Just got my truck back from the mechanics, thinking he would say my oil loss problem and engine ping was due to the plenum gasket, but I was surely mistaken. He said cylinder 7 & 8 was burning oil, caused by piston rings or valve lifters etc..... Anyway, he said it would be a very expensive job and didn't even discuss an actual quote. Basically, what does this mean? Should I keep the truck? What's going to happen in the long run? Right now its going through about a quart of oil every 2-3 weeks. Will something much bigger happen in the near future? Please tell me what I should do!!!!

 

I'd say rebuild it or put a crate engine in it, I don't think burning oil will do any serious damage to the engine as long as you keep it full. Of course you'll have issues of spark plug and injector fowling but you should be able to run it until you get sufficeint funds.

 

i would get another opinion. the plenum gasket is an extremely common problem, and based on where around the plenum the break occurs, could affect some cylinders more than others. look for a mechanic familar with the dodge truck. many dodge techs do side work... ask around at the good local parts stores. look for a dodge service tech taking a smoke break and ask him if any of them do side work. if it is the plenum, use the hughes or psc? aluminum repair kit, don't put the steel belly pan back on you'll be doing it again in a year or two.

the plenum repair requires removing a lot of stuff, and rolls up a lot of hours of labor for a diy'er, but a pro familar with the job should be able to crank it out pretty quick, but its still pretty expensive to pay someone to do it. look at the diy sticky at the top of this forum for a pretty good guide.