I got in a bad accident tonight. My fault. Buts lets not go into it. So your insurance company is going to total your truck. Its only worth about 15 grand. Would you try to find one and rebuild get back to your old truck?. Or should I try to get an early second gen and get a performance tranny, with lots of mods. Truck 5000, 10,000 in mods? I mean I wont find a truck like I had. 1996 with 70K. It was my baby. Why did this have to happen to me. I loved my truck. What would I do without it. If I should just get a like truck, can you fellas help me find one.
I just want a 96 to 98. I will take leave and fly anywhere for the right truck. I am going to build this truck for 1/4 mile and daily driver. 2wd short bed. Any ideas on what I should do???

Sleep on it. Your obviously upset and you have every right to be. Now is not the time to make a decision.

Start looking for a 12 valver. I like your thought process. Pick one up that may need a little work. Not a problem. If you can and have the knowledge to look at the problems and know what it's gonna take. However, you may find one that is "just right" in your price range that does not need a ton of work. You never know.

Just start looking, buy the papers, surf the online ads, and make the calls. You will find one. For now, relax, let the dust settle, and don't make any rash decisions. Be thankful the accident was not worse. I understand how you feel about your truck, but, it can be replaced. Good luck, sorry for your misfortune, Kevin

BTW, I was in the United States Canoe Club and watched when that keel was being laid! One hell of a ship! Serve Proud and THANK YOU for your service!

Glad you are okay and sorry to hear about your truck. I think kd460 gave you some very good advice. Be patient the right truck for you is out there. Be glad you had insurance! My son is in the Navy stationed in Hawaii. He bought a new Yamaha R1 just before he went there, had it shipped over. Didn’t realize when he bought it that he couldn’t afford full coverage. Someone stole it a couple of weeks after he got there. Life is tough sometimes but keep your chin up things have a way of working out.
Thank you for your service, you are appreciated! Good luck from a proud Navy Mom!

let them total it, then buy it back from them... it'll never be the same if you try to fix it...

turn lemons into lemonade... you can get your 2wd truck and be driving it while you build up the engine out of your 96... cam, lotsa head work, marine pistons, twins, etc.

that 4x4 will part out for a hefty chunk of change...

Forrest

Honorably discharged X-Navy here also. I fought a galant war against rust and corrosion both foreign and domestic. I'm so old they were just converting from oars to sails when I got out! 73-78 (okay.... so I exagerate alittle)

I agree with KD. Sleep on it and take a few days. Rushing into stuff is not a good plan, in the Navy or as a civ.

Thank God you were not hurt, and thank you for your service.

Originally posted by jprovence
I got in a bad accident tonight. My fault. Buts lets not go into it. So your insurance company is going to total your truck. Its only worth about 15 grand. Would you try to find one and rebuild get back to your old truck?. Or should I try to get an early second gen and get a performance tranny, with lots of mods. Truck 5000, 10,000 in mods? I mean I wont find a truck like I had. 1996 with 70K. It was my baby. Why did this have to happen to me. I loved my truck. What would I do without it. If I should just get a like truck, can you fellas help me find one.
I just want a 96 to 98. I will take leave and fly anywhere for the right truck. I am going to build this truck for 1/4 mile and daily driver. 2wd short bed. Any ideas on what I should do???
That wasn't you that tangled with that school bus, was it?:eek:
Nat

Sorry about your truck, but glad your ok! There are some nice trucks out there if you are patient, just keep looking. Don't try to fix yours, I've seen people try that route and it's very frustrating, to put it nicely. Good luck, and thank you for your service!

If your truck has allot of salvageable parts... you may be able to get truck from the insurance co. for salvage price which will be deducted from payoff total. This would all depend on your game plan and if these parts would benefit your next truck.

OK, I am building a plan. Although still pending the Insurance company. Hopefully they wont wait too long. I am going to try and get my truck back for parts. Rebuild the motor for racing. Purchace a good 2wd std. cab pickup. I will learn everything about the Cummins takeing it apart. I have never done anything this in depth. So this will be a learning experinence

there's really nothing to it but to do it... you ever rebuilt an engine at all?

the KEY is to be 100% confident in your machinist... if you have to drive halfway across the country and wait 6 months for the machine work to be done, DO IT...

obviously, that's an exageration, but you'd be surprised... sometimes that's about how it works when building a hot rod! LOL!

lots of people don't seem to have the time or money to do something right, but somehow they find the time to do it wrong a few times in a row...

these engines are expensive and replacement parts are too... this isn't a little 302 V8 that you can build from the oil pan to the carb for $1000...

so take the extra time to do your homework and get UNBIASED FIRST HAND INFO on whoever you choose to do your machine work... even on something as simple as turning a flywheel!

