I still do. It's really therapeutic to mess with old cars.

 

Imagine thinking a RAM is ever going to be more reliable than a Ford or GM.

All that fancy **** in the interior is going to break someday, and probably not too far out.

I don't buy my trucks based off of who has the fanciest interior. My XLT is just right for me.

 

^^^^DITTO^^^^ I've had 3 Chrysler Jeeps and a Dakota and will never own another Chrysler product as long as I'm on the right side of the grass.

 

Interesting thought, but true. I’m looking at trucks if I can’t get this second oil-burning mill under control. While I love gadgets, I’m looking at my current XLT thinking “what in the $&@?#% do I really need that a Lariat or King Ranch offers? Nothing. I can add leather, LED’s, etc. and still come out ahead. What you say was the main reason I jumped from a KR to an XLT. Couldn’t fathom the cost to repair the massaging seats one day. I bought the “dependable” 5.0L so I could run it to 200k, but apparently Ben Dover was the truck and/or motor builder, because that word and “2018 5.0L” shouldn’t be used in the same sentence.

 

I've never owned a Dodge but the company my brother worked for tried buying Dodges because they got them a little cheaper than the Fords they usually bought. They had a lot of issues with the Dodges. There were issues with the Fords but not as many. The most common Dodge problems were steering linkage / suspension and interiors falling apart.

 

And think, Ram has taken the number 2 spot in truck sales, ahead of Chevrolet. What does that say about Chevy? Ask Wiggums, if he still comes around.

 

Innovation has a habit of replacing good things with better things that are worse.

Remember the olden days when the worst thing you'd hear on a phone call was a little static or maybe the audio was quiet? We replaced that with regular reports of bad signal and "you're breaking up". Are we insane? Not really. We can take these phones with us just about anywhere and people can call us with no special thought about it. Like on Star Trek. Watch a few episodes of Magnum PI and note how many times a cell phone would have helped as well as how many episodes wouldn't have happened with cell phones.

Same goes for cars. Back in the day, I wondered what Ford was thinking putting complicated overhead-cam engines in trucks and motorhomes. Decades later I'd have to say it works pretty well considering that with these engines everyone had to adapt to fuel economy standards, stringent emissions standards, and turn them into happy little appliances that barely need maintenance while uncaring drivers beat the snot out of them.

. . . and just like with the phones that we use more because they're with us more, we're using these cars more than we used to. 200,000+ miles is way more common of a thing than it was back even in the `90's.

That having been said, I have to admit that I do miss the days when a vehicle that wasn't abused could work hard for bazillions of miles and the owner could take pride in maintenance and repairs getting them there. A lot of that thrill is lost in the new ones.

 

Don't forget that Chrysler (read as: Dodge / Ram) is now owned and operated as part of Fiat. An Italian company referred to in some circles as Fix It Again Tony.

 

What does that have to do with anything?

It’s tough to get objective reliability data, closest I’ve been able to find is Consumer Reports. They rate the ram 1500 at 2/5, but the F150 at 1/5. I wonder if the 5.0L troubles have anything to do with that…

Fix it again, Henry.

 

Maybe. I just have a decades-long disdain for Fiats in general. A friend had a Fiat Spider many, many years ago, and the troubles he had with that one car just left a horrible taste in my mouth that has now lasted decades. My opinion in general has been that they are good at design in terms of making it look good. My feeling is that they are not so good at making it work well and last.

 

Company, Highly, Recommends, You, Start, Learning, Engine, Repair.

 

 

I'll admit, I had more trouble with my 2017 Pacifica than any other vehicle I've owned. But the Ram is a completely different vehicle, and based on everything I find substantially more reliable as well. I came extremely close to buying one in February, but glad I held off as health problems in the following months made it very difficult to drive.

I miss my F150, but unless things change I don't know that I'll be able to own one again.

 

Today's the day...I've got 2950 miles and have an appointment with the dealer. I'm not quite down a quart.. It's their call.. Right now I'd rather not have my truck taken apart. It's got 16,000 miles on it and after the the start of the test I started driving it harder. The PCV valve was changed too and not sure if it was a revised one I've heard about....We shall see.

 

Good luck!

With that many miles on the engine, it's unlikely to get better with age. I would want it fixed right early in the trucks life rather than risk issues later on out of warranty. About 10 years ago I had a much more complex engine replaced under warranty, and never had a problem with the swap. I would prefer a new engine in your situation.