Exhaust manifold bolt(s) broken on 2020 Ram

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Lamarsh

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Well, it seems the good old hemi exhaust manifold bolt issue continues in the 5th gen, or at least maybe just on my unlucky truck. I had a 2008 with a broken exhaust manifold bolt, so I am very familiar with the sound. I have 28k miles on my 2020 Ram, and just started hearing that same sound. It's still under warranty, so I'm not too worried about cost, but it is pretty disappointing on a new truck with not too many miles on it.

Wondering if anybody else has had their exhaust manifold bolts break on their 5th gens?
 

pacofortacos

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If it is a manifold bolt, it might have rusted and weakened due to the salt on the roads where you live.
If you can, have them plane your manifolds and it shouldn't happen again - well unless the bolt rusts out.
 

crazy jerry

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why bother posting until you confirm whats going on. nothing better to do with your time im sure
 
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Lamarsh

Lamarsh

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Have you towed or worked truck with a heavy load

Not much. I have one very light boat (1500lbs including trailer) I tow probably 5-6 times a year, and another heavier boat (7000lbs including trailer) I tow 2 days per year (once to launch in spring, and once to remove in fall) and only tow it each way about 10 miles. So, I really don't put much wear on it in the towing department.

Its the same ****** design and cheap OEM parts. They just put on a new flashy body instead of actually fixing the real issues of the trucks. ... lol...

It's pretty frustrating. I'm glad this is under warranty, but my warranty is almost up so I'm not too happy about how the next few years could go. The manifold bolts didn't go in my 08 Ram until around 70k miles. I just let that ride and never fixed it.

My buddy has a 2012 Ram with hemi, and his manifold bolts are also broken. His broke somewhere around the 60k mile mark.

This seems to be a pervasive enough problem that you'd expect them to do something about it, but if I had to guess, they don't have a huge exposure to it during their warranty periods, so they just don't care.

If it is a manifold bolt, it might have rusted and weakened due to the salt on the roads where you live.
If you can, have them plane your manifolds and it shouldn't happen again - well unless the bolt rusts out.

Perhaps, I do live in a region that is about as bad as it gets when it comes to rust (lots of moisture, and our roads get salted).... but this truck is less than 2 years old, so I'm not sure. If it ends up being exhaust manifold bolts like I suspect, I plan on asking the dealership if they can weigh in on how they think the bolts failed.
 
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Lamarsh

Lamarsh

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If it is a manifold bolt, it might have rusted and weakened due to the salt on the roads where you live.
If you can, have them plane your manifolds and it shouldn't happen again - well unless the bolt rusts out.

I have heard with 5ths Ram supposedly have stronger bolts to address the past issues with the bolts breaking, but now the more common issue is the actual manifold itself cracks. Still not sure which, if either, are the case with mine.
 

pacofortacos

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They may have gone to a different bolt, but it is still the same size as previous years to the best of my knowledge.
If the manifold isn't cracked, making it true will often prevent a broken bolt happening again - since the old manifold is now heat stress relieved.
 
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Lamarsh

Lamarsh

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have them plane your manifolds and it shouldn't happen again
making it true will often prevent a broken bolt happening again

Thanks. Can you explain what you mean by this? Either way, it's under warranty, so the dealership is going to just do whatever it is they do, I assume I won't have much say in it.... but if it happens again outside warranty, I was planning on just swapping out the manifold with headers... but I'm curious what you mean by this so I can see if it's a better alternative to headers.
 

CrasherAsher

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when you plane something. they will machine the manifolds so they are flat. removing whatever warps or imperfections on the mounting surface.
 

PoMansRam

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Does your 2020 5th gen have the tie bars between the manifold bolts and the manifolds? My 2019 classic has them. I don't think I've heard of any fail that have the tie-bars yet. Here's a pic of my 2019 classic.

3sgKNaIl.jpg
 

crazy jerry

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if your smart youll put arp hardware back in. assuming the original stuff is even broke
 

crazy jerry

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naw its just common sense. use a fastener with higher tensile and shear
 

pacofortacos

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Like was said, planing is just truing the gasket surface. Doesn't need to be perfect, many people use a board sander.
As the manifold becomes heat treated, they tend to warp because the metal is too thin - actually happens with most metals with heat cycling. That's why a lot of people like to build a motor with a seasoned block.

