Check out my sig to see where my truck is at. I've been really happy with pretty much every mod that I have done . I'm starting to research what mod I want to do next. My truck is a daily driver and is used to move everything from scrap metal to motorcycles to towing a 10k gross weight dump trailer.

What do you think would be the best "bang for buck" mod if performance is first priority but fuel economy is still a consideration?

-Turbo heat shield (I've taken a class in heat transfer and the radiation alone from an iron object around 1000F is significant, let alone the heat transfer from convection)
DEI Titanium Turbo Shield

-Water/Meth injection

-Injectors (Currently I have stock, I plan to get to 450 hp, so whichever injectors will run clean with that)

-Turbo (Something quick spooling that will eventually get to 450 hp)

-Fuel system (I have a 100GPH pump, maybe upgrade to 150GPH with fuel/air separator)

-Aftermarket intercooler

-Upgraded programmer (Edge juice, comp, Smarty)

Any feedback especially from experience is appreciated. Thanks!

 

I'd say look into Mach1.6 or 2.0 injectors or DDP injectors. I've been really happy with my 1.6!

 

Thanks for the feedback! The EDM process I know is among the best for precision machining, so it makes sense that these would be good. They will definitely be a consideration if/when I decide to do injectors.

 

I started out with the superchip programmer on my 01, then stepped up to the smarty s67. Loved it! I'd say get a smarty and injectors. And a fast pump with water/air separator & fuel filter

 

Ok! Sounds like the water/fuel/air seperator and filter is a good idea as soon as I start fueling more than stock injectors and superchips programmer

 

JMO....but I'd steer away from superchip and just get a Quadzilla or Edge Juice box or Smarty. Either of these will provide you way more than SC.
Basics of upgrades:
1. Gauges
2. Upgraded lift pump
3. Improved air flow intake
4. Improved exhaust
5. Improved injectors
6. Improved turbo
7. Head studs & O-rings
8. Repeat #5 & #6 until you need compound turbos.
You can see my signature...been down this road....I'm at #5
Good luck

 

That's actually the exact order I have done things! According to your list injectors would be next. I was thinking turbos next so I'm not just adding fuel that I can't burn with the air supplied by the stock turbo

 

450hp is *right* at the point the HX35 platform runs out. Slightly less and you can keep a lot of stock(ish) stuff. Once you go much over 400hp you really need to think about the clutch and transmission, but obviously the turbo starts to be inadequate *if* you use the fueling at sustained high levels.

Personally I'd cross intake mods and intercooler right off the list at that target power level. Nomex intercooler boots might be a good idea though.

Keeping it slightly below 450 means you can go with a good handling organic single clutch if you upgrade to 13". It's also possible to keep the hx35, which due to size is a fast spooling turbo, easy to get parts for, and somewhat upgradeable- direct mount exhaust brake, hx40 housing. I would do the 1.375" input shaft when doing the clutch.

This ^ is essentially what I did, with the plan to never hit 450hp and need a turbo swap or clutch compromises.

Set aside $500 for an aftermarket exhaust manifold, they are notorious for warping and cracking. Adding more fueling may manifest this issue.

I agree with injectors being a good next step, they go hand in hand nicely with a mild chip. They multiply, rather than add, so whatever HP they are supposed to add to stock, take your percentage over stock you already have in fueling multiply that percentage by the injectors HP to get an idea of what they will do stacked with a chip.

 

Definitely Injectors

 

Total loser...did you notice a decent gain in swapping for the 35/40 turbo?
I presume you had an hx35 beforehand...
Thx!

 

Not really. If I had to do it again, I might skip it. Lost low end response, gained midrange and top end performance. But at my fueling level I think it was iffy to bother with.

I ran the hx35 before, with a boost elbow- 30psi to the manifold. Running about 32 at the manifold now, but I plan to adjust it up a tiny bit to hit 35 at the manifold. EGT's have been fine, and under heavy load mid rpm I think it may have dropped about 50F, but as I'm set up, I really have to work to hit 1100 anyway. My probe is pre-turbo.

To do it, I bought a smallish (60mm x 86mm) compressor housing, welded and machined a wastegate mount and machined the turbo cassette housing on a rotary table to clear the wheel. I also rebuilt the turbo (pretty easy and cheap other than the gianormous snap ring) and swapped to an adjustable boost elbow. These days cassette mounted waste gate actuators are available so TIG on the compressor housing would not be necessary.

https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...-257921/page2/

Of note though is that it turned out I had an air leak at the fuel tank sending unit assembly, so the initial performance was artificially bad. The low rpm smoke cleared up a lot after I caught this issue.

 

Thank you! I've been debating to keep what I have and not mess with a good setup -or- I was looking at this hybrid 35/40 -or- do the he351cw conversion. Really appreciate the reply!

 

It's a tough one to decide. I do almost all my driving at low rpm, and the hx35 was hot dog enough for me to get by slowpokes. The hybrid *does* make more power, but it's also a hassle, and a minor compromise on low end response. And my expectations of it were only marginally reasonable. I had primarily hoped the larger compressor would clean up low rpm smoke.

Based on what I have read, I would seriously consider a SuperB if you are considering those two. The ball bearings will help keep your low rpm response, but deliver better heavy throttle flow.

If you do go hybrid, I would advise going small- there are several sizes. Not only to keep lag reasonable, but also to protect the shaft. Folks who are pushing high HP sometimes snap the shaft. Especially during turbo bark between shifts. My guess is that they are running the bigger sizes (they go up to 99mm) and pushing much higher boost, but smaller has benefits. I do think I chose the perfect size for my HP level though. This is the one I bought:

High Performance Upgrade Kit by BAE Holset HX35 HX35W HX40 HX40W 60.00mm Inducer - 86.00mm Exducer Compressor Wheel (V-Band Connection)
The external mounting bracket actuators are all over e-bay, as are the hx35 rebuild kits.

If you have access (and skill) to a mill and rotary table it's about a $400 mod, and FWIW I've had a few offers to buy mine.

 

Totalloser thanks for the input. So I ended up finding a Fleece Cheetah 63mm with about 10,000 miles in great working condition for sale at a great price in my area. This turbo is a little bigger than what I had in mind, and I'm still running stock injectors. But it was a really good deal to pass up. I've only had about 500 miles on it, and the low end response is pretty poor compared to the stock HX35. But I think this should be expected because I have stock injectors and a pretty mild tuner (Superchips Flashpaq). Some say that because its a bigger turbo, it is actually flowing more air, but at a lower PSI. (I saw about 22 psi max with my HX35, im seeing 19psi max with the Fleece). But what determines the correlation between flow and pressure is after the turbo, at the intake manifold and the plumbing behind it.

Anyways, the turbo sounds awesome, and I think with a 4" downpipe, less restrictive turbo outlet elbow, smarty/edge stack, injectors, exhaust manifold and maybe a port and polish of the turbo, I will be happier with the low end spool up of the turbo.