FCA peeps - Pentastar and Hemi reliability

[honda99ex]

I had a thread on here asking about pickups that got eaten when the site got hacked. Anyway a trend on there and in real life seems to be that I should check out the new RAM (I also might check out the Jeep Gladiator cause it has a pretty legit wheelbase for towing) even though I'm a FoMoCo guy.

How reliable is the new post 2015? Pentastar V6? Read something about early 2011-ish having some Coolant/Sludge issue.

How reliable is the 5.7L Hemi? Seems to be pretty bomb proof if using correct oil...

How do they compare to the Ford Coyote v8 or 3.5L Eco Boost? I know the Eco Boost is technically superior to the v8 but I'm still not sold on Turbo reliability...

 

[wcjeep]

Check out TFLTruck ( The Fast Lane) on YouTube or their website. They typically tow a load up a mountain pass on every new truck in most engine configuration.

 

[honda99ex]

Check out TFLTruck ( The Fast Lane) on YouTube or their website. They typically tow a load up a mountain pass on every new truck in most engine configuration.

Ha I've wasted many a day watching Ike Gauntlet videos. Waiting for the new Ford Ranger and Jeep Gladiator ones. They are my current go-to reviewers for towing.

However they only have short term reviews and nothing on Reliability. Only ask cause my current other vehicle is a Hyundai which I've had nothing but trouble with. 3 VCA Motor repairs plus required dealer programming which means no non dealer can fix it fully and it cost me a pretty penny even though it was 'under warranty'. Would like to avoid that scenario again if possible.

 

[Thai]

After seeing what my brother is suffering from with his 2018 Ford Raptor (2 major issues; backordered parts; no rental bc of too many customers with issues) AND then seeing how FCA screwed up basic welding with Wrangler JL frame, sorry, i am staying the hell away from American OEMs for now.

Oh, and the occasional video of Dodge RAM and Jeep Wrangler with wrong paint job on each side of the car is downright hilarious and sad. Oh #2, my brother’s Chevy Cruze has been a lemon since day one...with numerous breakdowns and leaks...i could swear that he bought a Land Rover with all the shit that went wrong!

 

[96RedRunner]

When I was looking in 16 I looked at jeeps. Pentastar engine looked ok, IIRC the trans behind it was having issues.
As for the weld recall on Jeep frames according to recall a very small number were affected on 17-18 MY, something to check anyway.

 

[honda99ex]

After seeing what my brother is suffering from with his 2018 Ford Raptor (2 major issues; backordered parts; no rental bc of too many customers with issues) AND then seeing how FCA screwed up basic welding with Wrangler JL frame, sorry, i am staying the hell away from American OEMs for now.

Oh, and the occasional video of Dodge RAM and Jeep Wrangler with wrong paint job on each side of the car is downright hilarious and sad. Oh #2, my brother’s Chevy Cruze has been a lemon since day one...with numerous breakdowns and leaks...i could swear that he bought a Land Rover with all the shit that went wrong!

I know but

Honda Ridgeline - Wrong wheel drive basically for towing. Interesting but not sold on it.
New Tacoma - Had some engine/tranny issues at least early on
Tundra - Old, solid but just old
Nissan Frontier - ancient
Nissan titan - Ugly but also seems to have quality issues...

So what pickup? I tow 4 to 5k lbs 12x a year - 2x long, 10x around town. Want CrewCab.

 

[2000GM]

I've got a 2016 Ram Laramie with the 5.7 and it's been a good truck so far at 48,000 miles of admittedly light duty use and religious oil changes.

The newer 5.7s are known for exhaust manifold bolts breaking, leading to a moderately loud exhaust leak when cold started. The 5.7 has always had a noisy valvetrain. Sometimes this is called the "hemi tick" but some people call the exhaust manifold that as well. Some guys claim their Ram started making the internal tick early, and 250,000-plus miles later, nothing has happened. My own truck sometimes has a light clickety-clack metallic ticking at hot idle that goes away, but it bothers the hell out of me.

