Hey everybody, I am new to Dodge Forum (and forums in general). I hope that I am posting in the right place and that I am not creating a redundant forum. Anyhow, I have a 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 4x4 with a 4.7L V8 with about 134,000 miles on it. Recently (as in two days ago), I noticed a knocking/tapping noise coming from underneath the vehicle. It is only apparent when the vehicle is idling in Park but it may be present at other times as well, perhaps the engine is just drowning out the noise. Anyway, I crawled underneath the truck and used my automotive stethoscope to try to pinpoint where the noise was coming from and it is most easily heard when it is placed on the transmission. Thus I believe the noise is coming from the tranny itself but it may be coming from somewhere else in that general area. The sound seems to die down when the truck has reached normal operating temperature, but as I said before, it may still be there, just less noticeable. I haven't had time to let the vehicle reach full op temp and then crawl under with the stethoscope. The noise doesn't seem to increase with load being placed on the transmission, and it is quite rhythmical in that the sound doesn't increase or decrease in frequency whether it is under a load or not, which makes me think that it isn't being caused by something floating around in the tranny. The tranny operates perfectly, it shifts smoothly, does not make any abnormal noises when shifting, does not slip, and is not losing fluid (I am not losing any type of fluid whatsoever). The only thing it does is "lurch" forward upon shifting into gear, however this is a very rare occurrence. Also, when idling you can feel the truck "shake" slightly, almost as if in a very mild case of rough idling, but the RPM's don't spike, and the shake seems to be consistent with the noise. Any ideas as to what may be causing the noise?

Next, when I am driving down the road I can hear a droning type noise that is noticeable at 40mph+. It seems like a wheel bearing even though the noise doesn't change in pitch when turning (though I know that sticking brakes could be the source of the noise as well), but the reason I am posting about this is because I am wondering if a tire/brake shop could have messed with it. About 2 to 3 weeks ago I took my truck in to get a new set of 10 ply A/T tires, my front brakes done, and an alignment done. Immediately after this is when the noise started so I am wondering if they could have messed it up intentionally or unintentionally. I am going to take the truck in to another shop to have them look at it to see whether I just have a faulty tire, the brakes are sticking, or if it is in fact a wheel bearing, but I am going to jack it up and test the wheels for play first to self test for a failed wheel bearing. Any ideas or thoughts?

Lastly, a lot of water is coming from my exhaust system (I know that condensation is absolutely normal, however there is quite a bit of water coming out). Even more strange to me is that it is now coming out of the tail pipe, the muffler weep hole, and two of the flanges/gaskets. I don't understand why all of a sudden water would be coming out of four areas of the exhaust system at once (ironically, this happened immediately after I picked the truck up from the aforementioned tire/brake shop). I know it is still quite cold at night here in Northern California, but it seems odd to have so much water coming out in so many different places. I visually inspected and smelt the fluid and it had no odor and was perfectly clear. I don't think I have a blown head gasket because the truck is performing just as it is supposed to, my oil isn't discolored, I am not losing coolant, and the exhaust fumes do not smell irregular. I checked my exhaust manifolds (not sure if they could even be the problem, but just thought I would check anyway) for cracks and/or strange noises and found nothing of the sort. My catalytic converters don't seem to be acting odd either, no strange noises or rattling. What's more, there is no exhaust fumes entering the cab, nor is there any exhaust steam coming out anywhere but the tailpipe (save for the areas where water is leaking, but this is just because the water evaporates as it is trying to get out of the flange. I just can't figure out why water is coming out in four places now, when normally it only came out of the tailpipe and I find it strange that both this and the droning noise I mentioned arose immediately after picking the truck up from the tire/brake shop. Any thoughts or ideas?

Thanks and sorry the post is so long!