Bench Racing

[1994IDI]

Howdy again. I've been getting antsy about playing with the truck again (as I frequently do). My attention has been on the bike, and possibly a project car for awhile, and now I'm back to the truck. I told my wife after I did the stacks I would be done for awhile, but I never was good at keeping automotive promises.
I would really like to get the truck up to around 500 ft/lb torque mark. At the wheels. What I am really interested in is getting some ideas from the guys with ALOT of experience with these trucks.. you know who you are.. to let me know what you think about power adders.
Stipulations:
-I don't think I have the time or money to add an IC.
-I don't want to change the turbo. It is the stock garrett turbo.
-I don't want to open the motor up.
-I dont think I have the time or money for any injection. But, then again, I don't really know what water injection would cost me.

That being said, how much power can I add without sacrificing ALOT of fuel mileage, reliability and longevity. Longevity is the big thing. The truck is about to turn 80,000 original miles, and I want to drive it for a long time.
So, can I turn out another 100 ft/lb. More or Less?? Shoot me some ideas with real world price numbers. I would love to see a detailed parts list....anyone feel like bench racing

 

[towcat]

Howdy again. I've been getting antsy about playing with the truck again (as I frequently do). My attention has been on the bike, and possibly a project car for awhile, and now I'm back to the truck. I told my wife after I did the stacks I would be done for awhile, but I never was good at keeping automotive promises.
I would really like to get the truck up to around 500 ft/lb torque mark. At the wheels. What I am really interested in is getting some ideas from the guys with ALOT of experience with these trucks.. you know who you are.. to let me know what you think about power adders.
Stipulations:
-I don't think I have the time or money to add an IC.
-I don't want to change the turbo. It is the stock garrett turbo.
-I don't want to open the motor up.
-I dont think I have the time or money for any injection. But, then again, I don't really know what water injection would cost me.

That being said, how much power can I add without sacrificing ALOT of fuel mileage, reliability and longevity. Longevity is the big thing. The truck is about to turn 80,000 original miles, and I want to drive it for a long time.
So, can I turn out another 100 ft/lb. More or Less?? Shoot me some ideas with real world price numbers. I would love to see a detailed parts list....anyone feel like bench racing

i'm in the category of beginner's luck as far as experience goes, but i'll give your question a shot......
what power adders are you proposing then?
you don't want to spend any money.
you don't want to do any real work.
you want to achieve a miracle with one of these motors with plug ins that don't exist
when you figure out the secret, let us all know.
what we do know is......
moose pump, moose misters and a IC will change the performance of the motor in a big way.
since there are no chips to plug in, you just have to do things the hard way.
spend money and get greasy.
good luck!

 

[91f2504x4]

Too make more power, you need more fuel and more air in the engine, or a way to make use of the fuel and air you have now more efficiently. All the these things will require work and money. Propane is good for so more power but if you start relying on it too heavy you are going to be replacing pistons and possibly valves. Water Injector will help some but you have to be really careful on how much you use unless you want to make a horseshoe out of a connecting rod. Water injection is beneficial in a couple ways but one of the ways is not totally good for our IDIs. First of all water injection cools the combustion chamber temps which is good up til a point, but water injection also raises the compression by displacing room in the cylinder with water and we all know that water is not compressible. These old IDIs already have a very high compression ratio so you really have to watch how much water you run in them, I am not really sure how much water it would take to make things go boom in these engine because I have never tried running that much in mine. Although I have run a crap load of water through a pulling tractor with good results, but it was not close to the 20:1 compression ratios of the IH IDI engines.I think my tractor is only 15:1 when stock.

 

[1994IDI]

Towcat: I wasn't proposing any power adders, that's why I'm asking for suggestions. Only asking the guys that know these motors inside and out, if I could see these kinds of numbers without breaking the bank.. Of course I'm aware there are no plug-ins, or I wouldn't need to post this thread, and wouldn't love the IDI like I do. You missed the mark, proposing that I am against doing any real work or spend any "real"money. But, on a military salary I do no always have the time and money I would like to have for the truck.
I assure you I am not trying to achieve any miracles.. mostly, I just enjoy talking to the guys on here and seeing what I can learn from them.

91f2504x4: I really appreciate the information on water injection. I would have to learn a lot more about how the system works on the truck. Any good manufacturers to look at?

I like the idea of the moose pump. Anyone know first hand the difference in the trucks behavior and performance from just a moose pump swap? Can I gain the same from increasing my IP instead?
I would be interested in some info on IC, but haven't found any made specifically for the IDI, and towcat didn't tell me much about it. Has anyone put an IC in, and is it largely beneficial with a stock turbo?
Thanks a lot for any info.

