Grid Heater Bolt Cracked Piston #5

[NewGTGuy]

Hello all.

I bought my 2022 RAM 3500 Limited with a 6.7 Cummins HO brand new that same year. It currently has 75k miles on it. Unfortunately, I'm one of the lucky ones whose grid heater bolt came loose and got sucked into the intake. It made it through the intake valve of cylinder #5, cracked the #5 piston, and shot out the exhaust valve, manifold, and it looks like the turbo. See pics below.

It's been at the dealer for almost 2 weeks awaiting warranty approval from Stellantis. The latest update is, "Keep waiting."

Anyone have a similar experience? If so, how long did it take to get this resolved. Without warranty coverage, this could have been a $20-30k expense. Thank God for the 5 year/100k powertrain warranty!

 

[flan]

That amount of egr is ridiculous..what’s it doing to the cylinders?

 

[Trash Panda]

That amount of egr is ridiculous..what’s it doing to the cylinders?

I’d say the cylinders are the least of his worries.

 

[cj8rockcrawler]

I just went thought it on my 22. 68 days I was without my truck.

 

[NewGTGuy]

I just went thought it on my 22. 68 days I was without my truck.

Thanks for the info. Did they replace your engine? Warranty? Any detail is much appreciated.

 

[NewGTGuy]

That amount of egr is ridiculous..what’s it doing to the cylinders?

I agree. I had noticed a significant power loss happening over time. EGRs are just plain stupid. Turns out, my engine was starved for oxygen. I’ll be doing a grid heater delete and potential weightloss when I get it back.

 

[cj8rockcrawler]

Thanks for the info. Did they replace your engine? Warranty? Any detail is much appreciated.

I have a stock 22 HO with 34k miles. It failed and ingested the nut into the #6 cylinder. I attached the grainy pics they sent me. It took a little over a month for diagnosis and the STAR approval process for a new long block. Ram covered it under the powertrain warranty as I have about 34k on the truck but purchased it in March of 22.

I'm glad it was covered, but I'm not happy about how long the process took. The failure was back in November and the long block arrived the 3rd week of January. That's better than what I heard originally which was the engine was backordered until March!

 

[NewGTGuy]

I have a stock 22 HO with 34k miles. It failed and ingested the nut into the #6 cylinder. I attached the grainy pics they sent me. It took a little over a month for diagnosis and the STAR approval process for a new long block. Ram covered it under the powertrain warranty as I have about 34k on the truck but purchased it in March of 22.

I'm glad it was covered, but I'm not happy about how long the process took. The failure was back in November and the long block arrived the 3rd week of January. That's better than what I heard originally which was the engine was backordered until March!

Thanks for the additional information. Glad it was covered. I have just over 76,000 miles on my 2022. The service manager said I still have one year and 25,000ish miles left on my powertrain warranty. Thank God! This is a $20k+ job.

Did they extend the warranty for you on the replacement engine?

Thanks again!

 

[Lee Iacocca]

Is this a problem still on 2026’s?

 

[regal2800]

Is this a problem still on 2026’s?

No, The 25+ trucks use glow plugs. They no longer use a grid heater which contained that bolt.

 

[cj8rockcrawler]

Thanks for the additional information. Glad it was covered. I have just over 76,000 miles on my 2022. The service manager said I still have one year and 25,000ish miles left on my powertrain warranty. Thank God! This is a $20k+ job.

Did they extend the warranty for you on the replacement engine?

Thanks again!

The long block came with a 3-year, 100k mile warranty.

 

[sstoner911]

I’ll be doing a grid heater delete and potential weightloss when I get it back.

Just disconnect the grid heater relay by the passenger battery. I have seen guys do this even in the cold parts of the country no issues.

 

[flan]

I’d say the cylinders are the least of his worries.

You’re not wrong there!