Any 3.6L Pentastar owners out there?

[demarpaint]

Thanks for the replies. On the Wrangler forums they seem to be coming in one after another. First the ticking noise, then a trip to the dealer, being sent home told it was normal. Next is a CEL a dealer visit, clear codes, and a re-flash, then when the CEL trips again its back to the dealer, and the left cylinder head has to be replaced. Some are bending valves, or the valves are "kissing the pistons" on the drivers side of the engine. Seems very odd. Hopefully they get it resolved for the Wrangler owners. I'm waiting anxiously for some confirmation it has been resolved and the 2013 Wranglers hit the dealers. My Aerostar is really showing its age , and I'm getting tired of it, [thanks NY roads, traffic, and salt].

You guys that own the Pentastar equipped vehicles in other Chrysler products, how do you like the engine?

 

[Ursae_Majoris]

Love it. Surprised at the amount of power it produces pulling a heavy minivan around. Decent fuel economy too.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

I'd really like to take one of these for a test drive. Problem is getting a dealer to actually let me drive one.

My parents have an overly-anemic 3.8 wrangler rubicon (moreso than the regular 3.8) and I'd like to see if the new ones are as peppy as the venerable 4.0

 

[Hokiefyd]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
My parents have an overly-anemic 3.8 wrangler rubicon (moreso than the regular 3.8) and I'd like to see if the new ones are as peppy as the venerable 4.0


The new 3.6L Wranglers? As peppy as the old 4.0L Wrangler? Shoot, they're not even in the same league. The 4.0L is left in the dust, even by 3.8L guys. The 3.6L guys leave the 3.8Ls in the dust.

My folks have a 2011 3.6L Rubicon. Dad is president of the Family Motor Coach 4WD Association. They were running a 2006 Rubi with the 4.0L, and they struggled to keep up with the 3.8L Jeeps on the highways up to the trail rides. Now that the 3.6L is out, the 3.8L has trouble keeping up with the 3.6L.

 

[kkreit01]

I love mine as well. MPG is almost amazing for a vehicle this size, weight, and full-time 4x. It consistently gets as good as my car in mixed city driving. We've been averaging 18.5 MPG in mixed-city driving since we bought it in Dec. Engine is smooth, high-revving, and quiet. On paper, it has a broad torque curve, but it doesn't feel like. However, that's in comparison to my previous Hemi. MPG are +4-5 better than my previous 2wd Hemi. A cartridge filter from the top seals the deal. I hated the cartridge filter in my 2.3l Ford, but that was from the bottom (huge mess). Cartridge from the top is great (mess-free).

 

[SteveSRT8]

from one of our members at 300cforums.com:

"Just spent an hour reading postings on the Jeep forums about this. Those guys are brutal over there - running from accusations of being "Pentacondriacs" to just shy of claiming someones mother wears combat boots. From what I sorted out, some Jeeps with the Pentastar engine built between September 2011 and December 2011 are having an excessive ticking problem with the valvetrain above cylinder #2, and the computer has thrown codes that indicate a misfire on that same cylinder. Seems replacement of the entire head has been the norm when dealerships are presented with this issue. The issue seems to have arisen when the Jeeps hit between 3 to 5 thousand miles.

Although I have the 5.7 Hemi in my 300, I recently had the V-6 Pentastar with the 8 speed as a rental while in Florida last month, and thought it was a great car giving a smooth and quiet ride. I did not notice any unusual engine noise, in fact the engine was practically silent."

That's all I got. Dozens of positive responses from new 300 owners with the Pentastar/8 speed auto combination. They love them!

 

[demarpaint]

Thanks for the info! I read the same things you did, seems its cyl 2 and/or 6 are bad, either way the head has to be replaced. There are several members there having these problems, most seem patient, others are pizt and rightfully so. It just seems odd the problem is more prevalent in the Wranglers and nothing else. As I mentioned a few times I'm watching closely, I don't want to dive into shark infested waters, or burn $40K on a problem POS. I like the Wrangler and am hoping for a quick resolution. It is also funny how Allpar and Pentastars . com are silent about this. They did mention having issues with cleaning the blocks and a few bad engines as a result. Cleaning was difficult because they have no freeze out plugs, and they were quick to tell how Chrysler fixed that. This head issue they're silent about.

