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Dodge Durango 360ci Oil Pressure drop!
Hello!
I apologize if this is in any way a ‘duplicate’ post, but I searched the Forum and did not find anything similar
I have a 2000 Dodge Durango SLT with the 360ci engine, auto tranny, bought new. Had all suggested maintenance performed, including oil and filter changes every 3000-5000 miles. Never ‘used’ oil (that we are aware of) and has no leaks at 168000 miles. Recently drove it approximately 800 total miles at mostly Interstate speeds. I noted Oil Pressure was fluctuating slightly. As I began stopping at the end of an off-ramp, it dropped far enough to trigger alarms, but came back up. Checked the oil level, and found the reservoir was nearly dry! (This approx. 5000 mi since last oil and filter change) Added a quart of oil, and took to nearest garage. The mechanic said it was not a good idea to flush the engine, nor add any type of additive, but to simply trade the vehicle. I don’t want to get rid of it, as it has been a great vehicle, and I had hoped to continue to drive it for a while.
Any suggestions what some logical “next steps” might include, based upon your knowledge and experiences with similar vehicles and/or similar situations?
What do you think of mechanic's suggestion not to flush engine, or add any additive?
All that has been done so far is changing oil and oil filter. Switched from Castrol 10W-40, which had been used since new, to the type of oil the mechanic said he used in all his vehicles. (Said that he did not like nor recommend Castrol products)
Thanks in advance for your help!
I apologize if this is in any way a ‘duplicate’ post, but I searched the Forum and did not find anything similar
I have a 2000 Dodge Durango SLT with the 360ci engine, auto tranny, bought new. Had all suggested maintenance performed, including oil and filter changes every 3000-5000 miles. Never ‘used’ oil (that we are aware of) and has no leaks at 168000 miles. Recently drove it approximately 800 total miles at mostly Interstate speeds. I noted Oil Pressure was fluctuating slightly. As I began stopping at the end of an off-ramp, it dropped far enough to trigger alarms, but came back up. Checked the oil level, and found the reservoir was nearly dry! (This approx. 5000 mi since last oil and filter change) Added a quart of oil, and took to nearest garage. The mechanic said it was not a good idea to flush the engine, nor add any type of additive, but to simply trade the vehicle. I don’t want to get rid of it, as it has been a great vehicle, and I had hoped to continue to drive it for a while.
Any suggestions what some logical “next steps” might include, based upon your knowledge and experiences with similar vehicles and/or similar situations?
What do you think of mechanic's suggestion not to flush engine, or add any additive?
All that has been done so far is changing oil and oil filter. Switched from Castrol 10W-40, which had been used since new, to the type of oil the mechanic said he used in all his vehicles. (Said that he did not like nor recommend Castrol products)
Thanks in advance for your help!
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Comments
I took mine to get oil changes and they never cleaned the oil pan as I asked so i started doing it myself to make sure it got done.
I started having the oil pressure drop about halfway then to zero.
I could not find a good reason for this ( oil pan was full ) so after about a
month of this I decided to drop the oil pan and check the oil pump.
After droping the oil pan I started to remove the oil pump and saw that the
oil pickup screen was completely plugged with a very hard crust. It was so
bad that I had to take it to a local repair shop and have it sand blasted to get it off. I inspected the inside of the engine and was very suprised to see that it was very clean. I have been unable to figure out what caused the crusting on the oil pickup screen. To take care of the oil pressure problem I switched to pure synthetic oil ( I don't think the brand matters )
and I change the oil and filter about every 5000 miles. I still have the Durango and I think it is the best car I have ever owned and I have never had a reoccurance of the oil pressure problem. My Durango is a 5.2 liter and is a 4x4 so if you don't have alot of experience working on four wheel drive trucks don't try dropping the pan yourself because in involves dropping the front axle, you don't have to completly remove the axle but it is a very involved process and very time consuming. For me it has been well worth the one time effort.
I hope this helps.