I work somewhat closely with a lot of dealers in a very large area (I do not work for Chrysler) and I have heard that the heads have not truly been redesigned. Chrysler is infamous for superseding part numbers (AA -> AB -> AC etc etc...), but there has not been really any change on the heads. I assume if you've had the cylinder head fixed once.. it's only a matter of time you'll need it again.

This is the sole reason why I bought a 5.7, since I knew I wanted the Durango but didn't want the headache of the poorly designed 3.6.

 

I just went on a road trip of about 3 hours to VA. And on my way there sitting in traffic I got the code for cylinder #4 misfire. It stayed on for the weekend while I was there and on the way home it turned itself off. I am going to still take it to the dealer on friday and tell them it needs to be resolved so it doesnt happen again because the truck has 28,000 on it and I dont want this to happen again. Will they fix it if the code is off?

 

Depends if it is a recorded (inactive) code stored in the system. If not, and if they can not duplicate the problem/light then they will give it back to you.

Be prepared to be without the car for at least a week or more if it is a cylinder head issue.... Depending on how many techs that can work on major mechanical issues at the dealer and how many jobs they have lined up, and on top of that if the part is still on a 1 part ordered every 7 day restriction, then you may wait much much longer.

 

It was inactive but just threw the code again last night on my way home. I am dropping it off wednesday and will keep you guys updated. Is there a TSB or anything I can take with me?

 

This issue unfortunately a well known problem. Unless your dealer is in the middle of nowhere, they probably have had at least a dozen of these roll in.

 

Cbrrider,

There are cases for the dealer to reference if it is indeed a head issue.

 

Well Dealer just called and it needs the left head replaced. It will be in the shop for atleast 5 days. The dealer would not give me a rental car saying, "Chrysler nor our dealership offer rental cars in these situations." I called BS and called Chrysler and they are giving me a rental car with a floating return date depending on when the car is finished. I will let you know how it goes once I get the D back!

 

Great question.I'm in the same boat soooo can Master Tech's give some insight as to weather one or both heads were redesigned? or no redesign is the case? I'm trying to have both replaced instead of just the one side throwing codes?

 

I know i'm coming in late on this thread, but feel the need to reply anyway.

If someone has irrefutable facts to back up the rumor that the heads HAVEN'T been changed, then let's see it. Unless these dealers or "just some guy" has some device to detect the casting integrity of metal parts or has first hand info from the vendor or an engineer that the process hasn't been changed then it's just speculation. I do know this...there is no shortage of bull$hit talk in the automotive world. Mostly among the ones who DON'T get their hands dirty.

We've done plenty of these and I can tell you this for certain..they HAVE been changed. No need to rely on what I heard somewhere. Plus, they aren't so stupid that they're going to cheap out on their flagship engine. That was the type of silly crap that Mercedes (Daimler) would have done.

It hasn't just been one head. We've done probably 3/5 even side. Other parts of the country may have different stats. Ours have mainly been rental cars originally. On the first design, a few have came back a few months later to have the same one done again. By the time we had 3 or 4 of those, the new ones were already being shipped out. It just takes a while for the pipeline to catch up....and not all 3.6 engines are doing this. There is no build date or vendor julian date that has been stated by anyone to be involved, but I suspect this is probably the case. Anyway, they are addressing the issue in a timely manner. As far as job time frame goes...if the tech is familiar enough with them, it can be done in less than a day. Give them a second day to get some miles on it and recheck everything before they give it back to you.

The 3.6L is fine. I am regularly seeing them now in excess of 120,000 miles on them with nothing but oil changes done. As with any car, it's still nothing more than a dumb machine. Get an extended warranty and protect your wallet.

 

Are there any factors that lead to or prevent this from happening? Would synthetic oil reduce the chances? Does driving it hard increase the likelihood of the problem?

Just curious. No problems with mine and would like to keep it that way.

Steve