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1st Gen. Ram - All TopicsDiscussion for all Dodge Rams prior to 1994. This includes engine, drivetrain and non-drivetrain discussions. Anything prior to 1994 should go in here.
The auto pedal got pulled, in preparation of swapping in the manual pedal set up. The cab bolts / mounts got pulled and the bushing look good which is great, as I want to use old OEM ones rather than the rock hard poly cab mounts.
I also got the taillight wire harness pulled from under the dash and fed through the firewall.
Other than messing with the brake res. the cab is ready to pull.
On Sunday the cab got the auto steering column pulled then the brake res. removed off the booster.
Charlotte bolted up the clutch hydro bracket while there was lots of room on the drivers side as I drilled out a 4 inch hole for a "Decksons" screw out access hole on the HVAC system on the passengers side. There was a small mouse nest on the inside of the HVAC box, but not too bad. I have seen some that look like you couldn't stuff another shred of jute padding or a pine needle in there.
We then pulled the cab and front clip as a complete unit using the shop lift. The powertrain was then removed and set on the shop floor on some wooden blocks, blue foam board and a moving dolly for the transmission. so I can work on it. We then had dinner and watched an Indiana Jones movie.
Yesterday I got the the transmission lines pulled cleanly as well as the transmission and flex plate. I will now do several upgrades and such to that engine before bolting a fresh SBC OK clutch to it along with a rebuilt Getrag I have had in my shop as a spare for 3 or 4 years.
The motor will get a 7 blade HX-35 turbo off a '01 24V, a new Gates water pump, the KDP and case bolts will be done along with a new front main seal. While the turbo is off I will drill a hole in the back three exhaust manifold side of the manifold for the Autometer pryo. gauge I will be installing.
Schools have closed for the virus and work has slowed down a lot. Looks like a perfect time to get some work done in the shop and spend some quality time with my daughter.
How many 12V engine covers do you have on that wall...I count 21?
Very good eye there old boy!
That is a 36 FT long Micro-lam with valve cover plates running the whole length of it. I think it works out to 15 plates length ways in the row, 3 rows high.
I neatly organized them into the '91.5-'93 plates and the later '94-'98.0 style P-pumped 12V alternating in the line.
I don't get out much so I deck out the shop / man cavern to entertain myself once in a while during those long winter nights.
After lunch today I had some free time, so....
I popped the factory '93 turbo off, followed by the auto heat exchanger and finally the auto flex plate. Then the exhaust manifold got drilled and tapped for the pyro probe.
I still have to pop the replacement HX-35 off the '01 motor and swap out the rear exhaust pipe / flanged plate for the earlier style plate that will allow a standard down pipe to bolt up with a V-band clamp
I have a used, but pretty nice Diamond Eye 4 inch exhaust off another '92 club cab 4x4 W-250 to use when the time comes.
I am grabbing an IPA and headed back out to the shop. I have 1 1/2 HRs at least before dinnertime.
Thanks guys.
In the back ground of those shop pictures....
Both 12V converted manual 5 speed 4x4 '85 crew cabs. The Vanilla Gorilla and the Black Pearl.... [Subliminal Pentastar pirate reference]
Three Ramchargers, two of them pop top ones. The root beer brown '78 2wd getting converted to 12V power. The orange '80 which is still a 360 gasser with a 4 speed manual transmission. Then the "diamond ice blue" '89 Ramcharger I drove to AZ with my trailer in tow to pick up in 5000 pieces unlabeled in 30 cardboard boxes, about 6 years ago. It then took several winters to finish up the half baked Cummins swap that was started on it.
Both the '92/'93 club cab trucks are also in the shop in pieces so I can access parts off them to build one really nice one. The crashed white club cab, cab can be seen in the background, rolling around the shop on some dollies, so I can pull the steering column, pedals and any other bits I may need during the build.
Years and years worth of Mopar projects in those pictures.
There where a couple steps that I didn't remember instantly, when using a 24V turbo on a 1st gen. As a note, I use new metal crush gaskets for the Ex. manifold flange and the back of the turbo plate.
I figured I would write this up, if it helps anyone else do this easy swap.
