I blew out the #3 connecting rod. Seems like a common issue with many others here. Vendors are very vague on a remedy:sorry::help:
Mopar Long Tubes, Magnaflow cat back, CAI, South Bend Clutch, KRC/SCT--- all in all pretty tame yet. I was driving home from work after a long day and I wasnt hard on the truck and kablooey......:stars:
Hey Bro..welcome to the forum.:ilovesrtc:...yeah, #3 is a weak point in the gen 2 & 3 Viper engines...dont have to be modded to let go....from what I have read the rod bearing gets starved for oil and causes the connecting rod to snap...I hope my Chevy rods can handle this...:crying:
Yikes, sorry to hear that! Did you have a dyno tune, or a mail order tune? Do you have a wideband, if so what kind of A/F readings?
It's not related to A/f or tunes Kris...happens to stock engines too...just # 3 seems to be affected..
Vendors are vauge on a remedy...? Not this Vendor! Trust me, I have been watching all of the blown engine threads over there (Bone can attest to that) But since the owners of VTCOA dont like me much... well, I guess the members arent getting a solution from me over there at least. If you want an engine built without the problems you have currently experienced, let me know- we can whip something up for you, whatever you may be looking for from Mild to Wild. This is Wild... https://www.viperspecialtyperformance.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=22_27&products_id=115 http://viperspecialtyperformance.com/DanLSRT.asp And this is your situation, really... http://viperspecialtyperformance.com/ThomasDSRT.asp
Ok.... so I heard that one remedy is to upgrade the oiling system to the 2008 set up, which requires the front cover to be clearanced- is this true? :bigwink: Then I heard that you use the loose side of the factory tolerance on the rod caps.(don't go out the tolerance just stay on the loose side of it)
It is a lot more involved than that to put it mildly. There are multiple ways to tackle the problem. The rod bearing oil clearances do not have an effect on anything, as they are not the root of the problem, nor even a player. The actual problem is 3 fold: The oiling system has a poor pickup design, a bad oil gallery and pressure relief valve design that cavitates, as well as a poor main bearing selection up until 2005. When any one of the upstream problems occur, the rod bearings, especially #3, starve for oil momentarily. Over time, the bearings wear, eventually spin under load, the rod overheats, flash fuses to the crank, and snaps into peices. Usually it takes rod #4 with it. The "2008" conversion [which we invented by the way, and are the only ones that sell it] is a LOT more than "clearancing"... in fact, there is no clearancing to be done at all. The problems stem from the Cam Sensor primarily, which doesnt exist on a 2008 cover, as well as all of the peripheral changes between the years, to name a few of the hurdles... not to mention a bunch of fitment machine work. This is by far the most complete solution, but the price tag also reflects this fact, even though it does include a bunch of "bonus" items by default, including a high-volume oil pump. The smaller kit we offer is part 2008, fixing the pan and pickup issues. It offers a pretty good solution at a more reasonable price. This can be coupled with a new pressure relief valve to eliminate the majority of the system issues, and will be fine for all but the most extreme builds. The main bearing design contributes to this issue as the crank is only cross-drilled in one direction for oil on the affected main journal. As you can see, the 120 degree [old] bearing design starves the rod bearings for oil 60 degrees of every rotation by defualt anyway- it doesnt take much to make the issue major. The later 180 degree main bearings eliminate this single issue, but they do not address the upstream issues whatsoever, where the primary issues lie. We recomend ALL engines be rebuilt with 180 degree mains, not 120's. Mains are not cheap and are not included in kits as they are sometimes select-fit, but this is PARAMOUNT! Lastly, it does not hurt one bit to utilize coated bearings which hold an oil film better, as well as checking all oil gallers for faults and cleaning/enlarging as neccesary. I do admit however, we have never tried to fit one of these pans/kits in an SRT-10 Ram, they are all installed into Vipers.
Well as you can see by the pics I posted I need an oil pan, I was thinking of having one made with the addition of a super stock style swinging pick up along with acceleration and de-accelleration baffles built in. Do you know anyone that can tackle this?
If I had to do this over again, I would send my engine to Dan. But most of you know me, and I like to do some of the work myself and learn from it....lol, expensive yes. Look at VSPs website under their oil pickup systems. (this is not a paid add for VSP) Dan has made them for the coupe and is a possible fit to the trucks. Agreed-bearings are expensive.
