Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Guide to modifications LONG Part 1

[Ted Jannetty]

Hey guys, I see alot of New guys asking common questions so I dug this out of my archives, originally written in 2000, and updated in 2001 and last in 2005.



Some of the info is outdated but still a good read.



Enjoy.



Proper Order for Upgrading 98. 5-02 ISB Engines

By: Ted Jannetty

Jannetty Racing Enterprises Inc.

Revision 7/05

My motivation in writing this article stems from all the misconceptions I read on various message boards and from all the tech calls I take on a daily basis.

This is also a revision of the previous article based on new and improved parts and technology.

I will put in to order, performance modifications and all the how’s and why’s, so all can make educated decisions when purchasing performance parts and services.

Diesel engines have very specific needs as do other engines; I will cover the 24 valve Cummins 5. 9 ISB engine produced 98. 5 to 02 Dodge model years.



Step 1-Gauges;

EGT: or exhaust gas temperature gauge, measures exhaust gas temperatures leaving the combustion chambers.

This is the window into the tune up of your engine, it will tell you everything you need to know, if you use the knowledge I will provide.

The best place for your EGT probe is Pre Turbo, and these numbers are based on this placement.

Average temps: Stock truck

Idle – 250 to 450

Cruise no load 400 to 700

Cruise with trailer 500 to 800

Pulling hill no load 500 to 1000

Pulling hill with trailer 900 to 1250

Temperatures will vary whenever the throttle is moved or the terrain changes.

The peak number is the most important while towing, the ISB can be safely run up to 1450 for short bursts and 1350 all day long.

This number is strongly affected by modifications weather it be Air flow or Fuel delivery.

If air flow and fuel flow are increased EQUALLY, Very important words here!

We can increase power to very impressive levels with no increase in EGT or smoke.



Boost: or intake manifold pressure above atmospheric pressure created by the turbocharger.

Atmospheric pressure at sea level is 14. 7 psi this equals 0 on the boost gauge.

Boost pressure tells us how well your turbo is working, weather or not you have a boost leak, and how your waste gate is adjusted.



Average pressures: Stock truck

Idle – 0

Cruising 70 mph no trailer 5-10 psi.

Cruising 70 mph with trailer 7-15 psi.

Pulling a hill no trailer 10-20 psi

Pulling a hill with trailer 15-21 psi

Again this number will vary like EGT, with throttle position and load.

Air flow and fuel flow increases will make this gauge move much faster.



Fuel Pressure or pressure created by the electric fuel pump that carries the fuel from the tank to the filter then on to the injection pump.

This has become a very important gauge on the ISB with all the fuel pump failures that have occurred and cause drivability issues.

This gauge is not very exciting but when there is a problem it becomes very important in diagnosis, plus it can save a very expensive injection pump from failure due to lack of lubrication and cooling.



Average Pressures: Stock truck

Idle – 10-14

Cruising 8-12

Pulling a hill with trailer 8-9

Absolute minimum pressure is 8 psi; anything below that and you need either a new lift pump on a stock truck or an upgraded fuel system on a modified truck.



Transmission Temperature: or temperature of the transmission fluid that leaves the torque converter and goes on to the coolers.

Again not very exciting be very important to the life of your transmission and or torque converter.

Temp sensor placement should be in the (hot) or out cooler line of the transmission and these temps are based on this placement.

A temp sensor located in the pan is useless since all the fluid in the pan has already been through the coolers.



Average temperatures: Stock truck

Idle in neutral or park 140 to 160

Idle in gear 160 to 260 depending on how long.

Cruising 70 mph no trailer 150-170

Cruising 70 mph with trailer 160-180

Pulling hill no trailer 180-220

Pulling hill with trailer 190-280 depending on load and how long a hill, or weather you can pull the hill in lock up or not.

Temps will always be higher when out of lock up, because 90% of the heat generated in an automatic transmission is from the shearing of the fluid in the converter.

Temps will be lower when in lock up because the input shaft of your transmission is locked to the crankshaft on the engine.



Now that we have covered the gauges we will move on to what I believe to be the most important whenever you decide to increase the power of any engine



Step 2-Exhaust system; or the pipes, resonator and muffler that carry the exhaust gasses from your engine out the back of your truck and away from the passenger compartment.



