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Anthony
Dodge Dakota
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2/19/2004
22:52:53

Subject: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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Hey guys. I just found this site as I was trying to find a cure for my 2000 Durango with a 4.7.

I dont know what info you guys need but its a 00 durango 4.7 4x4, with 101,000 km (60,000miles) heres the problems I've been having.

I was driving around (prolly about 30 miles) and then my coolant temp. went really high, and the check gauges light went on. my heat would also go up and down when this happend so i knew i had to do a coolant flush and t-stat. I did that.. and now i have no problems with my heat.

Problem went away for a few days. Then, I noticed the same thing again.. so I was told it could be the clutch in my cooling fan. I got that replaced.. and a few days later (today) as I was coming home.. the same thing happend. temp. gauge hit high, and my "check gauges" light came on again. I turned on my heat, and blasted it while it tried to cool down. What happens is.. it would cool down FASTER at idle.. than it was when i was driving. What else could it be?? I was thinking radiator, or water pump. I dont think im losing coolant, although between the time i got the coolant flushed, and brought it back to get the clutch fan replaced, he had to top up my coolant because he said it got a little low.

Can anyone PLEASE help

thanks



wayhead
Dodge Dakota
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2/19/2004
23:23:40

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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All i can say is try checking all your hoses for cracks or disconnected clamps. This happened to an older car of mine and it turned out to be some sensor to replace. (that was a ford so it was expected)


http://ut.netmusicpromotions.com/dn5a235821azh.html



Randy
Dodge Dakota
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2/19/2004
23:53:52

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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Hi Anthony There was a guy on here a while ago that had the same problem as you. He changed everything and it turned out to be the belt ( it was slipping) the more gas you give it the more it slips. About the coolant, I changed mine and it did the same as yours took a couple of days to level off. Keep an eye on coolant for few days. Good Luck hope this helps.



WipLash
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2/19/2004
23:57:00

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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Anthony,
Your description there is a typical head gasket or a cracked head/block. The engine temp will spike very rapidly. It happens a lot on aluminum head engines. It's why Dodge never put Al-heads on their truck engines until Diamler got a hold of them. The AL expands at a much greater rate than the cast iron. It is really bad if you don't allow proper warm ups on cold mornings. The Aluminum will expand and heat up to maximum long before the cast iron in the block even begins to expand. This causes the seal between the head and the block to break down over time and causes the head gasket to fail. Back in the 70's, all engines that had aluminum heads had to have the head bolts retorqued after break-in. It was in all the service manuals back then. If you took the heads off an AL head engine and replaced the gaskets, you had to go back 500 miles later and retorque all the head bolts. They would loose 10-20ft/lbs of torque after just 3 or 4 heat cycles. None of this is being done today with these new AL-headed engines. It's one more reason why I sold my 2002 4.7L and kept my 2000 5.9L.



Anthony
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2/20/2004
01:21:31

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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hmm.. thanks for the tips guys. I too thought it was a head gasket and when I brought the truck to a shop.. I asked them to do a compression test. he said it all turned out fine.

I was thinking of taking the rad out and getting it professionally cleaned out. Heres a question though guys.. I find it weird that the truck cools down when its at idle.. versus while im driving. I also noticed that if i put my hand infront of the grill.. the fan is blowing OUT. shouldnt it be sucking air in?


again, thank you all for your help



midnightmagic
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2/20/2004
09:12:52

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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i have a 00 4.7 with 68k on it, no probs like that, i replaced my belt at 55k, just to be safe, have you done this, if not try it, if it doesnt help at least you have a new belt. im thinking a bad sensor. water pump has a compsite impeller so i dont think its that.

You gotta ask yourself one question...That Thing Got A HEMI???

Randy
Dodge Dakota
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2/20/2004
12:10:37

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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If it is the belt it would slip less at idle also engine creates less heat at idle. But while driving it, belt would slip more at higher rpm and at the same time truck would generate more heat. Just something to think about. And like midnight said if you havent changed the belt just try it. Best of luck.



.boB
Dodge Dakota
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2/20/2004
13:42:47

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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Sounds just like a head gasket/cracked block; especially if you're losing coolant. Compression test often does not disclose this. A good shop can do an analysis of your coolant for products of combustion. Also, look for bubbles in the coolant when the engine is hot.

As for air blowing out of the radiator, I've never heard of that before. The only thing I can think of that would cause that would be mounting the fan backwards. Don't even know if that's possible on your truck. With the engine running, CAREFULLY place your hand behind the fan. Which way is it blowing?



WipLash
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2/20/2004
13:55:41

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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AutoZone sells a kit to detect gases in the radiator. It is pretty cheap. It takes about 5 minutes to confirm weather or not you have exhaust gases excaping into the cooling system. If you are misteriously loosing coolant and there are no visable water leaks then it is more than likely a head gasket.