They are also somewhat well known for their camshaft lobes being wiped out by the lifters. There are quite a few cases of this on the Ram forums. Some say a "softer" metal was used in the newer cams, and that the MDS cylinder deactivation system somehow exacerbates the problem.

It's a damn shame that an engine that has been around this long still has issues like this, especially since the new ZF 8-speed transmission has been proving to be great. However, the vast majority of them can last 200,000 miles with just basic maintenance.

 

[honda99ex]

I've got a 2016 Ram Laramie with the 5.7 and it's been a good truck so far at 48,000 miles of admittedly light duty use and religious oil changes.

The newer 5.7s are known for exhaust manifold bolts breaking, leading to a moderately loud exhaust leak when cold started. The 5.7 has always had a noisy valvetrain. Sometimes this is called the "hemi tick" but some people call the exhaust manifold that as well. Some guys claim their Ram started making the internal tick early, and 250,000-plus miles later, nothing has happened. My own truck sometimes has a light clickety-clack metallic ticking at hot idle that goes away, but it bothers the hell out of me.

They are also somewhat well known for their camshaft lobes being wiped out by the lifters. There are quite a few cases of this on the Ram forums. Some say a "softer" metal was used in the newer cams, and that the MDS cylinder deactivation system somehow exacerbates the problem.

It's a damn shame that an engine that has been around this long still has issues like this, especially since the new ZF 8-speed transmission has been proving to be great. However, the vast majority of them can last 200,000 miles with just basic maintenance.

Thanks for this. I know that a tick would annoy me as it does now in my Santa Fe.

I guess if I want tried and true old school tundra way to go

 

[Jernik]

I had a 2010 Ram with the 5.7 and 6spd. auto. The engine was stout, always felt the 6spd. was the weak link. The over-aggressive traction control nannies almost got me killed once. Shooting a gap from a dead stop onto a busy road, and a little wheel spin resulted in the nannies killing power to the engine for what seemed to be an eternity. There I sat, basically dead in the water looking at traffic closing ground on me. Finally the computer decided it was safe and returned power, but not until after I'd nearly shit myself. Other than that, I never had any problems with it.

Traded the Ram for a Sierra 5.3. While mostly adequate, the 5.3 is not an exciting power plant, IMO. It just didn't have the grunt the Ram 5.7 had. However, the nannies were MUCH better - rather than significantly cutting power to the engine, it either slightly decreased power or used light application of the brakes (I'm not sure which) to regain traction. The difference was an abrupt "WE'LL HAVE NONE OF THAT!" smackdown from the Ram compared to a gentle "Ease up, partner" correction from the GM. Also, the GM 6 spd. felt better than the Ram's did - slightly crisper, more decisive shifts.

Traded the Sierra for a Wrangler (A JK - frame welds look fine). The 3.6 is adequate for a Wrangler, but I don't think I'd be happy with it for towing/hauling. I like NA V6's for general duty, but IMO if you're going to use a truck for towing, a V8 is always the better option. In regards to the ecoboost V6 (admittedly I've never driven one), I would still feel more comfortable with a V8 for long term reliability.

Just some thoughts and my opinion. Good luck with whatever you choose!

 

[honda99ex]

Traded the Sierra for a Wrangler (A JK - frame welds look fine). The 3.6 is adequate for a Wrangler, but I don't think I'd be happy with it for towing/hauling. I like NA V6's for general duty, but IMO if you're going to use a truck for towing, a V8 is always the better option. In regards to the ecoboost V6 (admittedly I've never driven one), I would still feel more comfortable with a V8 for long term reliability.

Just some thoughts and my opinion. Good luck with whatever you choose!

Thanks! How would you say the Pentastar in the Wrangler compares to the 4.0L in the 4Runner? I figure that would be an approximate feeling in the Gladiator, since I tow with the 4Runner now. The only time I have complaint with the 4Runner is on the stretch of 84 East in NY up the 'mountain'. There it was straight up struggling but every place else I drive as long as I look ahead and maintain momentum never felt like I was white knuckling it. I think also the 4Runner brakes are confidence inspiring relative to my other car. Otherwise even though I tow 12x a year that's still only 1% of actual drive time.