Exhaust system serves two purposes on this application, carry the exhaust gasses out and make it quiet the cheapest way possible.

Therefore there are performance compromises made by the manufacturer to save money.



Bending:

There are two ways to bend pipe used in the exhaust industry, first is the best and most expensive called Mandrel bending, this bending process keeps the pipe true to size and smooth in the bends.

The second called compression bending crushes the pipe about 20% in the bends.

This being the cheapest form of bending.

The factory is now using compression bending on Dodges built after 99 model year.

All systems we offer are Mandrel bent.



Pipes:

Pipe size is in direct relation to the intended Horsepower.

2. 5 inch pipe can support 150-200 hp

3. 0 inch pipe can support 200-250 hp Dodges are 215-245

3. 5 inch pipe can support 250-350 hp

4. 0 inch pipe can support 350 450 hp

4. 5 inch pipe can support 450-550 hp

5. 0 inch pipe can support 550-650 hp



These Horsepower figures are only good on Mandrel bent tubing.

Using smaller pipe on a turbocharged Diesel limits performance and efficiency.

There are no benefits to using small pipe except cost.

You almost can’t go too big on a turbo Diesel.



We targeted 4 inch pipe because it falls in to the Horsepower range the ISB is capable of, it fits nicely, it performs as promised, and sound control is good.



Materials:

Steel, Low cost easy to work with last 18 to 42 months.

Aluminized Steel, Medium cost, easy to work with, lasts 3 times longer than steel.

Stainless Steel, High cost, hard to work with, lasts 8 times longer than steel.



We use 14 gauge/ . 090 aluminized tubing in our JRE kits.



Mufflers:

There are many different designs, the list is almost endless but the most common are;

Reverse flow- Excellent sound control but restrictive.

Chambered- Has good sound control but less restrictive.

Perforated tube- Has little sound control, Resonates bad, very low restriction.

Tuned chamber perforated tube combo- Good sound control, very low restriction.



We use the tuned chamber perforated tube design, cost more but worth every penny when driving long distances.





4” exhaust system is a must on modified ISB in the Dodge.

This is the second step in upgrading your ISB.

Benefits are:

Less back pressure

Lower EGT

Quicker Turbo spool up 0 to full Boost

Improved throttle response

Better fuel economy

More horsepower

Plus that awesome big truck sound.



Step 3-Air filtration and flow;

Oiled cotton gauze type air filters have been around for ever it seems.

They are the #1 high flow air filter in the world and are used in all forms of racing, Drag racing, Baja trucks and cars, dirt bikes, snowmobiles, watercraft.

If they didn’t filter out dirt Racers wouldn’t use them, so let’s put away that myth.



Air flow in to the turbo strongly affects response, fuel mileage and power, as well as EGT; more air flow means cooler EGT, and better performance.



The Factory filter can not support any modifications on this engine and it will be a restriction that can make EGT go too high, and limit performance.



At the absolute minimum install an oiled cotton gauze replacement air filter in the stock air box and remove the plastic tube between the fender and box.



Best would be to install an aftermarket cold air kit, that has double the filter area, and is quiet, comes with a heat shield, these have shown 14 hp over the high flow replacement in the stock air box.



Step 4-Fuel system upgrades;

Any time we do power upgrades we have to take a look at the fuel supply system, because without fuel we can’t make any power.

The factory lift pump on the 24 valve engine is barely adequate to supply a stock engine and the failure rate on these pumps is high.

Reasons for lift pump failures are attributed to the location, distance and height from the tank.

Electric fuel pumps should be no more than 3 feet from and mounted lower than the fuel supply for gravity feed.



I suggest you check your fuel pressure at idle and while driving, you should have a minimum 11psi at idle and should never fall below 8psi while driving.

If your factory lift pump fails this test, and is still under warrantee, have it replaced by the dealer.



Another area that is lacking is the fuel lines on the engine, or what is better known as the banjo bolts.

There are five total, inlet and outlet of engine mounted lift pump, inlet and outlet of fuel filter housing, and inlet of fuel injection pump.

These create a major jam in fuel flow that the lift pump has to work against.

The home solution has been to remove the banjo bolts and increase the size of the holes by drilling and carefully, deburring all the holes.

