WOW seven front half axles on 2019 truck. One per year average, what is this vehicle being used for?
LOL, well, it's not a "pampered princess" that's for sure, but I also don't beat it till it screams Uncle either. It's my daily driver here in "Winterpeg". it's also been on several cross country road trips/vacations etc.
I've run into other Ram owners who have had similar experience with their front axles as well. Part of the problem is our VERY COLD winters, and the rubber boots that protect the axles aren't worth their weight in salt!! They tend to Crack (open) allowing all the "crap and corruption" we throw on our roads here during the winter to give us SOME traction that tends to find it's way into the lovely space created by the crack(s). Time, and use of the 4X4 does all the rest...
I asked the "pros" at the Dealerships and they all said the same thing. The boots WILL, at some time, fail. You can delay the inevitable a bit by spraying the boots with a good quality silicone spray, clean the area as much as possible AND limit the use of the 4X4 as much as possible. However, the boots WILL fail at some point...
It would not suprise me in the least if the members here took a peek at their front axle boots and found that one or both are open to the environment. Especially those that face a lot of winter driving.
Hell my neighbor thought his Ram's 4X4 was working fine, until he got stuck on his driveway after a pretty bad blizzard that we had one year (hell, 4X4's just DON'T, or shouldn't get stuck... at least I've never been stuck longer than a few minutes at most). I went over to help him, and as he attempted to get "un-stuck, I noticed that only 1 of his 4 wheels was ACTUALLY turning!! Mind you, that was just one of his problems. He is not from this country, and DEFINITELY did not know how to drive in the winter (he kept turning his wheels rather than keeping them straight!! I guess there is not much snow in India).
There must have been more damage to the whole drive train because I never saw him drive that Ram again. It was gone never to be seen again after he had it towed off of his driveway!! More than likely fainted when he was told how much it would cost to fix ALL the issues/problems!
I think that the only time the boots tend to even get noticed (for the most part) is when you specificly look/inspect them during/after an oil change. In fact 2 of the times my boots were shot and open was when I brought it in for an oil change and it was pointed out to me.
These days, I can pretty much tell when the axles themselves have failed (if not caught between oil changes). And that is when I engage the 4X4 and use it (say to get unstuck from deep snow or mud, or on icey roads).
I'm just not impressed with the 4X4 system in/on these Ram 1500's...
Don't get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE this truck! it is FAST, powerful, and can really handle a good load or trailer! I just wish that Stelantis/Chrysler/RAM (who ever!) would come up with a permanent fix for this!
Oh, and for those that say I should get a different shop to replace the axles, 3 different shops have had a crack at fixing this problem (2 different RAM dealers, and 1 independent that was recommended to me). So poor installation is not the problem...