Water in my oil – ’02 Durango SLT
#11
the 4.7 even though a good engine is concidered a sludge engine meaning it has a tendency to build up sludge and moisture,this problem can cause you to lose an engine thats the bad news the fact is if you change your oil on a reg basis and warm your engine up before leaving your engine will run clean,a little moisture under the cap is not a big deal but if your oil on the dipstick becomes creamy looking you have a problem also if you take your finger and touch the water on your cap and it dosent taste sweetish your ok if it does its antifreeze i know sounds bad but its the fastest easiest way to determine water from coolant anyways take care enjoy that wonderful machine
also if you are going to claim sludge i want PROOF, in the form of pictures, i have only ever seen 1 4.7 that was actually sludged out of the dozens that have been diagnosed with it, it is the #1 thing people misdiagnose in this day
also letting an engine warm up in the winter before driving it (at idle) is bad for the engine, the environment, and most importantly your wallet, i dont do it, and neither do most of my friends after it been explained to them. The ONLY thing warming the engine up does it make the cabin warmer faster or melt ice/snow on the windshield when the car is covered in it.(thats actually the ONLY time i warm mine up is when i have to clean snow off it)
yes on snot in the cap being NORMAL(to a certain extent)
yes on the dipstick being a way to gauge if you have a moisture/headgasket problem (if its milky)
NO on tasting the build up on the cap or dipstick, thats just asking for problems (im no doctor, but im sure they would tell you the same thing)
#12
#15
Just in case anybody having this problem with their 4.7 is interested.
https://dodgeforum.com/forum/parts-s...ller-tube.html
https://dodgeforum.com/forum/parts-s...ller-tube.html
#16
My truck(not a Dak, nor does it have the 4.7 lol) Gets that build up often living in nw montana(often going from sub zero to 30 above in 24hrs..) Also as a side note.. try and find another place besides Jiffy lube. I have heard nothing but bad about them. I change my own oil and do all my own work, but if i couldnt id rather spend a few bucks more and go to a quality place.
#17
#19
why is it bad to let your truck warm up (warming up is actually left over from the days of carburettors which would not atomize the fuel properly when they were cold, this required warming up the engine, modern electronically fuel injected cars do not face this issue)
1) waste gas (at idle your truck gets 0 miles per gallon of fuel burned, the reduction in mpgs while you are warming it up but driving is still better than 0)
2) engines run rich when they are cold (this is the computers attempt to warm them up faster, it works, but also emits alot more pollution)
3) the catalytic converter works best when it is warm, it warms up from exhaust gases, running at idle (ok, just above idle when its cold) gives off relatively LOW exhaust gas temperatures hence warming up the CAT more slowly, making it work harder and less efficiently, and less effectively.
4) this can cause the cat to become plugged over time (not right away of course, but over time if you do this alot it will happen)
5) engines warm up faster when being driven GENTLY (dont go and stomp on the gas immediately, wait for the water temp to come up)
6) rich burn leaves more deposits in the engine (carbon build up ect) this fouls plugs and causes a general loss of efficiency in the engine over time.
7) rich burn leaves fuel behind to mix with the oil in the crankcase, diluting the oil and making it less effective
now you do need to wait long enough for your oil pressure to come up however that is maybe equivalent to the time it takes to put on your seat-belt, and at that point you should be good to go.(maybe a minute at most)
sources :
http://www.abc.net.au/science/articl...27/2044311.htm
http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/how-to/4213313
Last edited by shrpshtr325; 12-28-2011 at 10:46 PM.
#20
Aside from people posting things on the internet, I've never seen a credible source claim the 4.7 has sludge issues. I even looked up the "official" list of sludge engines and this one is not on it. But any engine can be, as long as you don't change the oil...