that's kindof the natural progression of things... it's VERY easy to outgrow a 35/40 hybrid w/ some injectors and pump tweaks!

my recomendation is put a bandaid on it, crank up the power till you reach a level you like, then buy the appropriate turbo to keep it cool (or as cool as possible! LOL!)

 

I'm surprized nobody has mentioned this site...
http://www.htturbo.com/dodge.htm


NEW 16CM UPGRADE non-wastegated (short*) TURBINE HOUSING FOR 88-2002 DODGE/CUMMINS
$155.00


STAGE III 370 hp UPGRADE COMPRESSOR HOUSING AND 60mm WHEEL - 91-94 DODGE/CUMMINS
$225.00 (housing and wheel only)

so for $380+shipping, you can have a pretty nice setup IMO - Now granted, for what I'm doing (towing) even this might be more than I need since I still want decent fuel mileage.

 

Refer back to post #1, Rick.

BTW, it won't hurt the mileage and you will have enough fuel to spoll it.

 

woodrat, that is a good upgrade our trucks, but you can get it cheaper (than the buy it now) from most of the places like PDR, HTT, and i am sure others.

90firstgen, Dave is running a 14wg last i checked not a 16cm.

Forrest- i think you have some valid points that i agree with and some others that i dont... i've actually bought both the HTT upgrade and a used HX-35. putting on a HTT upgrade will actually give you less downtime than swapping an HX-35 in. my Stage 3 was right at $200 and made a HECK of a difference. i am still running the stock 18.5cm housing on that truck. i couldn't refuse the HX that i bought... $150 with only 80K on it. i will be putting the 12cm wg on the other side of my htt3 and using the center chunk and compressor housing on my other truck along with the 16cm housing that is on it. if i add up all that i have spent on turbo stuff i'm right at $550 or so and that makes both trucks perform a HECK of a lot better than stock.
sorry, i rambled a bit. for most these upgrades are as far as they will go, with that the HTT will be more efficient and flow more air. if this is a stepping stone to get you through, i agree with Forrst, get the air as cheap as you can and save for a bigger more efficient turbo. Dave has told me on many occasions not to waste the money on a 14cm wg housing, save it and buy a better all around turbo.

 

And I stand by that.

 

i walked outside in the middle of typeing that incoherent mess and there were like 5 more posts before mine, lol.

 

no problem... I think the stage IV + 18.5 would probably be a pretty sweet little budget turbo... the 21 is definately a slug, but I think the 18.5 would offer bettertop end cooling than the 16

 

All very interesting...

I have a bone stock engine that I have not tweaked at all, and I am getting ready to start upgrading it, starting with gauges. I do light towing (under 10,000) and I want to keep as much mileage as I can, and not spend a bunch of dough that I don't have anyway. So starting small with an improved housing is appealing to me.

but first, I need to get those gauges, do a valve adjust and some basic ground level stuff like that. But it would be nice to have a turbo upgrade plan so if I stumble across a good deal on something I can grab it for later. Sounds like from what I've read, that I've got the least useful turbo on there now.

 

I had a 21cm equipped truck... the BEST bang for your buck (and yes, I sound like a broken record) is an hx35

you've got a lot of bases to cover with a first gen before you NEED a bigger turbo.

I promise I won't post any more on this thread, I"m sure everyone's getting tired of me

 

but we're not talking BIGGER turbo so much as more reponsive turbo, right? Or am I reading this wrong? I have a long ways to go-if ever-before I am going to being pouring a lot of extra fuel into my engine, but I would like a more responsive turbo, a few more HP and decent mileage, all in a truck that does do a lot of towing, but not heavy towing. So I want to keep the EGTs under control too.

Changing to the HX35 would involve a different downpipe?

 

If you do go with a 16, you can get them way cheaper than the Buy It Now price.

 

Thanks a lot for everyones' input!! After reading all the responses and doing a little thinking on my own, I'm gonna begin the search for a good used hx-35 and call it a day. That will do until I get enough money to do it right. I cannot wait for "lag-zilla" to be gone! For what it is, the truck actually runs pretty good...just not good enough!

 

That's a fine choice. You will be very happy with an HX-35.

 

For reference I think a stock compressor wheel on an wh1 is 54 mm; an hx-35 is 56 mm; a PDR hx-35 is 58 mm.
Another cheap way to go is to buy a 14 cm NON- wastegated housing from HTT. They are around $170? You won't need a wastegated turbo for many hp. It will spool almost as quick as a 12 cm but doesn't kill the top end power, will spool quicker than a 16, egt's go down and boost goes up. I hated the 12 cm housing. Truck would fall on it's face after 22 psi. compared to the 14 housing. I ran a PDR HX-35/14 non wastegated all the way up to 360 uncorrected rear wheel and it never let me down.
Kurt

 

Oh great...GLHS gave me something else to think about. Way to go. Just joking!! Thanks for the input.