Hi, guys im new to the forum. ok i just bought a durango and the has sluge built up on it, my check engine light is on,but the truck run good ,idont know what to do about the sluge, should i have the engine rebuilt???

Hows your oil pressure?

My D had a problem like this. I was told it's from a design standpoint with the magnums...but I don't know. I was told that antifreeze would leak into the truck engine.

2 facts about my truck:
1 I was consatnly adding antifreeze
2 I had a sludge problem, and oil pressure problem.

Coincidence...who knows

I added a coolant system sealant (bards I think in a small round tube with red caps) and I went to an oil change place and had them run an engine cleaner through the engine. It removes sludge and buildup and such. you can get it at and auto parts store and do it yourself also. When I took it their, I had ZERO oil pressure. they added it and it instantly broke through and I had oil pressure.

All I know is I don't have sluge and oil pressure problems anymore and I don't add antifreeze anymore. It's been atleast 3-4 years now with no problems.

Might be worth a try for you. Lot less than a new engine too!

Do not add crap to your radiator for this there is a tsb onit for the proper fix. Make sure you go with a reputable name if you are going to do an engine oil flush too. There are no regulations to keep these no name companies from selling you skunk piss and calling it an engine oilflush. Pretty much the only time you want to use alumaseal or something else along those lines is in an emergency situation and you want to flush it out really well ASAP. It can clog your radiator up and cause it to cool a lot less efficiently. I'll do a search and see if I can find the TSB on the sludge issue.

my engine was making an awful lifter noise that was driving me nuts, so I drained about 1-2 litres of oil out of my motor and put some tranny fluid in it, then I drove it for about 20kms and then drained it right away, the oil was hot a hell and I burnt my hand a lil bit, but it was worth it. and it cleaned out the sludge and my lifter noise is almost gone.

I would try the tranny fluid, that should get rid of most of your sludge.

Where did you learn that one Johnny??? AlsoI want a second opinion on this guys, good or bad?

Dude that is soooooooo old school. [:'(]This is not advisable.
ORIGINAL: Mean Green
skunk piss

[sm=icon_rofl.gif]

Ive heard the tranny fluid trick a while ago probly like 5-6 years ago when I was doing my apprenticeship(sp?). a mechanic told me that trick for sticky lifters and sludge. my 82 ram 360 was doing that at the time and he told me to dump some tranny fluid in there and drive it for a while..... low a behold, it was gone. I guess tranny fluid is thinner and has a higher detergent in it or somethin like that.. all I know is it works and doesnt dammage the motor.

I used to run about 1/2 litre in every oil change in my old ram and it ran soo much better. I just tried it in my 99 and it worked good. I dont trust most off the shelf stuff as they would probly eat at the seals.



but I would like to know if anyone else has heard or did this too.

Yep got your back on this Jonny. My 99 D 5.2, bought used @ 52,000 on or about the86,--- mile mark, I was pulling my 22' Fun Deck boat and BAM, I lost complete oil pressure. First off Mean is right do your home work! I had to talk to three Mechanics before I found a viable and good gut feeling option. An old school mechanic who installed a new oil pump and crank kit. He gave me a 6 month/10,000 mile warranty, but for the six months he did the oil changes. Those oil changes for the six months were every month or 1,000 miles, during that time it was 4 qts oil/ 1 qt Tranny fluid. He said in the old days they would have used kerosene but that is to harsh. The tranny fuild has the cleaner butthelubricant properties. I also use Castrol 20/50, says he has NEVER seen that stuff sludge up. I tried in my 91 S-10 missed one change and it still came clean. My Chevy has 202,000 and its the 4.3. D has now 126,000 miles and still running strong. Oh yeah and that is the last time my dumb a$$purchases an used vehicle before my mech looks at it!

This mechanic I found ran special beverages in the back woods of NC, in his younger days.

