Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Burned up my engine today

[Cliffman]

ERNIE



How much weight and at what % grade are you pulling when you have the high water temps that causes you to slow down to get the temps down. I could pull a 6% grade at 57 mph and 1300 on the pyro. My water temps would go up to about 210-215, the fan would kick in and the thermostat would open up, the water temp needle would go back down to 190 faster then it went up.

 

[Hohn]

Cliff and others:



While the Arias forged pistons are VERY high quality, there's certainly no need for them here. They're just no worth the money. Use the Cummins pistons, but DO check on having them coated by SwainTech (you can google to them easily).



Swaintech's GoldCoat and Poly Moly are cutting edge coatings worth every penny. All my racer buddies swear by them.



Justin

 

[911RAM]

Hi I am a new member. after reading this now im scared maybe you guys could tell me if i need to be. I have a 2001 auto,BD TC,VB, 4inch,afe cannon air,gauges pyro ,boost , bd xxx injectors and a western diesel 60 horse box and thats all any info would be great and this is a great place. thanks in advance





Also sorry to here about your egine

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

The reason there's so much attention here to this subject is BECAUSE it is so rare for a Cummins - don't worry - be happy!

 

[Cliffman]

Originally posted by Gary - KJ6Q

The reason there's so much attention here to this subject is BECAUSE it is so rare for a Cummins - don't worry - be happy!

Ditto that :{

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Cliffman how about a Marine set of pistons? I heard they were heavier-duty and had an extra ring if I remember right. Don't know what they'd cost, but like Hohn says get 'em coated.



I haven't read this thread and the topic of running sustained EGTs has probably been beat to death, but whenever I towed up a hill I would never hold it above 1200. I know I could probably sustain higher, but is it worth taking chances trusting your $6000 engine to a $100 pyro gauge? 1300F is probably at the point where if the other conditions are ideal, you can get away with it, but since you've left yourself so little margin of safety, it only takes one little variable drifting out of the norm (such as a slightly errouneous gauge, lower quality fuel, boost leak, higher elevation, etc. etc. ) that can push it over the edge. Just 'cause you got away with it 10 times before doesn't mean you'll get away with the 11th time.



JNutter (Jack Nutter now Shooter) had the same thing happen to his '99 back in 2000. Pulled the same grade he always had at the same temp, usually in the low 1200s, but one day he melted down running at his usual EGT and boost. Turned out his gauge was off 100F when he checked it out. That's all it took to ruin his engine.



Another thing to think about: If Cummins says 1300F is OK, then it's probably OK at STOCK power. 1300F is pretty friggin' hot. If you are running a box and higher boost, then obviously the engine has a lot more stress on it while it is running at what is considered its rated thermal limit at significantly less horsepower. Add to that higher coolant temps (which are rising because the engine oil is probably smoking hot by now trying to cool them pistons!) and you're asking for a meltdown.



Well that's my $. 02 if anyone's interested



Vaughn

 

[Cliffman]

Vaughn, well put! My new setup will include 2 pyros. 1 at the normal location in the AST manifold the other back on #6. This will tell us exactly how much hotter #6 runs compared to the average of 4, 5 and 6.

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Great idea Cliffman It will also help to serve as a cross-check to make sure they're both reading OK.



Vaughn

 

[ThrottleJockey]

Cliffman



John P tells you to look into a set of aftermarket pistons and you say okay. I tell you to do the SAME THING and you give me grief! What gives???



Those Arias forged pistons on the Schied web page are mine. They ARE NOT lighter than the stock pistons! Tougher? yeah. Extremley high quality? yep. Expensive? Yes they are. But how much is a set of stock pistons with the Swain Gold coat AND the Poly Moly?



Arias Pistons come COATED!!! Hard Anodized. Ultra slick and ultra tough. They are also customized to whatever CR you want AND valve reliefs cut in for an aftermarket cam.



Are these pistons necessary? Is ANY of this stuff we all like necessary? I mean c'mon, would the TDR BE the TDR without all this cool stuff? Are 5 inch exhaust and turbochargers from Class 8 linehaul road tractors necassary?



No.



But are they cool?



