Recipes for Horsepower

1994-2002 Dodge Cummins

We get a lot of calls asking, "What do I need to do to my truck to make a certain horsepower level?"  We thought we would throw out a few rough guidelines to help you out when you are shopping for parts.  We are doing this section specifically for the 98.5-2002 5.9L Dodge Cummins so it's not a generic model.  Some of the recommendations will be a little vague.  We are going to try and lay out the best way to make the stated horsepower rating.

 For example, you could grab the highest setting on your programmer to make 500HP on a dyno run but for longevity you would be better off with a set of 50HP Injectors and a lower setting on the tuner.  We are going to mention a lot of specific products.  These are products that we prefer through our experience.  There are, of course, many other options that we have available on the site. 

Bear in mind that even though Dodge says your truck is 265HP they are quoting flywheel horsepower, not rear wheel horsepower.  On a dyno, the actual rear wheel horsepower for these trucks is about 200HP.  Please don't get sucked into the trap of adding all of the manufacturer stated horsepower gains for the individual products together to estimate your horsepower.  This will only lead to disappointment!

• Engine Parts: Smarty Programmer, BD 75hp injectors, S&B cold air intake, Fass or Air dog lift pump, 4" turbo back exhaust.
• Drivetrain Upgrades: N/A

• Engine Parts: Smarty Programmer, Edge juice with attitude, S&B cold Air intake, Air dog demand flow 165, 4" Turbo back exhaust, Pac brake max flow turbo elbow, BD 100hp Injector nozzles, BD super B single turbo, BD pulse exhaust manifold.

• Automatic: Deep sump trans pan
• Manual: Kevlar Ceramic single disc Valair Clutch

• Automatic: BD performance Transmission, BD flexplate, BD triple disc torque converter.
• Manual: Valair full ceramic single disc or Valair dual disc spring hub

• Automatic: Full race BD transmission, BD flexplate, BD triple disc torque converter.     
• Manual: Full Ceramic Dual Disc Valair.

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