Cummins Ramcharger conversion

[rebel_horseman]

ceejmo, once you get done, could you put together a how-to article on this project? This is something that I"m thinking of doing once I get back to the states.

Also, is your donor truck and the ramcharger going to be 4wd? If so, did you swap in a Getrag and the t-case? Are you also going to have to fabricate a new front drive shaft?

 

[Ceejmo]

ceejmo, once you get done, could you put together a how-to article on this project? This is something that I"m thinking of doing once I get back to the states.

Also, is your donor truck and the ramcharger going to be 4wd? If so, did you swap in a Getrag and the t-case? Are you also going to have to fabricate a new front drive shaft?

See this link for the step by step process. I took pictures on almost every step. All of the pictures have captions with some explanation. There is also an online document HERE that includes some thoughts and reasons for decisions that I made.
The donor and the Ramcharger are 2WD. A conversion to 4WD is a possibility in the future but it's a 2WD for now.

 

[argve]

The pics are great. Seeing the inside of the cab (dash) brings back memories.

 

[Ceejmo]

I cut, machined and welded the front part of the two piece drive shaft today. This part will attach to the Getrag yoke. The other end is the slip joint from the D250. I cut it to a stubby length so I wouldn't have to add a carrier bearing. I'll install it and take measurements for the rear part of the shaft assembly. The rear section will have the female part of the slip joint to match this one and the other end will be modified to fit the RC rear axle.

Cummins Ramcharger Conversion

 

[Ceejmo]

By the way, I was surprised to see that the wall of the drive shaft from behind the Cummins is only .089" thick.

 

[Ceejmo]

I installed the first part of the drive shaft last night and took measurements for the other half. I also finished installing the shifter in the floor. No time to work on the other half of the drive shaft tonight though. I gotta be home on time so the wife can go to bible study. I'll install the fan shroud, radiator and grill inserts tonight. Oh, and put 5 gallons of diesel in it.

 

[Ceejmo]

Vehicle registration.....

Last week I called the Harris county tax office to find out what steps I needed to take in order to have the Ramcharger registered as a diesel. They told me that as long as the two vehicles involved in the swap were rated lower than 2 tons capacity that I didn’t need to change the title. I thought this was way too simple.

As it turns out that was too simple. I went to the courthouse yesterday to transfer the title into my name and get the registration done. After waiting in line for 45 minutes they said that since I purchased the Ramcharger from a county that does not require emissions testing that I had to take a form to the inspection station and have the emissions tested, After it passed emissions test then they could register the Ramcharger in Harris county. I told them that emissions test would not be required since I had done the engine swap and put in a diesel. I got the “deer in the headlights” look. She said “I’ll have to ask my supervisor what to do”. I waited about 15 minutes and she came back and said “We’re going to have to call the state office for instructions”. I waited another 20 minutes until she came back. She gave me a form “61” and said I had to fill it out detailing everything that I did during the swap to make the Ramcharger a diesel powered vehicle. That took me about a half an hour to complete.
Well, after about 2 hours at the window it is done. The Ramcharger is now officially registered as a diesel vehicle. Today I’m going to install the radiator and the rest of the grill. Then I’ll double check that all bolts are tight and all things are in place.

I’m taking the kids for a drive to the park in it later this afternoon. The official “maiden voyage”.

 

[Ceejmo]

The Cummins Ramcharger transplant is complete and the stickers are on!!!!!!!
Everything electrical works properly except the Cummins module on the dashboard. I'll have to get the schematics to find out what wires to use for this.
But, fuel gage works, speedometer works, battery charge meter works, oil pressure gage works, temperature gage works, all exterior lights work and the back up lights work.

I do however have a severe brake fluid leak on the drivers side rear wheel. I can't even bleed the front until I rebuild the rear cylinder. So I can't drive it yet. I did take it for a short drive (about 1/4 mile) down the dirt road that we live on and had to use the emergency brake to stop. So, I've got something to do tomorrow.

Cummins Ramcharger

 

[Ceejmo]

The brake job was a mess. When I removed the right rear drum all kinds of broken pieces fell out. I had to replace everything inside that drum. Anyway, the brakes are good now.

I drove it loaded down with the kids last night over to a friends house. And I drove it to work today. 54 miles round trip. The front suspension bounces a little. I need to replace the front shocks with heavy duty ones. It's not too bad but heavy duty will take some of the lope out. I'm going to put new tires on it this week. It has 4 tires and none of them are the same.

I'm not sure what rear axle ratio the Ramcharger has but it’s taller than the D250 was. In the D250 when the speedometer read 70 I was actually going 62 according to my GPS. In the RC when the speedometer reads 70 the GPS reads 68.7. So fuel consumption could go down by 10%.

It's nice to ride in a vehicle and be able to listen to the radio and actually hear it. Buy the way, it's still straight piped but it's going to get a muffler.