Engine build

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Eliwab22

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Magnum 5.9
I've got a 98 ram with a 99 5.9 engine and I'd like to do a bit of a build, first heads (engine quest) then carb conversion and eventually a cam. I know for the carb conversion I need to get a different intake, would it be worth it to get the heads with the older LA bolt pattern for more options? This is my first engine build so I'm trying to be as smart as I can when it comes to budget and part choices.


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Eliwab22

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Also I have a bit of a small budget right now ($1250)


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Yeret

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There are several major things to consider. I've toyed with the idea of carbing the engine but in the end, I feel it's more trouble than it's worth.

First, if you have a 46re tranny, you'll have to swap it to a 46rh or a 727. The re is electronically controlled so without the computer, it won't work. The 727 will bolt up but the case is physically different and you'll have to relocate some stuff to fit the chassis.

LA heads won't work on a Magnum block. They'll bolt on, but the oiling passages are different since the Magnum oils the rockers through the pushrods while the LA oils through the block. If you do this swap, oil won't reach the rockers and result in their prompt destruction.

The gauge cluster gets it's input from the ECU. No ECU = no gauge cluster. You'll have to swap the cluster with mechanical gauges.

Probably other stuff too. If you're hellbent on switching to carburetor, you really gotta do your research.
 
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Eliwab22

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There are several major things to consider. I've toyed with the idea of carbing the engine but in the end, I feel it's more trouble than it's worth.



First, if you have a 46re tranny, you'll have to swap it to a 46rh or a 727. The re is electronically controlled so without the computer, it won't work. The 727 will bolt up but the case is physically different and you'll have to relocate some stuff to fit the chassis.



LA heads won't work on a Magnum block. They'll bolt on, but the oiling passages are different since the Magnum oils the rockers through the pushrods while the LA oils through the block. If you do this swap, oil won't reach the rockers and result in their prompt destruction.



The gauge cluster gets it's input from the ECU. No ECU = no gauge cluster. You'll have to swap the cluster with mechanical gauges.



Probably other stuff too. If you're hellbent on switching to carburetor, you really gotta do your research.



What would you suggest for a build then? I'm looking for around 300 at the wheels.


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Yeret

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300 at the wheels means you're gonna need something like 375 at the crank. For that power, a pair of Eddies, Harland Sharp 1.7 roller rockers, Hughes AirGap, 52+ mm throttle body and a cam (not 100% on what you'll want for that). You'll probably need bigger injectors and of course, a good SCT tune to tie it all together.

Alternatively, pull the engine, swap in a 408 stroker kit from Hughes, use all the factory stuff, get an SCT tune. With factory induction, the 408 will run out of breath real quick but will kick out an asston of low-end torque.

Also, get ready to shred your tranny. An old 46r isn't going to hold up to that kind of power for long. You'll want it rebuilt with a good shift kit and an additional cooler.

One way or the other, you're gonna need a lot more than $1,250 to achieve your goal especially if you want it to be reliable...
 
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Eliwab22

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1998
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Magnum 5.9
300 at the wheels means you're gonna need something like 375 at the crank. For that power, a pair of Eddies, Harland Sharp 1.7 roller rockers, Hughes AirGap, 52+ mm throttle body and a cam (not 100% on what you'll want for that). You'll probably need bigger injectors and of course, a good SCT tune to tie it all together.

Alternatively, pull the engine, swap in a 408 stroker kit from Hughes, use all the factory stuff, get an SCT tune. With factory induction, the 408 will run out of breath real quick but will kick out an asston of low-end torque.

Also, get ready to shred your tranny. An old 46r isn't going to hold up to that kind of power for long. You'll want it rebuilt with a good shift kit and an additional cooler.

One way or the other, you're gonna need a lot more than $1,250 to achieve your goal especially if you want it to be reliable...



Alright, well what can I get for $1250.00? Anything is better than nothing!


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Yeret

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Absolutely do the plenum repair if you haven't already. Even if it's not leaking now, it will leak eventually and when it does, you'll know it... Hughes sells a kit for around $150. Make sure you get the one with Fel-Pro gaskets.

Factory heads like to crack between the valve seats. Whether or not this will cause significant problems has been debated but in my opinion, cracks only get bigger and eventually will lead to compression loss. I paid $600 for my new heads which have thicker casting between the valves to eliminate this problem.

There's a tuner here known as Flyin' Ryan. For $400, you can get a sweet tune which significantly improves the engine overall mainly by eliminating the crappy "death flash" that your ECU almost certainly has.

Other than that, just use good quality ignition parts (no hot coils!) and stick to copper-tipped spark plugs. Your truck will be far from a rocket but it will be a lot better than it is now.

"Go fast" stuff is expensive. I'm currently sitting on a modified throttle body, some exhaust work and a tune and my truck is much quicker than it ever was when I first got it. I certainly want to go even further but the ole money tree sure grows awful slow, LOL.
 

crazykid1994

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They make eq heads for the magnum drilled for the la intake which would work. You keep the factory head setup. Or look into using the edelbrock intake with the factory setup.


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Eliwab22

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1998
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Magnum 5.9
Absolutely do the plenum repair if you haven't already. Even if it's not leaking now, it will leak eventually and when it does, you'll know it... Hughes sells a kit for around $150. Make sure you get the one with Fel-Pro gaskets.

Factory heads like to crack between the valve seats. Whether or not this will cause significant problems has been debated but in my opinion, cracks only get bigger and eventually will lead to compression loss. I paid $600 for my new heads which have thicker casting between the valves to eliminate this problem.

