Dodge V8 Freeze out plug

From : delby

Q: i have a 98 dodge durango slt with the v8. the freeze out plug on the right side of the block started leaking and over time has gotten worse ive been pouring water in it by the gallon. i have to get it fixed by winter so i took it to the garage at first the guy thought it would take only a few hours 1 to 5 to fix. after he started he found he had to unbolt the engine mount remove some type of braket that was in that area.. jack up the engine. still not enough room so he called and said he was 6 hours into the work but it would take longer as he would have to partally disassemble the right side wheel and diferencial in order to lower the motor mount in order to get enough room to put the plug in. by my calculations this will prob be in the 10 to 15 hour range. does anyone know if this sounds right or am i getting hosed. from my view it looks like about $700 labor to replace a $5 part.. .

Replies:

From : ron

if you are not a mechanic and cannot do it yourself then you cant compare $5 against $700. i have no doubt that it could take that long. i sure would be nice if the auto companies would put in brass plugs in the factory. so for you information make sure if he is going to finish this job that he replaces all the plugs not just the one that is leaking and to replace them with brass plugs instead of the steel ones. ron delby wrote i have a 98 dodge durango slt with the v8. the freeze out plug on the right side of the block started leaking and over time has gotten worse ive been pouring water in it by the gallon. i have to get it fixed by winter so i took it to the garage at first the guy thought it would take only a few hours 1 to 5 to fix. after he started he found he had to unbolt the engine mount remove some type of braket that was in that area.. jack up the engine. still not enough room so he called and said he was 6 hours into the work but it would take longer as he would have to partally disassemble the right side wheel and diferencial in order to lower the motor mount in order to get enough room to put the plug in. by my calculations this will prob be in the 10 to 15 hour range. does anyone know if this sounds right or am i getting hosed. from my view it looks like about $700 labor to replace a $5 part.. .

From : dick puter413atyahoo com

for $700 he should r&r the engine & replace them behind the flywheel too! if you are not a mechanic and cannot do it yourself then you cant compare $5 against $700. i have no doubt that it could take that long. i sure would be nice if the auto companies would put in brass plugs in the factory. so for you information make sure if he is going to finish this job that he replaces all the plugs not just the one that is leaking and to replace them with brass plugs instead of the steel ones. ron delby wrote i have a 98 dodge durango slt with the v8. the freeze out plug on the right side of the block started leaking and over time has gotten worse ive been pouring water in it by the gallon. i have to get it fixed by winter so i took it to the garage at first the guy thought it would take only a few hours 1 to 5 to fix. after he started he found he had to unbolt the engine mount remove some type of braket that was in that area.. jack up the engine. still not enough room so he called and said he was 6 hours into the work but it would take longer as he would have to partally disassemble the right side wheel and diferencial in order to lower the motor mount in order to get enough room to put the plug in. by my calculations this will prob be in the 10 to 15 hour range. does anyone know if this sounds right or am i getting hosed. from my view it looks like about $700 labor to replace a $5 part.. --- outgoing mail is certified virus free. checked by avg anti-virus system http//www.grisoft.com. version 6.0.729 / virus database 484 - release date 7/27/2004 .

From : ron

100 % correct. do them all not just one per year. dick wrote for $700 he should r&r the engine & replace them behind the flywheel too! if you are not a mechanic and cannot do it yourself then you cant compare $5 against $700. i have no doubt that it could take that long. i sure would be nice if the auto companies would put in brass plugs in the factory. so for you information make sure if he is going to finish this job that he replaces all the plugs not just the one that is leaking and to replace them with brass plugs instead of the steel ones. ron delby wrote i have a 98 dodge durango slt with the v8. the freeze out plug on the right side of the block started leaking and over time has gotten worse ive been pouring water in it by the gallon. i have to get it fixed by winter so i took it to the garage at first the guy thought it would take only a few hours 1 to 5 to fix. after he started he found he had to unbolt the engine mount remove some type of braket that was in that area.. jack up the engine. still not enough room so he called and said he was 6 hours into the work but it would take longer as he would have to partally disassemble the right side wheel and diferencial in order to lower the motor mount in order to get enough room to put the plug in. by my calculations this will prob be in the 10 to 15 hour range. does anyone know if this sounds right or am i getting hosed. from my view it looks like about $700 labor to replace a $5 part.. --- outgoing mail is certified virus free. checked by avg anti-virus system http//www.grisoft.com. version 6.0.729 / virus database 484 - release date 7/27/2004 .

From : james1549

another reason to change the coolant every 2 years regardess of mileage or type of coolant. its a good chance that regular scheduled coolant flush/fill would have prevented this. james .

From : buster

i worked with a lady that had a 00 durango that started leaking coolant from the backside of the engine 318 at 52k miles. she took it in and was told they would have to drop the transmission to get to it. she was told $700.00. the freeze plug had rusted through. she tried to get dodge to fix it as she felt it was not normal for a freeze plug to rust through at 52k but since it was no longer under warranty it no longer fell under normal conditions and into the category of improper maintenance she went to a local repair shop and had it done for $500.00. bk on fri 30 jul 2004 121812 -0400 delby delbert3@ceinetworks.com wrote i have a 98 dodge durango slt with the v8. the freeze out plug on the right side of the block started leaking and over time has gotten worse ive been pouring water in it by the gallon. i have to get it fixed by winter so i took it to the garage at first the guy thought it would take only a few hours 1 to 5 to fix. after he started he found he had to unbolt the engine mount remove some type of braket that was in that area.. jack up the engine. still not enough room so he called and said he was 6 hours into the work but it would take longer as he would have to partally disassemble the right side wheel and diferencial in order to lower the motor mount in order to get enough room to put the plug in. by my calculations this will prob be in the 10 to 15 hour range. does anyone know if this sounds right or am i getting hosed. from my view it looks like about $700 labor to replace a $5 part.. .