2007 Ram: Replace the engine or replace the truck ?

MIKESPOLARA said:

Hope you're not close to that fire NE of sacramento

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I am clear of it. There is a lake between us....well, a lake at 22% capacity anyway.
Thank you.

ckessel said:

New truck will net you higher registration and insurance costs. I'm still paying $400+ on my 04.5 dually. Something else to kick around. If you do a stroker rebuild, you won't need the 3.92's. Smog test just goes to OBD port in truck and cannot tell if displacement changed. Have to be careful with cam choices so nothing sets codes.

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The insurance and registration costs are a factor, especially in THIS state.
I recall mentioning that the truck has been losing coolant. Today a co-worker called to me that I had a leak. I went over and saw a wet spot under the truck. This was good because off and on for months, I've been losing coolant but not actually seeing it wet anywhere. Well, I have but not in great amounts. I took a look...it is at the water pump to "timing cover" and it was actively dripping. What might seem like bad news is actually a relief. I may have found the cause of the leak. I topped it off and drove home while watching the temp gauge. It stayed where it usually does.
I called the Dodge dealer....$414 for an OEM pump and the gasket is extra!
Uhh....No, thank you.
I would have just bought one from the NAPA store but a car club buddy just had TWO NAPA water pumps actually blow apart. Each time it shredded the radiator and fan shroud. He actually got NAPA to pay for the second radiator, a new MOPAR water pump and the labor to fix it.

Oreilly’s has good pumps, plus the warranty.

Kern Dog said:

Good day today. I went out to several wrecking yards to look for viable cores.
I found a bunch. Chrysler 300s, Durangos and trucks. I was surprised to see vehicles in the yard with minimal body damage with the engines intact. It makes me wonder what went wrong to send them to their graves.
This 5.7 was from a 2004 Ram 1500. It looked like they started to remove the engine but changed their mind.

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I am still new to this. I see spark plug wires and my 2007 does NOT have those. It probably doesn't matter. This engine also looks to have aluminum valve covers and mine are plastic.
I must have seen 10-15 Hemi engines today, all in some form or another. Some with the intake off, some with the front accessories stripped away, others were complete.

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Yes, the 2004's had the plug wires for the "wasted spark" system; most of us removed those at the first plug change
and installed the "shorty" wires instead.

5.7 hemi said:

Oreilly’s has good pumps, plus the warranty.

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That is where I went. $113 for a new one....a full $301 LESS than the OEM one. I do try to buy quality stuff but when it is the dealer price is so far out of whack, I had to look elsewhere.

Kinda a high jack, but why do moden hemis need rebuilds? Guy I bought my cummins wants to trade me a 2010, he did everything except bottom end for an MDS delete. From the looks I wouldn't have to body work but seems strange. Honestly don't know chit about em and I gave my dad my dakota 4.7 with 230k and runs great.
Given time and needs, seems like a deal if he has paperwork for the heads. Has shorty headers and a tune for mds delete I guess.

Everything wears out. The later model engines do last longer than the 383s and 440s did but I credit that to many things. One is EFI and computer management. If the engine isn't choking on too much fuel, the oil stays clean, the cylinder walls don't wear as fast, the piston rings last longer and the valves don't get carboned up.
I had an '84 Chevy from 1993 to 2002. The original 305 spun 3 rod bearings at 369,000 miles. I built a 350 for it , drove it 2 more years and sold it with about 440,000 miles on the truck. It was a carbureted truck but still computer controlled.
People have been pulling LS engines out of wrecked Chevys for years. These guys clean them up, add a bigger cam and using swap kits from the dealer, install them in early Camaros, Novas and Chevelles. These are sometimes 100,000 mile engines that have almost no wear to them.
If Ma Mopar had the same spirit at GM does, they would have made harnesses to install the 3G Hemi engines in the classics too. These engines are NOT done at 100,000 miles like many classic engines were.
The Ford 5.0 Coyote is a great engine that also lasts and lasts.
Again, I credit the EFI and computer management.

I have a 01 Ram 1500 (5.9/360) with 106K on it and a 2014 2500 (5.7) with 40K on it which will be my last truck. I was recently at the dealer and a 3500 goes for 80K and the 5.7 trucks are over 60K, so I will live with what I have. At some point I might rebuild the 01 as it is my work horse, the 14 will be kept as my "good truck".

I changed the factory coolant (HOAT) at regular intervals (around every 5 years or so) on my 2007 5.7 Ram (currently 65k miles) and I had some corrosion, pitting, white powder around the water pumps integral rubber O-Ring gasket that was on the lower passenger side of the pump. I replaced the O-Ring gasket with a readily available one from AutoZone. I somewhat filled the recess in the water pump with Hylomar Sealant, coated the new O Ring with the Hylomar and have changed from HOAT (5 year coolant) to OAT (10 year coolant) along with an engine coolant flush as mixing different types of coolant might/will result in the coolant turning into gel.......

I changed out the water pump this afternoon. It wasn't too difficult. It looks like it was the gasket that actually was to blame. The pump itself was still working and not loose or wobbly. 10 mounting bolts, 3 different lengths. The alternator, P/S pump, A/C compressor and crank pulley stayed in place. I was impressed at how accessible it all was once the fan shroud was out of the way. I had no diagram for the belt so I took pictures for reference.
I replaced the serpentine belt too....I had the original one on there until now...366,480 miles. Back together, it runs so smooth and quiet. It is so hard to believe that the engine has this many miles on it. I do have a slight oil drip that I'll address. I see no reason to replace this engine yet. I am looking to swap in that 3.92 axle though.

