What dont you like about your gen 3

[HemiLonestar]

I hate that you can find rear well liners for any ram except 03-08

Really glad I bought mine when I did lol...but to be fair, the platform has been out of production for 12yrs...

 

[Fishstickz]

- 3.7 isn't a truck motor. It HATES a headwind and I always end up in 3rd gear just to climb a tiny hill
- 3.7/3.55 gear ratio combo doesn't work well either. 3.7/3.92 would at least help make the 3.7 acceptable in terms of power.
- Electronics can get confusing. Some features run thru 3 or 4 different modules and computers, making adding these features rather difficult
- Transmission tuned to drop into O/D as fast as possible. I'm sure its for squeaking a few extra MPGs out, but still an annoyance
- AIR BLEND DOORS. When I took my dash out a lot of them were broke or gone. I would've replaced them at the time but the replacement kits are quite expensive. Nothing good ever comes from plastic moving parts
- Front end suspension always wears out or tears bushings..somehow
- ST Trims came with no storage in the center jumpseat. It was just a giant block of..nothing. Not even storage like the SLTs and up had. I can't imagine there being a large price difference between the two
- Kinda nitpicky, but the SKREEM and WCM are combined in the same module. I just want that integrated dodge key and keyfob but thanks to the SKREEM that won't be happening
- The fact that the dealers scanners can't connect to my truck for some reason


With all that said I still love the truck. It's definitely been a fun vehicle to drive and work on

 

[Marley]

After driving the 8spd transmission, I hate the 4spd.

 

[HemiLonestar]

After driving the 8spd transmission, I hate the 4spd.

4sp? What 4sp do you have in an 04? Though I don't blame you for hating it after driving the 8sp.

 

[Marley]

4sp? What 4sp do you have in an 04? Though I don't blame you for hating it after driving the 8sp.

Hah, my bad, 5 forward.
Been running my 545rfe in tow mode since the day I got it.....35s will do that.

 

[Snake15eyes1998]

Hah, my bad, 5 forward.
Been running my 545rfe in tow mode since the day I got it.....35s will do that.

I'm in the same boat. Always in tow and haul our O/D off.

 

[tron67j]

Really glad I bought mine when I did lol...but to be fair, the platform has been out of production for 12yrs...

Those were the first thing I did for my 2003, really glad I did it. Helped with noise of stones from our road. Not sure why you can't find them, maybe only a dealer part. Bet there are a pair sitting in some dealer's inventory, find a parts person that will do a search. Did you try a PM to Benny at All Mopar Parts?

 

[HemiLonestar]

Those were the first thing I did for my 2003, really glad I did it. Helped with noise of stones from our road. Not sure why you can't find them, maybe only a dealer part. Bet there are a pair sitting in some dealer's inventory, find a parts person that will do a search. Did you try a PM to Benny at All Mopar Parts?

Was never a dealer only part, strictly an add on kit. They're just all gone now lol.

 

[tron67j]

Mine came from the dealer, my sisters' ordered from our local dealer for me for Christmas the first year I had the truck. I went there to pick them up.

Think this might be them. https://www.moparpartsoverstock.com/p/__/SHIELD-Splash--Wheel-House-Left/6769880/55276323AB.html

 

[HemiLonestar]

Mine came from the dealer, my sisters' ordered from our local dealer for me for Christmas the first year I had the truck. I went there to pick them up.

Think this might be them. https://www.moparpartsoverstock.com/p/__/SHIELD-Splash--Wheel-House-Left/6769880/55276323AB.html

That's the left one (55276323AB). The right one will be 55276322AB. The original add on kit number is 82207367. Interesting tidbit, these part numbers started in 2005. 2003-04 (wasn't offered in 2002 and therefore not in the parts book) show left 55276423AA and right 55276422AA with the same kit part number. Shouldn't be any difference in the wheelhouses. If they actually have them in stock, BUY THEM, buy them now.

 

[kevkev]

Bought. Ill worry about fasteners later.

Bait and switch. They show pix of wheelhouse liners. These are the stupid plastic shields on the rear of the wells.Canceling first thing in the morning. Uhhhgg.

 

[MikeG71]

The complete **** clear coat, or primer, or paint, what ever the cause of the paint/ clear oxidizing (not sure if that’s the correct term). I’m going to have to get a paint job done in the future.

I also hate the BLAH gray interior.

