Should I stay away from Hemi because if breaking manifold bolts?

[OzCop]

I have had several Hemi vehicles, from 2005 Durango, plus 2 more Durangos, last one a 2011. All had well over 85 K miles before being sold or traded in on new. Never, ever a problem such as has been mentioned here, including cam, lifters, and exhaust mani bolts. Not one. I have had two more Ram Hemi 1500s, and again, never an issue with any of those stated. This forum is an extremely small sampling of Hemi owners, so as much as I enjoy the forum, I would not base my opinion on whether to purchase or not on the info provided from this forum...

 

[arthur dwyer]

i have had several hemi trucks with 0 issues!

 

[Haas]

Haas,
personally my friend, i think your worrying far more than you really should be. Many people in here have had very good luck with their hemi trucks, and stands to reason why they buy another one when they trade up. Maybe you should visit some of the chevy & ford forums, and absorb all the problems those two brands have. It might cheer you up to know that the hemi trucks are a very fine truck. And again, another TRUCK OF THE YEAR award.

I`ve owned more hemi`s than most average people would, normally, and with 80+ thousand miles on ALL mine before trading them in, in my own opinion, speaks volumes for the hemi engines i`ve owned and have never broke anything. I have YET to have any exhaust bolts break, and surely never ever had cam an lifter issues in any hemi i`ve owned since 2003, and i put ALOTTA miles on my trucks. Use a good oil and filter, dont beat the truck, shouldn`t have any problems. I think alot of problems are exaggerated more than they really actually are. Thank the internet for that. If you look at how many hemi`s have been sold, against how many problems they`ve had throughout the generations, its not even worth worrying about it, in my own personal opinion.

Just my own thoughts on the cam/lifter failure... pick an oil that has a good amount of zinc in it, cam/lifters will work just fine and last plenty long enough. I`ve used pennzoil for a few years, not a single engine failure to date, or even any kind of severe wear to speak of. Call it luck...?... could be, i dont know. But it must be working good for me, because i`ve had ZERO cam & lifter failures. Do they break, sure they do, ALL of them do, at some point. Its how you take care or them is what really matters. Change the oil and filter often, don`t beat the truck/car/horse, the hemi will last a long time.

The only thing i have trouble with, are the lame dealerships out there... but they are all a pain in the ass when they cant fix`em, no matter what badge is in the grill.

You may be right about me worrying a bit too much. But most people here are saying they've run their Hemis until 80K or even 100K with no problems. But, these problems seem to occur mostly when the vehicle reaches over 100K miles. And not much beyond that, so many people might be trading before the problem gets a chance to occur? I'm not sure. The ones who do have problems are all claiming to use good oil and filters. But, you're right, the internet can be deceiving. For every person who had cam or lifter issues, there's probably 50-100 that had no issue. I'ts the problem ones that make the most noise, and those who have no problems keep quiet. I will go visit some of the other forums though, that's a good idea.

 

[Haas]

I have had several Hemi vehicles, from 2005 Durango, plus 2 more Durangos, last one a 2011. All had well over 85 K miles before being sold or traded in on new. Never, ever a problem such as has been mentioned here, including cam, lifters, and exhaust mani bolts. Not one. I have had two more Ram Hemi 1500s, and again, never an issue with any of those stated. This forum is an extremely small sampling of Hemi owners, so as much as I enjoy the forum, I would not base my opinion on whether to purchase or not on the info provided from this forum...

But when it comes to the cam/lifter problem, most have had the problem occur after 100K miles. Have you ran any well beyond 100K? I tend to keep my vehicles quite a long time. My dakota I'm running right now has 205K and still running great.

 

[Dr. Righteous]

Wow, the manifold bolt issue is common to Dodge, Ford and Chevy. I think out of the 3 it is most common Fords.
It is a common thing now because modern engines have aluminum heads. Aluminum and cast iron have very different expansion rates. Aluminum quickly wicks heat away; cast iron holds it in.

