2003 Dodge 4.7L with no oil pressure. Can I save it?

[@redmann8757]

Love that kind of humor. I ran a mechanics shop. He doesn't act like a know it all. These are usually the best mechanics in the shop. He shows you the mistakes and doesn't hide them. You can definitely learn from this guy.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Wow! Thanks for saying that. I’ve owned my own shop for years as well. I’m just a guy in my garage, using what I’ve got and doing what I love. I’m definitely human. I’m showing you everything, mistakes and all.

[@ericadelsperger5838]

Dude, so happy for you and more Scrambler!

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Appreciate that. You’ll definitely see it again.

[@calebthekonkurer]

😮Great video man thanks for taking time with that I learned a lot. I have a 2000 Dodge Ram doing the same thing and I got a New Oil Pressure gauge fingers crossed 🤞 that it’s all she needs..🤷‍♂️I’m not a mechanic 👨‍🔧 but I have good neighbors 👍💙🇺🇸💯☀️

[@ridgerunnergarage]

@@calebthekonkurer Thanks for checking out the video and best of luck with yours

[@delwenhall7102]

This was extremely helpful appreciate these types of videos

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thank you! Definitely appreciate you watching!

[@letsgobrandon1300]

Great video. Gave me insight to my 2006 4.7L that has fluctuating oil pressure. Using the gauge on goes up to normal when I accelerate then it drops as soon as I let off the gas pedal.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thanks for checking out the video, I hope you get it figured out and it doesn’t coast a fortune for you to fix.

[@hemiharden83]

Im haviing the same issue. Any word on a culprit/solution?

[@maryalley8845]

​@@hemiharden83Yes I changed the oil pressure sensor above the oil filter and my oil pressure gauge works like new. I had oil pushed into the electrical connection. I sprayed brake cleaner and let it dry.

[@hemiharden83]

@@maryalley8845 yup. Same thing with mine. It was oil up in the connector piece. I cleaned it and replaced the sensor. I'm glad you figured yours out as well.

[@RollinMyOwn]

I wish mine was that easy... 3 oil pressure sensors and I've replaces the lifters cleaned the rocker arms.. I still loose pressure unless I give it fuel ... I'm thinking the pickup tube is plugged. I put a mechanical guage but it doesn't have a real good low pressure side. These 4.7s at idle only are supposed to gave 6 to 10 psi at idle.. so yeah hard to get a mechanical garage to give an accurate reading that low.

[@davidwrinkles6163]

I enjoy it dude live and learn u the man

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thanks man. Oh yah everyday

[@flexjay87]

Nice ! Job well done even if it did not turn out perfect. Still a fun video to watch, i think.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thank you I appreciate that compliment.

[@antontk2531]

I’m not a professional mechanic, but I do full 360 brfore starting the engine after I do anything with timing

[@claponclapoff6]

My 5.2 burns oil. I add oil when needed but a few times it ran low. I also had an exhaust leak so I couldn't hear the valve tapping.I had fluctuating oil pressure so I did an oil change but I think I whacked a lifter.

[@ameral.mayoel281]

It's the timing chain tensioner that's making that racket

[@ridgerunnergarage]

@@ameral.mayoel281 It certainly could have been. I was just over it at the time.

[@scottjohnson1263]

1:41 Nov 21st that video was very helpful. I have an 03 Durango SLT, oil pressure fluctuates, I noticed an oil leak from around sending unit, any suggestions, on diagnosis....

[@ridgerunnergarage]

I have seen the sending unit itself leak oil, not from the threads but right through the middle of the body of the sensor. This was also causing a fluctuation in my oil pressure readings. Hope this helps!

[@zc5416]

For the oil pan gasket? Use some heat, a heat gun or a small torch. Works like a charm!

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Great idea. I never tried that but I will now thank you!

[@BANSHEERIDER350]

Oil pressure switch $17.00 most common problem for that year & engine

[@kevinbedard27]

That was my first thought.... well, actually 2nd thought. Oil filter was my 1st thought.

[@kevinbedard27]

But with that level of sludge inside that engine, taking it apart and cleaning everything was well needed.

[@El_compa_oso304]

Oil pressure sensor you right bro he honestly Did the most

[@donnythompson1012]

Great video dude.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thanks man. Appreciate that.

[@jbcedeno556]

Tengo uno igual aqui en Panama 4.7L 2003 se porta muy bien Saludos

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thank you for watching! 😎

[@SHSPVR]

Great job with the rebuild however your cluttering noise sounded very much like a flat lifter or a bad rocker arm as it a roller style

[@ridgerunnergarage]

I did swap a few lifters when I was messing with that truck. It didn’t seam to make a difference. Very good possibility that I didn’t change the right one.

