8.3L cummins engine upgrades

[CFast]

I've got an FL 70 dumptruck I just bought with an 8. 3L Cummins. Right now it's stock at 225hp, I know these things are capabe of more than that. Anyone know where to begin upgrading one of these? I called BD power, but they stopped making their injectors for this engine. Any other advice? I need more power! my 5. 9 dodge has WAY more power than my 8. 3L. Thanks

 

[Doughboy21kd]

Your 5. 9 has more power cause that 8. 3 is a pile... . I dont know what they have out there for that motor, but i'm sure they have something for it..... I was told by a Cummins tech that, that motor isn't one of there best motors..... Had some problems with it and it is kinda a gutless turd(his exact words). I have talked with many people and they don't really like that 8. 3... . I have seen on a website somewhere that they did have HP and TQ upgrades for it though, cant remember where though..... Good luck

 

[KLockliear]

What year? P-7100 pump? CAPS pump? 24v ISC?



We have injectors for them, as well as a camplate kit for the P-7100 pumped engines.

 

[mattymac]

The ones I have seen are junk because they have all been stock! I also heard that in some of the FL's with the 8. 3 the radiators are small and when you turn up the HP they tend to run hot. Dont know for sure though.

 

[CFast]

The 8. 3L a pile? It might be gutless, but it's not a pile. I work for Freightliner and I see those things run 500,000 no problem. It's basically an oversized 5. 9L.

It's a '98 with the P7100 pump. I'll take a look at your site. Thanks.

 

[imograss]

We have 93 ford ln8000 with a 275hp stock 8. 3 with a tst #6 cam plate that makes it 400hp and with the trailer and dozer its about 44,000lbs and it pulls great. It will pull just about every hill around here in high gear (fuller 9spd) so I would not call it gutless and has around 250,000 miles with no problems.



Look at www.tstproducts.com they have what you need.

 

[McDowra]

The 8. 3L a pile? It might be gutless, but it's not a pile. I work for Freightliner and I see those things run 500,000 no problem. It's basically an oversized 5. 9L.

It's a '98 with the P7100 pump. I'll take a look at your site. Thanks.

here is my suggestions: First Suggestion second suggestion



thanks

Tim

 

[Mr. C]

Hardly junk, I drive for a LTL carrier and my last 8. 3 was a N-14Plus with varriable horsepower set at 365-410 and it pulled 3 trailers up and down the passes on I-5 in Oregon like a locomotive, most of the time in excess of 100,000 lbs. When I got a new tractor my trusty 8. 3 had 1,175,000 miles on it and ran like a top, the oil pan and cylinder heads had never been off. How can anybody call that "junk" ??? Over a million miles with no major repairs, I'll take junk like that any day!

 

[Coalsmoke]

this thread is of interest to me as I am in the process of choosing between a FL70 or 80 (now the M2) or a Kenworth T300. The 8. 3 is considered an upgrade by KW over the Cat, and I have heard too many not-so-nice things about the CAT 3116 and 3126 so the Cummins 8. 3 is in my "must have" books. Do these 8. 3 engines have the same fuel delivery systems as our 5. 9s? I'm wondering if they have the same lift-pump problems too



Mr C, I was more than happy to read your post, good to hear and keep them miles rolling

 

[Low 00's]

Mr. C Your truck had a N-14 engine, not an 8. 3L. Those are 2 totally diffrent breeds.

 

[Mr. C]

Low00's,

You can believe what you want but the data plate stated displacment at 8. 3L, if you want to further break down engine familes then be more specific.



Coalsmoke, the fuel delivery systems can be similar or different it depends on how it's speced. My current truck has a common rail ISX 450 in it, and it does have a lift pump.

 

[JFaulkner]

Mr. C you better look again. Low 00's is right, 8. 3L is a medium duty engine and is no where near the size of an N-14. Just look at the model # "N-14" which means 14. ? liter, 14. 6 I think, which last time I did the math is not 8. 3L. And since you also said that the HP was 365-410 is also a give away since the 8. 3 was around 300 or 330 max, and are not available in a class 8 truck.

 

[CFast]

coalsmoke. I don't think you can get the 8. 3L in an M2 yet. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think Freightliner and Cummins have made up yet. Besides the M2 is junk! M2= Mickey Mouse, I hate those wanna be "trucks". They have way too much plastic. Get a used FL 70 or FL80, you'll be better off. The CAT 3126 isn't a bad engine, but it has WAY more parts than the cummins. More expensive parts to be more specific. I waited for 6 months until I found my truck and I passed up A LOT of CAT 3126's.

 

[Low 00's]

Mr. C another giveaway it was a N-14 is you said it never had the HEADS off, as in plural. The N-14 has 3 heads, a 8. 3L only has 1.

 

[Mr. C]

Ok , I did some checking and it has been a number of years ago so there is a bit of fog in the memory. That truck has been sold so I had to get the shop to look up the records for me so here it is, the 8. 3 that I had was the firetruck version and it was in a class 8 truck and it did go past a million miles,I put the last 400,000 on it. It was not the verriable horsepower it was straight mechanically governed. That was 3 trucks ago but I don't remember it having any durrability problems, my company has an aggressive service program and we generally get well over a million miles on the tractors before they are depreciated out and sold.



So I stand corrected, but the one I drove was not junk.

 

[biggy238]

I worked on one last semester where the class before mine overhauled it and put in all the rods backwards, I think 3 mains and stripped two of the injectors..... Engine still ran... It knocked and wouldn't have lived long, but it did atleast make it through start up and some prety hard parkinglot sprints... You know how teenaagers are on stuff.

I think it got taken to ATL. after we got done with it.



Only problem I had with it was the injector hold down design and that varies by year model. From a durability standpoint they can be compared to a 5. 9 but that's where i'd stop.

 

[Voodoo Trucker]

I just up rated a FL70 with a 8. 3 two axle retired Budwiser delivery truck with 6 speed Allison. I installed #6 plate 300 hp oem injectors and HTT 66mm compressor and modified housing. The owner just installed a water meth kit. The thing runs great and will light the dually's. One thing I would recommend and this is true for both the 5. 9 and 8. 3 is recheck the head bolt torque. If they have any milage on them they will be under torqued