 

[91f2504x4]

If you haven't tried it yet, you can turn up the delivery of your current pump, the pump on my truck is maxed out and it is plenty for just messing around. The Intercooler will help you by cooling the inlet charge to gain you some power if your inlet temps are already high it will gain you more, which is likely with a turbocharger. I used to have a turbocharged gasoline engine in my old truck with an aftermarket ECM that allowed datalogging, before I installed an intercooler on it I was seeing Intake Air Temps of over 200 degrees Farenhiet with only 10 lbs of boost. After the intercooler I was down to 110 to 120 F and running 14psi. (I also changed the location of the sensor when I made new piping)

Anytime you can achieve a cooler charge of air into the engine you are going to gain power. Think about the heat produced by the turbo when it compresses that air, and how it expands those oxygen molecules and instead of fitting 1,000 units of oxygen through your valves now you are only fitting 700 units in the same amount of valve duration. When you cool down the charge you are going to get more oxygen in the cylinder for a better burn and more power.

The numbers above are hypothetical and I am just using them for demonstrative purposes.

You can use a late model powerstroke intercooler on your truck or buy a universal FMIC. The hardest part is fitting them on there, you just have to fab up piping and the like. There used to be a kit made but I haven't heard much about them in a while, I assume most people are like me and would rather fabricate their own items than pay a butt load for them.

 

[Exekiel69]

I can't remember what was the first time I said This is IT for Upgrades I don't even have the same motor anymore.

You need more fuel to make more power and You need air to make the fuel turn into power. You will need an upgraded downpipe if You have the stock one and Honestly if You are serious about getting more power sooner or later You'll get Moose products .

 

[icanfixall]

I dought you wll get those numbers of torque at the rear wheels. If you still have the stock downpipe and exhaust system then get rid of it... The downpipe is smashed almost flat and is very restrictive to flow. Don't run a muffler but do run a straight pipe all the way from the downpipe back. The turbo will kill the exhaust noise. A wastegated turbo is a must in my opinnion. Boosting above 12 or 13 lbs without an intercooler will do nothing. The inlet air will be above 300 degrees going into the motor. The friction of the turbo heats it up that much. With an intercooer you can boost 13 lbs safely. More than that will require head studs. Water-methonel injection is great... If done correctly. These motors run 21 1/2 to 1 comp ratio. My new motor runs 530 lbs of comp at cranking speeds. I run studs and boost to 10 lbs for now. I have the Moose pump, Mahle ceramic coated pistons that I milled 14 thousnds off the tops and heavely ported heads and intake mainfold. I wont quote any hp numbers because I have none yet... The window washer fluid works best for the water-**** injection. It turns to steam and does not enter the cylinders as a fluid. Usually its injected into the intake at 250 lbs of pressure for better atomization. These motors are not ever going to be a psd chip and play motor but... They will run forever and are inexpensive keepers.

 

[1994IDI]

I do have the ats downpipe, 4" straight pipe, and stacks. I think my next move will be to add a pyro and turn up the fuel. I like the sound of the water injection, sounds like it constantly would be steam cleaning the engine. Is boost just increased by increasing fuel flow?

 

[snicklas]

Be very careful with the water or water-**** (Washer Fluid ) injecton. Ask Travis (argve) what water-**** can do to a 7.3. He made lots of power and had a lot of fun till it went POP! I remember when he and I talk about the last trip the E made after he had run about 30 GALLONS of washer fluid throught it, I rember works like, "cracked, bent, split, holes". Calvin (towcat) has a quote in his sig from Travis when he was talking about water-**** injection that it can help, but it can also cause things to get interesting.

 

[icanfixall]

Travis injected so much water-**** that the flamewas being put out. Then it was hydrolocking as the motor ran.that cracked all the pistons so... Doing the injection modestly will give plenty of gains... Overdoing it will kill it. You need a boost and pyro before you turn up the fule. Otherwise you have no idea what has changed other than the butt-o-meter.

 

[typ4]

Pyro, turn up the pump, intercooler, anything over 8 lbs is going backwards without it. Bigger compressor wheel and housing, wrap the crossover pipe, tighten up the wastegate, Oh and you need head studs to go over 13 lbs.
I run loaded, 1100 pyro, 13-14 lbs boost, then the water temp climbs, but it pulls real good. dyno numbers to come in a month or so.

 

[1994IDI]

icanfixall'; did you port your intake and exhaust manifolds yourself?

 

[icanfixall]

Yes... I did all the hot and cold gas path. Anything to smooth out the flow will add to hp... These motors just add the air.... Then fuel is injected and it lites off. The intake ports can be mirror finished and it will not hurt things like it does in gas motors. Usually a 300 grit finish is what works best all around but... i have some special buffer weels that really make things shine....