[@RollinMyOwn]

The lifters get gunked up easy... also what he said about the rockers. I been fighting this exact same fight.. I found that if you get a 5/16th washer and lake it 60 thousands thick drop in Ubuntu the hole fie the lifter before putting the lifter in it give a little preload to the lifter so it doesn't let the rocker get kicked out feom under the cam.. works well so far..

[@MrAcer4]

Why didnt you change the oil pump? You had the pickup tube off

[@ridgerunnergarage]

@@MrAcer4 Thanks for checking out the video. I actually did when I put the engine back together but this was earlier in my KZbin videos and I wasn’t very good at explaining everything.

[@sherland2039]

I have an intrepid with similar problems.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

@@sherland2039 It seems to be a common theme. Hopefully you get it fixed

[@vinceready7022]

I have put new heads on my 4.7 and new oil pump and timing chains and gears.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

@@vinceready7022 good news hopefully it all works out

[@collinmcballin]

Awesome video thanks! Just bought an 01 Dakota from a towing yard. It was old man owned, guy dropped a seat and left it out to get impounded. Finishing up working on it this weekend with new head and plethora of more goodies to freshen it up. Sweet truck! 12 bolt rear end, 4 door, 4wd. Was expecting a motor so hey its a win!

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Sounds cool! I need to drag home more stuff like that. Good luck with your project!

[@teremama8686]

I replaced my oil pressure sending unit and I got the check gages to go away and I also got pressure in it

[@davidrogers5180]

Just drive it! I've heard worse... When it's knocking.then drive it some more when it quits running. Then put a motor in it.... Look up Scotty kilmer motor oil flush on you tube mite have saved you a lot of work... Also read oil sending unit. Would be my first choice

[@dannypalmer7701]

When the oil shop changes oil they dont stick a camera to look at the oil screen?

[@ridgerunnergarage]

The oil screen was pretty much plugged up solid. Unfortunately It was just never maintained well.

[@macnabit.1]

Why condemn the 4.7 ? I have an 03 jeep grand cherokee overland with a 4.7 180,000 miles no major problems. Plus I have an 02 Dodge ram 1500 4.7 with over 200.000 miles on that, no major problems. you have to use 5W30 full synthetic oil or the lifters will go clickati clack. The 4.7 has been the most reliable motor, Ive seen in a long time, other then the ford straight 6. Any motor can get a bad thermostat or other issues, better get on that and fix it or you will have more problems. maintenance is key with any truck.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

I have had a few myself and no problems with them either. I was trying to not condemn it but failed to figure it out.

[@seanbutler2291]

The 4.7 isn't the worst engine in the world but it has some definitive problems. Pretty much any technician can guess that your heads are cracked. And I'm sorry to tell you but for the engines in the previous generations 180 to 200,000 mi was barely at the halfway point. 3.9 the 5.2 and the 5.9 could very regularly do 3-400k+++. I can name at least five to 10 engines that are far more reliable than the 4.7 honestly it's kind of insulting that you would compare a straight 6 Ford to a 4.7 that's sacrilege, at best the 4.7 is mediocre the straight 6 is goddamn heaven on Earth of mechanical perfection.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Did I compare the inline 6 to the 4.7? I will have to go back and watch that video again but that doesn’t sound like something I would say.

[@MrAcer4]

Cracked heads? How can you tell​@@seanbutler2291

[@MOPARBILLYCUDABILL]

I have a 3.7 dakota with not much oil pressure, not sure what is bad

[@ridgerunnergarage]

As a rule 10 lbs per 1000 rpm. The 3.7 I would think would be better than that

[@daddybiggs9343]

Nice video dude. I just got a 05 Ram with the 4.7. Previous owners treated her bad!. I have done 2 oil changes since I got. About 155,000 miles on her. It kicked the rocker on the exhaust valve for cylinder 3. Replaced the valve lash adjuster and rocker arm with new Melling components. Ran great for a month, then kicked out the new rocker from the new valve lash adjuster. I replaced them a second time. Ran great for 3 weeks. Now it has kicked a rocker on cylinder 5. Do you think I am knocking sludge loose with oil changes? This engine probably had few of those before I got the truck. Do you think an oil flush would help or make everything worse? Thanks

[@ridgerunnergarage]

My opinion is an oil flush will definitely help. The damage is already done though. Hopefully it’s not too bad. Make sure the tower that the rocker bolts on is not cracked. I have seen this knock a rocker arm off and a lot of RPM will do it to. Best thing you can do is to maintain it like it should have been done. Good luck!

