Building the perfect beast - better than any new car

[midnight rambler]

A friend is converting a 1999 Ford gasser Super Duty into the ultimate long term survival truck. There's a couple of companies that supply the parts/info for converting a Super Duty Ford into a 6 cylinder Cummins Turbo Diesel powered rig (www.destroked.com and http://www.cumminsdieselrepowers.com - the later also does Chevy trucks/Suburbans if Chevys are your thing). It's possible to drop a 12 valve Cummins into a Super Duty and have everything work, i.e. the tach, the cruise control, all gauges, etc. And from what I'm told, if one builds a 12 valve Cummins with marine pistons (and a P7100 inline pump) then it's possible to get 22+ MPG in a large truck such as the Super Duty (by advancing the timing). And on top of that, a properly maintained Cummins will run up to 1,000,000 miles before needing a rebuild (there are numerous cases where Dodge pickup bodies literally fall apart around the CTD which continues to run just fine). The conversion isn't cheap if done for longevity, reliability and fuel economy, up to $10k or more. My friend happened to find a good used F-250 crew cab for $2,500, after selling the perfectly fine gasser V10 engine he will have about $1,500 in the truck. He expects to end up having to spend a mere $11-12k (with everything new or freshly rebuilt under the hood) for a rig which will easily give many, many years of extremely reliable service.

[Ponce]

Hello Mad Max.....having fun yet?

V

[osoab]

What's the time frame for the project?

[palani]

Surely it is much more cost effective to get your hands on one of these from England and drop it in the Subaru Forrester of your choice?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SUBARU-DIESEL-EE20-ENGINE-LATEST-BOXER-2008-LEGACY-FORESTER-LOOK-341-/300905660370?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item460f5fffd2

[midnight rambler]

What's the time frame for the project?

He says he'll have it completed in 60-90 days - and the only reason for it being 60-90 days is the demand on his revenue stream, otherwise it could be done in a month. He's got a competent and qualified mechanic on tap to do the swap, just a matter of getting all the components in place. The Cummins is at the machine shop.

[midnight rambler]

Surely it is much more cost effective to get your hands on one of these from England and drop it in the Subaru Forrester of your choice?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SUBARU-DIESEL-EE20-ENGINE-LATEST-BOXER-2008-LEGACY-FORESTER-LOOK-341-/300905660370?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item460f5fffd2

That's a thought, however that Suburu is no Cummins and cannot haul five tons of stuff while hauling ass. And I doubt that Suburu can go up to one million miles before needing an overhaul.

If one is wanting less displacement and less weight, not to mention less space needed under the hood, there's the Cummins 3.9 liter 4BT four cylinder. The Cummins is a torque monster. Both the 5.9 liter 6BT and the 3.9 liter 4BT are not only industrial strength, they are both ubiquitous in the states (the 3.9 and the 5.9 share many components such as pistons, rods, valves, etc.).

[palani]

Suburu is no Cummins and cannot haul five tons of stuff while hauling ass. And I doubt that Suburu can go up to one million miles before needing an overhaul.
But can a Cummins get 60 mpg?

[midnight rambler]

But can a Cummins get 60 mpg?

Of course not, however my friend's outlook is one of being able to find replacement parts for the drivetrain and the chassis. There's a whole lot more Sooper Doody's and 12 valve Cummins around here than there are diesel Suburus. In fact, if one dropped that IMPORTED FROM ENGLAND Suburu diesel in a Forrester it'd likely be literally only one of a handful in the entire country.

Want ultimate fuel economy? Get a hayburner.

[vacuum]

This guy is getting 110 MPG from a V8 by not firing all of the pistons when there is no load on the engine

http://revolution-green.com/2013/05/25/110-mpg-v-8-ignored-by-the-doe/

[palani]

This guy is getting 110 MPG from a V8 by not firing all of the pistons when there is no load on the engine

http://revolution-green.com/2013/05/25/110-mpg-v-8-ignored-by-the-doe/

His patent reads as if he is building an electrical motor into a V8 by using permanent magnets and electromagnets to provide drive power.


my friend's outlook is one of being able to find replacement parts for the drivetrain and the chassis.
Likely he will run out of fuel before he runs out of drivetrain.

[midnight rambler]

Likely he will run out of fuel before he runs out of drivetrain.

He has plans to store 'fuel' - lots of it. The Cummins will run on many types of oil, not just pump diesel. And I'm guessing in the future that fuel will be the least of one's concerns.