Magnum Salvage

As I stated on the 12 valve forum, I have a 98 12 valve 1 ton 4x4 Dually with the 5 speed manual. It has 227,000 miles and I don't believe the truck has ever been modified from stock. All I have done so far is bulid my own exhaust with dual stacks and add a Napa (2570 part number I believe ?) air filter and I removed the silencer ring. I also had the NV 4500 rebuilt with an updated/upgraded 5th gear nut and I put in a South bend Con OFE 13 inch Clutch.
I'm assuming it has the 215 HP pump ? i'm not sure and dont know how you determine that ? Anyway, I'm having my friend who is a mechanic put in the KDP kit since the timing cover gasket appears to be leaking anyway. Sorry for rambling on but here are my questions. I would like to make some more power. I'm thinking 300-400 HP over time by adding and upgrading things. I have no intentions of drag racing or pulling with the truck. It will be a daily driver that I will occasionally pull a gooseneck with. What upgrades should or could be done with those goals in mind ? I know guages are #1, but after that ? I was thinking a #10 fuel plate, a 4000 GSK and 60 lb valve springs ? Would I need a aftermarket turbo or different injectors before I put the fuel plate in ? Also I want my mechanic to reset the Timing . I live in Wisconsin and its flatland up here. With those Mods where should it be timed at. I have the money to start buying these upgrades now so I was looking for your advice on what to get with part numbers and what else I may need to reach my goals. Than I was looking at injectors or a turbo down the road after I did the fuel plate and other stuff. Is this possible ? Thanks for your time. Matt

Magnum Salvage

Anybody ?

Magnum Salvage

Nobody willing to give me any advice ? Sorry if it's a dumb question but I'm not too knowledgeable on diesel stuff obviously.

DodgenIt

Well Matt, Im a 24v guy and cant say that I have much knowledge on 12v's..
But I think your on the right track. Fuel plate, gsk and valve springs ae good first steps. Slightly advanced timing would be good too.
Not sure how much fuel youll be flowin there, but some 50ish hp injectors might be doable too. ?? Dont take my word on the sticks just yet though.
Your HX-35 is a petty tough turbo. And if after those mods you could use a little more air, you could put an adjustable boost elbow on to get a few more lbs boost and drop egts a little. I got mine off ebay.
Or even just tun your 35 into a 35/40 hybrid.

Hopefully a 12v guy will chime in.
HTH. Ian

Midnite

Your 1998 has the 215 pump. I'm not sure which year they first appeared on, but I know for sure the 98 has it.

Your philosophy is the same that I've followed with my '92 12 valve and now with my 2000 24 valve truck. If you haven't added gauges yet, those should be the next thing you do. There are a number of mods you can do which will not hurt EGT, but if you have your gauges before doing them you'll be able to see just how much those mods help your EGT.

After the gauges, I agree with DodgenIt on the plate, gsk and valve springs. Next I'd go with the timing bump to 16 degrees. On my 24v truck I just disconnected the wastegate, and I'd recommend you try that after the other mods. Once you do that, if you see that you're still not making more than about 30 psi boost I'd say just leave the wastegate disconnected. More than 30 psi though, and I'd go with an adjustable elbow.

Your 215 injectors are pretty good as-is for the use you're talking about. You could probably find some 370 marine injectors relatively cheaply and get a pretty decent power jump, but they'll be a little smokey.

If you're going to have the radiator and intercooler out to do the KDP anyhow, you might consider a mild cam. Hamilton's 181/210 looks really interesting to me right now, but they have milder ones that might squeak out a little more MPG. If that's something that interests you then you might do some searches here for more info. A mild cam will help spool the turbo earlier and also reduce your EGT, so it would be a big help when towing.

I'd also recommend going beyond the engine when thinking about mods. For example, when you're towing you'd be much happier with an exhaust brake. Same thing for the rear drum brake upgrade involving the larger wheel cylinders. Another very good mod is an aftermarket harness using larger gauge wire and relays to take the electrical load off your headlight switch. I know firsthand that a burned out headlight switch in the middle of nowhere is absolutely no fun. You'll get slightly brighter headlights as well. Summit has these. Improved backup lighting is always good to. You can go cheap like I did on my '92 and go with 35 watt tractor lights with rubber housings, or you could spend a bit more and get the White Knight 55 watt unit.

Don't forget your batteries either--one of the best things I did for reliability was to ditch my conventional lead-acid batteries and go with a pair of spiral cell AGM batteries. Optima is a good example. Even better is the Odyssey batteries. They're also AGM but they don't use the spiral cell construction.

I'm sure there's other stuff I've forgotten, but hopefully others will chime in.

Mike

Tate

My reccomendations would be ditch the plate entirely, block your wastegate, put in a 4k gsk and valve springs, and bump your timing to 15 or 16 degrees. That should be good for 350 hp or better. I had a 10 plate and hated it, I don't like the defueling up top. Guys say its good for towing, but you can still get it hot with that plate, and still need to back off using your foot. Blocked wastegate is free, and again, you can control the boost with your foot. Get teh 4k kit, because if you get the 3k, you'll be left wanting more.