water/meth
 

I have been reading about water methanol injection systems. Lower egts, cooler air charges, 70-100hp. Safe power? All for under $500.00 There has to be a catch. What are the long term detremental side effects of water/methanol injection systems?

i was thinking about it too , would like to run it, but alittle up in arms over it. i hope someone can set the facts.

only 3 of the 10 truck in the diesel power challenge had water/meth setups. Two were 2nd gen cummins, the other was a 6.0L navi. There has to be a hitch or the other 7 trucks would have been running them.

I have a snow performance wat/met system which I love I use it mainly for towing. I have a switch to the left of my steering colum. When I need the wat/met injectio I just flip the switch And off I go. For the money its worth it. I dont use it all the time because of the water /met cost. I order mine from Snow Performance and its about 20$ for 4 gallons and another 25$ to ship. To this point I have had no problems with the system.

I have been looking at water/meth mainly to lower egts, but can anyone tell us or show dyno that the hp claims made are legit?

Yes, for the most part, the HP numbers are legit. However each truck reacts different depending on what they have done to them before the water/meth is added. I have personally seen a 24v truck pick up 65 HP, but have seen two different 12V trucks only pick up 30 HP.

The water/meth is a great additon to a somewhat mild truck. I use mine ocassionally when I get the itch to lay down a little extra power, but 95% of the time it is off.

The side effect from it is increased cylinder pressures. As mentioned before a mild truck is usually OK. However when you start stuffing large amounts of fuel and a lot of boost, then topping the rest of the cylinder off with water, the MLS headgasket sometimes will not hold up to it. For the most part they do OK though. :D

Water/Meth
 

I run it but as others have stated, it is primarily for either towing or racing. I don't need it for towing so it's affordable for racing. My next statement is not a FACT, but rather something I was told,..... over time and when used in a considerable amt then I heard it can be corrosive. Used as I use it then it shouldn't be any problem.

You would also think that the occasional, if not, constant use of a product such as Diesel Kleen or something would keep this corrosion from happening.

Water molecules would have to remain in contact with the engine's internal surfaces in the presence of oxygen - a scenario unlikely to occur in a CTD.

Some of the extra power is attributable to the water/meths cooling effect, and of course methanol is a fuel - which adds power. I will be experimenting with acetone, since it's hygroscopic and relatively cheap and obtainable... denatured alchohol is inexpensive and readily available, but the injection pumps don't like it! Pure methanol is the ticket, but it's a pricey one.

Hmmmmmm!
 

Well Mark Kendrick (the twins builder) told me about the corrosive affects and he has been doing turbos and water/meth for ever and if you've ever talked to Mark he is a scary guy relative to his scientific approach to everything and how many PPM's to this and that and the affect of methanol on turbo parts over time,... for instance. If your interested then you could pm him for his tn and I'm sure when he's done with you,... you will have changed your mind on this issue. Trust me on this and don't try to handle this via pm's but get his tn as he will dazzle you with the facts and numbers and scientific reasons for his position. Good luck.[coffee]

Sure - that's why I specified internal engine parts, not the turbo.

Water/meth is a proven performer in internal combustion engines, but obviously one can have too much of a good thing; many of us have a pet peeve with one aspect of performance or another, so I won't begrudge your guy his learned opinion. :)

We research extensively before prototyping. ;)

Hey Mike,
Did you finish the water/meth setup for your truck?

MikeyB

Just laid out the SS tank at the shop today, Mike - under the bed where the muffler (and cat?) used to be...
The injection pump never showed up, so I haven't rushed to finish yet.
Especially since we're doing a bunch of mods in the next couple weeks, with most everything being designed/built from scratch. I even had to make the fittings for the water/(?) jets and nitrous nozzles. [eyecrazy]

Find a race/speed shop near you. Our local shop sells 5gal buckets of pure methanol for $20. That gives you 10gal or more of useable "juice" which should last quite a while.

My 1st gen seemed like it picked up a solid 70+hp at the wheels with water/meth. I hope to get it back on the dyno before it's sold to verify the actual amounts. All I can say is the big HP numbers people claim with W/M are legit. The significant EGT reductions are also very real. ;)