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Dodge Cummins Camshaft Replacement at DynoMite Diesel

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 22:01:58 +0000

I have been itching to get my camshaft replaced in my 2002 Dodge Cummins ever since I saw the article in Diesel Power magazine. I researched it and made an appointment with DynoMite Diesel in Monroe, WA to get it done. I also needed some better injectors because the ones I was using gave me really bad Idle and I needed to upgrade to something bigger due to my recent twin turbo installation. DynoMite Diesel specializes in injectors and acually hones and balances their own nozzles. I chose their 150HP Injectors.

The Camshaft that I chose for this project was from Diesel Dynamics in Nevada. I have only heard good things about their camshaft and their camshafts are new, not regrounds. Another sweet thing about Diesel Dynamic”s Camshaft is that it comes with the gear already mounted to it. Having the gear already mounted to Cam saves the mechanic a lot of time in the process.

The Mechanic working on our truck today is Mike. Mike has been working with diesels for several years now. I really appreciated the care and detail he put into working on my truck. He really payed attention to the little things and did not rush anything for the sake of getting the job done fast. The operation went smoothly and no time was wasted.

The first step that was taken was putting protective liner on the sides of my truck right outside of the engine compartment to keep anyone leaning over my truck from scratching it. The next step in the camshaft upgrade is to drain the coolant, remove the bumper, intercooler and radiator to give complete exposure to the front of the engine. The head cover is then pulled and the rockers removed.

Before the gear and camshaft are pulled out, each of the tappets must carefully be lifted up by sticking wooden dowels in the centers and holding them up with clothes pins. There are other ways of replacing the camshaft, but this is the most efficient way to do it. Great care must be taken though, if any one of the dowels or tappets fall while the camshaft is being pulled, they fall into the engine or oil pan and removing them is a big deal. It is really important to make sure that the wooden dowels are not worn out so that they will hold well.

The front engine cover gets taken off to expose the gears. The big gear in the middle of the picture is the gear with the camshaft connected to it that will be removed. Mike took great care in removing the gear without forcing it so that none of the dowels or tappets fell. This process is almost like watching a locksmith pick a safe. Mike has never had a tappet or dowel fall in all the camshaft installations he has done but we all still hold our breath while the camshaft is out.

The round tray that you see in the picture is placed in where the camshaft was. One by one, each dowel is lowered onto the tray and the tappet pulled out with a magnet. Using the same tray, a system of strings and springs, the new tappets are pulled through the engine on the tray into their positions. Each of the new tappets is then held in place with a wooden dowel and clothes pin. Before the new tappets are installed, Mike places them in a foil tray and makes sure they are completely covered in oil.

Now for the moment we have all been waiting for! The new Camshaft is oiled and gently installed the same way it was removed. The gear on the end of the camshaft has little dots on each side that must line up with the dots on the gears to the right and left. For the picture, we added some white dots where the real ones are so you can see them better. If you look through the bean shaped hole in the gear you can see the spacer that Mike put back there. The spacer keeps the Camshaft from moving back and forth. The Cam bolt in the middle of the gear gets tightened to 85 Ft/Lbs.

Now that the camshaft is installed, each of the tappets can now be lowered back on to the cam and the dowels and pins removed. The old gasket material is stripped from the front of the engine block and front engine cover and new gasket material is installed on the cover. The cover is then put back on the front of the engine and bolted on. The rockers are put back in the same order that they were removed and tightened to 27 Ft/Lbs of torque.

The radiator, intercooler and bumper is now back on and we put the coolant back in the radiator. They dont always do oil changes at the same time, but I figured it wouldnt hurt and I”m due for an oil change anyways. For the oil change I brought 12 quarts of AMSOIL 15W-40. While my pan was draining, Mike installed my fresh off the press 150HP injectors.

After it was all said and done, Mike brought the truck out of the shop and let the truck idle at 1500RPM for 15 Minutes. This allows the new Camshaft to break in.

I took the truck and went for a test drive, and wow, I definitely noticed the difference. Nothing quite as amazing as adding a 120HP chip, but the whole truck just seemed to run better. Between the new Camshaft, my new Dyno-Mite 150HP injectors, and my new twin turbos from BD Power, the truck just sailed smooth. At any given time I can break the back tires loose, but with me, I would rather not and just know that I can.

