Like the sludging issue, remember that?
Dad hasn't really had any issues with that problem. And his has the factory added oil baffel.

 

I'm kinda biased toward the 5.2. I've had one in the past and they are tanks, like the 5.9. I think the 4.7 is better stock but you can do a lot to a magnum engine for not that much money.

 

And since the 318 as we know it has been around since 1965, they have done a good job of working the bugs out of it. The newer Magnum FI engines have some issues, like the plenum plate, but will still last as long as you keep changing the oil and filter. The aluminium(for any Brits reading) heads of the 4.7L make it a much more fragile engine than the 5.2L. But while the HP/TQ ratings are supposedly higher on the 4.7L, my 318 will out pull my brother's 4.7L and get better fuel economy doing it. I think Dodge VASTLY overrated the HP/TQ figures for the 4.7L.

 

Um, the 4.7 isn't overrated, it's 240/300 vs. 235/300. The 4.7 only has 5 more rated HP than the 318. I know for a fact my dad's truck will kick the *** of both my sister's trucks, and she has a 97 360 and a 99 318, both 2WD.

Granted, the 76 will kick the *** of all our trucks, but it has an unfair advantage.

 

Here's what I know for sure: he has a 23' camper. I pulled it up over Donner Pass at 45mph on the steep grades and didn't have too tough a time, and I averaged about 10 mpg. His 02 4.7L crawled over the steeper grades at 25-30 mph and he got about 8 mpg. Same trailer, same hills and my 98 made his 02 look like a weak-*** Toy****a Tundra.

 

2WD or 4WD? Need more specifics! You should know it's not just engine that makes the equation!

 

Mine is a 4x2 with 3:55 rear end, his is a 4x4 with a 3:55 rear end. Both are QC and I would guess he has the same transmission as mine, the 46RE.

 

4.7's came with the 45RFE which has the same gear ratios as the 46RE though.
You should know that 4WD's can't tow as much as 2WD can! Come on man. What about tires? I imagine you have tiny 245's on your rig and he has at least 265's.

 

He has 17" and they are probably 265's. They were still the factory tires at that time.

 

Makes all the difference. There is only a 1.1in difference in height, however the added contact patch plus the added drag of the extra 4WD stuff will kill any engine.