what to look for on a 17 Ram crew 4x4

[No Tyme]

Hey guys, I was a GM man for 35 years, looking to come over to the dark side, LOL... literally a Black 17 Ram Crew 4x4 with the Hemi engine.
I know nothing of the Ram trucks so I would appreciate your guidance here. As a probable new member what things should I look for on this truck.
I know there are issues with any vehicle but there may be big dollar ones that I can avoid.
I appreciate any pointers you are wiling to share with me.

2017 RAM 1500, Big Horn Package, 4 Door Crew Cab, HEMI 5.7L V8, 4WD, Brilliant Black Crystal Pearlcoat, Backup Camera, Bluetooth, Heated Seats, Power Seat, 20" Alloy Wheels, Trailer Package, and Remote Start.

It states Trailer Package but there is no brake controller. WTH? Has 3.21 Rear Axle Ratio.
I need 6500 tow capacity.

 

[NJMOPAR]

Usual suspects are lifter tick and broken exhaust manifold bolts. Get the Carfax on it too.
Pretty sure the tow pkg Only has oil & trans coolers, hitch & wiring, and tow/haul on the dash.

 

[Brandon-w]

Welcome To the forum.. Id like to start with saying these trucks are super picky with oil changes. I would personally make sure to see all oil change logs/receipts and see if they're on time before buying it. They like to eat lifters if the maintenance is not kept up. This is the hemi tick (lifters) but these trucks also like to snap manifold bolts are are notorious for doing so, the usual fixes for this are a decent set of headers or just keep replacing the bolts.

With the worst out of the way upper ball joints wear rather fast with lifts and levels so be aware of that, much like a gm actually.

Other than that I can't think of much. If you are looking at the 5.7 with the 8 speed trans you'll be super happy with it. That gear ratio isn't really my cup of tea but that comes down to opinion. Test drive the heck out of it. If it's a dealer see if they will let you hook your trailer to it. If they say no I'd be looking elsewhere.

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[DeckArtist]

Don’t do what I did the first time around on my ram purchase. I didn’t get outside of the truck and listen to the motor. That’s the first thing I would do. I took it for granted that the dealer had already gone through the trip but they had not and of course the Carfax didn’t show a motor problem.


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[crash68]

Hopefully this one has the dial shift, which mean you have the ZF 8 spd transmission, it leaps and bounds better than the 6 spd.
With the trailer tow package, it would have the towing mirrors (non-power fold) and the brake controller but the receiver hitch and 4/7 pin plug is usually on every Gen4 Ram. Adding the factory brake controller is fairly easy and can be enabled using AlfaOBD if your not one to rely on a dealer.
Only hit or miss concerns with the Hemi is the notorious Hemi "tick" or the exhaust manifold bolts breaking. A fewhave been know to eat it's cam and lifters.
Overall everything else on the truck is majority reliable.

 

[Ohio5pt7]

If it's the 8 sp which 17 should be 6500lbs is no issue. My 18 3.21 gear cc 4x4 tows my 7500lb Tt no issues that includes mountains. If you plan to lift or put bigger tires on like 35s I would recommend 3.92s if you tow a lot. As others mentioned tick is a common issue bought mine new started at 10k miles switched to royal purple 5w30 not a issue now.

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[No Tyme]

Good info so far. My 13 Avalanche had issues with the AFM system and lifter issues also, but when I sold it she was still running great. I had a Range plugged into the port for the 2 years plus that I owned it. Sold it because I had a bumper to bumper warranty on it and they refused to fix or replace the cracked dash. I felt betrayed by GM, so after all these years I am looking elsewhere.
Not happy to hear about manifold bolts but don't think I would do that repair myself. May have to look into possible cost on that before I make an offer.
Will I need a mirror or something else to check them? How else would I check for broken bolts besides listening?

 

[No Tyme]

If it's the 8 sp which 17 should be 6500lbs is no issue. My 18 3.21 gear cc 4x4 tows my 7500lb Tt no issues that includes mountains. If you plan to lift or put bigger tires on like 35s I would recommend 3.92s if you tow a lot. As others mentioned tick is a common issue bought mine new started at 10k miles switched to royal purple 5w30 not a issue now.

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I might do 33" if I can but hope not to go that route. I did 2" level lift to my 14 Crew Silverado and 2.5" F&R lift on the Avalanche. The stance on this truck don't look too bad, and that is what always led me to do a lift... Looks.

 

[Ohio5pt7]

If it has 20s on it it has 33s stock. Very easy to level and run 12 wides with 33s and not have any issues

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[DeckArtist]

Oh and I think the lowest towing number you can find on these trucks is 8000. You’re better off with the 392 rear axle of course


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[No Tyme]

Hopefully this one has the dial shift, which mean you have the ZF 8 spd transmission, it leaps and bounds better than the 6 spd.
With the trailer tow package, it would have the towing mirrors (non-power fold) and the brake controller but the receiver hitch and 4/7 pin plug is usually on every Gen4 Ram. Adding the factory brake controller is fairly easy and can be enabled using AlfaOBD if your not one to rely on a dealer.
Only hit or miss concerns with the Hemi is the notorious Hemi "tick" or the exhaust manifold bolts breaking. A fewhave been know to eat it's cam and lifters.
Overall everything else on the truck is majority reliable.

