2020 RAM 2500 6.7 Cummins blown due to dealer error

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

PCombs0520

Junior Member
Joined
Jan 5, 2023
Posts
1
Reaction score
1
Location
Bend, OR
Ram Year
2020
Engine
6.7 Cummins
I have a 2020 Ram 2500 w/ 31k miles on it. I recently (Dec 31st, 2022) took it in for service for an oil change and fuel filter change. About 10 miles down the road after picking it up, the low oil pressure warning came up. Within seconds of getting the warning the motor shut down and I found myself on the side of the road. Truck was towed back to the dealer and upon inspection I was notified that the technician had not properly secured the drain plug and it had fallen out, draining the oil, and the engine was seized. The dealer is shipping a new motor from the east coast to do a full motor swap on the truck.

My concern is that this truck will never be the same. Not only will the CarFax show a major service w/ engine replacement which as a buyer, I would absolutely steer clear of and I'm sure will diminish the value, also removing and replacing an entire motor at 31k miles may lead to all sorts of other problems down the road with 31k on the transmission and gears and 0 on the motor, plus the hoses and wiring being stretched. Am I crazy for feeling uneasy about this situation? Should I be expecting the dealer to replace the truck with an equal truck that hasn't had a full engine swap?

TIA for any information.
 

danielmid

Senior Member
Supporting Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2018
Posts
1,491
Reaction score
2,647
Location
Southeast WI
Ram Year
2015 Sport 4x4
Engine
Hemi 5.7
Yes there will be some diminished value, yes you'll also have a brand new engine, yes the service manager will probably giggle if you ask about a new truck.

If you don't trust the new engine or want out of the truck, let them repair it, drive it out the service department, pull in to sales and trade it in.
 

Wild one

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 17, 2016
Posts
13,718
Reaction score
23,372
Ram Year
14 Sport
Engine
5.7
Ask them if they'll give you anything for dimished value. A warrenty replacement engine if it's new,really shouldn't hurt the resale value all that much though,as it's a brand new engine with 31,000 less miles then the truck has.
 

crash68

ACME product engineer
Staff member
Administrator
Supporting Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2016
Posts
10,698
Reaction score
16,705
Ram Year
2015
Engine
3.0 EcoDiesel
Am I crazy for feeling uneasy about this situation?
Yes..
Should I be expecting the dealer to replace the truck with an equal truck that hasn't had a full engine swap?
No the dealership won't be expected to swap an entire truck, besides do to want someone else's truck that you don't know anything about?
The dealership is replacing the Cummins with a new motor which will likely have the CP3 based HPFP. Now if they were trying to do a short block that would not be acceptable.
It's a Cummins truck, they're won't be any problems with resale, also keep the records of why the engine was swapped.
 

stevenP

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2014
Posts
640
Reaction score
621
Location
northern Indiana
Ram Year
2022 2500 Longhorn
Engine
6.7L Cummins
I think this is everyone's worst nightmare, that something so simple could result in this happening. I would agree with the others here, that you could trade it, but I dont think there still is a lot of HD trucks out there to get a hold of.
 

MADDOG

Not RamForum Staff
Supporting Member
Military
Joined
Dec 26, 2011
Posts
14,443
Reaction score
9,877
Location
Arizona
Ram had to replace the 6.4L in my 2014 under warranty due to a wrist pin defect. They offered me some free services plus an extended warranty plus they installed new power pan/tilt/fold mirrors.

When it came time to determine a fair market value a couple years later, due to the truck being totaled by an inattentive driver barreling through a red light, the value offered by the insurance company was within $57 of the KBB.com dealer values.

No diminished value was included with the report I received. All the dealer performed services on the truck were on the report.

If I was a prospective buyer of a truck that had a new engine installed by a dealer, I'd be thinking that would be a plus.
 

mountainlion

Member
Joined
Aug 8, 2021
Posts
36
Reaction score
21
Location
Anacortes
Ram Year
2022
Engine
6.7l I6
If I was in the market for a new truck I would rather buy a truck with a new engine. Just make the dealer ship write a statement that explains that it is a factory new engine And the reasons why it was installed.
 

