questions regarding potential purchase and transmission

[ronheater70]

Hi, I am looking at purchasing a 2014 ram 3500 6.4 crew cab 4x4. I have test drove it twice, and the first time went smoothly, the second time I noticed on two different occasions a loud clunk when slowing to a stop, almost like being hit from behind. Is this something I should be concerned with ir is it just the nature of the beast? It drives flawlessly... truck only has 12k on it and has clean carfax report. Thanks for any help! Sorry Im not dodge Savy, but it does remind me of our old excursion v-10 that had the drive shaft sticking to the splines and would suddenly release with a loud violent clunk.. Some regressing fixed that! Since it is a 2014, I would assume it still has nearly 90K miles left of warranty? Its a good deal but Im understandably concerned about a potential issue and not being knowledgeable about the vehicle.

 

[zrfraser]

Fuel in the fuel tank rushing to the front?

 

[et todd]

do not buy it find another truck.seems to be no fix for this issue the exact reason i traded my 15 crew in.and i greased the splines on the driveshaft.plenty of rams with no clunk but the ones that do no fix.my 16 is smooth as silk knock on wood.

 

[ronheater70]

do not buy it find another truck.seems to be no fix for this issue the exact reason i traded my 15 crew in.and i greased the splines on the driveshaft.plenty of rams with no clunk but the ones that do no fix.my 16 is smooth as silk knock on wood.

Well that is discouraging.. I stayed up late and did some research after I posted the question and it seems that in many, a tranny reflash solved the issue.I actually drove it two separate times, the first time It didnt do it. It didnt do it often, maybe 2 times out of 20 stops. Crap, I liked the truck too..

O.k further reading on this site.. COULD it be the fuel? First time I drove it had hardly any fuel, second time was 1/2 tank.. first time I did not as much stop and go, 2nd was more in town.. however I imagine if it was fuel it would do it every stop? But it feels like it surges like something bumps it and I feel forward momentum (very slight).. Hmmmm
I do hate to pass on a truck for something that might easily be rectified with a flash or another simple issue, but also dont want to purchase a headache.. Only 12K on the truck I cant imagine any major issues..

 

[averageguy]

The after the fact surge feeling sounds like when I'm pulling a 1/2 full tanker without baffles and hit the brakes. The load sloshes forward and kind of nudges you forward. Here's my thought. Go back and explain your concern to the salesman. Hopefully it still has a half tank. Drive it again, brake a lot, nice and easy some, then hard on the brakes, hit the fuel hard, on the brakes again. This will cause the fuel to slosh forward, then back, then hard forward again, increasing the affect making it easier to reproduce and diagnose. After a lot of these different braking methods,(take your time, test drives don't have time limits), go fill it up. If they want to sell it they can pay for some fuel, or offer to pay for it if you buy it. Drive it the same route the same way and see what happens. Hopefully you get results that confirm or deny the 1/2 tank theory. Let us know how it turns out if you do.

 

[ronheater70]

The after the fact surge feeling sounds like when I'm pulling a 1/2 full tanker without baffles and hit the brakes. The load sloshes forward and kind of nudges you forward. Here's my thought. Go back and explain your concern to the salesman. Hopefully it still has a half tank. Drive it again, brake a lot, nice and easy some, then hard on the brakes, hit the fuel hard, on the brakes again. This will cause the fuel to slosh forward, then back, then hard forward again, increasing the affect making it easier to reproduce and diagnose. After a lot of these different braking methods,(take your time, test drives don't have time limits), go fill it up. If they want to sell it they can pay for some fuel, or offer to pay for it if you buy it. Drive it the same route the same way and see what happens. Hopefully you get results that confirm or deny the 1/2 tank theory. Let us know how it turns out if you do.

Good Points, but would it have a clunk sound associated with the fuel sloshing? It does feel like it surged forward when the noise mad itself known, but it was certainly a CLUNK sound, not a sloshing sound.. Hmmmm

I may have to pass for my own piece of mind, but dang its a nice truck and only 12K on it.. I do not want a headache.. I had that for months with our excursion years ago trying to diagnose a clunk.

 

[averageguy]

Yes, it was more of a thud or clunk, you didn't hear any sloshing. I would go test it if you're sold other wise. You might answer this question for other people that report this same issue.