My '14 RAM has a noticeable exhaust tick and it is at 93K miles. It is only noticeable standing outside the vehicle when the engine is cold.
I'll fix it one of these days.

A good fix is a swap to a set of quality shorty headers. A good set will have thick flanges and steel won't hold the heat like cast iron does so the stretching and breaking of the bolts should not be an issue.

 

[Casey Phalen]

I haven’t had any issues with my 6.4 hemi. And if I did it would go in for warwnty work

 

[Haas]

I'm sorry, but I probably should clarify that I'm talking about the 5.7 hemi in the Rams.

 

[tomb]

my 2012 Ram Hemi still seems to run as smooth and strong as new-I was wondering what the symptoms of broken manifold bolts would be- does it lose power, make a noise, vibrations etc . Just wondering what to look for -and when to be concerned. So far, so good!!!

 

[Haas]

my 2012 Ram Hemi still seems to run as smooth and strong as new-I was wondering what the symptoms of broken manifold bolts would be- does it lose power, make a noise, vibrations etc . Just wondering what to look for -and when to be concerned. So far, so good!!!

From what I understand, it shows up as a "tick" when the engine is cold, but kinda goes away when the engine reaches operating temperature. It's basically just a slight exhaust leak, and nothing to really be overly concerned about. Just get it fixed when you can, if you got it. How many mile you have on yours, and have you had any other problems?

 

[RammerHarder]

Wow, the manifold bolt issue is common to Dodge, Ford and Chevy. I think out of the 3 it is most common Fords.
It is a common thing now because modern engines have aluminum heads. Aluminum and cast iron have very different expansion rates. Aluminum quickly wicks heat away; cast iron holds it in.

My '14 RAM has a noticeable exhaust tick and it is at 93K miles. It is only noticeable standing outside the vehicle when the engine is cold.
I'll fix it one of these days.

A good fix is a swap to a set of quality shorty headers. A good set will have thick flanges and steel won't hold the heat like cast iron does so the stretching and breaking of the bolts should not be an issue.

Pretty strange how your truck with 90+ thousand miles finally breaks the bolts, where a friend of mine (mentioned in my earlier post) has a 2014 and @ 17K, broke the manifold bolts.

I have yet to ever break any though... and have owned several 5.7 hemi trucks since 2003... hmmmmm.... Hope i can keep the trend with no issues with my 18 sport

 

[tomb]

From what I understand, it shows up as a "tick" when the engine is cold, but kinda goes away when the engine reaches operating temperature. It's basically just a slight exhaust leak, and nothing to really be overly concerned about. Just get it fixed when you can, if you got it. How many mile you have on yours, and have you had any other problems?

I only have 63,000kms -so whats that 40,000miles-and it does run as nice as new- I do baby the truck-not to say I dont give-er once in awhile- is this something I can check the bolts myself by removing the engine cover? But she runs beautiful-but sometimes things happen so gradually that you dont notice a decline. With the cover off,would I just check for loose bolts-or is this something that my mechanic would have to diagnose? Thanks Bud.

 

[Black W900]

117,000 on my 2015 RAM 5.7 with no problems at all....I'll drive this truck until the wheels fall off.
Sold my 2008 RAM 5.7 with 146,000 miles and never had a single problem and I flogged the **** out of that truck....The guy that bought it now has 170,000 miles on it and has replaced the alternator and the water pump, truck still looks and runs like new.

Here are both of my trucks together the day before I sold the '08.

 

[Haas]

I only have 63,000kms -so whats that 40,000miles-and it does run as nice as new- I do baby the truck-not to say I dont give-er once in awhile- is this something I can check the bolts myself by removing the engine cover? But she runs beautiful-but sometimes things happen so gradually that you dont notice a decline. With the cover off,would I just check for loose bolts-or is this something that my mechanic would have to diagnose? Thanks Bud.

Sorry my friend, but since I don't own one yet, I can't tell you how you'd know. I'm just going off of what I've been reading.