If you replace the manifold with an new OEM manifold, it just starts the cycle all over again :)
 

GTyankee

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The bolts that break are the ones that hold on the heat shields
2 per side
The bolts are Grade 8

It is just strange that the Chrysler Engineers have not figured out the flaw since 2009 & maybe even back to 2003

My 2009 Dodge Ram Hemi 1500 SLT never once towed anything until when i sold it at 144,000 miles

The passenger side manifold broke with less than 25,000 miles on it

The dealerships were rationed the Manifold Bolts, they got something like 4 sets of bolts per month.

The dealership had several customers with broken bolts & they had to continue driving their Rams
So they called Ababa Bolt & ordered a case of bolts ( 144 ea.)
My Ram was my work vehicle & my pleasure vehicle
 

blackbetty14

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The 5th gens have almost no different in the drivetrain and the HEMI has not had any major changes besides the Etorque addition and the programming needed for the tranny. For the most part they are the same engine with all the same problems. The Tie bar on the manifolds is not a fix and you will still break the bolts and this is due to the small exhaust bolts (M8) and the manifold design (a big thick Cast Iron part) which will warp and snap bolts. The stock manifolds bolts are not low quality as they are 10.9 grade (grade 8 standard) but its the bolt DIA and strength required to resist the warping. An important note is also the gasket used factory or factory style is a VERY thin grahite impregnated core on a SS heat sheild which offers NO give basically its like a MLS gasket. As the manifold warps and pushes off the gasket/head it snaps the weakest point which is the bolt/stud. For RAM to fix the issue they would need to revisit the design of the manifold and probably add a fastener location at the back of the manifold and increase the bolt size from M8 (5/16") to M10 (3/8") for additional strength. I will tell you other brands like Chevy and Ford have the same issues as well as some of the imports and they all use the smaller M8 exhaust bolt size. Remember they only need the cars to last the warranty period and then manifold work is money in the back for them... sell you an engineered part to fail and then you will pay for them to "fix it" over and over again and make more $$ on you. The warranty of these going in under 36k is much lower than what I normally see of 40-70k mileage and thats usualy way outside the warranty time range thus costing the owner.

I have had luck with my current 2018 ram using the remflex gaskets with stock manifolds. Originally at 18k miles I pulled the manifolds for ****** black heart shorty headers and had to return them after a month or so bc they welds kept cracking. I reused my remflex gaskets from the headers and put on my stock manifolds which I creakoted (ceramic coated) and reused all the hardware except the collector bolts. I had stock replacement felpro gaskets which after looking at sucked and I saw the issue with them. The remflex gaskets are very thick like 3/16-1/4" and they crush like 50% and have the ability to seal warped flanges and rebound to keep the bolts tight. I now have 39k on my truck and not one exhaust leak as I feel the gasket will crush as the manifold warps keeping the bolts intact. I actually got a pair of the ebay powersports SS shorter headers and I Creakoted them as well and waiting for warmer weather to install with the ARP SS bolts I have left over from the previous headers as I want to "fix" the issue in case it tries. Also at 18k miles the stock manifolds were already WARPED and I DID NOT flatten them before ceramic coating as I didn't have or couldn't find a sander big enough for it to lay flat.

Below are your fixes - #3 is truly the only real fix.
1.) sand the warped seasoned manifold and put it back on with stock gaskets
2.) sand the warped seasoned manifold and use remflex gaskets
3.) Get aftermarket headers and use quality ARP SS bolts and remflex gaskets

It blows my mind that the manifold bolts and the lifter/cam issues continue as its not like they don't have the money and they all spend like 1billion to develop a new engine to put it to market. However all these issues are the buyers problem as they start well after the warranty period.
 

TomB 1269

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Just had cracked bolts done on my 2019 with only 25K miles on the clock.
 

Birchrj

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I drive a 2015 with the hemi, I only have 34k miles on it, and have had a manifold bolt break already. I live in Arizona, so no salt or rust, and the only trailer I tow is a 17' flatbed maybe twice a year to move furniture or a small car around town.
 

McDigger

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My 2 cents.... read on a Mopar tech page somewhere that all the 5.7 hemis are already built? They're working on electric and 6 cyl turbo engines? Aluminum heads and cast iron manifolds heat up and cool down at different rates. That doesn't help. I also have a 6.4 Scat Pack with factory steel headers. Seems not to be as much of an issue with broken bolts with them. The Remflex gaskets are the best thing to use, imo. Also letting engine idle some before shutting off after a hard pull or hot conditions. Sometimes I pull the hood release to the first latch to let a lot of heat escape. I don't think they have enough venting in the engine bay. Not sure how much this all helps but it's what I do. God bless
 
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