Forrest

I am going to seiz this oppertunity in my life to learn this stuff. No I haven't ever rebuilt and engine. I am quick to learn fast. I will take my iron to get it machined to the more worthy experts. I plan on taking it slow. This is going to be a huge undertaking for me. Heck I dont even have a garage. I going to rent a storage unit and work out of that. That should work fine. I will build my tool collection as the project goes. This motor is going to be bullet proof when I done. I am going to check and re check everything before I move onto the next step. Exact specs for everything. I tend to be to perfectionist. I think I can do it. I have this website to rely on in all my questions. I know I can count on your guys to help me along the way.

Sounds like maybe some good will come from your expeirience but again sorry about your truck

When I was in 82-88, just about every base had a "garage" where you could schedule time to work on your vehicle. I think they charged like nothing. You just had to schedule it. They even loaned out tools. They had a check out system using tags. When you came in they gave you a stack of metal tags with a number. Every time you went to get a tool you gave them a tag. When you returned the tool later, you got the tag back. At the end of the day you returned your stackof tags and they counted them to make sure they got everything back.

I'm sure where you are stationed has the same thing. Can even get to tlking to them, they can point in the right direction as to who are the guys who wrench, and who are the guys who wrench on diesels. Remember, that cummins motor is used in allot of equipment, and there are allot of guys on that base, active duty and civilian that work on diesels for a living.

You have a heck of a resource there. You just need to know how to tap it. Start asking around. Start with rec. services, if it's not there department they can tell you what department it is (motor pool?) heck stop by the garages you see on base with the big equipment in it. Show up with a 12 pack of "soda" and ask around.

I wish I had the resources that you have on that base. Hope this helps, Kevin

I know I have the resources. But getting my wrecked truck around and whatnot. That would be a problem. It is going to be put into storage so I can salvage parts off of it like the rear end, some interior, exhaust, all that stuff to go on the new truck. I can take those pieces down to the hobby shop and wrench all day on my truck. Those are some great ideas you say kd460. I am going to learn alot. My father and I want to open up a diesel shop someday. This is the ground floor of my education in Diesel. I guess I can start asking questions now on what to do first.

Have a service manual handy and remember you will be dealing with heavy parts.... especially the engine compared to a gasser.

What kind of machining are you talking about here? What do you need to machinine to rebuild a Cummins? :confused:

What all do you have to rebalance?

I am curious as to what is all involved. I will have about 8000 to do the rebuild. Seeing how I am searching for an automatic truck, that budget may be smaller. But that should get me a good strong steet motor. Perhaps 600 or 700 rwhp daily driver. So what do I need to do. I will be starting with a 12v 215hp pump. Stock other wise except for the 12 plate. I will pull the motor and put in what ever I need to. Pistons, crank, rods, bearings, valve train. I will have to get the engine balanced and blueprinted To handle high RPM's better. Anything I need to get the motor to handle that much power reliably everyday just street playing. I need to not be affraid to be next to a Corvette, Superchaged GT (buddy's car), WRX, etc. I want to get em good. Or just be able to surpise the crap out of them. I will be getting an automatic built for the truck. Proably as soon as I buy the truck. I will have the Dana 80 rear end with LSD. Will I have to have a custom drive shaft built so I can put it in the 2wd truck. Its coming out of my 4x4 manual truck. I know a good pump shop in Richmond that will do the pump work. I just tell them how much power I want and send the pump away and they rebuild it, do whatever needs to be done for that pump to push enough fuel. I am very sorry for the long post. Thanks for any help you fellas can give me.