It almost makes me sad that I dont tow for a living because the truck is so setup for it now. The EGT”s on average are 200 degrees lower, and the cool thing is I have a hard time bringing it over 1000 degrees now when I floor it. Even going up a grade on the freeway, and punching it, I have a hard time going over 1000 degrees. Before the camshaft upgrade, I would have a hard time staying under 1000 degrees doing anything.

As far as my fuel economy goes, I”m getting about 2 more MPG better if I keep my foot out of it.

The Cummins Forum Truck now has 456 RWHP, and 910 Ft/Lbs of torque without any chemicals. Dyno-Mite Diesel did a great job on my truck and I would definitely recommend them to anyone looking to get new injectors or the Camshaft upgrade. They do really thorough, good, clean work and on things like replacing camshafts and injectors, you cant afford not to have that.

Installing a Volant Air Intake on a 2002 Dodge Cummins

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 22:00:26 +0000

The Cummins Forum Truck was in need of an intake about a month ago to help the engine well fed with cold air. We had already added a Turbo, Exhaust, Injectors and Chip, we needed an Intake badly. Volant happened to call us and when they found out what we were doing, offered to get us a new Intake for the truck. We were excited.

The first thing you need to do for this installation is remove the old intake tube and box. This is very easy. All you need is a screw driver to loosen the tube from the turbo and the box. Then, you need to remove the lid from the box, remove the old filter, and undew the 3 plastic nuts in the bottom of the intake box. Pull the old box out.

You will need to assemble the new box and all of its components before you go any further. Make sure to put the gasket material around the hole where the intake tube comes in. Place the Intake Box in the engine compartement exactly where the old one was and use the original plastic nuts to tighten the box down.

Place the 4″ rubber coupler on the small end of the intake tube along with the 2 – 4″ clamps. Place the large end of the intake tube in the intake box. Butt the small end of the intake tube against the Turbo Inlet and push half of the 4″ rubber gasket over the Turbo Inlet and clamp both sides.

Put the new cone filter in the box, and over the large end of the intake tube. Be sure that it is seated well, and tighten the large clamp around the filter, on to the tube.

Screw the plastic lid back on the intake box. Be sure that all the clamps are snug. Be careful not to over-tighten. You are done!

I really like this intake. I had installed MBRP”s exhaust but it definitely needed a good intake to make it complete. Now we have plenty of air coming in and out! Definitely feel a power increase. I can also here the Turbo spool up quicker. If you have a 98-2002 24V Cummins, I recommend this intake to you.

Thanks Volant!

Hypertech HyperPac for the 2001-2002 Dodge

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 21:54:43 +0000

The Hypertech HyperPac was probably one of the easiest programmers I have ever installed. In fact, the HyperPac isnt really just a programmer. The Hypertech HyperPac combines the best of both worlds in a programmer and module with something like Edge Product”s Attitude Monitor. The HyperPac Tunes your vehicle like a normal programmer would, through the OBDII port but everything else is like that of an in-line chip and monitor. I dont even need to describe the installation in this review/article because all you have to do is plug the HyperPac in the OBDII port and it walks you through the rest. Every page has a help button if you are stumped and everything is well described. Hypertech also sends you a very nice installation and user manual.

The HyperPac features a touch screen that is totally awesome! You can adjust the background color and text on the screen, mainly just deciding which one will be blue, and which will be white. The HyperPac comes with a Performance Tuning Section, Engine Monitor Section, Diagnostics, Dynanometer, Drag Strip Section and Vehicle/Hyperpac Options and Information Section.

The HyperPac Performance Tuning Section has 3 Stage”s of power levels for my 2002 Dodge. Horsepower additions all the way up to an additional 45 RWHP. This obviously not an extreme amount of horsepower compaired to many other chips and programmers out there. However, for the individual that just wants a little quicker throttle response, Performance and Towing Power, its perfect. The important thing about Hypertech”s HyperPac is the quality of their tuning. I have smooth acceleration across the board and I can tell that it is not being hard on my engine or transmission.