Anthony
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2/20/2004
16:51:19

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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I just took the truck down to the dealership, and gave them all the information i wrote here.

they did a leakdown, and said both head gaskets were gone :(

so thats the problem i guess :(



WipLash
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2/20/2004
20:16:02

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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Anthony,
Although I am the first person that suggested the engine had a blown gasket, I would still be suspicious of the diagnosis the shop gave you. By definition, a leak down test is a test to check the condition of the combustion chamber. It will tell you how good everything (rings, pistons, and valves) seals. It may not indicate a blown head gasket. Although, it should. The standard procedure for checking a blown head gasket is a carbon dioxide detector that they put in the radiator. When the gas is detected it turns colors. It is fool proof. If they did confirm a blown head gasket with a leak down test it means you have a severely blown head gasket. An engine with a severely blown head gasket won't run. You have been driving this thing so the head gasket, if it is blown, isn't severe yet. I would take it to another shop. The fact that they said both head gaskets were blown really makes me suspicious. That is way too coincidental. It would make the possibility of you being able to drive this thing even less. MUCH LESS!!! Seriously, you need to find another shop. I think they are snowballing you. You more than likely do have a leaking head gasket, but not bad enough to be detected with a leak down test and I would be willing to bet money that you don't have 2 blown head gaskets. Dude, take it somewhere else. I don't want your $800.00 repair bill on my conscience.

Is this a dealership? They do things like this often to insure job security. Especially if business is slow.




Anthony
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2/20/2004
22:09:23

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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Unfortunatly, I already gave them the go ahead. its goign to cost me $1400 CDN (about 1000-1100usd)

This really frustrates me.. and i hav eno other idea what to do



WipLash
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2/20/2004
22:57:17

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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Have they pulled the heads yet? If not, call in sick or do what you have to do to be there when they pull the heads off. Demand that you get the old head gaskets. Watch them remove the gaskets so they don't try to do the old swaparoo on you. If the head gasket is blown you will know it. The heat from the burning gas will literally torch the gasket material. It will be obvious. If they are not obviously burnt/blown demand a refund! If they are blown and they replace them it doesn't mean you’re fixed. Aluminum has a very low melting point. A blown head gasket will torch a groove in the mating surface of the head. I'm sure you probably didn't run it long enough to do that kind of damage. Usually by the time you've burnt a groove in the head the engine has already quit running. I would recommend being there to see the operation just to make sure they follow good housekeeping. I had the intake gasket replaced on my 93 5.2L under warranty and they got enough dirt/debris in the engine that it caused the pressure relief valve in the oil pump to seize.



Anthony
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2/21/2004
00:33:56

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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Thanks. I'm going to call them in the morning and tell them I demand that I'm there when they pull the head off.



B1owner
Dodge Dakota
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2/21/2004
08:59:24

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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"Go aheads" mean nothing if you think they are gonna rip you Anthony, I would blow them off completely if you dont feel comfortable. Tell them you got some advice off the internet for another opinion or whatever. I agree with Whip, I would be outaa there. Run for the hills.



Doug Carruth
Dodge Dakota
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3/07/2010
20:56:35

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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Does anyone know if you have to unbolt the motor brackets to pull the engine on a dodge dakota 4.7 or do you just pull the two motor mount bolts?



Albert Dzienn
Dodge Dakota
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5/28/2010
23:57:42

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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It's probable the head gasket(s) and/or head(s). A compression test won't necessarily tell you if there's a leak. You must do the leak down test to be sure. It isn't a big job replacing the heads though on this engine. It takes about 9 hours of labor plus the cost of parts. Be sure to replace the head bolts as they are stressed at the factory to assure the head stays tight for a while (not forevey though, unfortunately). Also be sure to observe the timing marks are lined up properly before you put the timing cover on. The three chains and 4 pulleys/sprockets all have marks on them and it's really straight forward to time properly. When you tighten the head bolts down to spec, you then turn them another 1/4 turn which stresses them and makes them un-reuseable. Rebuilt heads cost under $300 per side on ebay. Ebay also has a gasket set for under $100 for this engine. You can continue to drive for a while, but the antifreeze loss will increase with use and the engine will begin to run rough. Be sure to replace the water pump when you do this procedure as well. The water pump on this engine is only good for about 25-45,000 miles. Most of these engines require head work between 50-100,000 miles. Hope that helps. You can do a head replacement in the driveway in a weekend.



Albert Dzienn
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5/29/2010
00:05:22

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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Whiplash, these engines will run with a blown head gasket/warped head. I ran one for over 10,000 miles after the heads warped. It ran rough at idle but ran. And the check engine light didn't start to come on until about 8,000 miles into that mileage. I got multiple misfire codes after that. And it was still running when I tore it down to replace the heads. I had to do it at this point because the antifreeze began to disappear at an alarming rate towards the end. But it still ran. Now that I replaced the heads and gaskets it runs like new. No codes, etc. It is the head gaskets or heads as the shop indicated. It's very common on this engine. Most will require this procedure before 100,000 miles. The Dodge forum will give you more info.



tbb733
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9/08/2010
13:01:25

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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stumbled opon this site wow neat but who"s ever asking the questions i would listen to mr. whip lash he doesn't know what he's talking about or nothing lol



DTH
Dodge Dakota
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9/21/2010
06:52:20

RE: Someone.. PLEASE HELP 00 4.7 problem
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I've got a 2000 quad with the same cooling symtoms, but the problem stems from the rt front brake caliper from time to time will not release!. I'll drive around fine for a while and then i'll use the brakes once and the caliper wont release..I'll use more power to move now and I can watch the temp gauge max out. but sitting idle it will cool down(no torque)I'm still troble shooting this problem...any ideas



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