In the pics it shows the drivers door panel and it has a button in the middle which I thought was for power folding, but again not sure since I am not familiar with Ram trucks.
It does have a dial on the dash to select gears.​

 

[No Tyme]

If it has 20s on it it has 33s stock. Very easy to level and run 12 wides with 33s and not have any issues

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I have a set of 275 60 R 20’s Blizzaks that I ran on winter rims that I was told came off a Ram truck when I bought them used. I should have 2 more winter out of them. If I could get say a 275 65 R20, which would put me up to 34's on the stock wheels that would make me happy.

 

[No Tyme]

Hopefully this one has the dial shift, which mean you have the ZF 8 spd transmission, it leaps and bounds better than the 6 spd.
With the trailer tow package, it would have the towing mirrors (non-power fold) and the brake controller but the receiver hitch and 4/7 pin plug is usually on every Gen4 Ram. Adding the factory brake controller is fairly easy and can be enabled using AlfaOBD if your not one to rely on a dealer.
Only hit or miss concerns with the Hemi is the notorious Hemi "tick" or the exhaust manifold bolts breaking. A fewhave been know to eat it's cam and lifters.
Overall everything else on the truck is majority reliable.

Description on dealer site says the transmission is a 8-Speed Automatic (845RE) and also states power folding mirrors.

 

[No Tyme]

Description on dealer site says the transmission is a 8-Speed Automatic (845RE) and also states power folding mirrors.

OK, did my research and your correct, its just Chrysler's version of the ZF design.

 

[crash68]

Description on dealer site says the transmission is a 8-Speed Automatic (845RE) and also states power folding mirrors.

If it has the Hemi, it's the 8HP70 transmission which is also behind the EcoDiesel, the 845RE is behind the Pentastar V6. All the 8spd transmissions use the same Thermal Management Unit on the side of the transmission that both heats and controls the cooling. The top couple of rows of what is also the AC condenser is the transmission cooler. As for running temps while driving or towing, the trans fluid temp should stay at or below the coolant temperature. Normal temp for the fluid is 180-192°F If the temp spikes really high(+250°F), most like the TMU is failing but that's sorta rare.

If it has power fold mirrors from the factory, they are not the towing mirrors. The tow mirrors flip up/out. I think it was only the 2500/3500 that came with power-fold towing mirrors.

 

[tidefan1967]

Hey guys, I was a GM man for 35 years, looking to come over to the dark side, LOL... literally a Black 17 Ram Crew 4x4 with the Hemi engine.
I know nothing of the Ram trucks so I would appreciate your guidance here. As a probable new member what things should I look for on this truck.
I know there are issues with any vehicle but there may be big dollar ones that I can avoid.
I appreciate any pointers you are wiling to share with me.

2017 RAM 1500, Big Horn Package, 4 Door Crew Cab, HEMI 5.7L V8, 4WD, Brilliant Black Crystal Pearlcoat, Backup Camera, Bluetooth, Heated Seats, Power Seat, 20" Alloy Wheels, Trailer Package, and Remote Start.

It states Trailer Package but there is no brake controller. WTH? Has 3.21 Rear Axle Ratio.
I need 6500 tow capacity.

How many miles on it? You got a link where we could get a look at it?

 

[tron67j]

Good info so far. My 13 Avalanche had issues with the AFM system and lifter issues also, but when I sold it she was still running great. I had a Range plugged into the port for the 2 years plus that I owned it. Sold it because I had a bumper to bumper warranty on it and they refused to fix or replace the cracked dash. I felt betrayed by GM, so after all these years I am looking elsewhere.
Not happy to hear about manifold bolts but don't think I would do that repair myself. May have to look into possible cost on that before I make an offer.
Will I need a mirror or something else to check them? How else would I check for broken bolts besides listening?

I found my cracked bolts from driving in a parking garage. I heard the pop of exhaust escaping. Driving along a wall accelerate quickly, might help. Really just have to get in there. And look around. My mechanic looked three times before finding one, then found two more. But I had 130,000 miles on it before having the problem. I always recommend taking the vehicle to a neutral garage for a once-over. Also consider an extended warranty if you are so inclined and concerned. But search around, you may do better than what the dealership offers, but they might negotiate on price to get you in the truck. Good luck, and enjoy the ride.

 

[Ohio5pt7]

I would say they likely dont have a li e of ppl buying cars right now sho you should be able to pull a crazy deal

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[NapaRam]

Curious why the switch to RAM after all this time but welcome to the forum! Ask what they will charge to add a TBC but you can find them for around $150 online and they are pretty easy to install I just put one in my Express last week that has the two package as well.

 

[No Tyme]

If it has the Hemi, it's the 8HP70 transmission which is also behind the EcoDiesel, the 845RE is behind the Pentastar V6.

I there a way to visualize which trans is in the truck? There has to be a way to ID it.