Just bought my cummins donor vehicle

[cooperhawk]

Hope my diesel is set up the same. You make it sound easy.

[gwbaker]

Originally Posted by Diesel Phil

Good morning! I meant to say 12 VALVE. as opposed to the later 24 valve.I googled King Cruise last night, didn't know there was such a thing, and now, I believe I need one of those, too! Would like to have a big electric fan but I talked to Flex-a-Lite and Haydan...they don't make one big enough. Maybe my next year project might be an aluminum radiator and a BIG electric fan. ???????????...GW, where did you get the big altenator you are using??? Furniture arrived yesterday, from the factory....if I don't get busy my wife won't type these notes for me! Have fun. Regards, Diesel Phil and Sam

Got my alternator on ebay from dbelectric / 300.00 / 220amps /bolts right up

[gwbaker]

I was pretty sick this weekend, but I did seem to wrap things up. Here are some pictures of the new tranny cooler and the liquid to liquid tranny cooler out of the dodge. Intercooler is mounted. other pix are the intake system mock-up. The black box all the way low and to the right is the air box out of the dodge, so as you can see, i will need to extend the intake hose with something. I also ended up mating the dodge fan pully nut with the chevy fan mount. End results are that I am running the stock chevy fan on the cummins with the stock chevy shroud and it works great. You just cant beat the big mechanical fans. I will still mount an electric fan toward the bottom of the radiator as the shroud does not reach down that far. Anyway, I wired it up today and fired it up. Injectors bled out fine and she sounds great. The 4 inch exhaust is nothing but awesome. It sounds like a big rig. Still waiting for the driveshafts to be spliced, then I'll drive it. I also still have to wire up a lot more stuff like the rest of the gauges and the exhaust brake, etc. All of the original chevy engine gauges work great. They did not even need adaptors, the cummins already had the right sized holes.

[pwhittle]

Paul,

What springs do I have now? Are these 5400-5900 what I need? I am definitely interested. How easy are they to swap out? Jack it up and compress the springs and getem outta there?

Greg__________________

Not sure what the standard springs are, but these are designed to work without the airbags, so you get rid of a future maintenance item. With the extra weight of the new motor, these may be about right, but the best way is to weigh the front axle to find out the new weight.

Fairly easy to fit one side at a time. Jack up the body and support it. Jack up the suspension and remove the wheel. Unhook the anti-roll bar. Undo the bolt on the lower ball joint, then lower the jack a little. Use a ball joint spreader/fork to separate the balljoint, remove the jack from under the suspension, lower the suspension arm, and the spring and airbag will come free.

Installing is the reverse except you don't need to work about the airbags. Don't forget to put a little antiseize on the top/bottom of the spring, and make sure it centers on the mount.

Don't forget to wear eye protection.

Paul

[outofcontrol]

I have studied all the pictures and re-read this whole thread 5+ times. it's awesome; thanks for sharing. I've even been looking around for a donor vehicle. check this one out: http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/rvs/579298112.html

I know it's a little late to ask, but did you consider an Allison tranny?

What I need to do now is get my 454 to fail so I have a good reason to replace it. It really makes more sense to sell the 454 as a working unit, but my wife would kill me if I started this project now. Maybe I can fake it, and make it look like the motor blew up...

-Kevin

[safari57]

Kevin

Pull a couple of vacuum hoses and it will run like crap

Been there and ain't admitting I done that

That swap from an LS5 to an LS7 was phenomenal

Barry

[gwbaker]

Originally Posted by outofcontrol

I have studied all the pictures and re-read this whole thread 5+ times. it's awesome; thanks for sharing. I've even been looking around for a donor vehicle. check this one out: http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/rvs/579298112.html

I know it's a little late to ask, but did you consider an Allison tranny?

What I need to do now is get my 454 to fail so I have a good reason to replace it. It really makes more sense to sell the 454 as a working unit, but my wife would kill me if I started this project now. Maybe I can fake it, and make it look like the motor blew up...

-Kevin

Yes, the allison is a great tranny. Reasons why I didnt go with it: 545 ally does not have lock up converter, also allys are big and heavy. they also do not have "park", they have that big brake on the output shaft that i would have to rig up. The 47rh has the perfect gear ratio, lock up etc..

[bkahler]

Originally Posted by gwbaker

The 47rh has the perfect gear ratio, lock up etc..

Ok, you've got my attention. What is a 47rh transmission? Who made it, what models did it come one, etc !

Thanks,

Brad

[outofcontrol]

I have some of the same questions. I'm trying to figure out a good place to learn about these trannys, but once you have gone out and tested this set-up, I might just trust all your research. it seems pretty spot on so far.

Are there 47RH trannys form dodge that don't have the lock-up? obviously the 91 doesn't. how do you know?

