Hauling loads is why you have a truck in the first place. And for many of us, ambitions grow. We want to pull something bigger and heavier or pull it up steeper hills without stumbling. Maybe you discovered what a heavy trailer can do to your fuel economy and you're looking for an improvement there. Perhaps you found yourself descending a steep hill worrying about burning up your brakes. People who tow with stock vehicles often find plenty of room for improvement.
There are many ways to build up a truck for towing depending upon your needs and goals. And, of course, the dent in your wallet varies to the extreme. You can get some low-cost and easy upgrades or go all out, adding hundreds of horsepower and spending many thousands of dollars. Some upgrades can pay for themselves in fuel savings and maybe even reduced aggravation. Others are to be attempted only by those with serious trailer hauling in mind.
We asked nearly a dozen experts in the field how to improve a vehicle's towing ability. Each has a specialty and gives advice accordingly. With so many alternative points of view, you're assured of learning something valuable about improving your rig's towing ability.
Gale Banks Engineering
Around since 1958, the Banks crew covers the gamut in provoking powerplants into doing their best, with a particularly strong niche in the diesel aftermarket. They can do it from selling you upgraded filters to a full rebuild in their Southern California facility that will produce hundreds more horsepower than stock.
| 0901 8l 01 Tuning For Towing Gale Banks Engineering
"We do provide full packages for towing," says Harold Johnson of Banks. He notes the most popular towing upgrade is a Powerpack system. Depending upon the application, this will include such items as an intercooler, a manifold inlet engine calibration module, stainless steel exhaust, gauges, and mounting hardware. A full system runs about $3,500, says Johnson. You can expect plenty more power-more than a hundred additional horses on many engines. Yet fuel economy is also likely to improve.
Once the power is added, a common addition is an exhaust brake. Diesel engines lack the compression braking of a gasoline engine, making it more difficult and tougher on brakes for towing downhill. An exhaust brake brings back that off-throttle braking by adding backpressure in the exhaust to retard engine speed. Johnson notes that an exhaust brake "essentially involves an elbow (and integrated wastegate) which actuates the wastegate." The net result is slowing the engine and ending up with much the same result as compression braking in a gasoline engine.
Once you've added extra power and more ability to slow, the next most common area to improve is the transmission. At this point, the sky is the limit depending upon what you plan to accomplish. You can add more turbocharging power and fuel flow to get into serious pulling power. Then you need to start beefing up the transmission significantly and start looking at components within the engine itself. Planning upgrades by taking advantage of the research and experience of an outfit like Banks Engineering helps ensure your truck is safe and reliable.
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One of the most important items to monitor with a towing rig, notes Johnson, are the EGTs (exhaust gas temperatures). By putting together the right ingredients in a Powerpack kit, this ensures maintaining temperatures within an acceptable range while improving towing performance.
www.bankspower.com
TS Performance
One avenue for a performance improvement is to alter the electronic brain of the vehicle. TS Performance offers a device that can make modifications to the engine software. "For towing, our MP-8 is a plug-and-play module," says TS Performance's Chris Weygandt. It plugs into the vehicle's computer system and can make adjustments to remap the pressure and/or fuel sensor, depending upon the application.
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The MP-8 is available for most late-model diesel truck engines from Dodge, Ford, and GM. "It can give you an additional hundred horsepower and up to 200 lb-ft of torque," says Weygandt. He notes adjustments are made with a knob similar to a rheostat. "As you turn the knob, it remaps the fuel curve and increases the boost." In addition to the extra power, you can increase fuel economy by 2 or 3 mpg.
The MP-8 adjusts from inside the cab of the truck and TS Performance says it will not increase exhaust temperatures. The company says it does not leave fingerprints in the factory computer. If you swap trucks, you can take the MP-8 with you and install it in another vehicle with just a new wiring harness.
| 0901 8l 05 Tuning For Towing Power Play
To keep track of your truck's EGT, TS Performance recently developed the MPD monitor. This is a stand-alone digital monitor that works with any model diesel engine and displays EGT, boost, fuel pressure, and rpm. The monitor also features an optional Heads-Up display that allows you to project one of its functions onto your windshield. You can set up the HUD to flash once it reaches a limit you have preset into the monitor.
www.tsperformance.com
S&B Filters
Airflow is crucial to any engine and of particular importance to diesel engines. Diesels generally consume air faster than a gas engine, making good filtration particularly challenging. S&B Filters designed a filter particularly for diesel applications.
| 0901 8l 04 Tuning For Towing Sb Filters
To get an even better boost, notes Jay Crouch of S&B, it's a good idea to add a cold-air intake. "One of the biggest benefits of a cold-air intake is lower EGTs," he says. S&B offers different types of intakes depending upon the application. "We use a factory-style box in the factory location." This makes installation easy for the customer. S&B boxes also have a clear lid so you can easily see the filter and whether it requires attention.
