Detuning truck for plowing/towing

[Mactruck]

Since owning my Dodge truck It have always used it as my daily driver/sportscar. I've had an older truck I've used to do my chore work as well as plow for the last 12 seasons. Now I can no longer justify having two trucks and am currently looking at my Dodge to become more of a work truck with plowing and towing in mind. Recently I towed a heavy load and had to layoff the throttle multiple times for high EGT's. So I am currently trying to see how to plow and tow with some of the upgrades I currently have and to figure out which ones may have to go.



Unfortunately it means some upgrades have to be downgraded.

My 315 tires - with my 3. 54 gears, the tire size needs to be reduced. I may go to to a 285 size.

My loud 5" exhaust - the sound needs to be reduced or I'll wake up every house I plow.

My EGT's need to be reduced as well.

I've been thinking about ditching my DDII's for some Mach 1. 6's or II's. The DDII's I consider "old technology" and am hoping for lower EGT's and lower smoke while still having some pep for towing.



Questions :

Anybody have any experience with these smaller size sticks in combination with Hot Rod Pump and/or camshaft upgrades?

Does anyone feel one exhaust is quieter than the other? I'm probably looking for Stainless due to my Northeastern location.



Sadly my Denver Offroad bumper may come off. I'm trying to figure out how to get a Fisher Plow frame setup to fit with the bumper and I don't see it.

Plow shop wanted to cut it up to get it to fit. I don't know about that.

 

[PC12Driver]

I'm sorta going through the same thing with my truck. It has to last me quite a while longer, and I never use all the horsepower anyway. So I figured I'd tone it down a bit and get rid of some of the smoke. I recently had to replace my VP44 (216), and I started my de-modding by not attaching the Comp's pump wire. That should leave me at around 370hp or so with the Comp (now as an adjustable EZ) and 100hp injectors.



The stock turbo on my truck is good for about 350hp, so it really didn't make sense to keep the HTB2/12 in place. No sense dealing with the lag for no reason. So next I decided to put the stock HX35/12 back in, thinking it'll probably run a little hot on top.



The result:

1) Unbelievable bottom end. I forgot how good this truck can pull down low. I can pull my trailer in 6th @ 55mph with the cruise on and forget about it. No more smoke, downshifting, or anticipating the hills with throttle because of the lag. Accelerating from 1,500 with a load is possible again.



2) The truck is much more snappy around town and on the state highways. Smoking away from lights isn't a concern anymore. The big hit I used to get with 465hp when passing is gone unfortunately, so now I can only get around other cars at 70mph instead of 80. Another down side is tire wear will increase, since I don't have to baby it to avoid smoke and the engine wakes up so much sooner.



3) Milage appears to have dropped a little. But I'm also idling a bit more in winter (thanks to the exhaust brake I also could put back on), so we'll see if that holds true in the warmer months.



4) Full throttle egts with the unmodified HX35/12 'gated to 33psi are right at 1250*. Towing temps are down as well (like I said in #1 - not even a concern). And my grill is currently blocked off with a winter front, so the intercooler isn't doing its best. My fears of it running a little hot were bogus.



I think the cam is the key here. With your cam you can get by with a much smaller turbo than you'd think. You'll get the lower (towing) egts and less smoke all around, and pick up some pep for towing. If you still have to downsize injectors to meet your needs, that Garrett wouldn't be worth anything to you performance-wise anyway. Your stock HY would probaly be a little too small, but a take-off HX should be easy to come by for a good price.



Exhaust-wise, I just put a MBRP stainless on the boss's truck. It's a little more toned down compared to my 4" Jannetty system but still sounds really good. Easily quieter than a 5" system.

 

[CBrabec]

Mactruck,

Send a PM to my buddy bbodammer and talk to him about his setup. He has a great setup for towing and plowing and runs some big stuff.