Yes, I have read plenum thread after plenum thread, I just needed clarification of the "oil consumption" which your explanation provided. I could not find the answer to that specific question stated so plainly anywhere, so thank you. My truck uses no oil, not to say it won't someday. #8 spark plug is clean, no spark knock, no trouble getting up hills, power seems fine to me for a small V8 in a big truck. So, if it ain't broke, as the saying goes....I'm not that eager to tear into the engine on a truck I just bought a month ago...lol

 

LOL! That made me feel a little better. All you need is an engine rebuild mishap + even more cash and then you can get yourself an 8 year old Hemi. Nice new screen name, btw!

Hahns, I believe the bearings are the right size. The machine shop provided and installed them. They've done countless 5.9L small blocks and I think they just messed this one up. The cam shaft goes about 3/4 of the way in and then it sticks. You can tap it with a hammer to go all the way in but it's def not right.

lastrights, I need to do some actual math to determine the mileage. The computer is telling me that I'm averaging 12ish. I saw it hit 15.5 once on a 3 hour trip on I-40. I switched it to temp / compass so I don't have to think about all the gas it's guzzling.

The Hemi is nice - extremely comfortable! There's a noticeable difference in acceleration (mind you I drove my 2nd gen with a blown plenum the entire time), steering and braking. It took me a few days to NOT accidentally chirp the wheels when taking off from a stop sign. I put a Flowmaster 50 series on it and it sounds perfect to me. I like being able to take a trip with my wife and 2 y.o. while towing a trailer at the same time!

Even though I've gone to the dark side, I still love those 2nd gens! One of my dad's coworkers made me an offer on buying my '95. It's a good offer so I'm going to think on it a couple more days. I wish I was smarter with this stuff and had my own garage so I could work on it during evenings. I hate giving up on a project but sometimes you just have to know your limits... especially your budgetary limits.