My 04 1500 4.7 rebuild documentary with pics starts today !!

[Ole Buck]

I am in the process of tearing down my tired 4.7 that puffs white smoke more than the local mosquito truck. This is my first endeavor on something this big. I will say that on this truck 04 1500 SLT 4x4 quad cab that Dodge made engine access really user friendly. Remove the front bumper the upper core support and the radiator and you can dang near walk straight into the engine bay. If all goes as planned this will be a nightly project with pics loaded and posted the next day. If there is anything that you see that could or should be done different let ya brother know. My goal is to show the disassembly the machine work on the heads and block and the reassembly with all new everything including but not limited to all sensors, water pump alternator oil pump plugs coils injectors belt hoses clamps radiator thermostat rad cap and any other thing that can be bought new will go in. I was able to snag a pair of HO cams and an HO intake. New pistons rings rockers valves valve springs lifters all bearings gaskets seals polished crank wrist pins freeze plugs ground straps. Its not going to happen overnight but I'm not going to drag around with it. I thought about a long block purchase but i just could not do it. This way there will be no guess work i will learn both good and bad and if it tears up its on me no trying to deal with warranty completely across the country. I have most of my parts already purchased just need to do the grunt work right now. My spare room in the house looks like a Summit racing warehouse with all the parts. Being in southern Bama humidity along with hurricanes is our worst enemy. The humidity here could make dirt get surface rust overnight. I will shut up now.

Here we go

the third pic down is the bottom radiator hose that i had to cut off. the gold stuff is the stop leak that the previous owner poured in.

 

[VicinSA]

That looks strangely familiar....lol. The top two bell housing bolts are easier to get to once the intake is removed. Hopefully, you won't have to battle the rust monster like I did.

 

[Ole Buck]

day two pics. cant work on it tonight working a side job. so far so good. no rush taking it slow. got left side head completely unbolted last night could not figure out why it would not budge. Then bam !!!! exhaust manifold was still bolted to the cat system. blasted it with goo and let it sit overnight. be back on it tomorrow evening.

 

[Ole Buck]

Back on it last night and OH BOY not what I expected. Tell me now before I get to the machine shop in the morning. I can take it. Where do i go from here

 

[VicinSA]

I used Odessa Cylinder Heads out of Florida to get rebuilt heads. Scrub the heck out of your intake and scope the inside of the intake to make sure there aren't any metal deposits left inside. Looks like new pistons and maybe an over bore are in your short block's future.

 

[Ole Buck]

Just left the machine shop. he said it would cost more to repair and refinish than to buy another one. Luckily I have a donor truck. Pulled the heads and took them along. He advised that these heads were in great shape just needed a good hot clean, deck cleaned up new valves and seals. I took him my HO cams along with my new Melling lifters and rockers with the updated oiling port. He's going to eliminate the drop valve issue that is notorious with these heads. Thanks for the heads up on cleaning the new intake ( also HO ). After work today is going to be shop clean up day. I have completely destroyed everything that i so timely and neatly placed in order to do this swap. More pics when i pick up the heads.

 

[10 Break]

Following.....how many miles on her?

 

[DaveyGMagnum]

Mind if I ask how many miles it made it? My 02 4.7 is at 129k and seems to be pretty strong at the moment, but I’m picking up a donor 03 to pull the powerplant and build up ready to drop in at a moments notice.

 

[Ole Buck]

I am the second owner. bought it from a friend. she has 199,000 on her. He kept this thing in immaculate condition inside and out until the past year. Medical issues hit him hard and his maintenance just went to garbage. His oil changes and fluid levels became a non issue and he drove it like a mad man. He blew a head gasket and his fix was barrs leak stop then it ran hot again he took it to the shop and parked it. He left it there for 6 weeks i gave him 500 cash he handed me the title and i drove it home. Until then you would never know this 4x4 was 17 years old. If your 4.7 is not burning oil or getting hot let her be. I have learned that there is not a lot of aftermarket performance parts or upgrades for this engine unless you are going to spend major money and if you do decide to go that route a 5.7 swap would be a heck of a lot cheaper in the long run. My list is headers, exhaust new rockers lifters springs valves seals machine work on the heads ( fortunate to have an older gentlemen that is a 4.7 expert in my area ) I was able to get Ho cams and an HO intake. All new sensors ect ect. my valve train will be all Melling parts along with oil pump. New timing components and all new accessories. hoses clamps you name. i know it sounds like a lot but if you buy it a little at a time its very manageable.