It does however sound like the Pentastar in a RAM would be lacking and HEMI way to go there.

 

[Jernik]

Thanks! How would you say the Pentastar in the Wrangler compares to the 4.0L in the 4Runner? I figure that would be an approximate feeling in the Gladiator, since I tow with the 4Runner now. The only time I have complaint with the 4Runner is on the stretch of 84 East in NY up the 'mountain'. There it was straight up struggling but every place else I drive as long as I look ahead and maintain momentum never felt like I was white knuckling it. I think also the 4Runner brakes are confidence inspiring relative to my other car. Otherwise even though I tow 12x a year that's still only 1% of actual drive time.

It does however sound like the Pentastar in a RAM would be lacking and HEMI way to go there.

A couple thimgs to note: my Jeep is the 2 door, so it's a bit lighter than what the Gladiator or 4Runner is. Plus it has 3.73 gearing in the axles. Also, I have always lived in "flat" areas. Grew up in KS, lived 11 years in Indiana, and now on the gulf side of Texas. So my mountain driving experience is limited to say the least.

That said, the 3.6 feels smoother, maybe a bit more refined, but seems to require more RPMs to make the power. Granted, the 4.0 does too, but feels like it comes on lower in the RPM range. One thing I don't like about the 3.6, the oil filter retains no fluid (it's mounted at the top/front of the engine). It makes oil changes easy and much less messy, but if the Jeep sits for a few days, the valve train is noisy on start up until oil gets there to quiet everything down. I've only had this one 18 months, and so far so good, but it is one thing that's in the back of my mind about it long term.

I think in a similar size/equipped vehicle (4R, JKU, Gladiator), overall they will be comparable in performance - but I feel the 3.6 would have to work harder under load.

In a full size Ram, I would definitely go Hemi all the way. If nothing else, it will be easier to sell when that time comes and will retain value better.

Considering the investment, I definitely suggest you drive as many as you can and see for yourself before laying down the cash. You might like them all, you might hate them all! lol But as you mentioned, the Tundra is always there too and I know a lot of people who are happy with theirs. The only gripe I hear is the Toyota 5.7 tends to be a bit thirstier than the Ram/GM offerings.

 

[2000GM]

You also have to consider that the Pentastar V6 was developed as a "jack of all trades" type motor. It gets used in Rams, cars (Charger, 300, and Challenger), the Wrangler, G. Cherokee, etc. I'm sure it's tuned slightly different for each application, it was developed with smooth upper RPM performance in mind, as well as to make torque down low for truck & Wrangler applications.

The 4.0 was designed from the start to be a truck motor, as far as I know. It was also designed quite longer ago than the Pentastar. So, its kind of tough to compare them. For longevity expectations, I'll take the 4.0 all day, but the Pentastar is one of the best N/A V6s out there today. My sister has a Grand Cherokee with it, and she's closing in on 200K miles without a hiccup from the engine or transmission. Some guys on the Ram boards also have even higher miles than that on their pickups with it.

Sorry, kinda rambling here with mostly anecdotal points.

 

[honda99ex]

I'm sure it's tuned slightly different for each application, it was developed with smooth upper RPM performance in mind, as well as to make torque down low for truck & Wrangler applications.

The 4.0 was designed from the start to be a truck motor, as far as I know. It was also designed quite longer ago than the Pentastar. So, its kind of tough to compare them. For longevity expectations, I'll take the 4.0 all day, but the Pentastar is one of the best N/A V6s out there today. My sister has a Grand Cherokee with it, and she's closing in on 200K miles without a hiccup from the engine or transmission. Some guys on the Ram boards also have even higher miles than that on their pickups with it.

Yeah I looked up a Pentastar Torque curve for the Wrangler and it was lower across the board than the 4.0. Wondering if the eTorque does anything to that curve at all...

Nice to know they are ok from the reliability aspect. Decisions....

 

[Rightside Up]

We have been happy with our Jeeps.