Ok...I have a 2002 quad cab 4x4 with the 4.7L. It's 57k miles and my forward universal is shot. Just wondering if anyone else has had to replace it on their Ram.

I do mostly city driving and the only off roading I do is on a few un-improved roads around the Detroit area. Granted I drive a bit rough but my old '97 went well over 100k with me never needing the universal replaced...and I off-roaded that beast and trailered a boat.

Anyways...just curious...

 

57K seems awful low mileage for a U-joint to go out. Could be a bad bearing or lack of lubrication. Did you lift the truck any? Lifts are known to be hard on U-Joints. Also jack rabbit starts where you suddenly put a lot of torque on the joint. However, even with that you should get more than 57K miles. Could just be a one of a kind thing with that particular joint.

-G-

 

theres a similar problem with the 2500's and their u-joints going early in life.

but just like anything, you can get a defective unit, or have one that lasts 5 million miles and shows zero wear