$8k is a pretty small budget unfortunately...

plan on spending about $4500-5000 of that on the tranny... get the full boogie tranny/converter combo w/ the billet input shaft and hub...

if the motor is running good, wouldn't touch it... maybe put rings and bearings in it... look at Jim fulmer's truck... 800hp w/ a stock bottom end and a little Piers cam (no piston fly cutting)

get a cam, o-ring the head, good valvesprings, maybe do a little port work while you've got it off, run some head studs, build a set of twins and get some nasty injectors... you're gonna be on the ragged edge of $8k... probably ain't gonna make it if you wanna hang with Vettes and supercharged mustangs... you've got a lot of weight and a big old barn door to push along... but you'll definately surprise a lot of people!! :D

now, if you're talking $8k budget for the engine? no sweat, I'll help you spend it! [laugh]

Forrest

I already figured the tranny. The motor runs greats. only 70,000 miles on it. 8,000 will just be spent on the motor. Twins, pistons, cams. machine work, valve train components, etc. What do you think Forrest. Make me a recipe to spend 8000 on a 12v and how much power do you thin I will have. I am going to get an ATS or DTT behind the beast. Just and all around faster truck. Do you think a 6 speed would be just a fast? I hate that 3rd to 4th shift in the 5 speed.

with a 2wd single cab and big nuts power, the 5sp is going to be quicker than the 6sp...

the 6sp is a pulling/towing tranny... the 5sp is as close to a drag racer's manual as you're gonna get in these trucks...

now, I've thought about going w/ like a 3.31 rear gear and a 33-35" rear tire and running the 6sp :D

but the auto is really the way to go if you can afford it... especially if you want to make a decent showing at the strip...

I have no personal experience w/ them, but if I had the money, I'd go DTT all the way.

DD cam, flycut/coated marine pistons, ported head, big twins, big pump, and some big injectors... $8k is REALLY easy to spend on these things unfortuantely... don't do fire-rings, just do a single o-ring w/ 12mm ARP studs and a marine gasket.

if I were building it, I'd ditch the air/air intercooler and go with a buck nasty air/water cooler

Forrest

oh man, you aint kiddin. 8 grand is real easy. twins is almost half right there. Injectors could be another chunk. Thats most of my money. oh man. Looks like I need to save money. or just get a 5.0 mustang.

OK, I went to the Diesel Dynamics web site and used the truck config thing. Here is what I came out too...
Part # Description Price
P76BT002C Stage 5 Fuel Pump 3095.00
6BTL004 Stage 4 Injectors 800.00
Gauges Pyrometer/Boost (trans temp optional) 305.00-395.00
PED02 4-inch Exhaust System 550.00
Trans Transmission Upgrades Required Call
Max-Boost II Turbo Custom H2E size Turbocharger w/downpipe 1850.00
CTDCAM12 12v Performance Camshaft Kit 1500.00
54-10071 AFE Funnel Ram Intake Kit 249.00

Thats the 800Hp kit. I have the gauges already from my old truck. And the full 4" exhaust. Thats already at $7494. The pump. Can I just have my 215 pump modded or do I just need to sell it and get a full race pump? Thanks alot man for all this help.

*I* would just push the 215 pump as far as you can... you can make GOOD power w/ some BIG injectors and DV's...

got any fab skills? you can build your own twins, but it won't save you THAT much money... you still gotta buy the turbos :(

with the twins, you'll want a 5" exhaust system... buy a cheap aluminumized 5" system and sell the 4" downpipe on ebay to offset some of the cost (or see if Rip will sell you a downpipe-back system cheap... he's real good about selling you just what you need)

figure you can make 650ish (WAG) on a 215 pump... throw some water/methanol injection on that, and you'll be up over 700 no problem... should add ~100hp.

if you're just buyin' stuff outright and not building anything, figure ~$4k on the twins, ~$1300-1500 for injectors, $300 for 5" exhaust, ~$400 for water/alky injection... you've got about $1500 left at that point... $350 for head studs, $500-600ish to o-ring/resurface/valvespring the head... that leaves you ~$500ish... I'd try to budget a Piers cam in, and you'll be spent... the PDR cam is good and doesn't require flycutting the pistons.

that's still a pretty tight budget for all that... if you've ever built a hot rod, you know there's always a BUNCH of $20-100 parts store runs that pop up! :mad:

Forrest

This is just 8000 from the insurance settlement. I have not figured in the money I will get for parting out the truck. That should bring a little more coin. I can't wait to get the money and start having fun. Thanks Forrest

sure wish I had that kind of budget!!! :D

have fun w/ it!

Forrest