The two upper bolt holes are threaded for studs on the later turbos. To make it fit the 12V exhaust manifold I needed to pull those studs off the turbo flange and drill it out to the same size as the lower holes.
I also needed to re-use the 12v turbo oil drain pipe as it has a different bend in it.
I noticed the silicone hose that sides over the bottom of the oil drain pipe is a little short after I got it lined up. Which reminded me last time I did a 24 turbo swap, I used a '89-'91.0 style lower oil tube silicone hose on the motor for the 2wd RC project. I grabbed one of those off the shelf and used it to finish off the random OEM parts I used to get things to work well together. The earlier oil drain hose is an inch longer than the '91.5 and up ones I looked at are.
Speaking of oil lines I also re-use the OEM inlet line from the 24V motor.
I listed in an earlier post you also have to swap out the rear plate on the turbo from the 24V kind with an elbow cast into it to the kind that a V band clamps to like we commonly use on our 1st gens.
One other mod I did to the turbo while it was off was... I used a necked down turbo elbow I had floating around to feed the stock waste gate. The hole is pin sized. I will see if I like it, if not it is easy to remove. I am out of my stash of old spring waste gates, and / or HD waste gates to use.
I am expecting the turbo elbow to delay the waste gate opening, which I hope makes a 5 speed truck more fun to drive.
I would expect the OEM waste gate on that '01 5 speed truck, turbo to top out about 21 PSI, maybe a bit more. I would like to push that to about 30 to 35 tops. If I see more PSI than that, the elbow is coming out... or perhaps I will try to drill it out a tiny bit bigger.
One other mod I did to the turbo while it was off was... I used a necked down turbo elbow I had floating around to feed the stock waste gate. The hole is pin sized. I will see if I like it, if not it is easy to remove. I am out of my stash of old spring waste gates, and / or HD waste gates to use.
I am expecting the turbo elbow to delay the waste gate opening, which I hope makes a 5 speed truck more fun to drive.
I would expect the OEM waste gate on that '01 5 speed truck, turbo to top out about 21 PSI, maybe a bit more. I would like to push that to about 30 to 35 tops. If I see more PSI than that, the elbow is coming out... or perhaps I will try to drill it out a tiny bit bigger.
Ollie, I just did a turbo swap on my Drag-n-Fly from WH1C with 14cm exhaust housing to a bone stock HX35. I initially hooked up the waste gate on the HX35 and it defuelled at about 22psi. That made the truck less responsive than the WH1C set up, but ran cooler on the EGT side. No surprise right? So, I then unhooked the WG and topped it out past 30 psi on the gauge. The truck pulled harder and responded much better and STILL the EGTs were lower than the WH1C on the same grade and same GVW, but obviously higher than with the WG hooked up.
The mods on my pump are minimal, and the truck is tired based on the blow-by test in the FSM, but I can almost flat foot that thing now and not worry about running the EGTs through the roof. The HX35 is and awesome upgrade to a budget 1st Gen build.
BHD,
You used to have a WH1C, commonly found on the '94/'95 12Vs, not a 1st gen H1C turbo on your truck..Right?
This will be the 4th, 1st gen I have swapped a HX-35 on to, but the first time I will be using it with the stock '91.5-'93 intercooler, boots, tubes and intake horn. The other times I did the 2nd gen intercooler swap along with the bigger 2nd gen. tubes, boots and intake horn. That is another great budget upgrade. I would be doing the 2nd gen I/C upgrade on this build as well, but getting it all to fit with A/C looks tough. I am thinking it would be nice to have a 1st gen with A/C.
The last of the three HVLP LP kits I ordered from THD has been used to upgrade the OEM lift pump.
The front timing case was just opened up to show that the KDP was snugly stuffed into the same location it was installed in the early '90s. I staked the bore of the KDP a few times to keep it there. I will also loc-tite the case bolts that I can access.
I will be replacing the front main seal and using a new Cummins case cover gasket.
The engine harness was also removed, so I can swap over the manual engine harness with the proper transmission wires running off it.
03-14-2020, 08:54 PM
...Ben