I was referred here by another thread in the pre-97 forum. After seeing what I had done to my engine, they recommended to look into a chip as the next mod. I'm very reluctant as the truck already drives great and I don't feel like jumping to premium gas with a truck that's already a gas hog. In addition, the truck has 168k miles with no rebuild, so it hardly sounds worth it. My MAF conversion already wasn't worth it, but that was rather to see if I could do something like that (sort of as a learning experience). The truck running better was more of a pleasant side effect.
Can you convince me that I should get a superchip (BTW it's a manual)?

 

Hi Bjoren

IMO...if that were my truck with that many miles on engine and drivetrain etc...i wouldnt be putting any go fast parts on it.

If you do go for schip...it will make a difference(hp & tq) Gas will cost more, need 91+oct. You may even get better mpg? Some do/some dont.

You'll also be putting alot more wear/tear on gas pedal!

Good luck...OT

 

Damn I never knew it had that many miles on it. I dont know how hard you want to be pushing that old engine. When you had it apart, you should have gotten it rebuilt. IMO But still you did an awesome job with putting all that stuff on. I like the black intake!!!

 

I might still get it rebuilt. I'm trying to convince the guy who charged me $350 for my TB adapter to rebuild my engine in exchange for me making him a website We'll see if he bites
For now I'm just completely happy I managed to get this project running. It was a lot of fun and I learned so much about engine electronics! A very satisfying hobby and a great learning experience

 

I think its great. The intake looks sweet now that its black. You need ot degrease the engine bay though LOL. But everything else looks great. I might put the L throttle body on my truck, I just have to decide.

 

Yes, it's horrible. I don't think anyone ever cleaned it in its 14 years I tried once, but I think it's almost impossible. It gets better, but only marginally. I'm currently thinking to only clean it, if I can get it rebuilt, so the engine is out. Otherwise, it'll just have to do. I mean the other night (I was looking for a dropped bolt) I found an old spark plug from a PO that was buried deep in the crud on the crossmember under the engine!
Let me know if you do the Lightning TB swap and need some more advice than what is on the webpage.

 

Thanks for offering to help if I decide to do the install. Ill take you up on that offer.

 

I say chip it you can't go wrong with a chip.

 

Hi bjoern,

Neat project!

We strongly suggest that you do not do *anything* to increase power further in that 170K mile motor until it is fully rebuilt and *all* the issues ironed out in this conversion. You should also do A/F ratio testing as well to see just what the *real* result of all this actually is, as otherwise it's just guesswork and could be dangerously lean, especially splitting that O2 sensor signal like that. It's a neat conversion project, and congratulations on the work, to be sure! But there should not be any performance parts installed until that is done, otherwise, you're taking risks with the engine. While you may be willing to rebuild it, the cost to do that goes *way* up when you cannot reuse the same block & some other parts, all of which can easily be ruined by running it hard with no rebuild at 170K miles.

It seems just from the appearance of that vehicle that it was ridden hard, put up wet & saw little care. I wouldn't want to hazard a guess what's going to happen if you try to add more power and use that additional power before freshening up that motor. It may only take one good blast to turn a bearing, etc.

Of course, you probably already know all that, but just in case, it needs to be mentioned...............................

I wouldn't think of trying to use a performance chip or any other performance parts until that motor is *completely* and properly rebuilt from top to bottom. That may sound funny coming from a company that is in business to provide performance parts, but the last thing we want is a phone call saying "Hey Mike, turned the #5 bearing & threw the crank."

Thanks for sharing your project with the rest of us, & if you would like to pick up any performance parts, etc. for use once that motor is freshened up, please feel free to give us a call.

Nice project, good luck!

 

Thanks for the great recommendation! It is plain to see why everyone on this board is raving about you! Outstanding! I wish all mechanics I've had to deal with since I moved to Houston (from Germany) had your attitude. The reason I started playing with that truck and learning how it works, was because I got screwed over so badly right away. I figured 'I can do that better and cheaper than you, without the hassle'. I didn't expect I'd have so much fun, too

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You should also do A/F ratio testing

That's one of the major reasons why I want that check engine light back! The O2 sensor (it's new) should throw errors, if it's running rich or lean.

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It seems just from the appearance of that vehicle that it was ridden hard, put up wet & saw little care.

