I only know of two early 4th gen Ram 1500s that had actually been cured of the "coast down" ticking noise and after a lot of other parts were replaced only installing a new Cam Phaser solved the problem. It was commonly thought to be bad chain tensioners and guides for a while, probably because 5.7 Hemi motors in cars had an issue with them for a short period of time. But, the guides, chain, and tensioners are different components in a 5.7 truck motor. There were 100s of lifters replaced for this, and although some reported a cure it seemed to come back after a while.

I would suggest starting at the front of the motor and inspect the chain, guides and tensioner. If they look worn I'd replace them AND the cam phaser.

Best of luck,
Dusty2019 Ram 1500 Billet Silver Laramie Quad Cab 2WD, 5.7 Hemi, 8HP75, 3.21 axle, 33 gallon fuel tank, factory dual exhaust, 18” wheels. Build date: 17 July 2018. Now at: 030513 miles.

 

The good part is other than being annoying the sound doesn’t appear to be tearing anything up. If you haven’t yet, watch this video. It shows the keyway and the limiter block. One of those is the likely culprit as it only happens when the timing is retarded beyond a certain point. If someone could tell the ECU to retard the timing less through reprogramming, I would bet it would solve the ticking because that’s also why turning off the MDS instantly stops the sound imho.

 

Has anyone confirmed it was timing chain and guide? I have this same issue

 

Not sure on the timing chain or not, but I recently had the tick go away reliably. I upgraded my exhaust and had the rear o2 sensors disconnected. This, of course, tripped a CEL. That disabled the MDS. No tick. It remained gone for the entire time my CEL was on. I'm not sure how that can help anyone in finding why, but there it is. Entire exhaust was redone, and I had replaced the throttle body. Nothing else, at the time, had been changed.

So, having the MDS disabled stops the tick.

2010 1500 4x4 tick started around 60k miles, currently 133k miles.

 

Hi Scott1980,
We apologize for the trouble you are experiencing. If you are not able to remedy this concern with the advice provided here, we kindly recommend connecting with your local Ram dealer. If you are in need of any assistance with that process, our team is available via private message.

Rob
Dodge Cares

 

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When coasting in D, medium to low speeds, hear a tick, like you described as card in a bicycle tire. Goes away during acceleration. Hot/cold weather don't matter. However, slap the truck into auto stick into 5th gear- noise completely goes away(how Ive haven to drive my truck for a year now..) This this the problem, WHY??? Ive paid multiple mechanics alot of money to figure this out, and im out bread and still got a tick >.<

**PLEASE SOMEONE PIN ME OR SEND ME AN EMAIL IF YOU KNOW WHAT THE ISSUE IS AND WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE TO FIX. GOD BLESS THE BEING WHO KNOWS THIS ANSWER, lol. Thank y'all for all the great advices!

Email: Piltz5021@yahoo.com

 

ANY LUCK?!?! This is my exact issue- paid way to much money to multiple mechanics and they STILL have no clue. One even told me it was the alternator (🤦🏼‍♂️ definitely wasn't)
PlEASE PLEASE EMAIL ME YOUR SOLUTIONS- Piltz5021@yahoo.com. god bless brother

 

So, I realize this thread is super old now. But, I’m experiencing this rattle while eco mode is active and engine is unloaded. I have a mechanic friend lined up to replace my TC/tensioner and cam phaser. He’s saying maybe replace oil pump while it’s off, but it’s an extra $200 almost. Is that something that you would do while it’s torn apart or just let it ride? 2014 with 127k miles. No indications of oil pump going out right now.

 

I had posted before suspecting that the noise was related to the timing being retarded under certain conditions. At 220k miles the engine died with MDS on and no load. It wouldn’t restart. Turns out it snapped the timing chain. Over the months or possibly years that “ticking sound” was actually the timing chain slapping against a rib of something that sits on the front of the motor next to the timing chain (can’t remember exactly what perhaps part of the oil pump.). I’m pretty sure the root cause was worn tensioners. The cause of death was a snapped timing chain when the grooves that were being cut got deep enough to snag the pivot points of the chain. I had a picture of the grooves but can’t find it. Had I changed the tensioners I believe the engine would have been saved. Was about 7 grand for new engine install. :-(


You can see the groove that was being cut by the timing chain when timing chain was slack.