Brian

 

[ErniePink]

Cliffman,



I'm pulling at least 15k 5er (last time I weighed, 23,600 combined). Most grades giving me trouble are 5-7%. Did hit a peach of a pull east out of Laughlin, NV on AZ 68; Union Pass shown on map at 3,600 ft. . Not sure of the grade but pulled it last October. No way to get a run at it, as I hit the stop light at the bottom. This grade goes on forever-12 miles as I recall. doesn't seem to be that high in feet but pulled my cork. Down to 3rd and considering going to 2nd, air off, 2k rpm due to "thump-thmup-thump". This grade is a beast-compared to I-90 west bound passes: Look Out pass on MT/Idaho border, 4th of July Pass in northern Idaho or the vantage hill climbing out of the Columbia Gorge in central WA. ; which is also 12 miles. I can top that one at 55 with power in reserve. No thumping either. Fan has kicked in on all of these and I keep the post turbo pyro at 900-950 max. Temp gauge will stay over 200 'till I hit the downhill side. As I mentioned earlier, my Ram seems to run hotter afer the TSB fix with no load. Go figure?



Sorry for all the typos on my last post. Will try to pay more attention but am low on money don'tcha know.

 

[John_P]

ThrottleJockey:



Good post about the Arias pistons!

I didn't mean to make you mad!



I thought Kent told me that the Arias Pistons were "lighter",

than the stock Dodge CTD Pistons (regular or marine) but

I may have misunderstood him. If I did, I apologize to

everyone reading this! As you said though, by the time

you buy the stock Dodge CTD pistons, coat them with

whatever coating you feel is the best, I believe you would

be close to $300. 00.



----------

John_P

 

[ThrottleJockey]

John P



When I took mine out of the box I was kinda comparing the two ( the stock and the new ones ) I sewar they did not seem lighter to me, maybe they were, I should have taken them to the post office to weigh them.



I got the specs on 'em around here somewhere. I'll try to find them.



Kents' pretty cool, isn't he?



Brian

 

[Cliffman]

Brian, Sorry If I offended you. I'm just trying to gather all the info I can and make an educated decision. Your advice has been well received by me and I thank you for all your help.

 

[Cliffman]

Originally posted by ERNIE PINK

Cliffman,



the vantage hill climbing out of the Columbia Gorge in central WA. ; which is also 12 miles. I can top that one at 55 with power in reserve. No thumping either. Fan has kicked in on all of these and I keep the post turbo pyro at 900-950 max. Temp gauge will stay over 200 'till I hit the downhill side. As I mentioned earlier, my Ram seems to run hotter afer the TSB fix with no load. Go figure?



Sorry for all the typos on my last post. Will try to pay more attention but am low on money don'tcha know.

ERNIE,



If the above statement is pulling a 5 of 6 % grade then I'd say your doing pretty good. Let's see what happens after you pull again since the TSB thermastat fix.

 

[John_P]

Throttle Jockey:



Thanks for the reply!



Yes, you are right, Kent is a great guy as well as Dan Scheid

and their entire staff there at Scheid Diesel. I will try to get

a hold of Kent and ask him about the piston weight.

I know one thing, those Arias Pistons sure do look good

with that nice coating and all and they look much "beefier"

underneath where the wrist pin goes through too!



----------

John_P

 

[DHayden]

What are you guys up to?

I just read 13 pages of "scare the bageezus" out of DHayden . Well what I learned was that I will never tow with the comp on, that my BDlll's are enough power for me to "be happy" with while towing, and I'll turn the comp on when ricer's are feeling spunky and I'm empty.



Sure wish this thread came out a year ago, I always put the comp on 1X5 because I thought the extra timing was helping. Guess you learn something new everyday.



Oh yeah, I also learned that if and when I do need to rebuild I'm going to o-ring the head, get those sweet pistons and send it all to cliffman to do :--)

 

[BPINE]

Cliffman is back on the road again.

 

[jarsong]

Originally posted by BPINE

Cliffman is back on the road again.

To add to this I e-mailed Edge products and never did get a response if there was a way to turn off the timing on their EZ. Anyone else?

Jarsong

 

[Mille4212]

Rather than e-mailing them you might want to give them a call. Last time I e-mailed them it took a week to reply so now I'll just call when I have a question. It does make you wander with the timing issue because I was going to try towing this summer with the box on 1X5 but now I don't know.

Did Cliffman put the pyro on number 6 and if so is he seeing a difference in egt's? Jarsong I hope I don't come off sounding like a smarta$$ at least I hope you don't take it that way

 

[Sticks]

Originally posted by jarsong

To add to this I e-mailed Edge products and never did get a response if there was a way to turn off the timing on their EZ. Anyone else?

Jarsong

Yeah, disconnect the data plug, but leave the MAP connections alone. Then you have a $500 boost fooler.



BTW - I have made an on/off switch for mine that uses 2 relays in line with the data plug, and a switch for the three settings. Poor mans Edge Comp.



After reading this, I am serously thinking of putting my system up for trade on a DD re-badged Edge EZ for the milder timing.