Hey guys this is my first post here and i have a big problem that i hope you guys can help me with. I just bought my first Dodge. Its a '97 Ram 2500 w/the 5.9. When i bought the truck a couple of weeks ago i test drove, checked everything, and it all checked out ok. couple days later i check the oil and there is no oil left. Kept watching it and about every 100 miles its a qt. low. Did i get screwed when i bought this truck or is this a common thing? Is there a fix? I also have the abs and brake light on. I think i pinned that to the speed sensor on the diff. from what you guys say. i havenet replaced it yet but soon. I think my bigger problem is the oil. Any help!? Sorry about the long post! Oh yeah it has 100,000 miles

Matt

 

could be the plenum gasket. take air cleaner off and look down throttle body. if there is oil staining or puddling on the bottom then probably need to replace plenum gasket. its a fairly common problem on the rams.

kevin

 

Yeah, kevro7 is probably right, it is common problem that gets addressed on most automotive forums....

 

Thanks for the reply man, i will do that check and see what i find. Is it a difficult thing to replace. I do all my own auto work so i can probably do it but just wondered how hard it is. I ll let you know what i find out.

Matt

 

i just replaced mine a couple weeks ago. took off the throttle body, fuel rail, a/c, alternator, and the a/c - alternator bracket, and then the intake came off. replaced intake gaskets, the plenum gasket beneath the intake, the fuel injector o-rings, and the throttle body gasket. all in all it took me about 3-4 hours. the only thing i had a hard time with was only torquing the intake and plenum bolts to 12 lb.-ft. it just seemed awful weak. but thats what it entails.

kevin

 

Ok i checked out the throttle body and im not sure what im looking for. I see a lot of what looks like a nasty dirty throttle body but then down in there it looks like oil has been sitting. I took a clean cloth on the end of a stick to see what it was and it wasnt very wet with oil down there. Should it be a lot of oil puddling or what? Also i noticed after it sat last night and i started it this morning a puff of smoke came out of the exhaust pipe. I just dont want to replace the gasket if it is not it. Is there a for sure way to find out if the gasket is the cause? Or should i just do it anyway to eliminate the gasket as being the cause?