Down the rabbit hole Ram D50 2.6l long block

[gumby79]

Thought I blew a head gasket or cracked a head. I have aproxamitly 1qt of oil in my coolent, but no oil in water? I did a compression test 1-4 dry 175, 165 ,110, 100, this is too wide a spread . 1-4 wet 135,135,135,110 , this is more like it. This is my first wet dry comparison . I thought the numbers were only suposed to go up? By a lot as in 3 for bad rings. With each compression stroke on 2and 3 the water /oil mix pulsed out a cupple Oz each time. 1and 4 no such pulse just jiggle from cranking.
I have a recently acquired 87 Ram D50 2.6 Smog. Mt 4x4. Has new radator and water pump. Pulled the head assumeing blowen gasket. I see some strange markes in 2, 3
Markes at 9 and 7.

(cant see 1,4 on tdc) they look like lightning bolts going partway down the cylinders a frend has some " spot check" penetrating die test. RED LINE NEXT TO the squiggle is the crack. Ding dong the witch is dead . Not worth sleeving +compleet rebuild+ new /reman head. Sleebe + head => long block.


Theas vertical scoring(deep enough to catch a fingernail) weren't cracks ,however there was a crack in #2 adjacent to the score mark.

I had planed a weber swap. Thats happening as well as a long block .
I would realy like to know what happened.

All freeze/ soft plugs are in place and old. Truck had a bad thermastat
stuck 3/8" open

had to block 1/2 the radator to keep it at the 2nd mark on the stock gage. 95% blocked @+20°f =middle of the gage. For the madin voyage 405mi home with my new winter rig. Then dorve to portland, Oregon and 3 days later it wets the bed. Oily water on the driveway. I wanted to have more than 5 tank base line before modds(3 with liget thermastat) . But life is.

[oil pan 4]

The thermostat being stuck open that much shouldn't have let it over heat.
It was probably always running pretty cold then the temp was probably swinging up and down with engine load.
The thermal stress may have cracked it.

[gumby79]

I dont know how long it was stuck. Last winter we ( my cousin and I the previous owner) were talking about installing a block heater for reduced warm up . He wasn't able to find any freeze plugs to install one. He didn't get around to putting one line until after it was time for the truck to go away and no longer needed. I found the soft plugs however you have to pull the intake or the exhaust manifold to gain access or visibility I want at least 700w block heater .
Thermal cycling thats a reasonable reason for the crack. How about the gouging? Foren object in the rimgs would be straight lines (Ive seen theas before on race engens ). This looks like acid ran down the cylinders eroding wall material below the surface the Rings rub.
This is my 3rd and hopefully last life time cracked block in 2 decades of driving. They have all been running(wile cracked) with unrelated symptoms. This is the first cross contamination oil/water from a crack.
I am still suspecting the head is cracked and junk as the source of contamination. 1qt in less than 15 mi. There is a water jacket behind the crack os not the sorce of contaminant.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

So, what are you considering to do with that truck? Do you think it's worth to fix that engine or would you be more inclined to swap a 4G64?

[Grant-53]

The 2.6 L engine is a Mitsubishi product. The picture looks like fluid got past the head gasket and ran down the cylinder wall after the engine was off. If I recall correctly this is a cast iron block with an aluminum cylinder head. The head may have warped and may need to be surface planed. The cylinder wall might benefit from some fine honing. Make sure to keep any particles out of the rings and oil system. Consult with the folks planing the head and have the block deck checked for flatness.

[gumby79]

Originally Posted by Grant-53

The 2.6 L engine is a Mitsubishi product. The picture looks like fluid got past the head gasket and ran down the cylinder wall after the engine was off. If I recall correctly this is a cast iron block with an aluminum cylinder head. The head may have warped and may need to be surface planed. The cylinder wall might benefit from some fine honing. Make sure to keep any particles out of the rings and oil system. Consult with the folks planing the head and have the block deck checked for flatness.