I wouldn't be happy with them swapping one cyl head on a new engine, especially if it had more than a few thousand miles on it.

 

[SteveSRT8]

I don't want any stealership monkeys in my engine. period.

I seriously question their ability to properly repair this new design.

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
I don't want any stealership monkeys in my engine. period.

I seriously question their ability to properly repair this new design.


I think the silence is alarming. If they knew the cause of the problem they'd shout it from the rooftops, like they did with the block cleaning issues they had. Imagine replacing one head on an V-block with 10K miles on it or more? I always swapped heads in pairs, I would not be happy with them swapping out one head. In fact I wouldn't be happy with a new vehicle that required that kind of repair in such a short period of time. Time will tell how this unfolds.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
Originally Posted By: Miller88
My parents have an overly-anemic 3.8 wrangler rubicon (moreso than the regular 3.8) and I'd like to see if the new ones are as peppy as the venerable 4.0


The new 3.6L Wranglers? As peppy as the old 4.0L Wrangler? Shoot, they're not even in the same league. The 4.0L is left in the dust, even by 3.8L guys. The 3.6L guys leave the 3.8Ls in the dust.

My folks have a 2011 3.6L Rubicon. Dad is president of the Family Motor Coach 4WD Association. They were running a 2006 Rubi with the 4.0L, and they struggled to keep up with the 3.8L Jeeps on the highways up to the trail rides. Now that the 3.6L is out, the 3.8L has trouble keeping up with the 3.6L.


We went from a 2004 Rubicon to a 2008 Rubicon. The rubicon can barely get out of its own way. On hills the venerable 4.0 could pull in 5th gear on the 04 Rubicon, the 2008 starts slowing down before the hill.

We're running the same size tire on both - 215 85r16. Gearing is equal.

My 2000 Cherokee has the same size tire as well, except 3.55 gears an an automatic transmission ... and it's much more peppy than the 3.8.

But there's always been something wrong with the 08 since we got it from the factory.

 

[Hokiefyd]

You're running 215/85R16s? That's an awfully skinny tire.

Yeah, something sounds wrong with your '08. My folks' '06 TJ Rubi was a slug. I've never had much love for that 4.0L engine, though. My family has owned three Jeeps with that engine, and it lasts a long time. That's about all I like about it. There are other engine designs that last a long time, too, and do a lot of other things better.

Anyway, yeah, the 3.8L should easily outrun a 4.0L Wrangler. My neighbor has a 2008 Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon with the stock 32.1" tires (255/75R17), and it does great.

The 215/85R16s you run on yours are only 30.5" tall. It should be a rocket (relatively speaking anyway).

 

[demarpaint]

The gearing plays a big part into the mix with the Wranglers. Some had 3.21 gearing which is a real dog, especially with larger wheels. The 3.73 and 4.10 gearing did a lot better in them.

 

[SteveSRT8]

I am confused why manufacturers still insist on stupid tall gears for vehicles when we have transmissions with two or even more overdriven gears!!

Our Silverados with 3.23's get LESS gas mileage than the same truck with 3.73's. Same engine, weight, trans, everything.

 

[Norm Olt]

215/85-16 was the standard LT tire size for almost 15 years of Ford F250 trucks... Hauled many a ton of camper, dirt, etc. in both 2WD & 4WD applications.

Around here it is probably one of the hardest size used tires to find, especially in the higher load ranges.

Not cheap, either.

Cheers!

p.s. Lots and lots of 17", 18", 20" "truck/suv" tires are available in as many different profiles as you can imagine. Now load rating is another story...

 

[95busa]

Originally Posted By: Clarence_Iba
Do you drive it or your spouse? If you drive it, any issues with being a "Minivan Dad?"

[censored] I don't care. I may get a stripped down Minivan as my next ride when the mighty Mercury finally gives up. Can't beat the practical side. I gives a d%mn what people think- I have three kids, a wife and three dogs. Short of a 15 passenger van they are the way to go.

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
I am confused why manufacturers still insist on stupid tall gears for vehicles when we have transmissions with two or even more overdriven gears!!

Our Silverados with 3.23's get LESS gas mileage than the same truck with 3.73's. Same engine, weight, trans, everything.