 

[69GWC]

do they have 100k warrenty? thought it was of for 36k.

you could also see how many times and for what reasons it was at the dealer getting service.

 

[ronheater70]

I have come to the conlusion (without another test drive) that I think it is the fuel slosh.. I will do as suggested and put more fuel in and see if it helps.
AFter studying up on it, it seems some have it, others dont.. But it does mimic being lightly rear ended and slight forward surge up on coming to a stop.

Maybe deal is back on now!

 

[RubberFrog]

There are baffles in the tank to prevent fuel slosh. Most likely it is a hard downshift during braking. A lot of Heavy dutys do this. It's not going to shift all buttery smooth like a 1500- it's a 3500. Find out what kind of warranty it comes with.

 

[ronheater70]

There are baffles in the tank to prevent fuel slosh. Most likely it is a hard downshift during braking. A lot of Heavy dutys do this. It's not going to shift all buttery smooth like a 1500- it's a 3500. Find out what kind of warranty it comes with.

It is my understanding it has the 32 gallon tank, which does not have baffles for some reason. My Understanding is also that it shuld have the remainder of the factory warranty.. which was 5 year 100,000 mile for the 6,4, but I am checking on that.. so in theory I should have 88K miles left and 2 years or so..In theory..

 

[powderbrad]

I'd be more worried if the splines "didn't" hold haha.

 

[ronheater70]

Well Dang it.. warranty is out the window..

Found out the vehicle originated in Alberta Canada.. Was brought to Ohio by purchasing owner..
Local dealer says Warranty will not transfer from Canada, so I would have a 12K mile vehicle with zero warranty beyond the 30 day dealership warranty.
Crap... I was getting excited too.

 

[MEchase]

Found out the vehicle originated in Alberta Canada.. Was brought to Ohio by purchasing owner..
Local dealer says Warranty will not transfer from Canada, so I would have a 12K mile vehicle with zero warranty beyond the 30 day dealership warranty.
Crap... I was getting excited too.

Could you buy the lifetime Maxcare warranty? I've been thinking about it for a while.

Is this the 2-to-1 downshift bump everyone feels when coming to a quick stop? I use to notice my 1500 do it, so I've tried to quit stopping so quickly. Either the problem has gone away or I simply got use to it and don't notice it anymore. I'm not sure if you have a different transmission. I have the 8-speed ZF.

I do have the 32 gallon tank though. Where did you see that Ram didn't include baffles in that tank? That seems like a pretty big oversight on their part.

 

[averageguy]

Is this a Ram dealer? If it is, and they can't come up with some sort of warranty, I would be out of there. If its a private dealer, a buy here pay here or a chain, I wouldn't buy anything warranty or not.

 

[GsRAM]

Is this a Ram dealer? If it is, and they can't come up with some sort of warranty, I would be out of there. If its a private dealer, a buy here pay here or a chain, I wouldn't buy anything warranty or not.

I agree with this 100% it's a 3 yr old truck. It should have some sort of warranty with it. If not I'd pass on it. My 17 occasionally has a slight downshift clunk, i think on the 3-2 shift. I only have 370 miles on it, so it could still be in learn mode. The 15 Silverado i had did it way worse. My ram is minor in comparison. Personally if you like the truck i wouldn't worry about it.

Modern truck transmissions suck for the most part due to being tuned for maximum fuel economy. Not just our rams, but across the board, all makes

 

[HammerHead]

That clunk on the down shift was reported many time on the 8 speed tranny when it first came out. Not sure what tranny that monster you want has in it.

 

[huntergreen]

does the clunk hurt longevity if it is the trans? i would try and use that in negotiating a better price. if the price is right, i would go for it knowiing if it is the trans, i have some warranty to take of a failed trans.

 

[ronheater70]

Hunter.. I feel confident that clunk was the fuel, based on what many have said and the symptoms. However the fact That I could not get Warranty coverage on a vehicle with only 12K miles was the killing factor. I was offered a good price, but not good enough to drive with no warranty. It was not a Dodge dealership and so the best they could offer was to sell me a warranty at their price.

I posted up above that I just decided to go ahead and purchase new ..Now I have no warranty issues etc..