There's a tuner here known as Flyin' Ryan. For $400, you can get a sweet tune which significantly improves the engine overall mainly by eliminating the crappy "death flash" that your ECU almost certainly has.

Other than that, just use good quality ignition parts (no hot coils!) and stick to copper-tipped spark plugs. Your truck will be far from a rocket but it will be a lot better than it is now.

"Go fast" stuff is expensive. I'm currently sitting on a modified throttle body, some exhaust work and a tune and my truck is much quicker than it ever was when I first got it. I certainly want to go even further but the ole money tree sure grows awful slow, LOL.



I believe the plenum was already done when I purchased the engine. And I have already done distributor wires and plugs. So heads and tune? Then exhaust? I can do that at home as my father has a welder and loads of experience. What heads did you buy/where did you get them? Also thanks for all the help! I appreciate it.


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Yeret

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I got my heads here. They've actually gone down a bit in price...

NEW 5.9 MOPAR DODGE MAGNUM JEEP CYLINDER HEADS 360 RAM DAKOTA VAN CHEROKEE | eBay

You can pick up a few ponies with Engine Quest or Hughes Iron Ram heads because they have slightlly larger intake ports, but if you're using the kegger intake, I don't think you'll really gain anything significant.

I had the factory 2" y-pipe swapped with a custom 2.25" y-pipe. I did this prior to my tune and my mid-range power improved slightly. Should work a lot better with headers.

If you got a few bucks to spend, get a Hughes Airgap intake manifold before you buy a tune. With nothing else, you should pick up something like 30 lb/ft of torque. I've contemplated buying this several times but, as I've said, the ole money tree grows so damn slow, LOL.
 
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Eliwab22

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1998
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Magnum 5.9
I got my heads here. They've actually gone down a bit in price...



NEW 5.9 MOPAR DODGE MAGNUM JEEP CYLINDER HEADS 360 RAM DAKOTA VAN CHEROKEE | eBay



You can pick up a few ponies with Engine Quest or Hughes Iron Ram heads because they have slightlly larger intake ports, but if you're using the kegger intake, I don't think you'll really gain anything significant.



I had the factory 2" y-pipe swapped with a custom 2.25" y-pipe. I did this prior to my tune and my mid-range power improved slightly. Should work a lot better with headers.



If you got a few bucks to spend, get a Hughes Airgap intake manifold before you buy a tune. With nothing else, you should pick up something like 30 lb/ft of torque. I've contemplated buying this several times but, as I've said, the ole money tree grows so damn slow, LOL.



With the new heads can I use the old rocker arms and pushrods?


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Yeret

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Yup, no problem. I re-used absolutely everything in my valvetrain with the exception of a new Cloyes double roller timing chain.

And get this. I heard through my dad that the dude working on my engine had the valvetrain stuff layed out on a bench and one of his idiot dogs knocked all the stuff onto the floor, making placing the stuff back into the engine exactly how it came out pretty much impossible. I didn't find this out until after I (eventually) got my truck back and I was ****ing pissed when I learned about this. However, several thousand miles later, the valvetrain is still quiet and working fine so it's certainly a testament to just how tough the Mopar stuff is.
 
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Eliwab22

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1998
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Magnum 5.9
Yup, no problem. I re-used absolutely everything in my valvetrain with the exception of a new Cloyes double roller timing chain.

And get this. I heard through my dad that the dude working on my engine had the valvetrain stuff layed out on a bench and one of his idiot dogs knocked all the stuff onto the floor, making placing the stuff back into the engine exactly how it came out pretty much impossible. I didn't find this out until after I (eventually) got my truck back and I was ****ing pissed when I learned about this. However, several thousand miles later, the valvetrain is still quiet and working fine so it's certainly a testament to just how tough the Mopar stuff is.



Do I also need new head studs/bolts?


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Yeret

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No studs in our design. Just bolts that bolt the head to the block.

DO NOT reuse the old ones. I learned this the hard way. My former mechanic insisted that the old ones would be fine. Neither of us knew at the time that these bolts are Torque To Yield (TTY) design. Basically, once these bolts have been torqued, they permanently stretch and will not hold torque if you try to reuse them. In my case, when pops and I fired the engine, the bolts failed to hold torque and coolant just dumped into the cylinders creating a metric ****ton of smoke from the exhaust.

Got new bolts and, just to be safe, another set of head gaskets. A different guy put the stuff on and everything worked fine. Learn from my pain, DO NOT reuse the head bolts or you will regret it...

Looking back, I consider myself very lucky that the old bolts didn't flat out break which could have very easily happened...
 

dapepper9

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LA heads won't work on a Magnum block. They'll bolt on, but the oiling passages are different since the Magnum oils the rockers through the pushrods while the LA oils through the block. If you do this swap, oil won't reach the rockers and result in their prompt destruction.

Probably other stuff too. If you're hellbent on switching to carburetor, you really gotta do your research.

Actually a conversion can be done. Requires earlier blocks as some still had the passages. Oil flows through them but essentially hits a dead end. However, kind of a waste of time when Edelbrock aluminum or EQ heads will flow more than most need anyways. W- series would be about the only worthwhile head anyways.

The other things being left out include an entirely new ignition system and fuel system
 

dapepper9

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For $1250 your best bet is headers/exhaust sct tune, hipotek throttle body. You will not make it to 300wheel. My setup makes about 250-260 and you can read that in my signature. The kegger manifold and factory heads won't really support 300wheel without more stroke, boost, or nitrous. Even a cam swap will have a hard time making that. Could have the factory heads worked over but you're almost guaranteed to have cracks between the valve seats and for the time and money you'd be better off with EQs anyways.
 

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