hi mileage maintenance

[troykeithjones]

2012 ram 1500 outdoors man, 4x4, 3.92, crewcab. i have owned since new, has 182000 on it now. other than normal maintenance i did "dealer" replace the 5.7 at 150k miles and still have 70k miles left on warranty. She is maintained regularly and sees mid grade real gas 95% of the time, only time i used 10 percent was when real gas wasnt available.

Anyway wife and i have decided not to do a travel trailer so i cant justify a 2500 and im not gaining alot trading in on newer 1500 since mine still does everything i need her to do. no major problems at all.

so i have 2 opinion question.
Fuel pump, not giving me any trouble but its one of those things that when it goes out it could leave me stranded. I drive on the top half, use good branded fuel and it never goes below a 1/4, most times i fill at a half unless on a road trip. Am i being stupid to change the fuel pump as preventative.

2nd, front and read diff and Tc fluids have been changed 3 times, But im a idiot and never did the tranny, its never been changed, would dropping the pan and changing the filter be risky with those miles ?? Fluid is still the correct color and no burn smell at all. i know a full fluid flush with those miles are a big risk.

plan is to drop her off at dealer and have suspension inspected, brakes inspected, new head and fog light bulbs, check all u-joints etc. Then to upholstery shop for katzkin covers and refoam. then body shop to fix a cpl dents in tailgate and buff the paint and drive her hopefully another 180K

anything i might have not thought about ?

thanks all
Troy

 

[Jeepwalker]

Sounds & looks like a nice truck!

I would still do the tranny fluid. That old myth of the tranny flaking out after not changing it for 'too long' is usually when people have weak transmissions in the first place. The Synth fluid these days is way more refined that it was in the 70's-80's. If new fluid did 'kill' your transmission ...your transmission was 2 steps from death anyway. You'd want to know about it now, not when you're in the middle of Utah. Change the xfer case fluid too. Stick with Mopar fluids so you aren't questioning what brand fluid you put where, or used a trans fluid with a different additive pack (and things could 'feel' different afterwards).

Other items:
1) Power steering fluid. Exchange it all with new. Use the right Mopar stuff. In fact I would use all Mopar fluids so you never have to remember ...I used this fluid for that, and that fluid for this. Sounds like you're going to have a dealer do all the maintenance? If so, then you won't need to worry about fluid brands. There's youtube videos how to do it if you are going to go DIY.
2) Brake Fluid. It should be clear, but brake fluid becomes darker as it gets older. Have the dealer exchange the fluid. They have a special machine for that which makes the job real easy and efficient. New brake fluid will keep your brake internals from corroding and improve stopping.
3) Check your diff seals. If any minor leakage, install new
4) Check the output bearing of your transfer case. It's not a roller bearing, it's a bushing. They wear. When they wear, they can send vibration back through the transfer case (or transmission on 2WD tks) ...which can lead to more expensive driveline problems. The dealer has a real slick tool that makes it an easy in/out process. On a high-mile rig definitely check that.
5) U-joints - Check them, esp the rear one. Hard to imagine the rear u-joint going 200k but their lifespan depends on a lot of factors.
6) Front CV's and Driveshaft. Check the driveshaft splines and the CV. Replace with a real Mopar if you feel 'play' in the splines or CV. Don't buy a cheapie. Now would be a great time to separate and re-pack the splines, but to pay a dealer to do that, you'd almost be better off buying a new one, unfortunately.
7) Ball joints - Worth a good look over, especially the uppers.
8) Relays - Because your truck is a 2012, you might want to get one of these relays (replace the big ones), or toss in the fusebox. Buy a little replacement one for the TIPM fuel pump, or maybe a bypass cable to put in the glovebox. If you believe in Murphy's law, if you buy that stuff and put them in your fusebox, it'll ward off problems and you'll never need them (and it was cheap insurance). But if you do, that $14 cable could come in real handy. The little relay could be soldered onto your truck's computer board. I bought new relays for my 2012.