The guy I bought it from was a rice farmer and had it standing in the water on his rice fields all day (so much about wet LOL ). I got half a bucket of mud out of the cab when I changed the seats and the carpet...

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Thanks for sharing your project with the rest of us,

I've had so much help from these forums, that I felt I owed you a heads-up and a how-to as well as a contact for someone who has done the conversion without a kit. There are a lot of people out there that want to do the conversion (most of them just mass-air) and the way I did it, the conversion alone is much cheaper than the kits for $700+.

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& if you would like to pick up any performance parts, etc. for use once that motor is freshened up, please feel free to give us a call.

You can be sure of that!
Thanks again for all your help! Feel free to contact me any time if anyone needs any help on anything similar: bjoern@brembs.net

 

I told ya Mike was the man!!!

 

Hi bjoern,

Thanks for your very kind response. It's great to see that kind of heavily detailed project info shared like that, there are *so* many speed-density trucks out there that could benefit from this conversion to MAF configuration.

You're right, the MAF conversion kits are indeed expensive, of course, as they include a brand new PCM (powertrain control module, the powertrain computer), which ups the price, as well as a new MAF (mass airflow meter), which bring the price up more. So in all fairness, I have to say that the actual cost of the conversion kits are indeed quite reasonable given their actual content, those parts purchased new aren't cheap.

However, the fact that the components are well worth the MAF conversion kits cost doesn't make it any easier to actually be able to afford, and is why most people won't do it.

You don't need me to recommend not doing performance modifications before a rebuild, you're obviously a sharp fellow.

Yopu mention having previously lived in Germany, just curious as I spent many years there too, whereabouts? I lived everywhere from Fulda to Stuttgart off & on in the 60's & 70's, much of it when the exchange rate was still 4:1, great living over there @ 4:1!

 

I'm from Würzburg, just an hour away from Frankfurt (towards Nuremberg, also an hour). Was born and raised there, as a matter of fact. You were in the Army there? Then you probably know the barracks at Kitzingen, about 20 minutes from Würzburg.
Yeah I bet! I'm paid by a German stipend at the moment. The last two months I got a 12% payraise with the Euro going up :-)

 

Hi bjoern,

Yep, I kinda-sorta remember Kitzingen, but I seem to remember it being called Bad Kitzingen, maybe? We were all over, from Fulda to Stuttgart to Frankfurt to Mannheim to Munchen (Munich to the rest of you!) to you name it over 13 years. I'd like to go back for another Fasching (sp?) or a *real* Oktober fest (not the Americanized versions here in the US), it's been far too long.....................

I practically grew up in Europe. We were in France in '68 when "big-nose" kicked the Americans out (never did like France other than Paris), and spent most of those years in what was then West Germany. In fact, I saw the Berlin wall being built in person, and saw it come down on CNN. I was at the location where we installed the very first Minuteman nukes.

Words cannot experss how much I loved living in Germany, those memories I'll have all my life from growing up over there. The best thing were the people, the Germans treated us so well, and we loved them.

I can't imagine how it is now over there with just the Euro, that must make travel much easier, we were constantly changing dollars for Marks, Kroner, Francs, pound Sterling, Lire, I'm sure you know all of that all too well..............

 

That would be Bad Kissingen. That's about 45min 1 hour away from Würzburg. Cute little town with a lot of spa's and stuff for the elderly (which also means lots of small cafes in the streets ).

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I'd like to go back for another Fasching (sp?) or a *real* Oktober fest

Yes, I miss Fasching (the carneval) a lot, too. 2004 will hopefully be my next Fasching, I should've moved back by then.
It's impressive how you've witnessed history unfold with your own eyes. I'm too young for that...

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Words cannot experss how much I loved living in Germany, those memories I'll have all my life from growing up over there. The best thing were the people, the Germans treated us so well, and we loved them.

I'm so glad you liked it!

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I can't imagine how it is now over there with just the Euro, that must make travel much easier

Oh yes, it's fantastic now! Everything works everywhere. No preparations for weekend trips to any of the EU neighbours (at least not to those I can visit on a weekend) anymore. Very convenient.
Well, let me know (bjoern@brembs.net) if you'd like anything from over there. If it's not perishable, it shouldn't be a problem to bring it.