non-TDR members must be smarter than us !

[Briar Hopper]

I'm continually amazed at the number of Dodge Cummins owners I meet on a daily basis wherever I go, that have some sort of fueling enhancement but no gauges. Not only that, but they insist the gauges are not necessary. I'm often approached while refueling my truck, by other owners. I've actually had 2 sneer at my TST Powermax 3 , and insist that the Van Aaken they had was the better way to go. I popped the hood, and showed them how I had a VA hooked up as well as the TST. Really wish I had a Candid Camera set-up to catch the looks on the faces of these "experts". Especially when they see my 445HP dyno sheet, or the Hx40 turbo with it's 4" downpipe...

These folks, though I treat them with the utmost in kindness and respect, are not at all receptive or open-minded to learning new things. It's pitiful, I feel sorry for them, yet they are getting harder & harder to deal with... I don't go up to these people, they come up to me. At truck shows, in parking lots, at truck stops, at the local WalMart, they come from everywhere...

Not only that, but I was recently brought the mangled remains of a botched gauge installation, by a person who I had counseled to wait until my next "off" day from work, and I would help him with the install, for free!(I've installed several sets of gauges in friends' trucks, and never charged for it, after all what are friends for)... naturally, the mess was "all my fault" as I'd told him he needed gauges...

Let me hasten to say here that I don't style myself as any sort of expert at anything. I'm just an open-minded mechanic (with years of hard-won experience) that's always looking for new opportunities to learn a little more about EVERYTHING I can... so it's distressing to see so many fellow Cummins owners that are missing out, just because of ego or attitude...

 

[gitchesum]

Be honest Tom,

You only talk to you after you blow by them on the highway. Killin birds the whole way.

 

[Joe G.]

Originally posted by Briar Hopper



... sort of expert at anything. I'm just an open-minded mechanic (with years of hard-won experience) that's always looking for new opportunities to learn a little more about EVERYTHING I can...

Tom,



FYI: that's how you got to be an expert in the first place for pete's sake! Elbow grease and an open mind will do it everytime.

 

[Jeff H]

I love even listing to mechanics telling me how to get more power. I go Ohhhhh never heard of that.

 

[Bigsaint]

Tom, guess I'm not the only one that keeps a copy of my dyno run in the cab, lol. If I had a dollar for every person that asked " why do you have the tachs (they mean the gauges) " my truck would have alot more BOMB's. I have ' HX40 TURBO INTERCOOLED' on both sides of my hood, one guy asked me how much of a gain I saw by adding the intercooler .



Now that I have the 6" stack, the most common question is how much HP I have gained. The next most common question is if I have a chip, when I tell them that the 24 V Cummins uses fueling boxes, not chips, they just do this . When I tell them how easy it is to make additional HP/TQ with the Cummins Diesel, they do this .



Scott W.

 

[Scott Elliott]

I love it when I am sitting at the fuel pumps and another Cummins owner will come over and talk about how he is thinking of buying a DMax because they are made by Cat. I had another one tell me that before last year, all PSD's were a I6, and last year they changed it to a V8. Oh, and don't forget that Ford owns Cummins.

 

[MikeR]

I'd say by the diesels running around here, that Dodge has the market. But I can't believe how ignorant most are, especially when a big advertiser like Banks shows the parts that go in their kit.

I drive fast and my straight pipe gets attention, and everytime someone comes up to me to find out what I've done to my truck the first thing they say about 90% of the time is "did you put a turbo on it?" I'm kinda tired of sugar coating it for those that don't pay attention to the obvious.

 

[Archive]

Originally posted by MikeR

"did you put a turbo on it?"

Well, Mike, Did ya????

 

[Diesel Freak]

MIKE!



Hey I got a sticker for you. I put one below my 5. 9 RT sticker

it says "TURBO INTERCOOLED". Same color and font as the 5. 9 part of the top sticker. and the coolest thing... . it looks factory!



gets lots of looks.



at the Drags one Sunday night, some kid asked me the same question..... Did you put a turbo on it? The punk did not know any better.



I really feel sorry for the guys with the DR. Performance stickers on their truck... . their wallet must feel excessively light.

I talked with one of them and he said he had no EGT problems... he was runnung 1100 POST TURBO



DR. P said that it was ok?



Ignorance is bliss, and this guy was absolutely Giddy about how his truck ran... . untill I took him light to light.

 

[Briar Hopper]

Or how about, "What kind of GAS mileage do you get?" AAAAAHHHHHHH ! Or the two owners I know who insist they have a 16 valve Cummins (really 12) THAT one is a real jaw-dropper, it shuts me right up and I get outa there as fast as I can!

 

[Teacher]

Dodge Different

To paraphrase the Dodge Ads:





"We're Different. "

 

[RATTLINRAM]

Got another one!

