I have a 96 Ram 1500 V8, 318. My truck Has 86,000 miles on the motor and I can't seem to keep oil in the engine. There are no signe of a bad head gasket to my knowledge. I have noticed that the 8th cylnder plug is covered inoil. Could some one help me figure out the problem</P>


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Sounds like you might have a bad piston ring because oil isn't supposed to get in the combustion chamber...When you are driving does your exhaust have a blueish tint to it?

 

When I drive I don't always see the Blueish tint. Every now and then I'll see a puff of smoke. The *th cylinder plug is caked in oil!!!</P>


How hard is it to change a piston Ring?????</P>

 

You won't be able to do it yourself. Take it to an experience shop. You have to pull the cylinder head and a bunch of other stuff.

 

I had the same problem with my 2001 with only 47000 miles, I took it to the dealer and they found a bad intake manifold gasket. Don't know if you have the same problem, but you might want to have it checked out

 

TSB 09-06-99 discusses this problem. Oil leak is internal. No external leak present. Replacement of plenum intake gasket appears to solve it.

 

I'm sure you figured it out by now, but it definitely sounds like the plenum gasket.

 

How much is a ring replacement(roughly) on a 98 ram 1500 5.9L?

 

try checking the compression on that cylinder and compare it with the other seven and that might help you see if rings are bad also if could be a bad valve guide.

 

compression test won't help at all.
Gotta do a cylinder leakage test and find out where the oil is comming from.