Well a few weeks ago it sounded like a water pump bearing was going, and sure enough about a week later, the impeller was grinding away and throwing metal shavings from the pump housing into the rest of the coolant lines before it seized completely, throwing the serpentine (fortunately in my drive way before my 4 mos. old boy and I could go to our favorite donut shop for a donut, his idea of course) and puking its guts onto my driveway.

Here is what I want. I want a stock engine, but I want the most dependable items. I don't want more power, I want dependability. What I'm thinking I want to do is pull the engine out, pull off the heads (there is quite a bit of baked on oil and goo sitting in places in the heads), the pistons, oil pan, covers, crank, cam, whole shebang, and hot dip them (of sorts). Get them clean, check the journals, replace the bearings, rings, etc. and put it back together as clean as the day she came off the line.

I would like to strip it in a way that rust, grime, grease, paint are all stripped. Paint it Mopar orange and black and throw it back in the truck, before winter.

So what I'm asking is this.



- Best hoist / lift points on a 2001 FI Dodge 360 with heads on but plenum off ???

- Should I go ahead and dip everything or just the heads ???

- Best changes out for dependability (I have an APS Billet Plenum pan kit on its way)

- Like an idiot I pulled the plenum, without cleaning as well as I should have and a bunch of crap fell into intake ports and on top of Cam cover. I ShopVac'd as much out as I could... but ???


There is a ton of rust and I'm a little worried about longevity of block. I don't want to have to deal with this for another 15 years.

 

The heads are the weak point on these engines. (after the intake.....) Instead of spending money on them, replace them. You can get BETTER than stock replacement heads for under 300 a pop.

If the heads and such are off, I generally use a couple of the head bolt holes to lift. Use short bolts, so the chain doesn't have a big long lever to rip things apart with, and use the holes on the outboard side of the head mating surface.

If you are going to do a complete rebuild, get everything hot-tanked, and thoroughly cleaned. Find a machine shop close by that has the facilities to do so. Getting everything back squeaky clean makes reassembly MUCH nicer. Also have the block checked for straightness, (head mating surface, crank/camshaft bores). Verify that you CAN just re-ring the engine, and that it doesn't need bored. (new pistons/rings aren't exactly cheap.)

This would also be a really good time for an RV cam, better torque, and possibly even improved fuel economy.....

Get a tune from HemiFever. You prolly have the death flash on there. (see thread in DIY forum for details on death flash.)

 

What new heads would you recommend? We had a baby boy in May, so money and time is both a little tight. Any place you would recommend in buying them?

 

Clearwater, and Odessa cylinder head both sell on Ebay. (basically, the same company.) Just get the stock replacements. (make sure they are the better castings though.)

 

Thanks Man! Appreciate the info.

 

I've just recently done this. you can attach a pickup block to the top of the intake(where the throttle body is mounted or to the front of the heads and back as well. I did it intake coming out, heads going in. I had the block hot tanked and cleaned up the pistons and rods myself. Got a set of iron ram heads from Hughes Engines. 953 delivered with one piece valves and springs. PM me and I can give you alot more insight into what you can do and some work arounds too. Or just ask here. I dropped about 3k into mine, but I'm planning on keeping my truck for some time.

 

These seem like pretty well made heads, does anyone have any experience with them? I hate sinking more money into this truck

I need to remind myself that having a truck payment is much worse.



http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NEW-D...item255abdc65d

 

You can pay for it once in a while, or, you can pay for it every month.

Those are from one company I was talking about. Check the reviews. 98.7% positive feedback.

 

Thought maybe I'd post the build sheet from Dodge to give anyone interested some more insight into what I may run into or what I'm dealing with.


2001 Dodge 2500 Sport build sheet page 1

2001 Dodge 2500 Sport build sheet page 2

2001 Dodge 2500 Sport build sheet page 3

 

First tip to make the process easier: Take lots of pictures. Where everything is, where everything runs to or through.
2. Search for info on here as problems arise. You're probably not the first one to run into problems you'll find and most of the time, answers are around.
3. PB Blaster all bolts possible a few days before.
4. Gum cutter cleans lots of stuff. Carbon off of pistons really well.
5. Check for worn vacuum lines, replace as needed. Check your hoses too, I found my top rad hose was almost worn through.
6. Chase all threads on your block. Heads if you do decide to reuse them.
7. To save a few bucks on a/c r124 exchange, you can typically drop the condensor out of the way enough to get the engine out. Just be careful.
8. If your transmission check valve is still in(if they still had them that year.) Replace it.
9. Cheap little parts like thermostats are cheap little insurance. Go for it.
10. Read around about problem parts, timing chains etc. Replace them while you have the motor out.
11. It will take longer than what you plan, trust me.
12. You can replace intake bolts with regular, non TTY kind. I took the chance with no ill effects but alot cheaper. Replace the head bolts with stock replacements though.
13. Flush your cooling system. You can do it yourself and once again, cheap insurance. No high pressure necessary. Just an open-ended garden hose will do.
14. Clean and Degrease under the hood once the engine is out. Especially around grease fittings and boots. You may find a boot failing or other problem that the grease was covering up.
15. Grease all fittings, condition all rubber and other areas that need attention. Motor mounts, rusting metal edges, etc. Remember that dependability isn't just having a good running motor, it's having a vehicle that isn't going to fall apart from other problems too.
16. When you get your block back, Have several cans of quality brake cleaner around. You want to get all the gunk they missed or left in there.

Most of this may seem obvious but often those are the parts you easily forget about as well.

Might want to replace your Cat if you haven't yet as well.