This has shown improvements in flow and reduction in stress on the pump.

The best solution so far is to replace all the fittings with aircraft type Aeroquip #6 an fittings and braided steel line.

JRE was the first to offer a kit to do so.



See Part 2

 

[Ted Jannetty]

Guide to modifications part 2

If your truck is out or warrantee or your sick of lift pump failures, Diesel Performance Products offers the FASS, or Fuel Air Separation System.

This is an industrial style fuel pump, water separator, fuel filter, and air separation system that mounts up under the bed or cab on the frame rail, it picks up fuel directly from the fuel tank and sends it directly to the injection pump, eliminating the factory lift pump and filter on the engine.



This has proven to be the ultimate solution to lift pump and injection pump failures on the 98-02 Dodge trucks, and is a great upgrade for any Diesel powered truck.



Step 5-Fuel and timing enhancement:

With all the boxes on the market for Stage 1 there are only 2 plug in modules we currently use, the Van Aaken CPC, or the Edge Products EZ and 1 tuner the Superchips Flashpak.

The first 2 of these units are simple plug in units, the 3rd actually reprograms the engines computer, they achieve there power by adjusting both fuel and timing curves, for power increases of 60 Rear Wheel HP and 160 Rear Wheel Torque.

The first 2 also come with a Map sensor connection that prevents overboost codes, and fuel derating due to the higher boost they create.

The third does this in the performance program.



Before the release of these electronic wonders we used to recommend injectors in this step.

The reason we switched injectors for boxes in step 5 is that there where no such thing and boost foolers or these boxes that have the map sensor connection when I wrote the original article.



Step 6-Transmission or clutch upgrades:

At this point you now have 300-325 hp and 570-600 lb. ft. torque.

This is the limit of the torque converter and transmission calibration that comes in the Dodge.









Automatic;

A heavy duty torque converter from Pro Torque or BD and a custom calibrated valve body added to a good working transmission is an absolute must and will handle up to 600 Rear Wheel HP and 1100 lb. ft. Rear Wheel Torque.



Manual;

A good quality clutch like the Star Performance clutch available in 3 stages to suite your needs.



Torque converters;

What is a torque converter?

It is a continuously variable ratio fluid coupler, with an internal lock up clutch to bring it to 100% coupling.

Picture one fan blade attached to the crankshaft of your engine facing the transmission.

Then picture another fan blade attached to the input shaft of your transmission facing the engine.

When the engine fan blows fluid at the transmission fan the input shaft starts to turn.

At idle it is easy to hold the transmission from turning but as rpms increase the input shaft fan will try and catch up to the engine fan.

There will always be a percentage of lost motion or difference in input verses output speed, the percentage of lost motion is a measurement of efficiency.

Factory torque converters are very loose, stall speeds can be as high as 2400 rpm, and efficiency can be as low as 50% of what your engine makes for power.

We consider this a very inefficient torque converter.

Once the torque converter goes in to lock up this becomes a non issue.

But the torque converter lock up clutch has a torque limit of about 600 lb. ft. torque.

Aftermarket torque converter lock up clutches can handle up to around 1100 lb. ft. torque before they slip as long as pressures are correct.



Shift kit or valve body;

A shift kit is used to recalibrate your valve body but can be very difficult to install and set up and should be handled by a professional with experience in Diesel specific shift kits.



The valve body calibration determines how the transmission will shift, when it will shift, and how much torque the clutches can handle before they slip.



Exchange valve bodies are available with the shift kit installed and tested on a valve body dyno, with modifications to the lubrication and cooling circuits, and second gear lock up option.



Either way we achieve the same results, increased torque capacity and better shifts.



Step 7-Injectors:

The device that delivers the fuel to the cylinder under high pressure and breaks the fuel in to the finest mist possible, it also determines spray pattern and has a very strong effect on emissions, power and fuel economy.

To explain in simple terms is not easy but here goes;

There is a spray nozzle with several holes, usually 4 to 6, inside this nozzle there is a pintle that covers these holes and is held down with a heavy spring.

The opening pressures on average are around 4000 psi to lift the pintle off of the seat and allow fuel to pass through the injector holes.

The high pressure, very precise holes and sharp edges are what atomize the fuel, so it can mix with the air.



