Improvements made
- US Gear 2speed overdrive auxillliary transmission added
- 370 Hp injectors
- 4,000 rpm governor spring kit
- 16cm turbo housing
- Fast idle solenoid
- D350 front coil springs
- Onboard compressed air
- Rewired trailer lighting circuits with relays
- Exhaust pipe turn down to keep the MH cleaner
- Adjust stock fuel plate forward.
- Rear Sway bar
Problems encountered
- Leaking rear axel pinion seal
- front end sag from extra weight
US Gear 2speed
After much moaning about the price of this addition, I decided to cut loose of the money and give it a go. I got a special deal through one of our suppliers and paid right at $2,000 for the unit with adapter. I needed to do a little more cutting and welding on my cross member to make it but it wasn't too bad. Everything else was a real easy. The front driveline needed to be shortened at a cost of about $150.
In retrospect I'm not real happy with this addition. I havn't pulled real heavy with it yet but some shortcomings are already showing. The Gear selection is amazing. No problem finding a gear to pull at whatever RPM I want. But, with the 4K gov springs I don't need all those gears. My powerband is so wide it just flat pulls at whatever rpm. On the freeway I dont need it below 65, and above 65 my mileage actually drops a few percent, even in overdrive. So! No gain at all as far as I can see.
Overheating is a problem. With any headwind above about 10mph I cannot use overdrive for longer than about 10min without the oil temp going above 230F. Dropping back to direct/5th the temp will slowly drop to under 200F.
370 Hp injectors
One word. WOW! These things made this engine an animal. Along with the 4K gov springs, this is a completely different engine. Easy to install, relatively inexpensive to buy. Thumbs up on this mod.
Off to Baja again.
4,000 rpm governor spring kit
A big thumbs-up for Piers Harry for doing the R&D on this item. I highly recommend this as your first mod.
16cm turbo exhaust housing
After adding the 370hp injectors and adjusting the stock plate forward, I needed to do something to help keep the EGTs in line. This is a relativly inexpensive item that seems to do the job.
Just south of Jackpot NV.
Fast idle solenoid
I found a fast idle solenoid in a junkyard. It was on a mid 80s Chev for fast idle when the A/C is on. I had to make a bracket and wire it up to a toggle switch. It works good for cold starts and extended idling.
D350 front coil springs
I knew the weight was going to be a problem from the start but decided to try using the stock springs anyway. I figured the motorhome springs may be heavy enough. Wrong! My front tires started to show uneven wear after a few thousand miles. Since the front was sitting lower by a couple inches the alignment was way off. The alignment guy said I needed to lift it back up to stock height in order to be able to align it properly. The front coils from a 93 1ton were the ticket. I paid $130 for the pair, rented the tools from ScHmucks Auto Parts and did the swap in a couple of evenings.