My '04 has the 3.92 rear axle, honestly I'd like to put like a 4.56 in it. The 33" tall tires really tame the ratio.
I'd also love to know for certain what we can & can't get away with on these as far as the smog test. I do know, last year was the first time the smog guy didn't run the truck on the rollers...just looked at everything and I guess plugged into the computer. No actual 'emissions' test..

They must have determined that if the MIL isn't on and if there are no stored codes on the PCM, the vehicle must be running clean.
I've towed with this truck many times and never had a complaint but the 3.92 gears should provide some improvement.
In my Charger, a switch from 3.91 to 3.55 was noticeable. I went from a 3.91 and Gear Vendors to the 3.55 and direct drive. Many years later, I did the Tremec 5 speed swap to get overdrive again. The Tremec has a deeper first gear than the 727 and it sure peels out easier.

When I was single, I was casually looking for a mate. Then after a few years, I stepped it up. My sister started a personal ad for me in the early days of internet [email protected]!
For years, I'd heard that you never meet your mate when you're looking for her.....you have to relax and let it happen.
For me, I am not patient like that. I prefer to make things happen.
I met Mary after about 6 months of sifting through the various prospects. She is what I wanted and I'm glad that I didn't settle too early.
The original topic though....
I have been going back and forth on this matter about the truck.
I love this truck. It fits my style.
It will need some attention eventually. I have already figured that I'd need to rebuild an engine or try to find a good, low mile used one for it. Yeah, I know that the transmission will need attention as well.
Today on the way home from work, I took a different exit. Funny as it will seem, sometimes when I do this, I encounter something good that would not have happened had I just followed the usual route. One time, I found 2 ladders on the side of the road that were in excellent condition. What made that great was that my own ladder of the same type was stolen from my truck a few days prior. The
universe restored balance in my favor there.
Today, I stopped for a Big Gulp at 7-11 and saw THIS:



It sits at a used car lot a few miles from home.
2007 Ram 1500 4X4 with the 5.7 Hemi. It has the same color interior as mine. It has what seems like all the same equipment in terms of radio, power accessories and such.
On the window was a sign that caught my attention. "Low miles". I initially drove past it and within 1/8 of a mile, I turned back around to see what they thought "low miles" meant. Guess the price...?

I have told the Wife that ideally, I'd love to find a used, low mile copy of my current truck because I am just so comfortable with it.
I've never felt drawn to a 4 door truck since I have always preferred the sporty look of the regular cabs.
I had a 4X4 2006 Ram for about a year. I loved sitting up a bit higher. Having 4 wheel drive was sort of cool. I did not like the softer ride though. That truck had brake troubles too....I'd get brake shake from the rear rotors. I had it in at the dealer under warranty twice for it. When the truck was totalled, I abandoned the idea of replacing it with another 4X4.

This one does have a few things going for it. It has exactly the same tech that mine has. Basic stuff, no navigation, none of the backup camera, big center screen, no KNOB for a shifter nonsense. From the drivers seat looking forward, it probably feels the same as mine.
Low miles? 94,000. What is a fair price for this, do you think?
It has the original exhaust. It has the original intake system. It sounds as quiet as a Prius. The interior is almost as clean as new. The exterior has some scuffs and small dings. I saw them and just smiled because it is in about the same shape as mine but has less than 1/3 the miles on it! There is a trailer brake controller under the dash. I'd been talking about setting mine up to tow with and that I'd need one of those. I don't want or need the lumber rack or those step bars on the sides.

Dad was a new car salesman for 36 years until he passed away. He used to refer to USED car lots as "Pot Lots", a derogatory term based on the likelihood that most of their cars were the stuff that new car dealers didn't want to sell on their own lots. New car dealers often make more profit from used cars and trucks but they do not usually sell vehicles more than 7 years old or high mile cars.
This truck is almost 15 model years old so no new car dealer would want it on their lot.....but it only has 94,000 miles!
The asking price is $17,900. That is a bit high but is surely negotiable. I'm going to go back and drive it to see if things seem right.

You’d be better off rebuilding the drivetrain on yours, it’s paid for and it’s ridiculously less expensive to fix than buying another truck. My $3 worth.

If ya like it, get it.

That longer wheel base is going to tow nice.

The truck has a very clean interior. The 4wd took awhile to get working but it does work. It handled well, didn't squeak and the brakes were good.
It was slow though. The added weight of the lumber rack, 4wd stuff, 2 extra doors and seats made this truck slower than mine despite the extra miles mine has. It has 17" wheels so I suspect that it has 3.55 gears. Trucks built with the 20" wheels usually had 3.92 gears.
I took a picture of the VIN so I can call the dealer to get the axle ratio. Like mine, there is no tag on the axle.
For now, I'm sticking with mine. I am curious about the axle ratio though.

I paid 19.9 for a 2012 with 96k mile

Hemi 2wd quad cab.

I think their pricing was inflated. They had a 2014 QC 4x4 for $29,900.

KD
Fix it. Much cheaper, and you'll
know what you have. Car payments
suck.

Kern Dog said:

Low miles? 94,000.

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Hard to believe that 94,000 miles is considered to be low miles today. Back in the day, if your car had that kind of mileage on it, it was ready for the junk yard.