Whats the black smoke comeing from tthe tail pipe mean?its runing to lean or rich???thanks you guys im going to do the engine flush

I'm thinking rich.

i thought blue was to rich. i too have heard of a little tranny fliud in the oil helps. ive also heard a 20 oz bottle of half water, half diesel, take the air intake off and open up the throttle and dump it in somewhat slowly. cleans it up like techron, not good for the cat tho

Blue is oil.

ya, blue is oil, black is rich, white is coolant.


I would change your O2 sensor, mine was doing that before I changed it.

I believe I have something of a sludge problem, and I would like to flush the engine before changing the oil and filter. But I want to be really clear that by "tranny fluid", you are talking about ATF and not gear lube. Pretty sure it's ATF, but I don't want to make a large mistake.

4.7L sludge issues are usually not sludge at all. Snot is more like it and it is at the valve cover/PCV valve only. Snot is fixed via the TSB for the 4.7s. Afterwards, no problems.

5.2L and 5.9Ls rarely have any sludge at all.

If you guys all think you have sludge... then the oil changes you have done (or not done) have been W-A-Y too far apart AND you mix and match whatever oils you can find on sale. Bad news. Regular changes and the SAME quality oil used each time and you will NEVER have a sludge issue.

The only way I'll believe any of you have sludge issues is if you pull off a valve cover and post a picture. In the effort to pull off the cover, you will most likely find out that indeed, you do not have a sludge issue. How? If you do, you will definatly see it all over with the cover off and when you don't see it, you'll know you don't have the problem.

Most (99%) of the sludge claims on Dodge motors are completly inaccurate. Sludge was a 70's thing, or an import 80s early 90s thing... not in modern 90s/00s DCX truck motors on modern detergent filled fuels and oils.

IndyDurango

IndyDurango, I'm sure you are right about sludge, or at least I hope you are. But have a look at this consumer web site: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/dodge_dur_oil.html, in which lots of folks seem to think their engine failure is sludge related.

Whatever it is, I am having problems getting oil to return to the crankcase.

ORIGINAL: jmartin8310

IndyDurango, I'm sure you are right about sludge, or at least I hope you are.Â* But have a look at this consumer web site:Â* http://www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/dodge_dur_oil.html, in which lots of folks seem to think their engine failure is sludge related.

Whatever it is, I am having problems getting oil to return to the crankcase.


jmartin,

That same link makes the rounds every couple of months. In all the forums I visit, never have I read of such occurances from "real" users. I say real because while I can't find the link right now, I can tell you there was a study in which someone went looking for (example) Tom Smith in Lancaster Oklahoma (saying he was 'quoted' in the article) and no Tom Smith in Lancaster existed that owned a Durango or could have made the claim. Like most media outlets, horror stories run in the front page. Recalls of incorrectly reported information on such horors get buried in the back section somewhere days later.

Also, they start the article quoting an auto expert named "Automan"?! Come on, again everyday forum readers, anyone ever heard of an expert named/callig himself "Automan"?

I think all cars can have an issue here or there. I also think some people confuse 100,000 mile spark plugs with 100,000 oil change intervals. YES, such an interval will create issues I'm sure. So what do they do? Accept responsibility? Nope. Blame someone else. Typical American response (yes I'm a US Vetern and an American.) If these were real people, they have axes to grind and think they are at no fault. My guess is their entire lives are spent in such blame-someone-else-for-all-my-woes encounters.

So yes... I call foul on that article and remind everyone to not believe everything they read on the Internet.

jmartin, on your specific issue, explain it to me clearer and let's see if we can figure it out. Also, take off a valve cover and take a look at it underneath. If you have a 4.7L, take the one off WITHOUT the PCV valve. Why? That one may have snot from the crankcase vent issue there is already a TSB published for (do a search). If you truely have sludge, it will be all around the valves, etc on both sides, so let's see a picture of this one.

