Jeep Commander 06 4.7 head replacement

[baron1701]

I will likely end up pulling one from the junkyard this weekend. The EGR tube I repaired likely wont hold long unless welded. Not worth playing with but it will let me run the truck for testing.

Its pretty dark out by the time I get out of work during the week so the yards are closed.

I cant wait to get home and finish up. It seems the timing is good and its firing all 8 so that's out of the way. Next I have to see how the gasket holds. I didn't send the heads out to get milled but they looked good with a straight edge. I could still get into trouble there.

I will keep updating. I wish I took step by step pics to document the job.

[rhandwor]

Unless the heads were leaking before being pulled they should be fine.

[baron1701]

I put coolant in and plugged the EGR hole with a glove. It ran cold. Temp climbed very slowly - idled for a half hour or so. I could get it to flow coolant so I filled it from the top hose as well.

The truck drove normal. It has a p300 misfire and idles a little rough. When you rev it to 3k - 3.5k it threw a p304 blinky light. I have the junk yard plugs still in the Passenger head and the junk original plugs in the Drivers head. I also have no EGR hooked up - also sure the glove is not Air Tight. It did pass the test mostly - It didn't blow smoke or get hot.

I am worried that the Passenger Cam could be off a tooth. I had trouble with the zip tie trick when I was doing the Passenger size. Its the only time the job skipped a beat and I wasn't sure about something.

I would think it would run a lot worse if it was timing. This seems to be only an idle issue. Im thinking spark plug - coil - injector before I pull the front cover off again.

I found a problem with the Heater Hose Tee. The plastic Tee had cracked. There was a leak and that's probably why coolant wasn't flowing properly. This may have been a contributing factor to the head blowing. I have to get a proper size tee and tap into the hoses tonight. The factory hoses are over $80 and it looks like a regular 5/8 tee will work great. If not I can bypass it for a little while.

Tonight I plan to fit my JB Welded EGR tube on and do plugs along with repairing the heater coolant line. Ill pull the injector / clean it and swap coils around just to see what happens to the idle.

[rhandwor]

Try putting it on TDC it should be stamped. The left camshaft sprocket should have the V-8 at 12:00 and the camshaft sprocket dot at the different color chain mark. It not roll the engine a full turn 360 degrees and recheck. The dot should be about 2:00

[baron1701]

Good idea. Im not sure the marked chain links will ever match up again though. From what I read they are used for initial setting of the timing and then because of ratios and stuff they may not line up again. I will take a look and see.

I think if I pull the valve covers the V8s should be 100% straight up. If the Drivers head is straight and the Passenger side is off a few degrees that could tell me right there. I will need to find a plumb or something to be sure.

First im hoping to clear it up with EGR, plugs and swapping a coil.

Is there a way to Wedge the chain to the tensioner and pull the chain off the pulley if I am off?

I remember it being real tight even with the tensioner set all the way in.
If I could mark the pulley and roll it a tooth that could work - if the timing is off that is.

[rhandwor]

Hopefully every thing will clear up I've never had to move a chain after initial set up was complete.

[baron1701]

I repaired the coolant leak tonight - nightmare / very little room to connect Tee to hoses, etc. I used a 5/8" tee and some claps. I intend to go back and redo it with metal tee and spring clamps but this will do for a little while.

The EGR tub took a LONG time. I had to lay on top of the engine and adjust the two bolt with a long crow bar just right to get them to grab. While doing that I had to keep the gasket straight. The tube absolutely did not want to line up. After two hours I got it.

When I changed the plugs I found that the #2 plug that threw the misfire was bent closed. I was terrified but there was no evidence of it getting hit hard. it looks like I hit it with the brass wire wheel the wrong way. This was one of the plugs on the junk yard head.

Moment of truth came and it ran flawless. Much smoother and quieter than before. I could tell that the engine benefited from the tune up and new header gaskets. My wife went to the Cumberland Farms down the road to fill the tires while I cleaned up - It hit 20 degrees and the jeep has mostly sat for 4 months so they were real low.

The tire stem broke in half on one tire. Jeep made it home but l wont be driving it to work.

Chrysler / Jeep giving it to me and then taking it away.

[rhandwor]

It's much easier doing a valve stem than adjusting a timing chain.
If you can't find a proper sized tee go to Lowe's or Home Depot purchase a 1/2 inch tee and short nipples and make your own. My son who used to have a termite business heater connection broke on the road and he used a hammer and chisel removed the broken part and had a short nipple for his termite pump. He pushed the heater hose on and put the clamp on it still on the truck as far as I know.

[baron1701]

2 Months later and the Jeep is running great. I have put about 1400 miles on it.
Not bad for a few hundred dollars and a lot of time.

I had to replace the aftermarket Advance Auto thermostat with the original.
The aftermarket thermo is not keyed and fits poorly. It is difficult to get a good seal.
I was losing coolant from the housing. The original thermostat fixed everything.