1996 Dodge 1500 - Looking for MPG's

[Mopar1973Man]

Ok Gang...

I'm now trading hats and becoming a 5.9L V8 owner. So I figured it time to get get the other truck running just as good as the 02 Cummins.

Ok history I've got 144K on the clock.




As for wondering about the mainfold... I know I got to fix it...




Another thing I found was testing the MAP sensor. I hooked up a vacuum gauge and it showing the typical 16-17 in of mercury like usual. But the ScanGauge II is showing the MAP sensor having 1.6 PSIa which is like 26 inches of mercury. So I'm assuming the MAP sensor is screwed...

Coffe break is over time to get back out and snoop!

 

[ramthis9501]

Yes the Plenum looks like it is in desperate need of fixing... I fixed mine with the Hughes kit and it only took me and my dad a day and a half to do

 

[txbass06]

I just now got around to checking mine and it's clean as a whistle. Hopefully it'll stay that way for a while, or at least until I get a DD. I'll be looking into some engine mods in the next year once this one can be down for a few days


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[V-10 RAM]

The first thing I would do is fix the manifold then see where things are at. I have a couple of issues with my Jeep 5.9, but first I'm fixing the leak in my manifold & see what straightens out with that first. I may find it solves all the issues. My manifold looks like yours & a leak that bad can cause various issues related to TPS, MAP, etc.

PS. I spent a little time in New Meadows ID from back in the 1960s. My buddy & I almost got into trouble there.This buddy of mine was from McCall his sister & her husband owned the Brass Rail Pizza place in McCall. A buddy of his had just returned from Vietnam. We went to a dance in New Meadows one night. We were kids back then. Anyway when I saw you were from New Meadows it brought back some old thoughts.

 

[jbmobbs]

mine looks the same.....how do i fix???

 

[Badger]

mine looks the same.....how do i fix???

Go to Hughes performance and order the intake manifold kit. Remove intake manifold then swap the old bottom plate (steel) for the new one that comes in the kit (aluminum) coils problem fixed forever. But if I were you is get your truck to the alignment shop first

 

[Mopar1973Man]

Yes the Plenum looks like it is in desperate need of fixing... I fixed mine with the Hughes kit and it only took me and my dad a day and a half to do

Yea... After looking up the Hughes kit that rather spendy for a plenum kit... Wow!

The first thing I would do is fix the manifold then see where things are at. I have a couple of issues with my Jeep 5.9, but first I'm fixing the leak in my manifold & see what straightens out with that first. I may find it solves all the issues. My manifold looks like yours & a leak that bad can cause various issues related to TPS, MAP, etc.

PS. I spent a little time in New Meadows ID from back in the 1960s. My buddy & I almost got into trouble there.This buddy of mine was from McCall his sister & her husband owned the Brass Rail Pizza place in McCall. A buddy of his had just returned from Vietnam. We went to a dance in New Meadows one night. We were kids back then. Anyway when I saw you were from New Meadows it brought back some old thoughts.

But what's weird about the MAP sensor its showing 1.4 PSIa on the Scangauge at idle when actual vacuum gauge is showing 16-17 inches of mercury. So if the Scangauge is 1.4 PSIa which is like ~26 Inches of mercury. What's even more stange is the MAP sensor shows 4.8 PSIa with the engine off and not running... It should show 14.7 PSIa hence why I think the MAP sensor is faulty...

Vacuum Pressure - Converting Units

Yea... New Meadows, ID is still here but even quieter now than back in the 60's. As for the McCall, ID its slowed way down as for the pizza place I never heard of it.

 

[ramthis9501]

I got mine for around $140 total for the kit and new bolts to go back in to hold down the manifold. It's recommended since the old ones wont be able to be torqued back down to specs.

 

[Mopar1973Man]

I'm going to go the poor man's route...

Rockauto.com got a killer deal on every seen for $30 bucks...

 

[jbmobbs]

I'm going to go the poor man's route...

Rockauto.com got a killer deal on every seen for $30 bucks...

where did you get that gasket setup???? im prolly fixn to do mine??

 

[ramhunter9]

He told you ... RockAuto... one of our vendors http://www.ramforum.com/f104/

 

[Mopar1973Man]

Ok... Took a little ride with the truck left my ScanGauge II hooked up and watch the MAP sensor value. Idles at about 1.4 PSIa then at cruising speed 1.2 PSIa and then WOT 4.1 PSIa.

I know that WOT should of pop right up to 14.7 PSIa so I know the MAP sensor is for sure screwed. Love seeing that 40* for timing advancement out of Mopar Performance PCM... (Big cheesy Grin!)

After breakfast I'm going to do a compression test...

 

[Mopar1973Man]

Ok... As for compression test lowest was 130 PSI highest was 150 PSI which is 13% difference.

Dodge FSM states the lowest compression is 100 PSI.

 

[talon6]

40* is what mine said the other day. sct.

and good luck with better mpg's. you cannt get much worse than the 360 on gas mileage. with my mods, and i donnt run mine hard 99% of the time, 8.5-9.5. but that doesnt matter to me. not my daily driver. dd is a hemi durango 16mpg.