[@RollinMyOwn]

Do a couple flushes ...or just pull the valve lash adjusters and manually clean them... they are probably stuck solid.. also drop a 5/16 washer that's right around d 60 thousand thick in before you put I the lash adjuster and it'll give it enough preload to keep the rocker in place . Once you clean the valve lash adjusters you will see a huge increase in your motor it'll be like a new motor trust me..

[@goldxlt]

I enjoyed the video, maybe the scrambler should get a 4.7

[@ridgerunnergarage]

There’s a good chance it will get an LS swap if anything. Thanks for watching.

[@randydillard1300]

My truck was doing the same thing change the oil pressure sensor start moving back and forth then after a while it stay down what y’all think it is

[@ridgerunnergarage]

The guy I got this from verified low oil pressure with a mechanical gauge. Once I pulled the pan off you could see the oil was never changed. You could start with verifying it’s not the sender.

[@luciano5137]

Why not try the oil pressure sensor first?

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thank you and I appreciate the advice, We had already verified the electric gauge was correct with a manual one though.

[@samuelperez2539]

What would happen if you kept driving the truck with low oil pressure ?

[@ridgerunnergarage]

I don’t think it would have lived very much longer

[@mariekowalski9051]

Appreciate this video sir🫶🏼 i have same prob with 2 of our ram 1500 4.7z

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thanks for checking out the video, I hope you get them figured out,

[@keaaul808]

Wait! Check oil sending unit?

[@cjdmobile]

Yes

[@misterwonderful6321]

Man, I am so glad shit is going ELECTRIC!

[@sierrahixom]

we are far from that these charging stations are running on generators 🤣🤣🤣

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Maybe, but I’ll be staying old school. How an electric car conversion is something I’d like to try. Keep watching!

[@MidnightPolaris800]

Hey nice ram! Do you want to sell it by any chance? Everything is rusty where i am from and im not opposed to a 1 way flight if we can strike a deal!😊

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thanks for the offer but it already sold. Thanks for watching!

[@JohnDoe-qy4gp]

I have a ram for sale this exact same color and motor

[@kennethmccorkhill4622]

do more stuff like that

[@ridgerunnergarage]

I will, thank you for checking out our video.

[@sierrahixom]

one thing i didnt see you do is change the oil pump before disassembling the engine

[@ridgerunnergarage]

You’re right. I hadn’t actually considered it a because the pickup was so plugged up. Maybe I should have tried that first.

[@sierrahixom]

@@ridgerunnergarage it's all good it happens

[@gilliland426]

it's not a fun job doing a rebuild inside the pickup on a 4.7... doing it right now. 208,999 miles dropped the last to rods! 2004 dodge ram 1500 2wd standard cab short bed!

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Good luck with it hope it works out good

[@michaeldepew4715]

Dude, if you're getting 15 to 20 thousandths clearance on the mains you've still got a problem. On a crank that size, .002 to .004 should be good.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

@@michaeldepew4715 thank you

[@davidmahan4795]

More HOT RODS!!!!👍

[@ridgerunnergarage]

You know it man! 😎

[@MidnightPolaris800]

As is no used engine

[@nicolevogt9042]

Why would you not check the oil pressure sending switch it's the most common fail of low oil pressure on these it sits right up above the oil filter 27mm deep socket or oil pressure switch socket. while that was off I would of tested it with a oil pressure gauge test kit even the cheapest gauge tester could of told you if it was the oil pressure switch, Also seeing how that oil pick up tube was I would of pulled the oil pump and inspected it see if it got worn from lack of oil or gunk build up. rather than going to the most extreme of pulling the motor, and i would not be so quick to jump and say no one ever changed the oil you do know even after pulling the oil drain plug that pan can hold close to a quart of oil that does not come out in the deep end of the pan where all the gunk and sludge sits and only way yo remove that is dropping the oil pan and cleaning it not saying it was not a whole other issue but just saying in general before going through pulling the motor apart

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thank you. And that is all good advice. The oil pressure was already verified with a manual gauge. I believe I mentioned that but this video was a few years back. I did pull the pan off before I pulled the motor. I would have to go back and watch that video again to be sure. Thanks for checking out the channel.

