ATTENTION: All Postings that advertise items for sale will be deleted from the Discussion Forum. You may post sale items for free in the Classifieds section. Sign up now.
I own a 1981 Dodge Sportsman 21'Brougham motorhome/van conversion. It has a 440-3, which supposidly has extra cooling passages, a forged steel crank, and a roller timing chain as a few differences from a regular 440. It has 78,000 miles and runs great. It has the normal lifter clatter for the first moment or two when first started in the morning, but it goes away. It has great oil pressure and I am currently running 15w-40 oil. I plan to switch to 20w-50 soon. The oil is changed every 3000 miles. It is driven atleast once a week. My question is under these conditions, how long do you think this motor is good for before a rebuild is necessary? I have heard of these motors getting 150,000, even over 200,000 miles on them. Does anyone have any experiences to share or any info on how long it can possibly last for? I was just curious for info on this, since it runs so well. Thanks for any information. I am 18 and helping my father keep the ride goin'! Thanks.
I would guess that your engine will give you 120,000 miles or more if cared for properly. I have seen newer engines go over 200,000 miles without as much as valve cover gaskets, but that old of an engine probably won't go that far.
From personal experiences, the Worst thing you could do is change the oil the engine is used to, from the 15w-40 to 20w-50, it Will start to Smoke, Guaranteed. I'd say you can get around 120K miles too. But to do that, keep it away from Heat, such as over heating it, from a blown out hose, broken belt. Belts and Hoses every 2 years weather they need it or not is always Good insurance. And take it easy on those long mountain climbs, don't Lug it. Manual Down shift it, keep the RPMs up, with out having your foot to the floor, that will help keep the Temperature Down.
Thanks for the advice.I will continue to run the Chevron 15w-40 heavy duty oil. It seems like good quality stuff, as it is recommended for heavy duty gasoline and diesel engines. Does this seem like a good oil? Anyway, as far as the oil pressure, it remains in the upper normal zone when driving and when at a warm idle, it will fall to the mid normal area of the gauge. As far as grade climbing, I usually get enough speed at the bottom of the hill to carry me up it. I will keep the RPM's up, but it is not floored(about 3/4 down). With that action,it will get up a 7% grade between 50-55 mph. It never overheats and never has. There are about 7 markers between cold and hot, and it never goes above the third one. Used to ping a little on hills, but I backed the timing down, which got rid of that. Hope this helps to generate anymore advice. Thanks again!
email Justin Phillips
reply to message
post new message
search forums