History with the truck, about 2 months ago I started having overheating issues and took it in and turned out to be the water pump. Well this past weekend I was driving and it overheated out of no where so I pulled over and let it cool down for 10 minutes then checked the resevoir(which was empty) and the radiator which seemed to be low so I grabbed a gallon of water from a nearby store and filled it. Noticed nothing wrong until this morning when I started the truck and all I heard was three clicks as if the truck were trying to start but couldn't. Gave it a moment tried again and three clicks again held it a little longer and it eventually started up and I had white smoke coming from the exhaust. Is it possible that the overheating caused excessive wear on the spark plugs(which I changed at 89k along with the cables). As for the white smoke I'm nervous that it might be a coolant leak and if this is the case what would be a suggestion? I can fix/repair minor things, but if it is a gasket thats over my head. Thanks for your help in advance!

 

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and guess you have the 4.7 V8?

 

Yes 4.7 v8 sorry I did not list that. I am going to check the spark plugs and see if that is part of the problem since it has been about 25k miles since I changed them.

 

4.7's and overheating do NOT go good with one another. Adding to the fact that you have white smoke and fear a coolant leak only magnifies the fact that you have internal damage which you already suspect.

Its time to pull the heads and have them checked to be warped or cracks. Head gasket replacement it also needed.

Sorry.

 

Yep, it's usually a good bet that it's a 4.7 with those symptoms. The 4.7 NEVER rebounds well from an overheat. I change the coolant out in my Grand Cherokee at twice the recommended rate and add a bottle of liquid ice to it to keep things cool and prevent contaminants from eating away at what is not the best stock radiator on the market.

I think the plugs are a waste of time, you have a blown head gasket at best and a cracked head(s) at worst.

You need a good, reputable shop...

 

I went ahead this morning and changed the spark plugs because I knew it was around that time and that was my clicking sound I had when the truck would not turn over. As for the heads I am going to shop around here in baton rouge and see what shop I can take it too. Thanks for your help and time.

Also if it is a head gasket how much would you be willing to pay for repair also if it turns out to be cracked head how much would you pay as well. Thanks again!

 

Dunno what pricing would be. I can do head gaskets myself and thankfully, have never had to have head work done. 'Weed might have an idea and I'm sure someone who has gone that route on this engine will chime in at some point. The only two head gaskets I've ever done were both 4.0 I6 engines and I know they were much faster & easier than a 4.7 V8 would be.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but like I said, the engine is known for it. It's a solid engine, I know guys with upwards of 250,000 miles on their 4.7 V8s. BUT two things are known to kill it, overheating and oil sludge, both of which tend to happen fairly regularly if EXTRA attention is not paid to preventing them.

I can't emphasize enough how important keeping the cooling system in pristine condition and changing the oil regularly is on this engine. People who make short trips and never get the engine hot for prolonged periods really need to take extra steps against sludging...