Did you replace it when you did the plenum fix?

 

uh no. honestly dont know what it is

 

Can't say for sure with your kit but my (and others) kit from hughes the valley pan bolts came with loctite already on it (red too). So dont worry there and as stated 'some' crap from the pcv is normal. You should be using a pcv from the dealer.

 

Hey Guys,

Just did my plenum this weekend. I had no low end power, very bad mpg and was using lots of oil, but no pinging. I took the throttle body off and could see a mild amount of oil. I also decided to put a magnet on the plenum plate to confirm it currently had a steel plate and sure enough it did.

The install went pretty smoothly.

Plenum was a breeze! I just got down to the intake and sprayed all the intake bolts with some penatratiung fluid and let her sit over night. Next day all the bolts except the front passenger side came out with not porblem. The broken bolt came out easy with a pair of vice grips and some more penetrating fluid.

The intake was a mess and it looks like the previous owner just used rtv on it instead of putting in a new gasket. I have attached some pics

The Hughes kit went on perfectly and the ruibild went well with no issues. In total I think I spent about 10 hours on the job

The truck runs great now! I will be adding a new CAT and pre Cat O2 sensor next weekend.

 

I am losing a bit of coolant, no leaks anywhere. I'm wondering if a blown plenum gasket could be indirectly related to the coolant loss? I'm thinking maybe over time it could damage the intake manifold gasket? It's what I'm hoping I guess otherwise I'll have to start investigating the head gasket.

I've read up to about page 35 of this thread and saw it mentioned once. I've seen a few videos with coolant in the valley, one mentioned a blown head gasket was the cause, a couple others place the blame on the intake manifold gasket.

I guess the short question is could a blown plenum gasket cause coolant loss.


I'll be doing the plenum thing in the next week or so.. all depends on the weather.

 

It could be the plenum gasket, it could also be a blown head gasket, or cracked heads. Have you replaced the stock Chrysler heads yet?

 

I'm in the same boat, except I'd done it twice now. If you plan on doing it again, bring the manifold and plate to a shop and have them checked and make sure nothings warped. I'll probably end up getting this single plane manifold (no plenum plate/gasket) http://www.monicattichrysler.com/com...idProduct=1309
Just gotta call them and make sure it fits my application. I know I'll need a 2bbl adapter and an egr block off plate to go along with it. Also gotta find another $400 to buy everything.

 

Ok, so i have the hughes kit, but it is talking about 12 inch pounds!?! That is way out of the range of any torque wrench i own! How critical is those beginning torque values? Has anybody found a way without using a $100 torque wrench?

 

Well since I have a torque wrench with inch pounds here's what you CAN do if you do not want to buy a torque wrench, please note it is not perfect but never had a problem, although I do not take any responsiblity for people who do not want to spend $100 on a tool they will use again if they do their own vehicle work: Tighten them FINGER TIGHT, ALL BOLTS, then with a 3/8 inch drive rachet with a matching socket for the bolts, tighten them EXACTLY one turn in a cross pattern. This is what I do and many other mechanics in the area do and never had any troubles. But if any one else has a better way, I'd be happy to say I was wrong .

 

Oh i have tried to find one! I can find very few torque wrenches that go that low. I cant even find one to rent!
Its hard for me to imagine many applications where 12 inch pounds are gonna be the difference between a seal and a leak....but i will follow the advise of the experts....that is after all why i asked here!