i have a 2002 dodge ram 1500, v8, 4.7L reg cab. this new years i was going up north to flagstaff, arizona to go snowboarding with family. on my way up I heard a clicking sound coming from under the hood. At first it was very quiet, I actually thought it was the truck next to me accelerating, but while i was trying to pass i accelerated and the clicking sound got louder. The closest thing i could say it sounded like, is when your batter dies and you turn the key but it wont start. So when I tried accelerating up a larger hill while on the highway, the sound got louder, check guages light came on, my oil guage was all the way down, so I pulled over and i shut it down. truck wouldn't start after that.

after getting it towed back to town my dad and I checked the starter, and battery. Starter tested good from both auto zone and checkers.

We towed it again to my grandpas house where his neighbor, a chrysler mechanic, gave us some tips as to what to look into. he had us take remove the belt and try to turn over the engine manually with a big screw driver. The screw driver was actually bending and the engine wouldn't turn over. He says that the engine is busted and i need to replace it.

Another piece of information that might have something to do with it is that while my dad and i were working on the truck the first time before we went to my grandpas house, the little red security light was blinking and I don't know if that would keep my truck from turning over, as if it were trying to protect my car from being stolent? I don't know, thats just a thought of mine.

I'm taking a look into engines right now, cuz i don't know what to do. should i pull it out and take a look at it!? I guess theres no other way to learn more about engines than taking a look at it yourself. plus i have a friend that knows mopar parts and will help me out!

thanks for taking the time to read this LONG thread but any input would greatlly be appreciated.

 

Hmmm... First thing I'd do is make sure the motor wasn't locked up.

 

how do i do that!? i think it is tho! cuz wouldn't the engine have turned over when my dad used the giant screw driver to turn it over instead of the starter?

 

Usually you can get a socket and breaker bar on the crank bolt and turn it. But if he has jumped the starter and it's turning over, it should not be locked up. If not and you can't turn it over then you may have some serious problems. Otherwise I'm not sure. It could probably be electrical.

 

you said it was clicking and the oil pressure gauge was down....that equals bad news I do believe....

 

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Looks like he has tried to manually turn it over to see if it has locked up. I guess the next thing it to pull the oil and see if any metal is in it. After that you are going to need to pull the heads and see what you got.

 

Sounds like the motor either didn't have oil in it or the oil pump had quit working. Either way, a motor at highway speeds with no oil is a bad thing. I would say the motor is burned up. Sorry my friend.

 

Could very well be the dreaded "sludge" issue the 4.7 is noted for. Not getting oil up into the engine from the pan.

But the FIRST THING you always need to do when you have a CEL is to pull the code!!! The thing is trying to tell you what's wrong, why the hell start "checking things" under the hood and take tools to it, when the code is TELLING you where to start looking...

 

you can turn the key from off to on 3 times and hold to on (on not start) and the code will flash up on the odo. FYI

 

don't sound good! that clicking noise was your first clue things were falling apart!