Dodge Caliber euthanized

[Zembonez]

I had it in a Siverado too and it was phenomenal!

I'm sorry, but there will never be anything "phenomenal" about the 4.3 in a fullsize truck.

Not everything is based on pistons needing to be the size of one's head.

Keep in mind I also own (and am happy with the power of) a 1.6L Miata.

Our local NAPA distributor ran a large fleet of 4.3 regcab Chevy trucks for years. Most of them had well over 300K on the clock before they retired them. The 4.3 was a great, long life engine in those trucks. They might not have been fast (he didn't need fast), but they lasted like crazy. Many half ton utility vans also used the 4.3 and lasted well.

I will guarantee you those weren't 300 thousand "phenomenal" miles though.

Probably not.

 

[Texas Jim]

Our local NAPA distributor ran a large fleet of 4.3 regcab Chevy trucks for years. Most of them had well over 300K on the clock before they retired them. The 4.3 was a great, long life engine in those trucks. They might not have been fast (he didn't need fast), but they lasted like crazy. Many half ton utility vans also used the 4.3 and lasted well.

I will guarantee you those weren't 300 thousand "phenomenal" miles though.

The half million miles that me and my guys put on the three 1999 Vans I had and the 100,000 that I put on the 2006 van before I sold it were pretty "phenomenal" miles.

Not "ONE TIME" was any of the four vehicles in the shop for a mechanical problem with any of the engines...
The most that ever had to be done to any of them was replace a water pump.

That was pretty "phenomenal" to my wallet...

 

[drperry]

Our local NAPA distributor ran a large fleet of 4.3 regcab Chevy trucks for years. Most of them had well over 300K on the clock before they retired them. The 4.3 was a great, long life engine in those trucks. They might not have been fast (he didn't need fast), but they lasted like crazy. Many half ton utility vans also used the 4.3 and lasted well.

I will guarantee you those weren't 300 thousand "phenomenal" miles though.

The half million miles that me and my guys put on the three 1999 Vans I had and the 100,000 that I put on the 2006 van before I sold it were pretty "phenomenal" miles.

Not "ONE TIME" was any of the four vehicles in the shop for a mechanical problem with any of the engines...
The most that ever had to be done to any of them was replace a water pump.

That was pretty "phenomenal" to my wallet...

How often did you do the distributor cap and rotor on yours?
I know I needed to do mine every one or two oil changes... But there's a lot more moisture in the air here than there

 

[dietz4ibanez]

I had it in a Siverado too and it was phenomenal!

I'm sorry, but there will never be anything "phenomenal" about the 4.3 in a fullsize truck.

Because it was enormously under powered compared to the raw horse power of a 350....



Could you imagine the raw power of a 2.8 in a miata...???

 

[Texas Jim]

The half million miles that me and my guys put on the three 1999 Vans I had and the 100,000 that I put on the 2006 van before I sold it were pretty "phenomenal" miles.

Not "ONE TIME" was any of the four vehicles in the shop for a mechanical problem with any of the engines...
The most that ever had to be done to any of them was replace a water pump.

That was pretty "phenomenal" to my wallet...

How often did you do the distributor cap and rotor on yours?
I know I needed to do mine every one or two oil changes... But there's a lot more moisture in the air here than there

Never had the distributor cap off of any of them...ever...

 

[PJB4x4]

Mine blew the intake gasket at 117k and then spun a bearing at 123k. At 125k the tranny started going so I decided to get rid of the POS. With the exception of my Mustang it was the worst vehicle Ive ever owned.

My uncle had a 4.3 in a 2003/4 Silverado and drove it for 170k+ before selling it. All highway miles.

Id take a 2.8 over a 4.3 anyday. Sure they have the power of a 4 cylinder and the gas mileage of a v8 but they seem to last. I had two S10's with them and both had 150k+ when I got rid of them. The '89 is still around. The last time I saw the '93 was several years ago and it was in rough shape and probably got junked. How the '89 that was mostly rust is still around is beyond me. That truck leaked just about everything and I blew the radiator that was see thru anyway while towing a car and kept driving and then drove it for the next few days until I put a used radiator in it.

 

[dietz4ibanez]

Mine blew the intake gasket at 117k and then spun a bearing at 123k. At 125k the tranny started going so I decided to get rid of the POS. With the exception of my Mustang it was the worst vehicle Ive ever owned.

My uncle had a 4.3 in a 2003/4 Silverado and drove it for 170k+ before selling it. All highway miles.

Id take a 2.8 over a 4.3 anyday. Sure they have the power of a 4 cylinder and the gas mileage of a v8 but they seem to last. I had two S10's with them and both had 150k+ when I got rid of them. The '89 is still around. The last time I saw the '93 was several years ago and it was in rough shape and probably got junked. How the '89 that was mostly rust is still around is beyond me. That truck leaked just about everything and I blew the radiator that was see thru anyway while towing a car and kept driving and then drove it for the next few days until I put a used radiator in it.

Change the oil much back then???

 

[Zembonez]

Mine blew the intake gasket at 117k and then spun a bearing at 123k. At 125k the tranny started going so I decided to get rid of the POS. With the exception of my Mustang it was the worst vehicle Ive ever owned.

My uncle had a 4.3 in a 2003/4 Silverado and drove it for 170k+ before selling it. All highway miles.

Id take a 2.8 over a 4.3 anyday. Sure they have the power of a 4 cylinder and the gas mileage of a v8 but they seem to last. I had two S10's with them and both had 150k+ when I got rid of them. The '89 is still around. The last time I saw the '93 was several years ago and it was in rough shape and probably got junked. How the '89 that was mostly rust is still around is beyond me. That truck leaked just about everything and I blew the radiator that was see thru anyway while towing a car and kept driving and then drove it for the next few days until I put a used radiator in it.

 

[PenguinLTZ]

The 2.8 was a durable bastard

 

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

The thread got quickly hijacked by the "phenomenal" 4.3

About the Caliber: its scheduled replacement, the Dart, maybe could also replace the Avenger...