family auto mechanics - helping you find the problem

family auto mechanics - helping you find the problem

Getting The Most Performance From Your Diesel Engine

by Herman Mills

Diesel engines offer power and performance for trucks that need to pull heavy loads or haul additional weight, but adding additional performance to the engine can often make your truck more versatile. There are some easy ways to increase the power of your diesel engine that may also increase the engine's fuel economy without breaking the bank.

Performance Tuning

Adding a performance tuning chip to the computer in your truck is an excellent way to add some additional horsepower without having to add a lot of expensive parts to the truck. The performance tuner will remap your diesel engine's fuel and air curve so that it can produce fifty or sixty more horsepower. 

A performance diesel engine is already designed for enhanced performance over the stock engine, but adding a chip to the engine's computer allows you to open up parameters that you can not otherwise use. There are several companies that make tuners or chips that are emissions-legal in most states, but check the one you are considering and see if yours is legal on emissions-controlled vehicles. 

Tuner chips can be costly, but they offer a significant increase in the engine's performance that would be hard to get for their budget range any other way. 

Intakes Systems

The air intake system in your diesel truck often has many corners that are not smooth, so the air passing through the system becomes very turbulent. Aftermarket air intake systems smooth out the bends in the intake lines and decrease the turbulence so that the air can pass through the system faster. 

The smoother the air intake is, the more air can be forced into the engine, increasing the power output of your performance diesel engine. The filters on these aftermarket intake systems are also extremely high-flow, so they do not restrict the air coming into the airbox, but they do an exceptional job of removing debris and dirt from the air before it gets to the engine.

Turbo Upgrades

While a little more costly, replacing the stock turbo on your performance diesel engine can be extremely effective in adding power to your engine. When you combine a larger turbo with the air intake system and an intercooler, the power increase can be in the one hundred horsepower range, and when tuned properly, it can be higher than that. 

An upgrade in the turbo is best done by a diesel performance engine tech so that it is appropriately tuned to get the best performance gains without damaging the engine.

To learn more, contact a resource that carries products like Cummins 5.9 performance engines.


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About Me

family auto mechanics - helping you find the problem

As the son and grandson of mechanics, I spent much of my child hood under the hood of many cars. I have listened and learned about so many different problems and how to repair them effectively. I created this blog to cover as many car problems as possible without overwhelming readers. You will find tips for troubleshooting, advice for when to take it to a professional and suggestions for when to stop driving the car or truck immediately to prevent further and more costly damage. We hope that you find all of this information helpful and useful, allowing you to have a great running car.