Oil Pump problems of the 1998 Dodge Durango

62k miles doing the speed limit on I/70 east of mt comfort exit. Oil pressure went to 0 before I could slow and get to the shoulder the engine blew a rod threw the oil pan. Had it towed to my repair shop. He took the pan off and said he thought the oil pump had failed from what he could see. Local dealer did not want to talk about it. Said it was out of warranty. I told him of the failures I had found on the internet and he referred me to Dodge and hung up. Dodge replied to my inquiry by telling me to talk with my local dealer.

During a drive oil pressure dropped. I stopped, to check the oil which was fine. 2 days later I completely lost oil pressure after having chnged my oil recently. I owned the vehicle less than 2 months and had to have the oil pump and screen replaced. After reading the web I realized this is a Dodge defect that they have know about.

Returning home from a business trip, the Durango started making a loud noise, then quit within seconds of the original noise, with a loud clunk. The "check engine guages" light did not come on prior to the loud noise. I live in the mountains, and fortunately the engine quit next to a vehicle turnout. If the engine failure had occured a few seconds earlier, or a few seconds later, my life would have been in serious danger, and I would have endangered the lives of the people at risk of hitting my stalled vehicle. My mechanic found a used engine and installed it. New installed engine ran quite well for about 300 miles. This time, the failure was forwarned by a "check engine guages" light and bell. Checking the guages, I found nothing out of the ordinary - oil pressure and temp were ok. This happened with the second bell as well. The third bell, and I turned the engine off due to the oil pressure guage falling to zero. Towing the Durango to a local mechanic, he advised that we should change the oil pump, but advised me that metal shavings were found in the oil pump screen, and that further damage was probbable. My mechanic told me that I should have the pump changed, and drive it to his shop for inspection - a distance of approximately 35 miles. The Durango made it 15 miles before quitting. The catastrophic failure of this engine creates a definite safety hazard. The manufacturer should be allowed to do a recall on this engine. If the manufacturer does not think a recall necessary, the NHTSA should force a recall. This engine will create serious harm to someone. It is just a matter of time. . . .

Note: two oil changes within 2,000 miles of breakdown (have receipts). Traveling on busy highway when oil pressure dropped to 0 and engine immediately began to make loud tapping noise. Oil pan was removed and "a lot of metal shavings from the engine" had clogged the oil screen causing the oil pump failure. As a result of the oil pump failure, the engine was damaged and needs replacement. Based on ntsa database and discussions with area experts, this oil pump failure/engine damage defect condition for the 1998 Durango (5. 2l) is common, yet frequently unreported. No assistance from manufacturer. Warrants detailed agency scrutiny and product recall due to defect condition. Will be pursuing legal action to recover cost of oil pump and engine replacement.

Engine failure due to oil pump failure and sludge buildup. First incident happened on 2-11-02 at 65,499 miles. Engine replaced and second incident occurred on July 16, 2003 at 91,749 miles.

My husband and I were driving down I-71 and the check guages light came on and the oil pressure had dropped to 0 causing engine failure due to a clogged oil pump intake screen. Was told that it was due to improper maintenance although oil was changed in a timely manner. Had the vehicle towed to a dealership where the oil pan was taken off and engine components and metal shavings were found. The service advisor himself told us that he could not say for sure that the problem was improper maintenance. He also maintained that if we had a chrystler inspector come in we would end up paying for a new engine. Here we are making payments on a $30,000 that we cannot drive until we come up with almost $5000 to replace the engine.

Main engine bearing failed. Previous oil pump failure at 23000 miles pinging at 15,000 miles.

Oil pressure dropping. . . . Dealer told us that they thought it was the gauge. . . Not to worry. The engine seized up that evening. . . . We were slightly over the mileage on the warranty so was told that it would not be covered. . . . . We had the engine rebuilt and the lines cleaned out (oil was sludge. . . . Lots of metal shavings) and when the pressure started dropping (about 10000 miles) again we immediately took it in for service. . . . . . . Again there was lots of sludge and metal shavings. . . . . . We had the oil pump replaced and the Durango functioned for a short time and is now in the shop again with the same problem. . . . . . . The mechanic feels like it has spun a main bearing and that is the cause for the metal shavings that keep occurring. . . . . . There is something seriously wrong with the engines in this particular model vehicle. . . .