 

[Bill Knight]

So tired of these sway bar end links...... I've done mine twice in ten years, and now I hear the tell tale thumping in the front end again. Fuel pump replacement sucks, it was bad enough doing it the first time...... on the sending unit is starting to fail on fuel pump. Should of did better research lol.... the plugs aren't bad to do, 16 of them do get a little expensive. Power steering pump replacement was terrible, never want to that again. Replaced the water pump and radiator, one of the easier jobs I've done on any vehicle. Now the most annoying issue I have with the 3rd Gen Ram is the wiring to the back doors. I've repaired it numerous times and even cut the plug out and went direct. They always seem to break at the plug. So no rear windows, speakers, power door locks or indication that door is ajar. Very time consuming and tidious too. Now my truck is 16 years old, I've owed it for 10 of those 16 years. Have three kids so it was also used as a family vehicle. It has over 200, 000 miles on it so I'm upset when I have fix little things or do preventive maintenance to it. I would buy another 3rd Gen in a minute as there is no eletronic controls to prevent me from having fun and using the hp that the Hemi was given. Hopefully my next Ram is as good as this one.

 

[Snake15eyes1998]

Lifter and cam failure.

 

[Cfii01]

Its awesome how in spite of the problems, you all still love your 3rd gen Rams. I am a new Ram owner , 2008 Quad Cab and I love it to death. I get so many compliments from complete str angers. It's pretty stock, but, I still sometimes just like to sit and look at it, because, it is beautiful to me

 

[Snake15eyes1998]

Its awesome how in spite of the problems, you all still love your 3rd gen Rams. I am a new Ram owner , 2008 Quad Cab and I love it to death. I get so many compliments from complete strView attachment 218367 angers. It's pretty stock, but, I still sometimes just like to sit and look at it, because, it is beautiful to me

Very clean truck. Keep up the good work man. Mines an 06, I took the fender flares of mine. And this happened. The flares where like holding the paint up. Once I took them off. The paint just started peeling.

 

[glickgan]

No tailgate lock - are you kidding me??!!

 

[HemiLonestar]

No tailgate lock - are you kidding me??!!

I don't think anyone had one back then lol....but it is very easy to add:

 

[audiowize]

I had been looking for those rear wheel guards and couldn't find them, thanks for the link! Hmm, what I don't like...

1. Axle stub shafts! There's a reason everybody else's axles have the splines poking into the diff, not sticking out. I had to throw away what would've otherwise been a perfectly good set of CV axles because grit had gotten in between the stub shaft splines and CV splines and wore them down enough that they started shaking. This was a known issue in the 70s... Even with brand new axles and brand new stub shafts, the fitment is not super tight. I am tempted to take them out and weld or pin the stub shafts to the CV axles.

2. The gas tank seems a bit on the small side, especially given all the space that's available around the tank.

3. The coolant overflow bottle on the early gen 3 trucks is a joke (I have an '02). If you try to push the fill cover shut, the bottle flexes and shoots coolant all over you from the overflow. It's a sick joke. I gladly spent the money to get the newer overflow/wiper fluid bottle that doesn't do this.

4. Leaks, leaks, leaks, and more leaks. I've had plenty of vehicles in the 15-20 year age range with similar mileage, and nothing leaks as much as this thing does (I haven't owned an Audi though!). You chase one or two down, then you get one or two more. AT205 reseal has been very helpful at eliminating some of the tougher ones I don't want to deal with.

5. The steering rack... ugh... Where did they get this weeny teeny tiny steering rack? It looks like the same rack from a Toyota Camry. I am also very suspicious of the intermediate steering shaft, as that U-joint is super tiny.

6. The paint/clear coat and dash plastic don't age will with UV exposure. Thankfully the dashskin fixes this pretty easily and Raptor Liner will be my answer for the exterior.

7. The electrical switches and connectors in this car, especially on the interior, are not well sealed and this leads to reliability issues. I managed to fix all the window controls and the power seat controls by douching out the insides of them with electronics spray cleaner so I didn't need to buy new ones, but a little extra money spent in manufacturing would eliminate this.

8. $70 for an OBD dongle to program key fobs to the truck... why???

9. Chip keys don't make a lot of sense for a vehicle with this MSRP.

What I do like:

1. Parts are dirt cheap and people seem to crash these trucks frequently, so the junk yards are full of donors!

2. The 5.9 Magnum sounds nice with a Flowmaster on it. My neighbors now think I'm an OK guy.

3. The truck doesn't beep at me if I don't buckle my seatbelt. Sometimes the toddler wants to sit on my lap and do loops around the neighborhood...

4. Despite #5 above, other 4x4 trucks in this age range have steering boxes and handle like boats.

5. Despite #6, I appreciate that the interior is mostly held together with screws rather than pop clips.

6. I like that this truck didn't copy the 4wd actuation design from Ford ^_^

7. No I beams like the Fords I have had in the past. I would happily replace the sway bar links every two years rather than having that stupid twin I beam suspension.

8. No canbus!

9. No pin on the factory radio.

 

[glickgan]

I don't think anyone had one back then lol....but it is very easy to add:

View attachment 220888

Yep - pretty easy to replace for sure. Still makes no sense we would have to do that though. Glad the swap out was that easy.