Crouch notes S&B offers a system that's right for each brand of truck. "We don't try to confuse the consumer with four different applications for their vehicle." And with the most expensive kit retailing for about $269, it's a cost-effective upgrade. As one example, S&B says its intake kit for the '02 Dodge Ram 5.9L Cummins diesel improves the airflow 46.8 percent compared to the stock induction system, while still stopping 99.9 percent of the dirt.
www.sbfilters.com
ATS
Diesel Performance
As the name implies, ATS specializes in diesel engines. With considerable experience in this application, Matt Bozarth notes, "We try to make everything work together. One of the best places to go for better power is airflow." After adding a cold-air intake, the next step would typically be updating the intercooler. ATS produces the Sub Zero system with heavy-duty tank construction and no plastic parts. "Higher-than-stock boost levels are no problem," he says. Air is passed through at much better velocity. The body is thicker and more efficient fin design provides colder, more condensed air. The body has a stepped tank-an ATS exclusive-for cooler air at the inlet.
| 0901 8l 06 Tuning For Towing Ats Diesel Performance
ATS notes that the most detrimental effect on a diesel is exhaust heat. Keeping a diesel engine cool is the key to engine reliability and extended power output. To keep temperatures down, ATS produces the Water Boy Water Injection system. When water is injected into a diesel engine in a precisely metered fashion, there are a number of beneficial effects. As the water is vaporized into the hot intake charge, the air is cooled, creating a more dense airflow for increased power and lower exhaust gas temperatures. Water injection also has a cleaning effect, scrubbing carbon from the engine head, intake, and exhaust valves.
When you're ready to make serious power, ATS also offers a variety of upgraded turbocharging systems. The Aurora 3000 is a little bigger than stock. It has a strong bearing and, Bozarth adds, the vane design is fully extended or tipped. Tighter tolerances lead to better efficiency. With this turbo, you can upgrade the engine to as much as 500 hp. If you want to go further, ATS has the Aurora Compound system with a twin-turbo setup. With this, you can build an engine up to 700 hp, according to Bozarth.
| 0901 8l 07 Tuning For Towing Aurora Turbo Systems
When you're building an engine to produce that sort of power, you have
to continue upgrading other components. One of the last things you want
is a blown transmission. ATS's Five Star Torque Converter has a viscous
clutch drive. Rather than relying on fluid transfer from the impeller
to the turbine via the stator, the Five Star uses viscous energy that
transfers rotational energy from the engine to the transmission. During
torque-converter clutch lockup, five clutch plates provide a complete
mechanical engagement ensuring no plate slippage, even at power levels
in excess of 2,000 lb-ft.
www.atsdieselperformance.com
K&N Engineering
When it comes to aftermarket filtration, few companies are as well known as K&N. "We have more high-performance air filters than anyone worldwide," says Tim Stewart of K&N. The idea is to get more clean air into the engine so it can perform better. Stewart notes engines may get slightly more airflow than with a stock, clean filter. The difference becomes more pronounced with a dirty filter. Rather than replacing the filter, the K&N can be cleaned and reused, backed by a million-mile warranty. "Our replacement filters for diesels are unique," says Stewart. "We've got one application that makes 8 or 9 additional horsepower just by replacing the filter." That's a Cummins diesel where the K&N filter is much deeper to better fill the airbox.
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K&N also builds a full intake system with prices ranging from about $275 to $375. Notes Stewart, "Each system comes with a lifetime warranty and won't impact your manufacturer warranty." He also says K&N will make a promise to the customer: "We guarantee you'll get an increase in horsepower," he states, adding an example, "we have a diesel kit that will give you 22 hp on a Chevy Duramax." The largest horsepower increase K&N has seen with an intake system is 53 hp, although few people are likely to use that application for towing-it fits a Ford Mustang GT 500.
Stewart does point out that K&N's website provides documentation on what the customer can expect. "We test multiple vehicles with multiple dyno runs." In some applications, K&N offers both a polyethylene and aluminum intake. Usually, the polyethylene makes a few more horsepower, but many customers find the aluminum preferable for cosmetic reasons.
K&N also makes high-performance oil filters. They are designed to do a better job with synthetic fluids and are also easier to install and remove because each includes a 1-inch nut on the end.
www.knfilters.com
Bully Dog
"Our primary product focus is electronics," says Mike DeFord of Bully Dog. The idea, he says, is to download software to your truck's computer. Bully Dog's most popular item is the Triple Dog Downloader. This unit allows mapping features that can add 60 to 100-plus horsepower, depending upon application and setting. "The first map is our Tow setting," says DeFord. "That setting is aimed at optimum results for horsepower and torque and fuel economy." Depending upon features, the cost can range from about $449 to around $1,000. Installation takes about 10 minutes, according to DeFord, and no tools are necessary. If you're after higher levels of control and want performance management features, you can add about 30 minutes to run a wire to the fuse block.
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The downloader also works well with other items Bully Dog offers, such as intake and exhaust modifications. By combining components, EGTs can be reduced significantly. The downloader also has safety features that will automatically limit changes to remain within safe parameters. DeFord notes there's a display that shows what's going on with four different settings that can be managed while driving.
The downloader can be updated online and the same product works on Ford, Dodge, or Chevy with either diesel or a gasoline V-8. If you trade or buy a new vehicle, you can take it with you and add updates.
www.bullydog.com
| 0901 8l 10 Tuning For Towing Ford Truck With Bully Dog
