised me.

I really think the OP's truck was poorly treated and maintained by its original owner. I mean, the tailgate is out of alignment? Just how does that happen exactly, except by abuse? There's no adjustment because they don't expect you to warp the tailgate, its hinges, or the box itself... Junk builds up in the heater core because of old coolant, not because of the core's design, and it happens to any vehicle.

I have the dual zone HVAC and I don't think my control costs $1200 to replace in full, not to mention a bulb or LED within it. It's all electrical, no mechanical bits involved, so swapping it with an ebay part would take maybe 5 minutes.

 

Great, that sounds like good news, thanks Hammer!

I already stated that Hammer, and I know there are passionate people here, but I felt is was important to share, not only on a factual basis, but to receive feedback.

I certainly hope that doesnt happen here. My thread title indicated my true feelings on the situation.

That sucks, but all my issues arose in under 2k. His troubles are indeed worse than mine, as some of mine are elective to repair, but driving around in full parka gear, and the safety issue of the air bag light, trumps the option to not repair.

Hammer, I respect you and think you are a great asset to the forum, but Im afraid your off the mark here...

I read the TOS VERY carefully, and I was in line with all the rules. I didnt attack anybody, use offensive language, and stayed on-topic. As for my wording, I responded to people as they responded to me. Many (like yourself) replied politely and professionally...others did not.

As for moderators, I would surely hope the dont close/delete factual threads because they dont personally "agree" with the content. That, IMHO, would be a travesty.

With that said, I know this is somebodies sandbox, and if I want to play in it, I must follow the rules, thus, if the owner makes a rule that there will be no negative comments towards Dodge trucks, than thats fine...I would oblige, however leave, but right now, there is no such rule.

Thanks again Hammer for all you insight, and what you do for this forum.

Regards.

 

Gee, that's funny, I guess you haven't bothered to read my posts about "C-Clip" issues or cracked dash issues or the use of non-greasable suspension components or rack and pinion issues and many more where I have come down on Chrysler very hard for not addressing these issues.

You just want to come on here and run your mouth with NO purpose to your posts. Enjoy your NON-Dodge product and go troll on their forum when it isn't PERFECT.

Now I get to play administrator and ban your a$$...

 

This has been stated well before you chimed in, the point was, the amount of mechanical breakage, over the short course of time/mileage.

Thats right...I shared my position about my Dodge truck, here in a Dodge truck forum. Am I missing something here?

Another guy putting words in my mouth, go figure.

Ah, here we go. Puts words in my mouth, then calls me a liar. If you would be so kind to send me your email address, I will happily scan all the paper work from the diagnosis and/or repairs, otherwise, you should practice respect. And if this thread does get blocked, it will be because of short-sighted people like yourself...not me.

Regards.

 

you probably bought it from a guy who treated it like a POS or MAYBE it was YOU and you cant say all of those problems happened in under 2k miles when you say its got 81k miles total on it when thats a totally different story

 

Nope, no rules broken. It just wouldn't have bent so many peoples' noses had you chosen to use a different word or two in spots. I'm sure it was not your intention to start a bash match in your thread, but some of your wording made it inevitable.

There is some good information in the thread mixed in between the jabs and it would be unfortunate if it had to be shut down.

I have been VERY outspoken about many issues with our trucks on this and other forums. I've even had some conversations with Ram engineers where I have been VERY critical. There are COMMON issues with these trucks that IMO needed to be addressed by the company some time ago and have not been and I've jumped down their throats about them a lot harsher than you have. In all fairness, GM, Ford and Toyota all have common issues that have been ignored by them as well.
Maybe I can get away with it because of my place here or maybe it's because I may simply be less abrasive or obtuse in the way I go about it.

Some of your issues are common ones. As stated, every Chrysler product has problems with premature clock spring failure and the factory LSD is a ticking time bomb that they have known about since the day the 2nd Gens were introduced in the early '90s. There are other common issues as well.

Some of your issues are NOT common to the brand and as such, I believe it's either poor care or abuse by the previous owner or just pure out bad luck.

 

Sounds good John. I havent decide which course of action Im going to take, but its nice to know my issued may be of all isolated incidents, just with bad timing. The "perfect storm" if you will.

The information I have researched is the Dodge trucks do have more of a tendency to get clogged heater cores than others. I myself have never heard of removing the entire dash to replace one, but I cant confirm either way. My point was, if clogged heater cores ARE an issue, the repair (removing the whole dash) couldnt be worse.

I cant confirm either way, but everything look straight, and it worked fine when I got it. It just popped open one day while driving, then wouldnt latch right after that, most of the time. And I guess I should clarify...its out of alignment because it too deep now. After I trimmed the rubber stops, it sit inward about a 1/3"...its not bent or warped or anything like that.

I will say there are things I like about the truck. It drive smooth and quiet. The engine is the most powerful I have owned. It has killer looks/styling, and the roomiest cab of any regular cab Ive been in. It also has tons of little storage areas, cup holders, and hooks. The cruise control is the also the best Ive ever used. The instrument cluster is top notch, and I LOVE the warning light/audible sound when one of your gauges go out of range. THAT feature probably saved the engine when the water pump went south.

Thanks for the constructive input John.

 

By the way, I've had to replace the heater core, evap and blend doors in my Grand Cherokee (another Chrysler product).

I also had to replace my heater core in one Ford truck I had (bought used) and one Chevy truck (bought new - went bad at around 40k miles). The Ford was before Forum or even Internet days, but the Chevy was a COMMON issue according to the forums I was on then.

Just a FYI post...