11' 4x4 dually with studs and mini max and still blowing head gaskets!
Blew the first hg back in May and now in December about to replace. #4 I keep it on wild-hot but I don't dog it at all ! I need to figure out how to keep it out of the shop or sell it to someone that wants it!
Is everything flat?The turbo isn't malfuctioning is it?Somthing defiantly isn't rite.
Sorry to hear of your troubles! Sounds like something is definitely amiss.
Was your work done by someone knowledgeable? Was the cylinder head and block checked for deck squareness? Is your turbo functioning correctly?
Improper installation and torquing can shorten head gasket life. If a deck surface is warped or uneven that will ruin the head gasket in time. If your turbo is sticking in the "closed position" creating too much back pressure, that will help blow gaskets too. You say you're easy on the truck, so I won't mention driving habits but hotter tuning most certainly puts your head gasket under higher loads if you push the go pedal.
x2 on the head and block. thats where the problem is starting from right? so why not start there.
what else is done to the truck? you don't have your signature filled in so that might help shed some light on what is going on if you could share other supporting mods other than just the studs and tuner.
Sorry new to the forums. Only mods I have is all emissions are deleted egr deleted I took it to a good mechanic around the house it blew within 3 hrs took it back blew within 45 min! then I heard about the timing and I was running it on no power to be safe until the 2nd mechanic told me about my timing I haven't messed with the timing on my mini maxx but I did turn the defueling off! I've sent the head off 3 times to be checked for cracks and square deck! I'm trying to fix the problem cuz I really love working out of this truck but can't afford to put it in the shop.
are you still on the default timing on the mini?
did you turn the defuels off after the last hg or in-between one of the blow outs?
do you run the exhaust brake occasionally or all the time?
what were the studs torqued to?
did your mechanic follow the proper torque sequence procedure?
sorry for all the questions, just some things that might help get this figured out. Im in no position to make a claim on what it is I'm just trying to ask things that might help some of the other guys that know better than I do.
What effect does the exhaust brake have on the headgasket?
^^^ keeping things loose in the he351ve prevents the vanes from sticking shut. stuck closed=higher drivepressure=hg problems. using the eb makes the vgt work the way it should.
Having the same problems as Chilipepper88 on boss's truck and need a good diesel performance shop in the Huntsville, Conroe, Lufkin area? Any rec?
Need a really good performance diesel mechanic shop to work on our company owner's truck, a very knowledgable mechanic shop.
It is 2011, 6.7 liter Cummins 4wd / Single wheel 3500 series truck. Mods are Black Max tuner, 6" exhaust, egr delete, nothing else.... No speciality studs put in when programming done. But anyway he had it all done up with H&S Black Maxx equipment to increase mileage and he was only getting 10 to 11 mpg and it only brought it up to 15mpg. But now it is needing major repair work(Possible blown head gasket as diagnosed by Dodge Dealer Service people). It's symptoms are.... Is after he shuts the engine down it, burps and spits coolant back into the radiator puke tank and after losing coolant enough coolant that way, (Which occurs on a daily basis) it begins to start overheating until he shuts it down and has to refil coolant because of losing it. There is no coolant found in his oil and another mechanic also checked and found no hydrocarbons in the radiator or puke tank, with it running or not.
The performance mechanics who cannot get to it for another month or so...Say that to fix it right and alievate the problem altogether that he needs to replace head gasket with some new Vulcan type gasket and replace head bolts with new 625 head bolts and then make sure that they properly torque all of the new head bolts down correctly. They also say that all of this is due to the fact that Dodge on that particular model of truck either didn't install a proper waste gate or size of waste gate if a waste gate at all on this particular truck year model and so what happens is that it causes an overpressure situation and either blows the head gasket out or the pressure cause the gasket to come apart or seperate or delaminates it and allows fluid through it or by it or it floats the head and loses coolant that way.
This is practically a new truck..< 65,000 miles on truck and because of the programmer being installed on it, Dodge won't take care of it, the performance shop who installed the tuner and egr delete and 6" exhaust, won't take care of it and so now, he is left at the mercy of trying to figure out what to do with his truck???
It has a Cummins 6.7 Liter engine w/ (possible Blown Head Gasket) Diesel people we know, say that that year model only has an issue because of an External Waste Gate problem or the lack or size of something in that waste gate and possible progamming issues).
So needless to say....He does not trust a whole lot of diesel shops, because he has been burned already... So then are there any recs out for there, in this area for a great diesel performance shop that has trustworthy mechanics who truly know what they are doing? The Relentless Diesel shop in Willis can't get to it until Jan. 20th which is way too long for him to wait??? He uses this truck every day.
The last head gasket issue 6.7L truck I did the head gasket would last 3hr before a new one was needed. We put in a new head gasket and ran a few hard miles (held to 43psi on a HE351vgt) on it to make sure it held up.
That was six months ago and the head gasket is still holding up. The guy pulls a triple axle RV toy hauler that's loaded on top of loaded. The 6.7L engine was over heated a half dozen times prior to the head gasket being installed.
D-max's are even worse for blown head gaskets and I've fixed a few of them issues trucks over the years.
What are the symptoms? Is the EGR cooler still hooked up?
I figure you have other means of transportation?
Warped head maybe an un-even surface since it has happened over 3 times now. I send it out and have the head resurfaced.
Too much back pressure? Stuck turbo?