Cummins In A RBV . . .Anybody Tried It?

[Will]

Putting a motor like that in isn't as bad as you might think on the frame and such. It's not going to be loaded very much. A 5.9 Cummins in a medium duty truck spends its life at full power so it needs a huge cooling system and 500# transmission and telephone pole driveshaft because those are going to be loaded all the time. It's actually hard to warm up an empty medium duty truck because of the size of the cooling system--which is meant to deal with a 200hp constant load. In a Ranger it's going to be hard to actually load the chassis up--it's just going to spin the tires. He's not going to need the cooling system a 3500 Ram is going to need because he is going to only use short bursts of power--not even near his maximum power because it won't stick to the ground.

There is a magazine article circulating that has an F150 with a 15-liter Cummins in the bed mounted to a NV4500 tranny--a 2,000ft# motor hooked to a 500ft (light duty rated) tranny. It's fine because there's no load there to actually transmit.

 

[pillen140]

anyone read this months issue of diesel builder??? awesome! kid put a 4tb in a ranger, front cover. good write up.

 

[Maverick]

6".

Either way, it's far from an easy task.

Why anyone would want a 6bt in their RBV for any other reason than the "cool" factor is beyond me. A 4bt swap would be far more pratical. They weigh quite a bit less, fit without major mods, and can make some damn respectable power.

 

[baddis]

miami outlaw diesel built a 6bt ranger

 

[Will]

Gale Banks put a 6BT in a Dakota...

You just need a little elbow grease and a place to work.

 

[AKBroncoII]

6BT's are a lot easier to come by than 4BT's. I have yet to even see a 4BT up here for sale. 6BT's all the time.

 

[Will]

I like the V8 diesel sound better. When I was a kid people made fun of 6-cylinder Mavericks and Gremlins with a glasspack on them--that has stuck with me. I don't like the buzz of a Cummins without a muffler on it. I know my truck is a hated GM, but I think it sounds great. And a 6.2/6.5 is a better swap for a Ranger. Cheaper, easier to find, easier to fit, lighter than the 6BT. I have lots of parts and one of my contemplations is a 6.2 with a Banks turbo and a 700R4 (has the 3.08 first gear). A 6.2 isn't a Cummins but it can make 250hp and 450ft# (the fuel pump limits the power and the compression limits the boost) and sounds better--you get that V8 rumble. In that video my truck has a full single 3" Banks exhaust and muffler the size of a garbage can.

The thing about the 6.2/6.5 is that they are still being made new after 26 years for the Hummer and marine applications. They have crazy things available for them. With low compression pistons and a larger turbo and a modified injection pump they will make 300hp and 600ft#. Some marine applications make better than that. Look for Penninsular Diesel.

The point is, it's a cheap way to get a diesel in your truck and you can upgrade in the future.

 

[Ozwynn]

inclined to agree with Will. 4bt parts are rare, 6bt is heavy. You can get 6.2 and 6.5 parts at any napa auto parts in any town you break in...... been considering a 4bt, 6bt 350 swap, or a 6.2 swap into the cruiser and the 350 is in the lead only because of parts availability.

 

[wahlstrom1]

90% of 4bt part's are the same as the 6bt parts, in the 12v version. Injectors, seals, etc are interchangeable for the most part.

-andrew

 

[Will]

Honestly, mechanically injected diesels don't need parts. You need filters--that's it. It's like having a 900# rock between the front tires.

 

[Ozwynn]

what about things like power steering pumps. I am dumping the Toyota 6cyl for this reason.

 

[Maverick]

Maybe it's the fact that it's an older truck with less insulation, but that 6.2 sure sounds like it has a much louder exhaust note than my truck. My muffler is one of those straight through 4" Magnaflows too. I've been contemplating straight piping mine just to get some sound out of it.

 

[machinist]

my 4bt was fairly cheep.
....the 6.2/6.5 has nowheres near the power potential as a b series cummins
....fuel efficiency. if you do it right it will pay for itself
....the v8 diesel gets about half the life span of an inline diesel

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

with diesel at almost twice the cost of gasoline right now, not even small 4 cylinder diesels like the ones used in volkswagens are economical when compared to their gasoline counterparts.

ive worked on more than one 7.3 P/S V8 with over 300,000 miles that havnt had any major work done to them. your not liable to get any more out of an I6.

 

[Hahnsb2]

FWIW the 7.3s last about 300K in the buses at my fathers work and the 6BTs typically go around 600K, in bigger buses... The 6BT lasts longer, it's pretty well known.

Maybe it's the fact that it's an older truck with less insulation, but that 6.2 sure sounds like it has a much louder exhaust note than my truck. My muffler is one of those straight through 4" Magnaflows too. I've been contemplating straight piping mine just to get some sound out of it.

Your truck has a turbo making the exhaust quieter than without a turbo.