It may be a little premature for best results but here they are. Dodge dealer here in NC installed a new TST PowerMaxCR on my 2004.5 CTD. I drove it 202 miles yesterday and today returning home. I did not kick it in the rear any. I drove it about 50/50 in mountains of NC and rest on I-40 coming home. It stayed on setting #5 on both power level and turbo boost. This is on the high side for casual driving. I used 9.643 gallons. That is 21.04MPG. Hand calculated.
More results to come.

My truck at www.GoRowan.com/2004ram

 

Dantana
You may want to run on level 3/3 untill you can get a new torque converter and VB installed. The stock TC will slip on 4/4 under 2000 rpm.

 

I agree on the tc and valve body. You are going to smoke your converter clutch in no time with that tst. My suncoast converter and valve body are holding up fine with the tst volumizer stack.

 

I wanta know more about the TST Powermaxcr,
whats a boost elbow? (i'm new to the diesel world)
why would you want to increase the torque and HP separately? how is this done? it seems one would effect the other.
running at 3/3 would only be about 40hp and 120 tor. extra is that correct? and at this setting the trany will start to slip?

 

Guys, I have a 250hp so 2003 and I tow on 6-5 heavy at up to 35,000 #'s combined and the only slippage I got was on a 13% grade when I slipped it into 7-6 in od at 75mph and pinned it. (lesson learned) I have the newest version....toned down version I guess. Temps in exhaust never get above 1200 towing. If I hot rod it empty before the block gets hot and run 7-6 I can slip the tranny a bit.... but more likely I slip the tires...lots of torque. my filter minder on my stock intake has only pulled down to 40% even though I peak at 34 psi boost. ( I change the stock filter every 15000 miles and gently blow it off every 5000 mi.) I've had the tst for 20,000 sMiles and all is ok...in fact I think the shifting is better than stock. My exhaust is still cool enough for me so I've delayed the exhaust change until I add some other enhancements to boost the fuel volume. Yep I'm saving for the tranny upgrades too but if you don't abuse it you probably won't lose it. K.S.

 

i know the SO's run cooler, but level 6-5, towing 35000#'s and a stock intake and your only hitting 1200 degrees. Is that post turbo? With my afe intake, 4" exhaust, running empty I can hit 1500

 

HO Cummins, That's pre turbo in front of exhaust 2 and 3. I run hotter running empty too because the turbo is not flowing enough air because not enough fuel is being burned to wind it up. I don't run the TST high until all temperatures are stabilized and I'm rolling at speed. My favorite settings empty are 1-1 or 1-3 where my mileage is high. Towing I get better mileage running 4-4 than 1-1 and it is easier on the tranny, less full load shifts. K.S.

 

One thing I have noticed already is that my in dash engine guage is running cooler with the TST. Am I hearing some of you guys saying that once you get your truck rolling you can run at higher settings with the TST?

I did pickup a spec paper on the Dodge 48re and with the year 2004.5 the transmission was rated at 30% higher pulling capacity, new hyd. pump offers 15% greater flow capacity, ability to engage the converter clutch in 2,3,and 4th gears, increased converter clutch pressure/capacity, planetary carriers have been strengthened / upgraded to a 6-pinion design.

Look at spec sheet www.GoRowan.com/2004ram/48re.jpg


TST instructions does rate the new 48re at being able to holdup running at level 5/5. But it does say not recommended for heavy towing apps.


My truck at www.GoRowan.com/2004ram

 

www.tstproducts.com
If you want to know more about the TST Powermax CR.

Great box.

 

A boost elbow is a little brass 90° elbow mounted in the compressor housing of the turbo. It supplies boost pressure to the wastegate. The wastegate is a pneumatically-actuated valve that allows exhaust gases to bypass the turbo's impeller, thereby regulating how fast the turbo spins, and ultimately how much boost is produced.

Performance boxes usually come with a different elbow that has a restriction in it. By replacing the stock boost elbow with the restricted one, less pressure is transmitted to the wastegate (for our purposes here, anyway... fluid dynamics theories and the like not withstanding), allowing the turbo to develop more boost before opening up the wastegate. By increasing the amount of boost, you have more air with which to burn more fuel. More fuel=more power.

As for the torque vs. HP thing, it's really mis-named. What you're really doing is modifying two different fuel-delivery curves. the "HP" setting controls fueling in the upper RPM range, where your peak HP will be produced. The "torque" setting controls fueling in the lower RPM range, where your peak torque will be produced. They could just as easily be labelled "low-end power" and "high-end power", and would actually be more technically accurate.

Put another way.... the HP setting controls your peak HP... the torque setting controls how quickly (in terms of RPM) that power comes on... more "area under the curve" the higher the torque value.

Hope that helps... I could do a better job if I had a virtual whiteboard

 

abc4yew

Acording to Mark at TST you get only timing with power set at 1 no matter where you set the torque number. Torque fueling duration is not activated untill the power setting is 2 or above.

 

Tom488, that was a REALLY good, technically correct explanation! That's the way I like to write when I have the time to sit and type one reply for a long time.

 

FarmerJim, I kinda figured as much. I like leaving the TE on 3 to 5 when running on 1 so that if I have to use all that saved fuel to Whoop a gasser or pherd then I just have to poke the up button 4 or 5 times K.S.

 

abc4yew

sounds like a good plan, I was just passing on info I got from Mark just in case you did not know.