Hi everyone,
I just bought my first truck - a 2008 1500 4x4 with a 5.7 and MDS. It has 237000 miles and needs a lot of work but I got it for dirt cheap so I'm willing to put it in.
It has the dreaded tick and throws a P0303 under heavy acceleration. Shop told me its the lifter/cam issue that seems to be common on these trucks from what I've read.
I'm trying to get a parts list together. I've rebuilt the 5.7 LS1 in my Trans Am before and these motors seem to be built very similarly so i'm not too worried about having to have someone else do the work. But I'm trying to figure out exactly what I should get and get opinions on different brands out there for my use. Im just looking to get this truck back to stock and get a few more years out of it. Its not a DD and won't be used all that often so I don't need the best of the best, but I don't want garbage either. So far heres what I have...

Geluoxi MDS Lifters for $190 on Amazon
Fel Pro gasket set HS26284PT1 $110 on Amazon
Fel Pro head bolts $20
Camshaft - not sure what to get, but looking for stock size. Would it be alright to use a low mileage used one?
Valvesprings - Elgin Industries Springs $71 on Amazon
Rocker Arms - do I need them or are they usually still good?
Pushrods - also not sure what brand or length to get
MDS delete plugs - Mopar 5303 expansion plugs $50 for 4

Let me know your thoughts on what I have and what else I should get. Thanks a lot everyone!

 

I wouldn't bother with a used cam, ya never know what you are going to get.

Call any of the cam manufacturers, tell 'em what you got, what you want, and they can make a recommendation on cam/lifters/various hardware. (springs and such.) Old rockers should be fine. (inspect them though....)

If you are going to delete the MDS, do you really need the MDS lifters?

 

Thanks! I'll make some calls and maybe just see about a Mopar factory cam.
I've seen a couple videos where people commented that using MDS lifters and deleting MDS might actually help with the oil issues that plague these lifters. That might be total BS, but I'm not sure that there would be a disadvantage to using them.

 

All the hemis tick lol. My 03, 05 and 06 5.7's and my 2012 6.4 all tick. You'd have to buy a set of Johnson lifters ($$$$) or go with a much heavier oil (not a good idea) to get rid of it completely. Your shop needs to do much better internet reading. 03-08 5.7's didn't suffer from cam/lifter issues, they had valvespring and valve seat issues in random 03-06's. By 2008 those issues had already been sorted out for a few years.2009 and newer 5.7's (the "eagle" redesigned 5.7) plus some of the 6.4's had the cam/lifter issue. The lifter issue these newer engines have has nothing to do with MDS or it would be the same four cylinders EVERY time (hint: it isn't lol). I've had people start going off about how their MDS effin MDS lifters failed, etc etc, so I ask what cylinder(s) and more often than not it isn't 1, 4, 6 or 7 (these are the MDS cylinders). 2, 3, 5 & 8 use the normal non-MDS hydraulic roller lifters and are just as likely to fail those certain years. I believe the year range was about 2009-10 to 2014ish. Lotsa cam lobes wiped out by lifters covered under warranty. A good portion of these engines weren't exactly well maintained either, which certainly doesn't help. Bad batch of lifters no one wants to talk about, but if you look at it historically, from 2003 until 2009 or so. not really any lifter problems. About 2015-16 or so and on not really any either.

Ok.......so you have MDS lifters on your list but you wanna buy block plugs to replace the solenoids with? So you want a large displacement four cylinder that runs like crap? The answer to these questions will dictate the rest: do you want to get rid of MDS or not and do you want to do a performance cam or not?

It is. There is no advantage to it. In fact if you decided to go with a higher performing cam then you would be at a disadvantage since the MDS lifters can't handle faster ramp performance cams. The MDS and non-MDS cams are actually a little bit different in construction and even specs. For example, the eagle 5.7 cams have lift differences on certain lobes; this is why people who delete MDS will often go with a manual trans 5.7 cam from a Challenger. Caveat: these are VVT 5.7 cams so you cannot use one.

 

Yes. No need for MDS lifters if you are doing a delete. You will require a new cam bolt.

 

Well this is good news if it's the case. So you're saying my misfire most likely is not cam/lifter related? I would love for it to just be a coil/plug issue. I don't care about the tick. Doesn't seem to be a head gasket so I'll start with a new coil and all new plugs and go from there.

I would like to do no cam at all if it isn't bad. I would like to not screw with the MDS at all too. The truck has 237,000 miles and the less money I have to put into it the better. I'm not looking for any performance outside of what the truck already has, I just want to squeeze the most life out of it that I can. I obviously don't know enough about the MDS to want to mess with it.

 

Not necessarily, it might be it might not be. Doesn't mean it's MDS related. Start troubleshooting with the basics before moving on to wiped cam. Pull your plugs and check first if you haven't already. Swap coils between two cylinders and see if the problem persists or moves.

If your cam is still good, then a fresh set of lifters certainly wouldn't hurt. If not going with a perf cam then you don't really need perf stuff. Just good stock style replacements.