2007 Phaeton/Freightliner/CAT 350I blew the motor and every mechanic I talk to says number 6 cylinder in these motors are notorious for overheating and burning a hole in the piston, sucking the oil out. These are not re-buildable and I am buying a new motor @$25K. Anyone else have or hear of this problem???

Mr. Michael, as long as I've been reading these threads I don't recall a CAT engine having major problems like that.My understanding is that all EGR engines will recirculate the exhaust in cylinder #6 which may have been part of the problem.I guess now you could think about switching to a Cummins if it's true about the CAT.How many miles on your CAT?Good luck and sorry to hear that this has happened.MM.

Not heard that one. So, did the engine overheat? And, the C7 can be sleeved. Saw an outside firm that does this for a living do it at Mustang Caterpillar in Houston. You can give them a call to get contact information.

Welcome to the forum.I would be doing a lot of research before I dropped 25k on a new engine.Did you contact Tiffin to see if they had similar complaints?Search for Tiffin forums and diesel forums.I would want to know if the problem can be corrected and I would be hesitant to install the same engine if they are known to fail because of an overheated cylinder.I've always heard good things about CAT Diesels.Please, keep us updated on your situation.

Sounds like you got the crank from lack of oil plus the pistons.Unless someone else is paying the $25K there are plenty of other options. New $15K plus freight. A RV low miles $9500 engine There were a bunch of new high HP C7 sold on Gov Liquidation recently although they may have been 24V.Plenty of other option than a new engine from Cat...$$$$$$No way would I try and put a different (cummins) electronic engine in it.

I've never heard of this being a problem with the CAT engine either. Typically, a burnt piston is cause by the fuel mixture becoming too lean. Did you notice anything different, unusual noise or performance issues prior to the failure? Also, I don't understand why burning a hole in a piston would prohibit an engine rebuild and as Brett identified, if the cylinder was damaged the block could be sleeved. Then again, if all the oil was "sucked out" then the damage could be more extensive to the block's internal components (remaining pistons, crank, connecting rods, cam, etc.) making it cheaper to replace the entire engine than repairing/replacing the damage parts. If you have a bad feeling about the CAT, a change to another manufacturer might not be worth it because it would require many external parts to be replaced, ECU (engine computer), turbo, exhaust, maybe even cooling system (radiator) and the list goes on. Sorry to read this and good luck with your repair.Lou05 Travel Supreme Envoy

2007 Tiffin Phaeton/Freightliner/CAT 350 | Good Sam Community

12 Replies

wolfe10
Explorer
Nov 28, 2015
Not heard that one. So, did the engine overheat?

And, the C7 can be sleeved. Saw an outside firm that does this for a living do it at Mustang Caterpillar in Houston. You can give them a call to get contact information.
Mr_Mark1
Explorer
Nov 28, 2015
Mr. Michael, as long as I've been reading these threads I don't recall a CAT engine having major problems like that.

My understanding is that all EGR engines will recirculate the exhaust in cylinder #6 which may have been part of the problem.

I guess now you could think about switching to a Cummins if it's true about the CAT.

How many miles on your CAT?

Good luck and sorry to hear that this has happened.
MM.

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2007 Tiffin Phaeton/Freightliner/CAT 350

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