Hey everyone!
New here.
I have a situation here and could use some help.
I bought a 2001 Ram in Feb, 2001. 5.9engine. 4x4
Love it had great luck with it . bought an extended warranty for the trans. which failed in winter of 2007.
I have done no modifications . always kept up on maint. about 3 weeks ago i was losing coolant. I figured it to be head gaskets. so I took it in. One tech. heard me telling the problem and said it's a cracked head.?
I thought no. anyway turns out to be 2 cracked heads gaskets good. after talking to the tech. yesterday he says it is a comon thing. Also told me the new jeeps with the inline 4 cly. said are notorious for cracked heads.
My truck with now 91,000 miles. out of warranty. I feel cylinder heads should not crack within 7-8 yrs..even driving without coolant..
I tried contacting Dodge. the assisants dept. to address this issue. were very rude and don't give 2 sh@@s. I asked to talk to someone higher up and he told me he was the highest.. after talking to my dealer they said they see no signs of overheating or problems that I caused. I will pay the labor but i feel Dodge / mopar should pay for the heads..
I am now Dealing with the state attorney general.. This is a defective casting/ metal /? by mopar..and should be a recall in my opinion..
My neighbor was a dealer and told me Dodge's are not built to last,, now I know the truth to that..I love it . but after this run around, I will never buy dodge ever again..anyone have this trouble ???
the cost is $3000. to repair for both heads..
Thanks,
Tim

 

Yes, it is common that the STOCK heads crack.

Well now, if you can design a head that will resist cracking even after losing coolant, you'll be very rich; however, that's not how metallurgy works.

Good luck with that. It's not a serious defect that will adversely affect the safety of the vehicle. You're pissing up a rope here.

Your neighbor is an idiot. Who the hell quoted you $3,000 for both heads? Beefier replacements can be bought, and by reusing your old valves with new springs you can save money. If you do the work yourself, you can save a lot more money (assuming you are able to turn a wrench).

HINT - Use proper sentences if you want to be taken seriously. Reading your whining gave me a headache.

 

I race and build pontiacs for the past 22yrs..
I can turn a wrench. I have heads from 1965 that are run today.with probably a million miles on them. ported, paper thin 14;1 comp. never had a problem there.. these are cast steel heads on the Dodge not alum. obviously they run crap seats..and from wha t i can see poor design / metal.. definately not like they use to be..
the $3000. is the dealership..
I didn't relize you were an English teacher!! sorry for the poor essay..

 

Oh geez


Paper thin, eh? Right

As a matter of fact, several people here run cash ALUMINUM aftermarket heads on their 5.2 and 5.9L engine.s

Never heard of Ford's Triton engine, eh? When you do, then you'll know about bad head designs.

If you've been doing this for "22 years" then you'd know never to buy parts at the dealership.

I paid attention in school and know how to convey ideas clearly.

 

If you have been racing Pontiacs for 22 years and know how to turn a wrench, why the hell did you take the truck to a tech? I'm 13 and I know that taking the truck to a tech is a last resort(unless you are talking abut the tranny)(oh wait, there is MonteC!) It doesnt add up.

You were losing coolant. Did you look under the truck? Did you see smoke, etc??? The tech told you it was bad head gaskets. What did he do to determine that? Did he do a compression test? Or did he just look at it and say it was the gaskets.

Then they quoted you $3,000 for new heads? WT****KKKKK?? Where is this place that you took your truck to?? I want to know what you said after that dumbass said that? Total Dip****. For 3****ing grand I could have a 400Hp built 360 that would beat the living $hit out of Mustangs, Camaros, and New Hemis.

So, you think Mopar is at fault. Have you seen how bad Chrysler is doing right know? Have you been hiding under a rock? Dodge wont do anything. You should read up on how hard it was(is) to get them to notice our cracked dash problems. Do a search on here for "cracked dash."

Add this to what VW has already said.

http://www.hughesengines.com/Index/p...=&partid=22248

Dumbass Pointyiac racers.
Just the begining of a rant.

 

Learn how to use peroids,and the Shft and Enter button, all of you dip****s.

It makes it so much eaiser to read.

 

Welcome to DF. I found this forum for the exact same reason you did: crack b/t the valve seats in #8 cylinder. It took me weeks to diagnose the crack, partly because I was in denial, lol . I had also been tipped off by a Dodge tech about the head cracking, but kept searching for an ignition problem that wasn't there.

I was quoted around $1800 to repair the head, so your quote of $3000 sounds about right. I decided to go the aftermarket route plus adding some performance mods and wound up spending $2000 easy. My truck was in very nice shape and I wanted to keep it, so I decided to do all the work myself. So far, I have been very satisfied with the results and use the truck as my daily driver. I also plan to tow an RV for family camping trips.

Head cracking is a very common problem with the 5.9's. I don't know if the 5.2's suffer as much from the cracking. I'm seriously thinking of putting my old head on the band saw here at work and making a paper-weight cut-away showing the $2000 crack.

Good luck if you decide to pursue this with the attourney general.

 

What's wrong with buying parts at the dealership? I do it all the time if the price is right. Sometimes the Mopar part is much better quality than anything you can get elsewhere. Hell, the only thing I buy at Autozone or Pepboys is oil, filters, various fluids, and car polish. Anything else from there is pure unadulterated crap. In my area, NAPA is the only aftermarket parts house I will go to for actual parts.

 

I think he meant going to the dealer to diagnose a problem or asking for advice.

 

No he didn't. Read his quote. Why do you guys have such a hard-on for the dealership? Sometimes I'll take advice anywhere I can get it, even DF .