Pulled into the EastCoast truckstop to fuel up after returning from the mountains with the 5er. I had to use the Big Boy pumps cause a Ram gasser with a trailer had the diesel pump blocked and I didn't see anyone coming out to move it. I filled up and while waiting to pay, I hear this conversation,"Yeh, they haven't had em long,,,,, They got diesels made by International in them,,,,,,,I wouldn't have one"

I pay the cashier and turn to see these two guys sitting in a booth eating and looking out the window at my rig, six feet away, sitting at the pump with the door badges and Cummins cab plates clearly visible. As I stood there in my "DODGE" hat, with the big Cummins patch, I almost started to correct him, but figured it wasn't worth wasting my breath. It was just as well, cause as I was waiting to pull out onto the highway, I see the same clown getting into the Ram gasser which was still parked at the pumps out front. He had been in eating and had left his truck out there all that time with a whole truckstop to park in!

Go figure!

 

[Cooker]

Scott Elliott,

Where did these people get the idea the D-Max was made by CAT.



Some people are even worth the waste of breath.



Keep these stories Cummins, I really like to laugh at how ignorant people can be, but they are sooo... smart



-Ryan

 

[SLightfoot]

It doesn't stop with the general public either

You know what guys, it doesn't stop with the general public either.



I was getting my oil changed at the dealer a couple visits ago, and the SERVICE MANAGER goes on to tell me how "Ford owns Cummins" arrrggggghhhhh!!!! This is right at the DEALER!!!!!

This service manager has been there for at least 5 years as well, it wasn't like he was a newbie or anything.

I just didn't say anything. I'm tired of wasting my breath on that one, I have heard it so many times... ... . just didn't expect it from the dealer.



One of the things that I have realized after talking with many CTD owners is that we are HARDCORE enthusiasts, and the remainder are just happy owners.



Diesel technology has a near wives-tale-mythology associated with them over the years that seems to penetrate the non-diesel-owner public even.

For example:



1) All diesels use glow plugs.

2) All diesels are slow and sluggish.

3) All diesels never get warm enough to work the heater.

4) All diesels smoke a fog of black smoke wherever they go.

5) Can't start a diesel in winter.



I could go on and on, but you have all heard them before anyway



Oh well, I guess I will just have to enjoy my CTD and only try to educate those who are worth educating.



Well, gotta run - got new glow plugs to install



Shawn

 

[Briar Hopper]

Hardcore is exactly right

Shawn Turbo took the words right out of my mouth, I was telling McBride (Stack'd & Jack'd) a month ago, that the difference with us is we are hardcore enthusiasts...

Dr. Performance? Oh, boy, have I got a good one for you ! At the truck pulls tonight in little ol' Carlisle, KY, we had some BIG names... Dave & Loretta Mitchell, Dan Scheid, BlackDog and the Ohio gang... .

Anyway, my son and I were hanging out with Dan Scheid for a few minutes, and this clown that has a Dr. Performance franchise right there in Carlisle, was on a soapbox, preaching his brand of nonsense to Dan , who was listening very patiently and politely, about why (and how many) VP44 fuel pumps fail. Well,this Dr. P clown was flat out wrong, but he sure did dominate the conversation, all but called my kid a smart@$$ for contradicting him. Guess it didn't sit well with him that a 17 year old boy might actually know more about diesels than him...

My point is this: The Dr. P clown has one little shop, way out in the middle of nowhere, and does not get a substantial amount of business. Dan Scheid, on the other hand, owns three HUGE diesel repair & performance shops in Indiana & Illinois. Which one is more likely to know his stuff? Further to the point, it was easy to see how Dan is so successful, the man is a class act, through and through, just like Dave Mitchell. Very down to earth, you'll NEVER catch him on a soapbox, preaching his theories forcefully. Very polite and friendly and helpful... I got a valuable lesson tonight in people relations, as well as a good time at the pulls.

 

[merryman]

Gross ignorance is not restricted to non TDR Dodge drivers;

Couple years ago, Bro-in-laws next door neighbor broght over his new Ford Power STrok to show off. Bro-in-law observed that it was pretty full under the hood.

This guy in all seriousness said, "yea, its going to be a bear changing the spark plugs".



Vaughn

 

[mikeg135]

How about my fellow TDR members educate me on this one. Maybe because I am fairly new to being a Cummins owner.



What is this business about Ford buying out Cummins? This was told by me by my salesmen. I guess I should have known he was BSing me since he also told me that the only difference between the ETC and ETH was the chip.



Mike

 

[Sky]

Go back and bet the sales man a truck payment. Ford never owned Cummins EVER. They bought like 20% of there stock like 5 years ago or something but they no longer hold any shares of Cummins.

 

[Amianthus]

You should consider yourselves lucky

Noone will talk to me here about diesels and the power they make. Not one. Well, except my neighbor. But he's a few sandwiches short of a picnic.

 

[Todd T]

thats funny, Tom, I recall standing in Muncie talking to a tall dark headed man about his truck, while they installed a propane kit on it. he was one of the nicest guys there. he had beautiful black QC dually. he was a true gentleman, and not a bad word to say about anyone or thing. seemed to know alot too.



Do you know who I'm talking about.



you cant fake it, you either got it, or you dont.