DerickE

Member
Joined
Dec 16, 2022
Posts
39
Reaction score
56
Location
Indianapolis Suburbs
Ram Year
2019
Engine
6.4L Gasser
Mental note, carry a wrench set with me when going to the dealer for oil changes. These people just can never get it right. It's not that hard. I'm a shadetree mechanic and know how many engines I've seized? Zero. They either torque the drain plug to 1209483906739872652 ft/lb or barely hand tight.
 

smittyd174

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 7, 2022
Posts
137
Reaction score
111
Location
Halifax
Ram Year
2022
Engine
5.7 hemi
I'm impressed that they're going good for it without any bs . Amazing how such a simple thing can do so much damage . A buddy of mine had his oil change done at an auto place and the oil filter gasket didn't come out with the filter. He made it about a mile when the low oil pressure warning came on . Luckily he stopped immediately and got it towed backed , no damage because he drove it for 4 or 5 more years.
 

mtofell

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 18, 2014
Posts
2,631
Reaction score
2,269
Ram Year
2014
Engine
Hemi 6.4
Diminished value due to a new engine being installed at the dealer? I'd almost think it's a benefit rather than a negative. Granted, 30K miles is pretty low so it's not a huge deal one way or another.

My 2014 just had a new 6.4 Hemi installed at the dealer at 120K and I'm pretty happy about it as far as resale (Maxcare Warranty paid).

The big thing to me as a used buyer would be that it was done at the dealer and not Mo's Auto or some random dudes garage.
 

Scottly

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2018
Posts
1,181
Reaction score
2,187
Location
Safety Harbor, FL
Ram Year
2021
Engine
HO 6.7 Cummins
Diminished value is a body shop problem, not a mechanical repair problem. You'll be fine. Look at it this way...I guarantee the guy replacing the engine is a top-notch heavy line tech and not an **** clown lube tech. He'll do it right.
 

Zoe Saldana

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 12, 2020
Posts
914
Reaction score
764
Location
california
Ram Year
2016
Engine
6.4l
I have a 2020 Ram 2500 w/ 31k miles on it. I recently (Dec 31st, 2022) took it in for service for an oil change and fuel filter change. About 10 miles down the road after picking it up, the low oil pressure warning came up. Within seconds of getting the warning the motor shut down and I found myself on the side of the road. Truck was towed back to the dealer and upon inspection I was notified that the technician had not properly secured the drain plug and it had fallen out, draining the oil, and the engine was seized. The dealer is shipping a new motor from the east coast to do a full motor swap on the truck.

My concern is that this truck will never be the same. Not only will the CarFax show a major service w/ engine replacement which as a buyer, I would absolutely steer clear of and I'm sure will diminish the value, also removing and replacing an entire motor at 31k miles may lead to all sorts of other problems down the road with 31k on the transmission and gears and 0 on the motor, plus the hoses and wiring being stretched. Am I crazy for feeling uneasy about this situation? Should I be expecting the dealer to replace the truck with an equal truck that hasn't had a full engine swap?

TIA for any information.
Call your insurance agent.
If she says yes, get a number.
You should get that amount.

The concept is no different than an accident.
 

Lil' Rob

Member
Joined
Feb 16, 2020
Posts
60
Reaction score
36
Location
Ohio
Ram Year
2020
Engine
5.7
Another question is what all has to come out of the truck to replace the engine? I had something like this with a F___ I used to have. Within the first few months after the engine replacement I had transmission issues, leaking coolant, electrical problems, and computer problems related to the electrical problems. That truck had less than 10,000 miles. So many things removed, breaking original factory seals, etc. turned out to be a really bad thing in my case.
 

mtofell

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 18, 2014
Posts
2,631
Reaction score
2,269
Ram Year
2014
Engine
Hemi 6.4
Call your insurance agent.
If she says yes, get a number.
You should get that amount.