Correct Al head Fe block mitsubishi Mighty Max rebaged as a dodge . HG was good when I pulled the head. There is a likely hood that there was a blown HG in the past(prior to 2 years ago/ 2 owners ago) that had been fixed. There are markes in 2,3 that indacating water sitting in tthe cylinders (pitting full circle ring spacing .)
I am counting the head as cracked (without testing) as this is the only way for oil to get into the water one way(as far as I can guess) so i priced a new head at $495 from Aluminum Head Exchange in PortlandOr, my curent location. I found a Japanese "remanufactured"2.6 Mitsubishi long block. For $700 shiped ,NO core. So for $200 over the price of a new head (less all gaskets) I got a complete engine less manifolds .

cRiPpLe_rOoStEr So, what are you considering to do with that truck? Do you think it's worth to fix that engine or would you be more inclined to swap a 4G64?
Today 02:04 PM

2.0 may have been an option had I not found the 2.6 G54B N/A in the garage. Counting the bus ticket to pickup the miny truck in Ut drive to Mt(405mi) then Portland OR (800mi), remanufactured Motor, webber mod, and purchase price , I'm into it less than $2000 so Ithink worth the repair cost. This truck was goten as a reliable winter 4x4(sub 0f) and used to 4x4 in Utahs west desert(100mi from the nearest gas) were the soil is almost as salty as Bonneville salt flats , so will have salt rust shortly(alredy has cancer typical for age and regional os not so big of a dill )

has a fresh cluch and I'll go full synthetic fluids

[Grant-53]

If the truck has more than 100k on the engine I'd consider the reman engine. It wouldn't hurt to have your friend do a dye check on the head. If it is just warped it might be worth something. We use gear oil and roof cement as under coat back here in the salt crazy snow belts.

[gumby79]

If the truck has more than 100k on the engine I'd consider the reman engine. It wouldn't hurt to have your friend do a dye check on the head. If it is just warped it might be worth something. We use gear oil and roof cement as under coat back here in the salt crazy snow belts.

150,131mi
I receved the imported Japanese Remanufactured not rebuilt long block mon 12/4.
An oil galley has opened some were, the head has a remote chance to be salvageable . If so then the block has more broken places . Both oil galleys that pass through the HG are intact. I'll check the head over better after the new motor is in, thank you.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by gumby79

2.0 may have been an option had I not found the 2.6 G54B N/A in the garage.

The 4G64 I mentioned as a possible engine for swap is 2.4L while the 2.0L one is the 4G63, which BTW has some good aftermarket support. I just haven't seen it in trucks, even though until some years ago it was still fitted to some versions of the Mitsubishi Delica van for sale in the Middle East (and those were also still carburettor-fed).

Counting the bus ticket to pickup the miny truck in Ut drive to Mt(405mi) then Portland OR (800mi), remanufactured Motor, webber mod, and purchase price , I'm into it less than $2000 so Ithink worth the repair cost.

For that cost it's still quite good. I couldn't find a similar truck with comparable capabilities for that price where I live (and since it's already 30-years old a similar one could be legally imported into my country, and maybe would still be cheaper than some local trucks).

This truck was goten as a reliable winter 4x4(sub 0f) and used to 4x4 in Utahs west desert(100mi from the nearest gas) were the soil is almost as salty as Bonneville salt flats , so will have salt rust shortly(alredy has cancer typical for age and regional os not so big of a dill )

Salt on the roads is not usual in my country, not even in the mountain regions where snowfalls happen once in a while during the winter. Salt mist OTOH used to be a serious concern in the coastline. But anyway, it might be still quite easy to repair it.

BTW maybe you have already seen this: Welcome to Ute Ltd - Manufacturers of Tough Aluminum Pick-up Truck Beds
As a last-case option, would you ever consider a flatbed as an option to replace a stock rusty bed on this truck?

[gumby79]

Sorry wrong link
A video Walk through what was discovered wrong with the strong running motor. https://youtu.be/KEWsEmip8UU .
I disassembled the head . Pulled the overhead cam rockers they were damaged

This one had hydraulic lash adjusters this one wet the bed . Oil was coming through the holes worn through it there were 2 like this.


The corasponding valve stem.


#3 intake lobe was severely discolored, almost black. All lobes were worn as expected at 150k mi . The scoring on the cam bearing journals may prohibit selling it as a regrindable core.