2Pcs 68083380AA 12VDC 35A Automotive Relay 4Pins same as 12088567 | eBay

68083380AA 12VDC 35A Automotive Relay 4Pins. Otherwise deal is final. We will be happy to resolve any issues you may have in a cordial and friendly manner.

www.ebay.com

New NEC/TOKIN EX1-1F1J Relay DIP-5 for for DODGE RAM CHRYSLER TIPM FUEL PUMP | eBay

New NEC TOKIN EX1-1F1J relay for DODGE, RAM, CHRYSLER & likely many more attaches to TIPM (Total Integrated Power Module) for several aspects of the vehicle such as Fuel Pump, Starter and more. 1X NEC TOKIN EX1-1F1J relay.

www.ebay.com

Or just buy a fuel pump cable:

TIPM Repair Harness Fuel Pump Relay Bypass Cable 2013-2019 Dodge Ram 1500 2500 | eBay

Need a new TIPM?. Fuel Pump not getting power?. Car won't start?. This is literally the best on the market and not cobbled together parts. TIPM and Fuel Relay bypass cables are a simple way to test or bypass faulty fuel pump relay problems on many newer Dodge/Jeep/Chrysler vehicles.

www.ebay.com

9) Fuel pump - that's a tricky one. Yours could last until 250k, you never know. I've had several vehicle go until 230k+ with original fuel pumps.
10) Wheel bearings - Give them a check. The rear bearings ride on the axles, so that's a wear item.
11) Sensors - I usually throw the sensors that could keep my truck from running ...in the glove box. Like a crank pos sensor, or a cam sensor. Or replace my old ones and put the old ones in the glove box. But you can't replace or carry a spare of everything that might come up...
12) Shocks - These are often over-looked part of the suspension. Have them do a look-over on them. I've got 230k on a pr of Jeep oem shocks so, the life can be rather great. If you need to replace, might as well go with Mopars. I can guarantee you'll NEVER get that kind of life out of a Garbriel or Monroe shock (which I estimate have about a 40% failure rate (in ~5yrs) based on my experience over the decades!).
13) Towing insurance ...if you go on a longer trip. You have a high mile vehicle. Stuff can and probably will happen eventually. It's a lot cheaper to add towing insurance onto my auto insurance, than buy AAA. But ask what's included too, if you decide to go that way.

 

[Socalramfan]

2012 ram 1500 outdoors man, 4x4, 3.92, crewcab. i have owned since new, has 182000 on it now. other than normal maintenance i did "dealer" replace the 5.7 at 150k miles and still have 70k miles left on warranty. She is maintained regularly and sees mid grade real gas 95% of the time, only time i used 10 percent was when real gas wasnt available.

Anyway wife and i have decided not to do a travel trailer so i cant justify a 2500 and im not gaining alot trading in on newer 1500 since mine still does everything i need her to do. no major problems at all.

so i have 2 opinion question.
Fuel pump, not giving me any trouble but its one of those things that when it goes out it could leave me stranded. I drive on the top half, use good branded fuel and it never goes below a 1/4, most times i fill at a half unless on a road trip. Am i being stupid to change the fuel pump as preventative.

2nd, front and read diff and Tc fluids have been changed 3 times, But im a idiot and never did the tranny, its never been changed, would dropping the pan and changing the filter be risky with those miles ?? Fluid is still the correct color and no burn smell at all. i know a full fluid flush with those miles are a big risk.

plan is to drop her off at dealer and have suspension inspected, brakes inspected, new head and fog light bulbs, check all u-joints etc. Then to upholstery shop for katzkin covers and refoam. then body shop to fix a cpl dents in tailgate and buff the paint and drive her hopefully another 180K

anything i might have not thought about ?

thanks all
Troy

Im with you about addressing things ‘before’ they fail… if at all possible.

Sounds and looks like you’ve taken great care of your Ram…. I wouldn’t change that.

With 180k+ miles, definitely a good idea to change out the fluids. Even those fluids which they claim will last the life of the vehicle, really translates to @ 100,000 miles. The life of most vehicles that an owner will hold onto before getting something else. I’d also stay with the same fluids you’ve been using as well…… it’s worked for this long

Rubber items, bushings, seals, trim etc will wear out with time and exposure so having to redo some suspension parts won’t be a big surprise too.

 

[troykeithjones]

thanks guys, some more items to put on the inspec list, and AAA been a member 15 years, only used it a cpl times but its paid for itself Highly Recommend to anyone.

 

[troykeithjones]

and i should have said only fluids that arent oem is oil, i have used mobile one since the 1000 miles on first engine and since the replacement went in. i used to do all my own maintenance but after a few back surg it hurts to much so im very lucky in having a trustworthy dependable dealership i used not to far. im not saying that other main shops arent good, i just feel better using the factory shop.