The concept is no different than an accident.
There's really no precedence for this. Even diminished value after accidents is a struggle to collect on but at least there's some basis since accidents are reported to a database. There's no public database from mechanical repairs. The first step would be the buying public less willing to buy a truck with an engine replacement (again, the repair done at the dealer) which I think is the opposite. Look on Craigslist, etc. and you'll routinely see vehicles ADVERTISED with having a "new engine" or "new transmission". I personally agree that on a 30K vehicle is raises some questions but those are easily answered with the paper trail - Again, leading back to a dealer engine replacement on a truck that is still under warranty on all the parts that "could" have been damaged. At some point this starts to reek of ambulance chasing and looking for compensation for something that is just an unfortunate reality of life. OP had an unlikely circumstance but it was made right.

I think if anyone ever asks me to define "first world problem" I'll direct them to this thread.
 

Zoe Saldana

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 12, 2020
Posts
914
Reaction score
764
Location
california
Ram Year
2016
Engine
6.4l
There's really no precedence for this. Even diminished value after accidents is a struggle to collect on but at least there's some basis since accidents are reported to a database. There's no public database from mechanical repairs. The first step would be the buying public less willing to buy a truck with an engine replacement (again, the repair done at the dealer) which I think is the opposite. Look on Craigslist, etc. and you'll routinely see vehicles ADVERTISED with having a "new engine" or "new transmission". I personally agree that on a 30K vehicle is raises some questions but those are easily answered with the paper trail - Again, leading back to a dealer engine replacement on a truck that is still under warranty on all the parts that "could" have been damaged. At some point this starts to reek of ambulance chasing and looking for compensation for something that is just an unfortunate reality of life. OP had an unlikely circumstance but it was made right.

I think if anyone ever asks me to define "first world problem" I'll direct them to this thread.

I think you're over thinking it.

The OP pays the ins. agent good money ... asking a simple question shouldn't be an issue.

AND, this is not an example of a 1st world problem here.

There could be many others e.g. replacing good tires because someone wants a 'more aggressive look".
 

mtofell

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 18, 2014
Posts
2,631
Reaction score
2,269
Ram Year
2014
Engine
Hemi 6.4
I think you're over thinking it.
I'm overthinking it? WTF is an insurance agent going to say? When did they become experts on blown engines and vehicle values? They sell insurance (and then refer you to the mothership for legitimate claims which this is not).
 

Zoe Saldana

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 12, 2020
Posts
914
Reaction score
764
Location
california
Ram Year
2016
Engine
6.4l
I'm overthinking it? WTF is an insurance agent going to say? When did they become experts on blown engines and vehicle values? They sell insurance (and then refer you to the mothership for legitimate claims which this is not).

I think you're being over-emotional about this.

Is it that time of the month?
 

CaptOchs

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 20, 2019
Posts
141
Reaction score
115
Location
Rochester
Ram Year
2013
Engine
5.7
You're getting a new engine. They admitted fault and that mechanic either lost his job or is on the service manager's **** list that will take a long time to get off. It happens. I wouldn't think you'd see a deminished value. I doubt this would reach classic car status where matching VIN numbers count on the drive train. Let them take care of it. If there are future problems that pop up bring it back to the dealer and ask if it could be related. They'll likely cover it.
 

nlambert182

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2022
Posts
796
Reaction score
1,082
Location
Huntsville, AL
Ram Year
2018
Engine
6.7 Cummins
I wouldn't be concerned at all as long as it's a new engine and the dealership is installing and providing a warranty on the engine equivalent to brand new. I'd make sure you get the 5/100 engine warranty that starts when the new engine is installed and doesn't just pick up with your current powertrain warranty.

Let's face it... if properly taken care of the engine will outlast the trans and other components anyhow so those components aren't going to fail any sooner than they were before. The bonus is that you likely will get even more miles out of the engine at no cost (aside from the headache of the swap) to you. I'd actually look at this as a positive.
 

Farmer Fran

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 28, 2013
Posts
1,507
Reaction score
1,294
Location
Earth
Ram Year
2020 Limited Loaded - Sold
I hada 2020 Camaro SS. The LT1 motor blew. With the car sitting on the lot waiting for a new engine, I asked if they would buy it. They said yes. SOLD.

No way in hell am i taking an engine swap from the dealer home. They do not specialize in that at all.

They could not even change your oil correctly.
 
Top