These are next on my list for many reasons.

We do not like to push more fuel through a small injector because it retards timing, puts undue stress on the injection pump, and limits performance.

The bigger injectors will allow more fuel flow delivered in shorter duration, effectively advancing timing, cleaner combustion, less stress on the injector pump, and usually better fuel economy.



There are several to choose from.

New Bosch 275 hp RV injectors, these are my favorites they give a very noticeable increase in power without smoke, emissions, or economy concerns, in fact most will notice a slight increase in economy.

I call these my Stage 1 injectors.

You can expect a 40 to 60 hp increase in power depending on factory hp level you start with and what electronic enhancement your are running.

We have made up to 485 hp with these injectors so don’t be fooled by there size.



Extrude honed nozzles will come in different stages of increase in fuel delivery.

Diesel Dynamics seems to be the leader in this field and offers 5 levels above the 275 RV injectors to the public.

DD-ISB002, I call these JRE Stage 2 injectors.

These are new injectors that are tested and if they pass are disassembled extrude honed for a very specific time to increase the size of the holes in the nozzle.

You can expect a 60 to 80 hp increase in power depending on factory hp level you start with.

These seem to be as big as you can go without what I see as excessive smoke

A light gray haze on acceleration that you can see in bright day light is acceptable.



Step 8- Turbocharger;

98. 5 to 2000 automatic equipped and 98. 5-2002 manual equipped trucks, they come with a Holset HX35 12cm2 wastegated turbocharger.

This turbo supports 350 Rear Wheel HP with no EGT problems, as long as boost is not pushed past 40 psi.

It has the best all around performance in any driving situation and will flat out accelerate any of the other larger turbos up to 80 mph.



2000. 5-2002 automatic trucks come with a baby HY35 9cm2 wastegated turbocharger this one can only support 250 Rear Wheel HP and will need to be upgraded to the HX35 12cm2 wastegated turbocharger; it is a direct bolt on.

With the popularity of Diesel performance upgrades over the last 7 years larger manufacturers are stepping up to the plate with offerings.

Garrett Turbochargers has just released a line of Ball bearing performance Diesel turbochargers that will set the standard by which all other aftermarket turbos are measured.

They offer 3 stages by HP Stage 1 at 350 RWHP, Stage 2 at 450 RWHP, and Stage 3 at 550 HP.



Twin turbo set ups are also availible through companies like BD Diesel performance and ATS Diesel performance.



Step 9-Electronics and fuel supply;



If you want to go beyond 360 HP-760 TQ you will need to go to a box that not only plugs in but also splices into the pump fuel control wire which voids pump and engine warrantees.



There are many to choose from, the premier box on the market right now is the Edge with attitude monitor, has 5 levels of power to chose from on the fly, and include a very nice digital gauge that can monitor just about everything you could want up to 4 at a time.

Banks also offers a similar set up as do others.



Beyond 450 Rear Wheel HP the truck will become more and more unreliable and what I consider a race only vehicle.



Recap;



Stock trucks dyno at, 175-200 Rear Wheel HP



Stage 1 250-275 Rear Wheel HP

Gauges

4” turbo back exhaust system

Aftermarket cold air kit, the bigger the better.

60 hp plug in module

Heavy duty Wastegate actuator



Stage 2 300-375 Rear Wheel HP

Torque converter and valve body or clutch upgrade

80 hp Injectors

350 HP Garrett ball bearing turbo upgrade

FASS fuel system



Stage 3 400-475 Rear Wheel HP

Plug and splice in power module

450 HP Garrett ball bearing turbo upgrade







Stage 4 Race only 500 and up Rear Wheel HP



No particular order or combination.

Monster injectors 100-200 HP.

550 HP Garrett ball bearing turbo upgrade or twin turbos

Larger intercooler

NOS

Propane

Water methanol injection





Ted Jannetty

President,

Jannetty Racing Enterprises Inc.

2984 East Main St.

Waterbury Ct. 06705

203-753-7223

Performance Shop CT - Dyno Tuning, Alignment, Parts, Largest Speed Shop in Connecticut - Jannetty Racing Enterprises

-- email address removed --



All Rights Reserved.

 

[Spunkys Ram]

Thanks Ted, always good info.