new member, new member questions....
 

hello all,
first, i HATE being a newbie, so i apologize if this is a "newbie" thread.
i bought a 1997 club cab, long bed 4x4, auto, a litle over a week ago. i found it on here. while not new to forums OR performance mods, etc, i am COMPLETELY new to diesels, and have been lurking here for a couple months. i have learned alot, but in my searching, i cannot find the answer to a few questions (some about my new truck, some general)...
and to note: i am daily driving my truck, do not tow anything, and in general could have gotten something A LOT smaller to do what i need it to. i have no need for a truck this big:)
general questions (again, i searched a ton)...
what are the power limits of the stock turbo? i'd like to reach 400 hp (arbitrary number, really), and have the funds for the smaller mods (DVs, GSK), but not for a turbo upgrade. would 400 hp get me close to 14 second 1/4 mi (i would like the truck to be as fast as my bmw 328)? can i do DV's, a 3 or 4GSK, and some type of injectors, and reach 400+ hp and NOT have melting pistons?

now...i have no clue if this is just my truck, or all the 12v cummins....so could be general, could be my truck...
i have a hose coming down the driver's side of the engine block and it "empties" over the u-joints of the front driveshaft/diff. what is this???? i can't see up there enough to follow it.

when putting the truck in park i feel it jump and yesterday a co-worked told me the entire rear end moved forward when i put it in park. is this normal? is this something terribly bad?

i have a clank coming from somewhere in the front end. it's a lighter sound (light as in note and tone), and it happens going over small series of bumps (normal road variations) and some times when i hop out of the truck. it sounds a little like what a loose heat shield sounds like when it hits the ground (for those of you who have ever had lower vehicles). searched for this on here, found nothing.

i think that is it. thanks, and i sincerely apologize for the newbness of this thread. i didn't want to post, but i hadn't introduced myself yet, searched for answers i couldn't find, etc, so i figured it was time.

ben

melting pistons, nope, as long as u watch ur EGT's. the engine's good for a ton of HP and TQ, but there is definently a limit to the stock turbo. You need gauges first before any power, EGT, Boost, and trans temp gauge.

Does the truck have a stock trans? (or stock rebuild)? Because u will toast the trans if u go much over 50hp gain from what it is now. Plus if u put a nice Torque converter and valve body in now, the truck will drive so much better and power will always be there instead of the stock trans sucking up alot of the power.

400hp would probably mean, dv's, injectors, fuel plate(free), and a upgraded turbo to cool things down.

Can't help with the auto going into park hard, maybe someone else will chime in on that one.

cool...thanks for the reply.
i have EGT, boost, and oil temp. and as for transmission...some rebuild by a diesel specialist in florida (2nd owner did it, i am the 4th) with a triple disk TC, and upgraded valve bodies.

and as far as EGT, i was trying to ask if i did too many fuel mods (i have a #10 plate right now) with no turbo upgrade (though i do have a wastegate actuator), would they become hard to manage...ie, one trip down the drag strip and things are blowing up.

I don't know much about auto trannies, so I can't help you there, but the tube is called the breather or blow by tube, it vents crank case fumes and such.

EGTs are pretty managable with a plate/GSK, injectors or DVs can be pushing it with the stock turbo, but since you don't tow you should be fine.

One trip down the drag strip won't typically destroy things, sustained high EGTs is what you want to worry about. But as you know with modified vehicles, things can break. You have a stout engine, and if I were you I wouldn't worry about blowing things up. I certainly don't.

FWIW- 350 is about the max most can get with the stock turbo before EGTs start getting out of hand.

that's what i was thinking, but i need never seen anything vent straight to the air. and since i couldn't follow it, i was at a loss.

gotcha. 350 isn't too bad.:)

sorry to reawaken this thread, but i have tracked down (sort of) the clicking/clanking noise up front. it is definitely coming from the driver's side wheel area. a friend of mine playingly kicked that tire and the clank/click occurred. do ball joints make noise when bad? how about track bar? pittman arm? could it be a loose brake pad (the driver's side one is throwing lots of brake dust)?

thanks...

Could be a bearing or u joint going out. I actually have never had ball joint issues, so no experience there.

I also had a center cap on a set of aftermarket rims make an awful rackett once. Pulled the rim and taped it in tight and quiet again.

sounds kinda like a u joint. I had one go out on me and it was making a similar noise. Maybe try crawlin under there and see if you can wiggle it and find any slack.

thanks for the replies. i will try both of those.

how bad are the u-joints to do?

well that depends on what kind of mechanic you are and how many and of what kind of tools you have. you have to remove the brake caliper and rotor and wheel bearing assembly. piece of cake for me with matco air tools.