OK, I figured out the heat shield thing, sorry to mention it at all. The passenger side of my 97 2500 5.2 doesn't need any special accommodations to remove the plugs. On the driver side, I had to remove the bolts that hold a metal heat shield that was blocking access. This wasn't too hard, although I did learn that the nuts on the other side are held in place by nothing - they dropped onto the snowy ground and I had to fumble around to find them.

I've now replaced the plugs and wires. I used pre-gapped NGK plugs. The wires I removed were marked MOPAR, and thus might have been original. I don't know about the plugs, but they didn't look that bad. My van has about 83k miles on it, so I'm sure it was time for this inexpensive maintenance.

The van is running now. I'm going to let it warm up before putting it in gear to try to induce stalling.

Another odd thing I noticed - just above the crankshaft position sensor is a woven metal ribbon, attached to a grounding bolt. On my van, this little ribbon is loose and not connected to anything but the bolt. It's about a foot long and the other end terminates in a rusty metal crimp. Has this thing become disconnected from something?

Thanks Dodge Forum community for your help thus far.

 

After replacing plugs and wires and inspecting the crankshaft position sensor., my van started and ran for about 25 minutes. I put it in gear, went back and forth in the driveway a few times, no stalling. I'm still hesitant to take it out on the road, especially at night.

I do notice a significant bogging down of the engine after it's been revved up a bit. It's enough of a drag that the lights dim noticeably. I have the doghouse off still, so it's easy to hear the engine slow down. I don't have a tach installed, so I can't say what RPM range I'm talking about. Basically, if I just step on the gas, while in neutral, and let off, the engine decelerates far below normal idle. It sounds like it's about to stall, then a second later it recovers.

The engine was about 1/3 of the way warmed up when I shut it off - blowing heat through the defrost, but not that hot. After shutdown, I was able to start/stop it a few more times.

 

Have you tried cleaning the IAC yet? That should help with the idling.
Here is a write up on cleaning it:
https://dodgeforum.com/forum/dodge-r...n-the-iac.html

 

That was the first thing you suggested earlier, so thanks again. My IAC has been cleaned (and it was pretty clean to start with).

 

Since cleaning the IAC didn't help, it might just be lazy and has to be replaced. The other possibility is the throttle position sensor (TPS) has a cracked carbon element in it.

 

I came across this disorganized thread on another site:
http://autoforum.classifieds1000.com...5_15_min_later

It sounds like lots of people have similar problems, but no single answer. The purported solutions discussed in the thread above include:

• MAP sensor
• plugs and wires
• oil change
• ignition coil replacement
• IAC clean/replace
• TPS replacement
• throttle body cleaning
• crankshaft position sensor
• two sensors inside the transmission
• O2 sensors replaced
• battery replacement
• and more...

Some of these were reported as only temporary fixes. That's a lotta parts!

I'll check my TPS tonight. Any opinions on the likelihood of a weak ignition coil?

 

The TPS reads OK as far as I can tell. It reads 4.8V at the power wire, 0V at ground. I was using a bolt on the engine as my black-wire chassis ground. The signal wire reads 0.35V at idle (not running, just key 'on') and about 3.8-4.0V at full throttle. It turns smoothly and looked fairly clean inside.

I've gotta take the van out for a spin tonight, so we'll see how it goes...

 

I drove the van about five miles to band practice and back (the reason I have the van in the first place). With the doghouse off, it was a little nippy, but it's much easier to hear the many unpleasant noises coming from the engine. No unusual sounds were observed.

The van did OK, no stalling or sagging even after warming up. The CEL turned on for most of the drive, but then turned off after I stopped, shutdown and started again. I didn't think this was possible - I didn't reset anything. Maybe it will turn on again and I can see what the code reads - up to this point, I didn't have any CEL activity.

 

my van is doing the same thing but also has electrical surges running thru my gauges when ever I put the hazard lights or turn signals on. I noticed this happens when the day is hot or the engine is in operating temperature. I have replaces almost every relay, sensor, fuel pump, and pcm. still to no avail I have the existing symptoms. I noticed it dies and wont start, I jiggle the whole harness and it starts up again. I checked every wire and I don't see any kinks, burns, frayed, cut wires. running ohm meter doesn't show any difference in continuity. im confused by all this now.

 

certainly no expert, but faulty grounds and corroded contacts on these old vans cause lots of problems... I use a product called DeOxit spray available on Amazon on all my electrical contacts and have yet to have any electrical issues... also added an additional new ground wire from frame to Neg battery and checked/sprayed ground wire from engine to frame