Failure mode - Ram 1500 EcoDiesel 3.0L V6 (2014-2019)
Early rod/main bearing failures (bottom end)
Reliability tier: aggregated - verify before ordering, see /disclosure/
Symptoms
- knocking and low oil pressure, mostly on low-mileage early engines (documented under ~20k miles)
- progression to a seized/thrown-rod engine requiring replacement
Compare with the other causes of the same sign on this engine: ticking, knocking, rattle or whine
Root cause
Connecting-rod and main-bearing failures on early A630 engines, attributed by DieselHub to manufacturing/QC rather than maintenance; the related low-oil-pressure complaints brought TSB 18-078-16 (oil spec switch to 5W-40 for engines built before 06/30/2016). VOQ: 46 of 1,785 VIN-confirmed complaints describe bearing or engine failure, spread across 2014-2018.
Diagnosis
- bearing knock + dropping oil pressure = stop driving; a spinning bearing takes the block with it
- verify the oil spec history (TSB 18-078-16) - early trucks must run the updated 5W-40 service fill
Fixes
engine replacement (long-block/service assembly) once the bottom end lets go ()
oil-spec compliance service: 5W-40 fill per TSB 18-078-16 on pre-06/30/2016 builds + fresh filter ()
- Ram 1500 EcoDiesel Engine Oil 5W-40 (Mopar 68001332PB, quart)
- Ram 1500 EcoDiesel Engine Oil Filter (Mopar 68229402AA, 2014-2019)
Prevalence
occasional