I had an E-150 with a 4 speed Manual OD tranny and a 3.00 rear, at about 80 mph it was turning about 2100 rpm. It couldn't get out of its own way. I think the reason why the same rig with a 3.73 rear would get better mileage is because you don't have downshift and floor it to get up a hill, pass someone, or enter a freeway comfortably. I'm not talking crazy maneuvers here, just normal safe driving. In a Jeep or LT a 3.73 or a 4.10 rear IMO is the only way to go.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
You're running 215/85R16s? That's an awfully skinny tire.

Yeah, something sounds wrong with your '08. My folks' '06 TJ Rubi was a slug. I've never had much love for that 4.0L engine, though. My family has owned three Jeeps with that engine, and it lasts a long time. That's about all I like about it. There are other engine designs that last a long time, too, and do a lot of other things better.

Anyway, yeah, the 3.8L should easily outrun a 4.0L Wrangler. My neighbor has a 2008 Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon with the stock 32.1" tires (255/75R17), and it does great.

The 215/85R16s you run on yours are only 30.5" tall. It should be a rocket (relatively speaking anyway).


I was using those tires for comparison - those are the winter tires. Skinny does better in the snow. They used the same set of tires on both Rubicons (had to run tubes in the 2004 rubicon ... had to buy another set of wheels for the 2008).

The tires on my Cherokee measure a hair over 31 (and are taller than your average "32" inch tire) because they are recaps. Also are significantly more heavy because they are load range E truck tires on 16'' steel wheels.



Originally Posted By: Norm Olt
215/85-16 was the standard LT tire size for almost 15 years of Ford F250 trucks... Hauled many a ton of camper, dirt, etc. in both 2WD & 4WD applications.

Around here it is probably one of the hardest size used tires to find, especially in the higher load ranges.

Not cheap, either.

Cheers!

p.s. Lots and lots of 17", 18", 20" "truck/suv" tires are available in as many different profiles as you can imagine. Now load rating is another story...


I like skinny tires - the way they perform and the way they look. That was around the only skinny "31" I could get on my Cherokee. My other option was 32x9 swampers but they were too expensive.

I bought treadwright mud tires in that size - because it's so common and the casings are so common, I paid $120 a tire to my door!


Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
I am confused why manufacturers still insist on stupid tall gears for vehicles when we have transmissions with two or even more overdriven gears!!

Our Silverados with 3.23's get LESS gas mileage than the same truck with 3.73's. Same engine, weight, trans, everything.


Stupid tall gears do well for the EPA test and that's about it.

 

[mlatour]

I purchased a 2011 Charger SE 3.6 last October,
and put aprox. 15000kms/9000 miles since then
(factory fill for 500kms, 2 oil changes with Pennzoil Plat. since)

Since new it does have a ticking noise from the left side cylinder head area when the engine is hot idling/no load.
In gear at idle (stoplight) and reving up to redline it is whisper quiet/no ticking.

Even with the 2.65:1 final gear ratio it's a peppy drive, (wish it had the optional 3.06 of the police version)
my only complaint is the auto trans which downshifts/unlocks TC too fast on wide open throttle lane changes/passing.
Flooring it crusing at 60mph goes from 2000 rpm in 5th to 5200 rpm in 3rd for a second or so until it upshifts/TC locks.

(previous vehicle was manual trans so I miss the full control a bit)

Overall nice engine, decent fuel millage despite my often hard driving habits,
easy oil changes/catridge filter on top (but plastic aero panel on bottom to remove to access oil pan)
292HP is nice on paper but for everyday driving the powerband could be a little lower/less rev happy.

The car is white and I dressed it up with those black police pack steel wheels, dog dish hubcaps / black grill.
People driving around me aren't sure if it's an unmarked cruiser so they're usually very respectful..!

 

[demarpaint]

I just read today on a Jeep forum the head replacement repair is getting mixed reviews. Ouch!

 

[SteveSRT8]

Just beware of Internet amplification. Do you have a real count on the actual number of affected engines?

My sources are telling me it is from a specific batch that were not cleaned properly at casting and the problem was quickly rectified.

Then there's going to be the stealerships lousy repairs talked about afterwards!