OK, so I've tried to convince myself otherwise but I think one of my head gaskets might need replacing. The top for the oil filler gets a milky yellow film on it, my coolant gets low every 1000 miles or so, and I've had a continuing issue with running warm when I'm in a drivethru or in traffic but only when it's in the mid to upper 90's.

What do I need to know before I start tearing into this thing? Any parts I should replace while I'm in there? Anybody heard of any issues with cracked heads on 4.7's? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

have you drained the oil in order to see if there is any coolant mixed in with it? the oil filler on the 4.7 is known to have a 'snotting' problem, the later year 4.7 (late 01 or so) there was a tsb to put a baffle in there, this keeps the snot from falling back into the oil resevoir so it is harmless(it was harmless anyway) take a picture if you can of the milk stuff, but chances are it is just snot (this usually occurs in the winter if you make alot of very short trips the moisture wont all boil out in time before you shut the engine off, longer trips will help to prevent this from happening.

 

Well Ralph,

Most likely your electric fan is not working. Open the hood and place the A/C on and get a flash light, look in on the electric fan and see if it's operating.

Have you looked at the reservoir to see if it is broken or a bad hose going from the cap to it?

Have you replaced the radiator cap?

Have you had a shop look for hydrocarbons in the exhaust yet?

Have you done a compression test yet?


Lastly, make sure you input your information so we know what we are working on?

 

I've changed the oil twice in the last three months and both times it looked like normal dirty oil. During the summer, I changed the water pump, thermostat, upper radiator hose, cap, and electric fan. The electric fan was bad and I've verified that it's now working. This improved the overheating issue but it still gets hot when it's in the mid to high 90's outside and i'm sitting still in traffic or in a drive-thru.

My next step was going to be changing the mechanical fan clutch. I've checked the fan clutch and it appears to be fine. When I spin it, it rotates no more than a quarter of a turn or so and when I first start the Durango in the morning, the fan roars for a couple of minutes.

I've had my D for almost 5 years now and she's almost paid off so I don't wanna give up on her but she's been getting hungry lately. If all she needs is some standard maintenance type stuff, then i'm cool with putting in the work, modding her a bit, and having fun but if this is just the beginning of a nightmare, it might be time to move on Combine these issues with this friggin' annoying thumping noise I have in the right rear that I can't seem to find the source of and the start up lifter tic and it seems that 130k miles might be the beginning of the end for my D and me.

 

Could be a plugged radiator. Check the radiator for cold spots and signs of swelling. Also did you properly burp the cooling system when you did the work?

 

the thumping could be something with your e-brake set up if you have 4wheel disc brakes, my dads 03 dakota had a very intermitten loud banging coming from the passenger rear, and it was something in the e-brake system sticking, i would look at that for the noise at least

if you have the 4.7 the start up lifter tick as you call it is normal, my truck has done it since brand new (my parents went back to dealer and complained, ended up starting every 4.7 on the lot all but one of them had the same tick for a minute or so after starting)

and if you had a cracked head or a bad headgasket i would expect to see oil in the coolant or coolant in the oil.

also check the hose btwn the cooling system and the overflow, i have heard of those getting clogged up to the point that they will let the overflow resevoir fill up, but not drain back into the system when it cools down, take a look.

 

Well, I guess todays mission is checking the rear brakes and the radiator. As for burping the system, I parked at the end of my driveway which caused the D to be nose high and burped the system until no air came out.

I've owned my D for almost 5 years now and I guess I never noticed the ticking at start up or maybe I had one of the few that didn't tick until now. I guess i'll just have to let it ride for now and either it will be fine or eventually, something will give up the goat and I'll have my answer, LOL. At any rate, I really appreciate the help. Thanks.

 

OK, so time for a short update. I found the source of the thumping noise in the rear. It was the right rear shock I installed a few months ago. Apparently, the inside diameter of the lower rear shock mount is wider than the stockers. There's room between the bolt and the mount. I tightened the shocks and the sound went away. I'm not in love with the gap between the mount and the bolt but I'm happy to know that it's not a major issue.

While I was banging around back there I noticed it was time for new brake pads (no big issue) and that the rear axles click and pull up and down on them. I need to do some research and find out what the allowance is but it appears to be excessive at first sight. Might be time for new bearings

 

Did mine awhile back with no major issues. From what I've read there did seem to be a fair amount of head gasket issues with earlier 4.7's. The big problem happens when the motor is allowed to overheat as the heads can warp / crack. Mine was a small crack between the front two cylinders drivers side, and was very obvious when I removed the head. I never ran a compression check on it beforehand, but I would bet that those two cylinders would have been down compared to the others.

Doing the job was pretty straight forward, the only challenging parts were:

Removing / installing the harmonic balancer - I rented a puller that removed it ok but had to make up an extra spacer to put into the crank end because the pulley / crank bolt hole is so deep. The installing tool also wasn't deep enough, so I tapped it on slowly with a plate / hammer until I could get the bolt to catch.

Getting the passenger head around the brake booster was pretty tight. It helps to have an extra set of hands here. Also, have plenty of short / long sockets & extensions as the bolts are difficult to reach.

Getting the exhaust manifold off - I simply cut the studs off the Y-pipe and replaced them with new bolts. The manifold studs themselves were rusted badly, lots of oil, patience, and a grinder for the real tough ones. You don't need to pull the manifolds unless the head is cracked and you have to swap them to the new one.

Timing chain setup is confusing but is actually pretty easy once you get into it. There is a special tool that holds the cams in place, but I used a GOOD pair of vicegrips with a piece of leather around the camshaft (not on a lobe!) with no problems. Secondary tensionors are simple, just use a small piece of wire inserted into the hole on them to hold them collapsed until the chain is back in place.

You *may* be able to do just one side without pulling the intake manifold & such, but I found it easier to just pull the whole thing and be done with it. Much more room to work that way and easier to keep things clean. Also, the timing chain will be difficult to setup this way. You'll have to hold the chain in place with the head off, not allowing it to "jump" teeth on the driving sprocket. Then you'll have to line it up CAREFULLY on the cam sprocket, rotate the cam slightly, and get the sprocket back on. BTW, while this is happening you have to make sure the tensioner doesn't extend anymore. That's why I ended up pulling the whole thing!!!

LABEL THE BOLTS that come out of the timing chain cover, they're all different lengths and are really easy to mess up when you put them back.

Buy good quality (I used FelPro) gaskets. Also, the head bolts are the turn-to-torque type, so they really *should* be replaced after they're removed. If you're trying to do it cheaply, at least make sure that they're not stretched. I was able to borrow an angle torque wrench to do mine, although you could probably do it by counting the clicks on a good 1/2" drive ratchet. Clean the threads good & clean out the holes as well. Make sure you use Permatex (or similar) on the top manifold bolts (they open into the water jacket) as well as the top timing cover bolts. The Haynes manual spells this out clearly.

Take out the inner (plastic) fenderwells and the lower front plastic cover. Just break the plastic bolts off and buy replacements from the dealer. While you're in there you may as well take a good look at your lower steering shaft u-joints. Mine were VERY worn (surprised me!!!) so I pulled & replaced the shaft whie it was apart. Easier to work on it while the head / manifold was off.

Any questions, just hit this site. There's a huge amount of knowledge & talent available here!
Bob

 

You can go to a hardware store and get some fender washers and place them one at a time on each side between the mount and shock until the slack is taken up.

Can you be more specific on exactly what is moving on the rear end?