 

[Mopar1973Man]

40* is what mine said the other day. sct.

and good luck with better mpg's. you cannt get much worse than the 360 on gas mileage. with my mods, and i donnt run mine hard 99% of the time, 8.5-9.5. but that doesnt matter to me. not my daily driver. dd is a hemi durango 16mpg.

That's what everyone said about my Cummins... Now I hold 25.3 MPG as a record. Now it time to get the 96 Dodge 1500 caught up and running it best.



So those kind of cop out don't work with me I will work my magic again and now do it on a gasser. Everyone said a 8K pound Cummins diesel would never be capable of getting 25 MPG it now been done... So there is no reason a 5K pound gasser can't reach at least 16-18 MPG.

 

[V-10 RAM]

I'm going to go the poor man's route...

Rockauto.com got a killer deal on every seen for $30 bucks...

Not putting on the new plate will mean doing it again every few years. What I read Dodge says the intake bolts DO NOT HAVE TO BE CHANGED.
The job to R&R manifold & change out the bottom gasket is 5 hours flat rate time. What I read most guys are taking about 10 hours to get it done. I have never seen doing something the poor mans way be cheaper in the long run.

 

[talon6]

it has alot to do with where you live too. nothing but hills here. and i dont ever take mine on the interstate. and pretty much all city driving. (25-35mph)

and the intake bolts ARE supposed to be used only one time. they stretch a little. not saying you cannt use them again. just saying. i seen it in a post one time where someone miced them. and they showed it. cannt remember where now.

 

[V-10 RAM]

40* is what mine said the other day. sct.

and good luck with better mpg's. you cannt get much worse than the 360 on gas mileage. with my mods, and i donnt run mine hard 99% of the time, 8.5-9.5. but that doesnt matter to me. not my daily driver. dd is a hemi durango 16mpg.

I have a 98 Jeep GC 5.9 Limited & with the bad plenum gasket I get 15-17 mpg. I know it will get 18.5 mpg when I fix the plenum. The Jeep is AWD with 3:55 gears.
One thing I have learned about 360s is the more you mod them the worse the mileage gets. I learned that on an 88 D250 2wd I owned. That truck started out getting 13.5 14 mpg with 360 4bbl,4 speed, 4:10 gears, when I got done with dual exhaust, 3:55 gears & a Holley 4175 spreadbore carb I was down to 10 mpg on the road @ 65-70 mph just as I was getting 13.5-14 mpg pure stock.

 

[V-10 RAM]

it has alot to do with where you live too. nothing but hills here. and i dont ever take mine on the interstate. and pretty much all city driving. (25-35mph)

and the intake bolts ARE supposed to be used only one time. they stretch a little. not saying you cannt use them again. just saying. i seen it in a post one time where someone miced them. and they showed it. cannt remember where now.

I'm just going by what Dodge says. It was confirmed by a friend that works for a Dodge Dealer as a mechanic.

 

[Mopar1973Man]

Not putting on the new plate will mean doing it again every few years. What I read Dodge says the intake bolts DO NOT HAVE TO BE CHANGED.
The job to R&R manifold & change out the bottom gasket is 5 hours flat rate time. What I read most guys are taking about 10 hours to get it done. I have never seen doing something the poor mans way be cheaper in the long run.

Problem is my pockets aren't deep at all. So I need to economize a bit so I can get all the part to repair the truck...

I have a 98 Jeep GC 5.9 Limited & with the bad plenum gasket I get 15-17 mpg. I know it will get 18.5 mpg when I fix the plenum. The Jeep is AWD with 3:55 gears.
One thing I have learned about 360s is the more you mod them the worse the mileage gets. I learned that on an 88 D250 2wd I owned. That truck started out getting 13.5 14 mpg with 360 4bbl,4 speed, 4:10 gears, when I got done with dual exhaust, 3:55 gears & a Holley 4175 spreadbore carb I was down to 10 mpg on the road @ 65-70 mph just as I was getting 13.5-14 mpg pure stock.

don't plan on mod'ing a bunch I plan on getting the highest MPG's possible from this truck. This is the only other stand-in truck I've got just in case the 02 Cummins should happen to fail or breakdown. I don't live in the city everything is over 3 hour (180 miles 1 way) drive too.


So getting a running total on RockAuto.Com for...

• Valve Cover Gaskets - $22
• Intake Gasket Set (as seen in the other post) $30
• MAP Sensor $52

Comes to a total of $104 bucks... Not done yet.

• 2 Gallons of coolant - $13 bucks a gallon
• 2 Gallons of Engine Oil - $11 bucks a gallon
• Oil Filter - $8

So now I'm at $160 bucks for all that stuff...

Just for the plenum from Hughes is $120 Bucks... So for everything else I would be then up to $250 bucks... Just can't do it... I guess next time when my pocket are deep and I'm rolling in the cash I'll put the mod to it but right now I need the truck reliable and running!