I just bought a 2000 ram van 1500 about 4 months ago. Has 140k on it. Really clean engine but surface rust all underneath of it. When i got it there was a misfire in cylinder 8 i did the plugs and wires and cyl 8 was gapped almost twice the recommended size, seemed to fix the misfire issue, CL went away, stopped jerking stalling i revving and super high rpms but now ive got this issue where when i first get in and get going along with some other situations at lower rpms ill get pretty much no throttle response at all unless i really step on the gas, sometimes i have to let off the gas and step on it hard right away just to get a throttle response AND sometimes when i first first start going for the day or after its cooled down completely i can actually hear a clicking sound from right underneath the dog house and feel it as well. I did spray pb blaster on both of the u joints before leaving one day and it seemed like it did prevent the issue but im not sure as it doesnt happen every time anyways, theres also no access port to grease the u joints. I also checked trans fluid and it looks brand new so im assuming this was an ongoing issue before i bought the van but im not positive its the transmission because mostly all the other time its running and driving perfect. I cleaned the throttle body and swapped out that gasket, i swapped the crank breather and element as the old one was shot/gunked. I see a lot of different videos about different sensors and issues it could be but nothing specific to the van nor with my exact issue im wondering if anybody else has had similar happen? Theres also a giant hole in the top of the muffler that was there when I bought it as well. It looked as if either w piece of it went through the heatshield or it just blew out so aggressive it blew the same size hole in the heat shield. That hole facing the bottom of the van along with the misfire was enough to melt my carpet when i originally got it. Replacing the heat shield and fixing the misfire seemed to fix that but im wondering if its relevant. Maybe the 02 sensors are cooked and they’re messing with idle/acceleration? I also had a mechanic tell me it was probably the cat that was bad but im kind of leaning towards the idea that he just wanted me to agree so he could take the cat? I dont have a check engine light on for anything, no codes ever beside the og misfire. Im wondering where I should start as opposed to just throwing $50 parts all over the place that may not and have not fixed similar issues for a lot of people. Its a 2000 1500 w overdrive i believe thats a 46re but also not positive as all of this is new to me. It doesnt always idle rough, i drive it 3-4 hours a day regularly and it really only has the issue at low speeds.

 

Take a peak into the intake manifold, see any oil pooling in there? That's a blown plenum gasket. A fairly standard problem on the magnum v-8s.....

What spark plugs are in it?

 

no oil pooling. Also know vacuum nor pressure pushing out from anything as far as i can tell. I dont remember exactly what plugs i put in i just know they’re copper ss recommended, i can find the receipt when i get home later and let you know though. That wouldn’t have anything to do with the clicking sound either right?

 

Copper plugs are good.

Can you drive it with the doghouse off, try and figger out just where the noise is coming from?

 

im not sure the noise is relevant to it cutting out i think thats seperate. It sounds like the u joint but im not sure maybe it is the trans i just cant see how it would only be heard at low speeds. Its like when i first start going after a stop it puts, almost as if im lightly pumping on the gas but i have a light consistent foot on the pedal.which is also making me lean toward the exhaust system a bit? Cause if im aggressive with it, it doesnt give me a problem. Maybe the backpressure being off with a hole in the muffler is causing 02 problems and when i step on it they read correct. It never throws a code for anything. Isnt that consistent with 02 issues?

 

If you step on it hard enough, the system drops into open loop, and ignores the O2 sensors. If you are having an O2 issue, odd and strange performance issues should be expected..... If your sensors are original, likely time to change them. NTK or Denso sensors only please.

 

you think thats where i should start as opposed to other sensors and what not? Thats really the answer im looking for is what to prioritize for issues similar to what i have going on

 

Check for codes first, be sure and check for pending codes, and maybe even history codes......

 

i can check for codes even if its never thrown a light? The only code ive ever seen with it was for the misfire before i did the plugs. Its been clear since then. Could it be possible the cat is bad and thats whats making the noise and the entirety of the issue is exhaust related? There was no emissions sticker in the window when i got it so im guessing it hasnt been serviced in quite some time.

 

Depending on your scanner, you should be able to read pending and history codes. I know some of the less expensive ones won't do that trick though.