92 Bounder NEEDS more power

[Toolmanmike]

Hey all, New to Rving (actually only owned it for 24 hrs) but Ive been watching and reading this site for 6 months now. I bought a really well kept 92 Bounder 35J diesel pusher with 5.9l 1st series engine and Allison 4 speed. It looks great but struggles to climb a hill. I am looking into tweaking the fuel pump but really need some quality info on turbo upgrades. I have a guage set I will install next week to watch the EGTs and boost and am very familiar with Diesels. Has anyone upgraded the turbo on these 1st series cummins before and with what?

I see a lot of pickup guys out there love these things but Im not interested in 500hp. I just need an extra 75-80 to push me up the hills. My engine is inter-cooled already. I think with some extra fuel, Im on my way there but the bottleneck after the turbo is ridiculous. Id also like to know if anyone has used an exhaust brake with the 4 speed Alison tranny.

Thanks

[BFlinn181]

I have a 5.9 12 valve and also looked into the things you mentioned. First, the limiting factor on increasing HP or torque isn't the engine, they can be 'souped' up pretty easy with rather cheap modifications. The limit is, how much can the Allison 4 speed transmission handle? My AT542 would not take much more than my engine can presently put out, so that changed my mind on increasing engine power. Also, if you have a similar transmission to the AT542, it probably has a non-locking torque converter, so any engine braking would not be transferred into the wheels.

I've driven 10% mountain passes out west and found I could do O.K. paying attention to RPM and gear selection. Downshifting to keep the engine in it's best torque range helps on climbing, and downshifting to a lower gear or two actually does help retard speed going down. It's not as positive as an exhaust brake, but it prevents having to ride the brakes or apply so frequently that overheating becomes an issue.

[Wdebarmore]

I too have a 190 HP 5.9 with Allison 4 speed. My seems to do alright in the California mountains. I have a higher than normal rear end ratio along with a gear vendors overdrive. This combo makes the engine perform like it has more torque than it actually has. Keeping the RPMs in the proper range is very important.

[slemnah]

Try a Banks Turbo kit. It will give you more power and torque. Banks power.com.


Steve and Jill
2005 Panther
23' Trailer

[BFlinn181]

Originally Posted by slemnah

Try a Banks Turbo kit. It will give you more power and torque. Banks power.com.


Steve and Jill
2005 Panther
23' Trailer

Very likely when they ask about the transmission they'll not recommend it. Lots of HP/torque modifications can be done much more cheaply than a Banks kit, throttle plate, injectors, etc., but a new or beefier transmission modification would be a good percentage of the RVs value. Check the specs of the transmission before investigating engine mods. Also learning to shift and keep in engine's RPM torque range can make it seem peppier.

[rdelcamp]

I have a 96 5.9 230HP . Installed a TST kit developed by a retired Cummins engineer. TSTproducts.com Made a great difference. Kit cost less than $200.
Ron D 96 MNACO Windsor.

[Toolmanmike]

Thanks all. I have been reading your responses and enjoy the information but it took me awhile to get back to my own thread on the site. I am pulling my boat and full camper up a good mountain grade today on our first RV trip! I'm excited to see how it does. I wasn't impressed on the highway when I brought it home last week but will watch the RPMs and gear selection on this trip.
I have been researching turbos and pump mods to get some more horses. I will research the transmission limitations today as well.
What turbo have you all upgraded to from these old 1st series engines? Hx35? S300? Hx40? Banks? I'm trying to find a bolt on upgrade and seems like the newer 96-? Have lots of options but the older models- not so much.

Thanks again