[@Thundarr995]

This engine has too many problems for me. I'd just buy a remanufactured engine if I was going to keep it,(which I wouldn't)😂 I learned my lesson buying junkyard 4.7L.engines Last one I had to exchange it back 3 times before I got a good runner. In fact I won't even mess with these anymore. It's VERY important to bleed the cooling system CORRECTLY with these engines. You MUST do it exactly how the repair manual says or it can/will develop air pockets in the heads. Then it could drop a valve seat,and that might just happen anyway. 😂 Then it's a boat anchor. I'm not a Ford fan by any means. But I would buy a Ford over any Dodge with one of these engines in it.😂 Too bad it doesn't have a 5.2 or a 5.9L. Those are way,way better engines. Personally I think the 5.2L Magnum is the best. I was replacing a rear main seal on a 5.2L Jeep Grand Cherokee one time. I had to loosen some of the main caps to replace it and the rear cap has to come off. Those bearings looked almost brand new. I was curious about how the other ones looked. They were really good too. I was impressed, because that Jeep had dang near 180k miles on it. I've pulled several 5.9 magnums apart too with about that many miles. At least some of the bearings were down to the copper and needed to be replaced. I think the 5.9L Magnum may be harder on the main & rod bearings because it's externally balanced. The 5.2 Magnum is internally balanced. Well that's my best guess anyway.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

I’m with you on that. If I was keeping it for myself I would have just bought a reman.

[@Thisappaintreal]

I disagree. The 5.2 is almost guaranteed to have a plentum issue. Also the 5.2 is absolutely gutless. So is the 4.7 but my 4.7 gets 19MPG. I babied my 97’ and it would do me best 14mpg. Also the trucks that got the 4.7 - 2002 and up I believe, got much much better transmissions. That sole issue alone is what made me dump my 97’ you pretty much have to get a whole trans cooling kit and it’s a nightmare. The 4 & 5 speed in the 3rd gen’s were much better. Just my 2¢

[@donaldhood1867]

Uhh,..did you put a new oil pump on at reassembly?..kind of important information. The whole point of the video was to address psi issue,- still don't know what you did/ did not. ..,duh.

[@invisabledad]

Should have changed the lifters.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

I actually swapped the 2 on the cylinder that I thought was the noisy one but it didn’t help. Wish I had a complete set to change.

[@gabrielbailey-ru2gy]

Great content! 🤣

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thank you. I wasn’t sure about it at first

[@joshuatracy4829]

I always here how crappy the 4.7 is but yeat I have a dakota with the 4.7 and have put it through hell and the motor has given me zero issues at 230k, the other thing is I go to the junk yard and I see 5.9 5.2 3.9 3.7 5.7 but I have a bitch of a time finding the 4.7 and if I do it's not the motor bad it's always totalled

[@ridgerunnergarage]

@@joshuatracy4829 Everyone has different life experiences. You’re right though you don’t see a lot of them. Thank you for checking out the video.

[@artviramontes1219]

Since you pulled the motor, why not a 5.7 motor which is a whole lot better engine.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

This was meant to be a quick flip. Adapting a 5.7 to that truck would have been a nightmare but it would have doubled the value. 😂

[@gilliland426]

3.7 and 4.7 engines always tick and chatter its natural!

[@ridgerunnergarage]

It really is a Dodge thing

[@CarlosRojas-oy7pm]

All 4.7 gens? I got 2010 RAM 1500 with 4.7 310hp, ( I reckon that is the last 4.7 Chrysler made before the arrival of the 3.6), she runs just fine.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

I do have a sweet spot in my hart for the 4.7

[@MrOly0001]

2nd opp ask buddy see what he says

[@tanyaholmes3213]

Enjoy the video But I'm going to give you pass on this one

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Thank you for watching

[@vcuzx]

I thought this is going to be an easy diy fix. Dude went on to machine shop the whole engine. Yet never told us why the thing didn't had oil pressure.

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Oh sorry. That my have got edited out. The pickup was plugged up and it burned up the main bearings

[@blakkliquor7315]

4.7 why save it their junk motors..

[@ridgerunnergarage]

They are but I just wanted to try!

[@blakkliquor7315]

@@ridgerunnergarage good luck wish you could convert it using a 98 dodge 5.2 318 & tranny with wire harness ..

[@TheSavage3.6]

5.7s are also junk motors..

[@Bigtroll1062]

I live in Blythewood sc I have so many questions how can I contact you

[@ridgerunnergarage]

Hit me up on instagram @ridgerunnergarage

[@BlakeBackman-p1c]

Those engines are garbage the 4.7 l

[@calebthekonkurer]

😮Great video man thanks for taking time with that I learned a lot. I have a 2000 Dodge Ram doing the same thing and I got a New Oil Pressure gauge fingers crossed 🤞 that it’s all she needs..🤷‍♂️I’m not a mechanic 👨‍🔧 but I have good neighbors 👍💙🇺🇸💯☀️