 

[Haas]

117,000 on my 2015 RAM 5.7 with no problems at all....I'll drive this truck until the wheels fall off.
Sold my 2008 RAM 5.7 with 146,000 miles and never had a single problem and I flogged the **** out of that truck....The guy that bought it now has 170,000 miles on it and has replaced the alternator and the water pump, truck still looks and runs like new.

Here are both of my trucks together the day before I sold the '08.

View attachment 166121

Great looking trucks. Must just be luck, or bad luck, that dictates what problems you may or may not have.

 

[BlownGP]

My manifold bolts have been broke since 50K miles. Have 95K now. It bothers me but when the truck heats up it goes away. Probably losing a few ponys but screw it. It's not a race truck. lol

I wanna get headers, I'm just afraid the bolts are going to be hell to get out and cost a lot for swap. That's why I keep putting it off.

 

[Tim Garceau]

OP, you(and respondents) are making this a much bigger problem than it actually is. They are designed to break, and once the wheel/liner is off it’s a $40 gasket set and $20 in hardware with an hour of time per side experienced.

Letting cold air into the manifold when both are open can(possibly) burn up a valve for those of you just driving around with broken bolt(s).

 

[HOOKEDONSONICS]

I have a 2013 Hemi Ram and bought it new. The first couple year, it was at the dealer a few times... for mostly warranty work... flashes, recalls, instrument cluster (replaced 4x) and a few other minor things. However, everytime my truck was there, i asked them to check out the tapping. Every time they just said it's "normal". Basically saying they didn't want to deal with it and like they were talking to someone stupid. I haven't had any issues with the manifold bolts, but now with 62k miles, it sounds like a diesel. It does quiet down some when the oil temp gets to around 195-200 but you can still hear it. I know people say if it goes away, it's an exhaust leak but an exhaust leak will go away in a few minutes or so.... it takes a lot longer for the oil to reach 200 degrees. I love my truck and it still runs well but every time I wanna play, I worry about break'n something. It's just a matter of time before something gives...

 

[Haas]

OP, you(and respondents) are making this a much bigger problem than it actually is. They are designed to break, and once the wheel/liner is off it’s a $40 gasket set and $20 in hardware with an hour of time per side experienced.

Letting cold air into the manifold when both are open can(possibly) burn up a valve for those of you just driving around with broken bolt(s).

I understand what you're saying. However, my bigger concern now with the hemi is that lifter/cam issue that keeps popping up for people. Much more expensive to fix. This came to light to me a few pages into this post.

 

[Haas]

I have a 2013 Hemi Ram and bought it new. The first couple year, it was at the dealer a few times... for mostly warranty work... flashes, recalls, instrument cluster (replaced 4x) and a few other minor things. However, everytime my truck was there, i asked them to check out the tapping. Every time they just said it's "normal". Basically saying they didn't want to deal with it and like they were talking to someone stupid. I haven't had any issues with the manifold bolts, but now with 62k miles, it sounds like a diesel. It does quiet down some when the oil temp gets to around 195-200 but you can still hear it. I know people say if it goes away, it's an exhaust leak but an exhaust leak will go away in a few minutes or so.... it takes a lot longer for the oil to reach 200 degrees. I love my truck and it still runs well but every time I wanna play, I worry about break'n something. It's just a matter of time before something gives...

And what a shame that is, that we pay out so much money out of our pockets to own these things, and have to settle on ticks and tapping that wasn't there when it was new.

 

[Black W900]

Great looking trucks. Must just be luck, or bad luck, that dictates what problems you may or may not have.

Honestly....I think you're overthinking this.
For the millions of trucks sold a very small number of them develop any of these problems.
In my opinion GM trucks are ugly poorly built pieces of ****, but lots of guys swear by them, Same goes for Fords, Toyotas and the ugly truck of the year award winner...Nissan.
Most owners never experience any of this stuff.
Every manufacturers trucks have issues with this, that or the other thing and people just deal with it, work around it and then come to forums like this one and snivel that they're never again gonna buy that brand of truck or car or motorcycle or whatever product they're crying about.