Is this where you bought the Tranny from? Phoenix
it looks like they include their own CNC HD Tq converter with the tranny, is that right?

Sorry I'm such a novice at this, but how do I find out what the final gear ratio is in my rig? (besides opening it up and counting teeth).

-Kevin

[gwbaker]

Originally Posted by bkahler

Ok, you've got my attention. What is a 47rh transmission? Who made it, what models did it come one, etc !

Thanks,

Brad

Wikipedia has a great write up on these trannys, but in a nutshell, the 89-93 dodge came with the Torque Flight 46rh also called the chrysler 518 (4 speed, overdrive, non lock up, hydraulic controlled). From 94-95 they had the 47rh or 618 (beefier version, still 4 speed with overdrive, but this one has lockup trq converter) After 95 they made the 47 and 48 RE (same as above but electronically controlled. Now you have to buy a box from somebody to control the tranny. no big deal, just 500$ or more for this box. These are all based on the 727 3 speed that dodge has used for years. The 47 RH is best in my opinion for guys like us because it gives us almost all the great attributes of the big 6speed electronic allison trannys but at a fraction of the cost. The 47RH also has the .69 overdrive which is taller than any other overdrive than I can find. If you do the math on this, it equates to about 1800 RPMs at 57 MPH if you have 4.56 rear end and 8R19.5 tires. You just cant get a better more economic combo than this. (By the way, most of us have this same rear end ratio). If you are cruising at just under 3000rpms at at about 60mph once the tranny warms up, 4.56 is what I suspect you have. If you are unsure,, It should be stamped somewhere on the diff.

Downsides of this tranny:

1. In its stock configuration, this tranny will not handle much more than 400lbs of trq. For a few bucks it can be modded to handle 800 or more. In our world, we just need a larger, good aftermarket trq converter with a rebuilt tranny. I'm using a single disk beefed up version. You can get a triple disk billet for more money.

2. It wasnt set up to run cool enough in the dodge. This is why it has such a bad reputation for breaking down. the tranny cooler in the dodge is very small. In our world, we need a large tranny cooler and a tranny temp gauge. If you keep the temps down on this or any other tranny, you will be fine. If you run this tranny into the ground and improperly cool it, you will be one of the ones complaining about it. There are no fundamental problems with the actual tranny, just the way it has been installed over the years.

3. The gear ratio spread between 3rd gear and overdrive is a lot. from 1.0 to .69 is more than most. This has to managed by the driver so as not to run the tranny too hot. in the dodge, this is another reason for high temps and failure. the truck hunts for the right gear while locking and unlocking the trq converter. In our world, we run toggles to manually control the converter and the overdrive when climbing hills and pulling big loads. we also run pressure switches to automatically control the trq conv and OD when we are driving normally (that way you are not flipping switches the whole time). the stock computer is more concerned with a comfortable ride than the health of the tranny, so it gets chucked in the dumpster.

For more info on the pressure switches and all that, go here:

www.transmissioncenter.net/dodge.atm

Its all the way at the bottom

For more info on where I got my tranny, go here:

Rebuilt Transmission | Transmission Parts | Rebuilt Transmissions

These guys sold me a reman 47RH with the trq conv and they even took my 46RH as a core.

[gwbaker]

Originally Posted by outofcontrol

I have some of the same questions. I'm trying to figure out a good place to learn about these trannys, but once you have gone out and tested this set-up, I might just trust all your research. it seems pretty spot on so far.

Are there 47RH trannys form dodge that don't have the lock-up? obviously the 91 doesn't. how do you know?

Is this where you bought the Tranny from? Phoenix
it looks like they include their own CNC HD Tq converter with the tranny, is that right?

Sorry I'm such a novice at this, but how do I find out what the final gear ratio is in my rig? (besides opening it up and counting teeth).

-Kevin

Hope my last reply answered your questions. Yes that is where I bought my tranny, and yes the trq converter comes with it. Hope this helps

[bkahler]

gw, thanks for the reply. It sounds like a 94-95 dodge truck is the ideal donor as long as it has the cummins and the 47rh transmission.

Thanks!

Brad

[gwbaker]

Originally Posted by bkahler

gw, thanks for the reply. It sounds like a 94-95 dodge truck is the ideal donor as long as it has the cummins and the 47rh transmission.

Thanks!

Brad

Well, thats up for debate. The 94 thru 98 cummins has the p7100 inline injection pump. Its a great pump, but it is HUGE. You have to cut away some of the side firewall to make it it fit. This is why I bought a 91 so I could get the skinny motor, then I traded the 46RH in for a 47RH reman.

[bkahler]

Thanks for clarifying the year. What years had that particular arrangement for injection pumps?

Brad