Hi there, I am new to the Dodge community and I am unfamiliar with alot of the quirks of Dodge SUV's.

I just purchased a 2003 Durango R/T. I had no problems with it when I took it out for a test drive, but in the last couple of weeks I have noticed that when I approach a red light/stop sign, and stop, the engine chugs and feels as though it is going to stall. When I pop it into neutral the RPM's even out, and it seems to run smoothly. When I am driving at normal speed it seems ok, but seems to lack power.

I took it into the shop suspecting the Oxygen sensor, but nothing came back as needing replacing. I had new plugs installed, and the ECM reset, but it is still acting up. It has 135,000 KM's (83,885 miles) and otherwise seems to be in great condition. Any input would be appreciated!

 

is it a solid start, or does it turn over sluggishly??


my first thing to check would be the battery, might just be starting to get weak and these trucks dont like anything but a full charge from the battery for some reson, check that and get back to us

 

It doesn't seem to start sluggishly, I am in a northern cold climate, so a little heisitation is expected. One thing I did forget to mention, Is the first time I noticed this problem occuring, I found that when I pressed on the accelerator, there were a buch of "POP's" coming from what sounded like under the hood. There was almost no power, and with each pop the truck surged forward. The charge seems really good on the truck, I can have the heater on full blast, the seats both turned on HI, and have all the lights on, and not so much as a flicker.

 

Did you stick with OEM on the plug change and did you change the wires as well?

 

I was wondering about that too, maybe needs a tune-up? Or a TPS with the RPM ordeal, does it idle odd at start? Maybe a vacuum leak, if it happens only when braking... I had this on my Dakota.

 

I had the tune up done at a Dodge dealership, so I am guessing they replaced with OEM plugs. I didn't get the wires changed though. When they did the tune up, they plugged in and checked all the sensors etc, and said that nothing came back as needing service/replacing. When I start up the truck it idles at around 800-1000 RPM's, and as it warms up it drops to around 600. Once I put into gear the RPM's drop a bit, and then obviously when I accelerate they pick up again. The problem is when I stop the RPM's fluctuate and the needle revs up and down between 300 & 700 RPM's, and once I put it into neutral, it evens out again to 600. It seems that the engine only runs rough when I am in gear at a stop, or slowing down.

 

It *COULD* be the TPS, they go bad often on these from what I've seen. That kind of idle sounds like it. You could check the voltage to it if you didn't want to replace it.

 

Ok, so some new information for you to ponder. I haven't done anything to the truck (yet), but tomorrow is looking like a good day. So it's really quite humid outside, and it was the first time this occured as well. I was parked in an indoor heated parkade, and noticed that coming up the ramp that the truck was really sluggish. I drove for about 4 minutes, and then the truck really started to surge forward, and lose power. I pulled over, put it in park and reved the engine. The engine popped a few times, and then the idle returned to normal. So, any ideas? I'm thinking start with the battery (check cables/charge etc, then oxygen sensors, then the plenum gasket.

 

What spark plugs did you have installed.

 

You could a cracked dist cap, or moisture in the dist. Remove the cap and inspect or replace.