Besides the Performance Tuning Section, the Engine Monitoring Section is by far, my favorite section. On my rig, I was able to select from about 9 different Digital and Analog Guages that are way fun to play around with. Anytime you click on a digital or analog guage it takes you to a section that allows you to set an alarm for that guage. For instance, if I wanted to set the alarm to go off every time I went above 135 degrees in my Air Intake Temp, I could. The Engine Monitoring Section will also tell me things that my trucks guages normally would not, like my boost. Hypertech has another kit that you can purchase with the HyperPac that gives you the ability to monitor the EGT”s. This is a must!

The HyperPac has so many other features. You can do recording sessions where you can do tests, and then go back and see what all your stats were at what part of the test. I have used this already. Before I installed my exhaust, I did a test run up a hill outside of town at 70MPH. The test records every half second or second(not sure), telling me how many MPH I was doing at what RPM and what BOOST at what EGT and more. I was then able to go back and run the same test after I installed my exhaust so I could see how much my EGT”s had dropped in the same scenario.

Internet updates are something you can sign up for when you register your product. After an update has been released you can plug your HyperPac into your computer and download the update from the internet.

I really love my HyperPac and would recommend it to anybody that isnt looking to race. The only reason that I would go with anything else is so that I could get more horsepower for racing. As far as everyday driving performance and towing, the Hypertech HyperPac is the way to go.

Upgrading Ram & Cummins Name Plates

admin — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 16:22:09 +0000

I never liked the look of the old, boring, black and red RAM 2500 and Cummins 24V Turbo Diesel name plates so I bought the new style ones off of eBay! The Upgrade for the 2 – RAM 2500 and 2 – Cummins Turbo Diesel nameplates/decals were close to $100.

I dont know if there is one correct way to remove the old ones but I tried a combination of different things at different times. Some things you might need are, clothe/rubber gloves, chisel(or something solid that has a flat/pointy end), Goof Off, a good bug and tar remover that wont hurt your paint, tape measure, and heat gun.

The first thing I did was take that flat/pointy chisel and get right behind the old plastic nameplate. Try to get it right into the foam. Be careful not to scrape your paint or pry and dent your truck. Patience is key here. Gently Pull away from the truck, dont pry. The old nameplate may come off in chunks which, takes away all hope of ever selling it again on eBay.

After you remove the plastic, more than likely your still going to have most if not all of the old foamy sticky stuff on your truck. For this I recommend the heat gun and the heavy duty plastic gloves. The gloves do a good job of sticking to the foamy material and give you a good edge on pulling or pushing the foamy/sticky away. The heat gun will help to loosen it up. See the picture.

After you get the bulk of the sticky/foamy stuff off, you will probably need to wipe the rest of the residue off with goof off and a rag. Now, I dont know if Goof Off is supposed to be really bad for paint or not, but it seemed to be fine with my rig. I was sure not to leave any goof off residue on my though. I wiped the whole area thoroughly with another rag and some cleaner. Make sure to get all the little goobers off your truck.

Now, for the installation of the new ones, you want to mark out with a pencil where they need to go. I pretty much marked it out so that the new nameplate would be exactly where the old one was. I measured 1-1/2″ from the door front of the door and about 3/4″ up from the crease in the metal right under where the old nameplate was. Make sure to mark along the bottom in several places so that you get the RAM 2500 even all the way across. I made a dash with the pencil every 3-4 inches.

Take the backing off of the new nameplate and line it up carefully along the top of your pencil marks. After you have it where you want it, sweet across the front with your hand and make sure that it sticks good. Now, take the front plastic off. Beautiful! Well, at least mine was. I hope yours was too!

As far as the new Cummins Logo goes, I placed it about 1/2″ above the RAM 2500 and lined it up with the front. Other places to put the Cummins Logo are toward the front of your truck by the corner lights just like the new Dodge Cummins” have them, or I”ve also seen it in other locations on the front corner panel. Its up to you. I looked at all locations and thought right above the RAM 2500 to be the best.

Well, its all done now and it looks GREAT! I hope this article was a help to those of you looking to do the same thing. I purchased my nameplates from Avondale Automotive on eBay. I have purchased from them before and from the time I order, till the time I recieve, it usually takes about 3 days. I am VERY satisfied with their service.

Here is the link to the Cummins Turbo Diesel NamePlate
Here is the Link to the RAM 2500 NamePlate
If you have a 3500, here is the link for that: RAM 3500 NamePlate

NOTE: After reading this article, one viewer recommended using Fishing Line to cut off the nameplates instead of prying.