 

[Ole Buck]

going to pull the short block this evening. did as much as i could last night but this dang tropical storm is taking its sweet time pushing through. Its nice to have a garage to work on your ride but when the donor truck is in the elements well wet grass dirt water in your eyes and a few uninvited ants make for a bitter evening of wrench pulling. But the folks next door in Louisiana are catching pure hell right now so my little issue is just that little. I am catching hell getting the short block to release from the tranny. I have everything unbolted from the bell housing, motor mounts ( not the four bolts that mount to the engine just the ones from the frame ) flex plate to the converter everything i can see and feel for is free. What do you think maybe catching it?

 

[EdGs]

Mind if I ask how many miles it made it? My 02 4.7 is at 129k and seems to be pretty strong at the moment, but I’m picking up a donor 03 to pull the powerplant and build up ready to drop in at a moments notice.

Better make sure your '02 engine is the same as the '03.

Earlier '02 4.7's were JTEC and have a different reluctor for the cam sensor, and the tone ring on the crankshaft is different as well -16 teeth on the JTEC, and 32 teeth on the NGC, IIRC. Different number of connectors on the ECM for the 2 different types as well.

 

[Ole Buck]

both my truck and the donor truck are 04's. Believe you me I already had that scare. Had fast 69 give me some guidance on what to do. But thanks for looking out !!

 

[EdGs]

both my truck and the donor truck are 04's. Believe you me I already had that scare. Had fast 69 give me some guidance on what to do. But thanks for looking out !!

I figured you were already through that part. I was replying to @DaveyGMagnum. Hopefully he has already been through that, too....lol

I found that out firsthand when I went to buy the timing set while I was replacing the head gaskets on my '02. I almost got the wrong set.

I'm sure more then a few have found out after putting everything back together. That's gotta suck, for sure.

 

[DaveyGMagnum]

Better make sure your '02 engine is the same as the '03.

Earlier '02 4.7's were JTEC and have a different reluctor for the cam sensor, and the tone ring on the crankshaft is different as well -16 teeth on the JTEC, and 32 teeth on the NGC, IIRC. Different number of connectors on the ECM for the 2 different types as well.

Hmmm… how can I tell if mine is the JTEC or not? I guess I could pull the whole engine, trans, ecu, and wiring from the donor…

 

[EdGs]

Sorry, I don't have a picture of the timing set for the NGC.

I believe the JTEC engine has 3 connectors on the ecu, and the NGC has 4.

When I did mine, I saw there were 2 different timing sets. The difference is the window pattern on the reluctor wheel attached to the passenger side camshaft sprocket.

I took my camshaft sprocket down to the parts store and compared it to the ones at the part store in order to get the right set.

Here you can see the windows in the reluctor. The sequence is noticeably different between the 2 types.


I would also advise you to start another thread so as to not hijack this one any further.

 

[Ole Buck]

Got the short block out last night from the donor truck. Brothers doing this by yourself is a chore but manageable. I swear if you have a 10,13,14, and 15 mm socket and wrench you can do this job!! She's a little dirty but will clean up well. Got my heads back yesterday and man they look good with the new polished HO cams the Melling lifters and rockers. I have another side job this evening so it will be tomorrow before i can get her on a stand. Someone give me some pointers on where to hook my chain so that the block will lift straight.

 

[Ole Buck]

Got her on the stand last night. I wound up using the bolt holes that would normally accommodate where the knock sensors would bolt up and they worked perfectly for getting it onto the stand. Now here is the 300 dollar question. I am already this deep into the motor. It was running strong just leaking in a few places. Sense i am replacing everything with new or better components should i go ahead and pull the crank, have it polished, ball hone my cylinder bores and re-ring it? I would also replace the main and rod bearings just clean up my pistons and connecting rods.

 

[Ole Buck]

will be removing the short block from my truck this evening and getting her ready for a full clean and degrease of the engine bay. New cloyes timing set arrived today along with my fel-pro engine gasket set. That stuff is expensive. So tomorrow is looking like assembly night on the new motor. Not going to rush it but i am getting closer.

 

[Treburkulosis]

Good luck! I always liked the 02-05 trucks.

 

[DaveyGMagnum]

I’ve reused pistons and rods on a handful of 350 Chevys and one 5.9 magnum with great results. New rings, bearings, gaskets, and a hone and send it if it’s just a N/A DD