If there is sludge there, then yes that could be leading towards your blockage if that is what you have. If you tell me your oil pressure gauge is jumpy, I'll tell you that the gauges are not so good and not really reliable, but that is for another post. If you find sludge,its on to the next steps but based on historical information, I doubt you will find it. What is the service history on your D? Oil change brands, intervals, etc? If you stick with and can provide receipts of the same oil and you DO have an oil related failure, most brands stand behind the product and will PAY YOU for the repair. I have nearly every receipt ever needed on my D for the past 8 years, from wax to oil to air freshener (for tax purposes.)

Best of luck, I'll look for your response(s).

IndyDurango

OK, I just cleaned with ATF. Let it idle for a while. Pressure was zero for a moment then went up. I drained the ATF added oil and started the DOdge wit hzero pressure again. THis time it stayed at 0, I started several times still at 0......with some ticking...very frustrating. Could it be the pumped? Where is the sending unit so I can test myself? Also, how hard is it to change the pump? PLease Help I need my Car!

in reguards to this:

"4.7L sludge issues are usually not sludge at all. Snot is more like it and it is at the valve cover/PCV valve only. Snot is fixed via the TSB for the 4.7s. Afterwards, no problems. "

Which TSB is it I cannot seem to find it, also don't TSB's usually have the recommended solutions to the issues attached or am I dreaming?

Thanks!

You're new so I'll give you a break on not doing a very good search LOL

Here ya go: http://www.DodgeForum.com/m_164273/mpage_2/key_/tm.htm
The TSB, et al is listed therein.

HTH,

IndyDurango

oops. double post.

*Found a page on this: http://www.schleeter.com/oil-sludge.htm *

Emailed the guy - asking what I could do to help avoid this - got a reply fast! I'm not sure on the commercial engine cleaners vs. Trans fluid - seems to be wisdom in the trans fluid. But just a FYI - he's got a cheap 'test' kit available too. While I don't think it will be a problem, it doesn't hurt to stay watchful.

Personally, I was thinking about a performance oil pump myself. They are almost required in performance cars that are going to be ran hard, and I can't see where it would be bad for everyday driving. It's a cheap insurance policy, IMO.

Question on this though - he recommends 5W-30 - is that right? Edit: nm - found that answer here myself -- http://www.dodgeforum.com/m_550523/tm.htm

**************


Oil sludge is preventable, and can even be detected and reversed in the
early stages. Here's how:

First thing would be to change over to a quality motor oil - Valvoline Full
Synthetic 5w30. See more at
http://www.valvoline.com/pages/products/product_detail.asp?product=19
Available at WalMart,Amazon.com and local parts stores in a 6qt case.

Second, would be a "HIGH EFFICIENCY" Mobil 1 brand oil filter, available at
http://www.autobarn.net/mob1higefoil.html

Third, you should test the oil for oxidation and sludge using a small oil
sample from the dipstick, instead of lab samples which require an ounce or
more of oil and shipping to a labratory, you can get similar results for
much less money. There is a product I created due to overwhelming demand
from readers. I spent two years developing and testing this product, and
it works! http://schleeter.com/test/index.htm

I would then recommend taking that test to the next level by using a
magnifying glass to get a close up look at the oil sample. See
http://schleeter.com/images/oil%20test%20close%20up%2099%20toyota.jpg for
an example of a blotter test close up.

If testing shows abnormal results (carbon chips or sludge) start using BG
brand "QuickClean" and "MOA" at every oil service and continue until test
results improve. Their "Engine Purge" should only be used by a shop -
really strong stuff. Check out BG brand products on their web site
http://www.bgprod.com/products/engineoil.html
they are available at your local parts store.

Most quick-lube shops or mechanics won't mind if you bring your own oil,
oil filter and additives if it is a brand they don't offer.

Change the PCV valve and hoses whether they need it or not,
every 20,000 miles. Also a clean OE quality (not K&N) air filter will also
help the oil stay clean and the engine running properly.

Good luck and happy trails, write back if you have any more questions.
Norris Schleeter