Advice for HEMI newbie

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JohninTexas

Junior Member
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Feb 21, 2022
Posts
12
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Location
Temple Texas
Ram Year
2011
Engine
Hemi 5.7
Good Morning everyone.... thought I would start here and see what kind of advice I could get from some of you with experience with the HEMI engine.
I just purchased a 2011 Ram 1500 Crew Cab 5.7 Hemi with 188,000 miles on it. Yes I realize it has a bunch of miles but it was in my budget and I had to stick to the budget for now. I think I got a decent truck and it will not be my daily driver. I am just going to use it to haul a small RV trailer a few times a year to the coast and some quick trips to Home Depot when needed. I was online doing a search on advice of what to do to the truck as far as maintenance. I want to change all the oils as I dont know when it was done last, this way I know its done. The more I read the more confused I got so thought I would just ask here and get some advice. The engine does have the tick at startup and after it warms up it goes away ( manifolds I have come to understand ) It also has the HEMI tick. I was wondering if different oils might help this but then read someone saying not to change oils on a high mileage truck. Well, I dont know what oil is in it now so not sure what to do. From the tag on the windshield it is time for an oil and filter change so was wondering if I could change to synthetic oil, what weight ( Texas Here ) and what filter. Also any other advice if you were the one to purchase this truck I will take.
Thanks in advance!
John
 

turkeybird56

Military Vet 1976-1996 Retired US Army
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2019 Bighorn, 4 X 4, 3.21 rear, Bright Flame Red Pearl Coat, Mopar tonneau cover,Westin Bed rug
Engine
Hemi 5.7
BURLA, U want to chime in here and help this person.

Change all Oils to include Diffs and maybe tranny also. Truck manual tell U weight of oil recommended. Hook up with the synthetic oil thread and talk to Burla. He prob tell U get a Royal Purple Oil Filter and run Redline 5W30. He be the oil guru on this forum. U have to see exactly what size filter yer 2011, I have a 2019 5th Gen, may not be the same.
 

zogg

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Hemi 5.7
I’d change all fluids with oem recommended stuff to start. That includes tranny, transfer case, power steering, & brake fluid. You change always change later if needed. Lots of folks are afraid to change tranny fluid with lots of miles but I’ve done it at 200,000 miles using maxlife atf but that was a GM truck. Good luck with your new ride.
 

ramffml

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Jul 12, 2019
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Location
ramforum
Ram Year
2019
Engine
hemi 5.7
Good Morning everyone.... thought I would start here and see what kind of advice I could get from some of you with experience with the HEMI engine.
I just purchased a 2011 Ram 1500 Crew Cab 5.7 Hemi with 188,000 miles on it. Yes I realize it has a bunch of miles but it was in my budget and I had to stick to the budget for now. I think I got a decent truck and it will not be my daily driver. I am just going to use it to haul a small RV trailer a few times a year to the coast and some quick trips to Home Depot when needed. I was online doing a search on advice of what to do to the truck as far as maintenance. I want to change all the oils as I dont know when it was done last, this way I know its done. The more I read the more confused I got so thought I would just ask here and get some advice. The engine does have the tick at startup and after it warms up it goes away ( manifolds I have come to understand ) It also has the HEMI tick. I was wondering if different oils might help this but then read someone saying not to change oils on a high mileage truck. Well, I dont know what oil is in it now so not sure what to do. From the tag on the windshield it is time for an oil and filter change so was wondering if I could change to synthetic oil, what weight ( Texas Here ) and what filter. Also any other advice if you were the one to purchase this truck I will take.
Thanks in advance!
John

You say you are confused, and I don't blame you. There are a number of "ticks" that the hemi can make:
- injector noise (light and high pitched constant ticking, don't worry about it, completely normal)
- broken manifolds (exhaust leak, not cheap but definitely fixable, goes away as engine warms up)
- intense rattle on cold start, usually when truck was shutdown "cold" the time before (so like truck is cold, start up and move 5 feet and stop again, next start might be this rattle; I have this issue and its driving me nuts, but ram says "this is 'normal'" and doesn't harm your engine
- lifters/cam; this is usually what people call "hemi tick", and it's there when your engine is idling at normal temperatures; this is the one you want to avoid at all cost as actual damage is occurring.

So basically you're best off posting a video with high quality sound (don't talk, hold camera steady for a few seconds at different positions around the engine, and don't forget the very bottom of the engine which is where "hemi tick"/lifters is most noticeable. Take the video when your truck is dead cold, and a second one when it's at operating temp. At this point nobody knows what you're hearing from your description.
 
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JohninTexas

JohninTexas

Junior Member
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Feb 21, 2022
Posts
12
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Location
Temple Texas
Ram Year
2011
Engine
Hemi 5.7
Just to update... thanks for the replies first off!
I had all the spark plugs changed and all fluids replaced except the tranny. Still debating that issue with myself. The truck is in the shop as I type this getting a level kit put on and valve cover gaskets since they noticed it was leaking when changing out my spark plugs. They are also going to check the manifold and manifold bolts so I can mark that off when I try to determine the clicking noise on the cold startup.
 
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