Dodge 440 Shocking Discovery

[Randall Brink]

When I bought my Dodge Monaco, I carefully decoded the VIN to determine that mine had the venerable Dodge 440-3 Motor Home engine. According to the VIN mine did, but over the past few days, while replacing a fuel line, I discovered that my engine is, instead, a 440-1! This was not an engine that Caribou or any other Dodge-based coach builder installed.

What kind pf problems/compromises should I expect with this lighter-duty Dodge engine that does not have the larger cooling channels, the wider oil journals, the longer crankshaft, etc., etc.

Should I consider replacing this -1 with a -3?

Thanks in advance for all comments and suggestions.

[Lakota Wolf]

With the engine you have now,,,It is sufficient to do the job of pulling your rig without any problems,

That 440 is one tough as nails motor. But be sure cooling system is clean and operating properly, plenty of air flow across the engine and you will get many many miles. Always fire the ole engine up during storage months and shift the transmission thru the gears to keep everything moving.. What kills the engines and trans are sitting idle and not running or moving the internal parts.

If your engines runs smooth and strong,, keep it in there. 440-1 is a good mopar engine. 

[Randall Brink]

Well, thank you very much, as this puts my mind at ease and relieves the disappointment at discovering this anomaly. My engine runs great and runs cool. I do those things you recommend in the off-season and keep my cooling and all other systems clean and well-monitored. The transmission has been drained and the fluid replaced, and the engine runs on Schaefer 9000 full synthetic 10-40. It uses no oil.

Thanks again for your comments!

[John "T" Nordhoff]

  Other then leaky valve covers, I had excellent performance with Dodge be it the 440 or 413 or 360. Those and the Torqueflite 727 Trannys were like bulletproof. Of course, in the 70's n early 80's , many of the RV's were Dodge equipped as compared to nowadays, especially in the Class C, when they're mostly Ford V 10. However, being a Chevy man I had to hunt n hunt n drive all the way to Texas to find my 454 Chevy powered Class C yayyyyyyyyyyyyy