An aluminum belly pan at half the cost of Hughes and you're buying from a forum member.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/DODGE...mZ260847652260

Is there a 'How to' to replace the gasket/belly pan.. and how hard is it?

........

Not very hard,

First disconnect the negative battery cable, then the positive cable, you disconnect the TB linkage, the fuel line, the injector harnesses, vacuum lines, breather and PCV valve, coolant temp harness, and the T-stat. You tie wrap the wires and vacuum lines up out of the way so there is nothing left. The TB and injectors can stay on the intake, or you can take the TB off and clean it while you are working on it.

Replace the Plenum gasket, get new intake gaskets and place a bead of RTV gasket sealant on each corner to seal between gaskets to prevent leaks at the corners. Drop the intake onto the motor using dowles to ensure it seats correctly and do not slide it as that will lead to leaks, Torque in sequence the intake manifold according to the manual. Re-install and reset the PCM.

Got it fixed. I work at a school system and know the auto teacher pretty well, so he let his kids tackle the job with close supervision. All I had to do was buy the parts. I bought one of the aluminum plates too. The old gasket was missing a chunk about 2" long!! Engine already seems to be running smoother and with a little more pep.. oh, and no pinging under acceleration!

you got of lucky.

With my 99, including a flush and new rad fluid, semi syn oil change and the gaskets plus r & r it came to about $700.

Plus I didn't even think to worry about the steel plate to aluminum intake problem until just now reading this thread!

Although I must add that it's not using any oil. ran 2000 miles before the level started to drop.
That's with 178,000 on a 5.2.
I can't complain.

Guess i spoke too soon.. the pinging is back, but not as bad as it was, but noticeable under acceleration like I'm on an entrance ramp or getting up to speed. Checked the intake, bone dry...
Where else should I look?

check your spark plugs, if you were burning oil good chance they are fouled up and should be replaced with copper core champion plugs.

That's why I ask.. I was thinking too far out of the box on this one. Didn't even cross my mind to change the plugs again.:icon_idea1:

hopefully that fixes it, also make sure all the plug wires are tight (idk how old your plug wires are, but it may be time to just replace them.