Alligator Performance Installs H&S Performance Intake Elbow On 2010 Cummins Here at Alligator Performance we know that most people buying performance parts do not have fancy shops and specialty tools to get most installs done. So we did this tech article driveway style. We used easy to find hand tools and we will cover some of the issues you will encounter doing this install yourself and what tools are needed to get it done quickly. Here you can see that we have the stock intake elbow in place with the H&S EGR delete plates in place. First thing you will need to do is remove the dip stick bracket with a 10mm socket. Next you will need to remove the 6 - 10mm bolts holding the intake elbow onto the intake tray. You will need to pull the vent tube out of the side of the valve cover to get to the back corner bolt. Then we moved on to the intercooler pipe. This is a 7/16” nut on the intercooler boot clamp, you will need to loosen the nut until it is almost all the way off in order to get the boot of the beaded lip on the intake elbow. You may notice that the intake elbow does not just pull out of the boot even after the clamp is removed. Just give the elbow a twist and you will hear the intercooler boot break loose, the rubber usually binds to the metal. The last thing to do is remove the wiring harness tabs from the front and back of the intake elbow. The harness on the back is easy to remove it is only held on by a 10mm bolt. The one on the front pictured above is a little trickier. You can see in the picture that we had to pry the plastic tab out with a small flathead screw driver in order to pull it off of the stud. Now you can see that everything is freed up and we are ready to remove the factory intake elbow. It may not move right away as the gasket between the intake elbow and the intake tray acts as an adhesive. Just push down in the curved part of the intake elbow to break it loose. Here you can see the elbow removed and the new gasket in place. Here you can see the major differences between the factory unit and H&S’s much sleeker and freer flowing design. Here you can see the actual opening deference between the two elbows. The H&S has a smooth finish inside instead of a rough cast surface like the factory unit and the opening is 5/8” wider than the factory elbow. H&S was also able to increase air flow by utilizing a large inlet were the intercooler pipe connects to it also removing the factory butterfly valve for the EGR frees up extra air flow. We did not do the upgraded intercooler pipe just yet so we can show those of you who decide not to buy the intercooler pipe what you will encounter when doing this install. On the factory intercooler pipe there is one clamp the can’t be removed so you will have to cut it off with a die grinder. Be very careful not to grind all the way through into the pipe as you could cause a boost leak or a weak spot in the pipe. We ground through the clamp ring until we could see the metal getting thin and then we slid a flathead screw driver under it and snapped it the rest of the way through. Once we had the factory clamp removed we installed the boot provided by H&S. This boot at first glance appeared way to small, but with a little work we got it on and you will see that it fits perfectly once it is past the bead molded into the plastic factory pipe. Here you can see we have the intercooler pipe back in place as well as the new H&S intake elbow. Also notice the replacement dip stick bracket. It mounts under the two front 8mm bolts holding on the plastic valve cover shield. Then we used the 11mm nut and bolt provided in the kit to attach the dip stick to the new bracket. The last thing you will have to do is relocate the MAS air flow sensor to the back side of the H&S Intake Elbow. Here is the finished product! You can immediately see how much cleaner the engine bay looks and the increased air flow will result in better throttle response and a noticeable drop in the EGT’s

I know this has been covered before on many different forums. But I am in the mood to do tech articles tonight and I really appreciate this site for the number of extremely helpful people we have here. I would like to give back to this awesome community by sharing some of the knowledge I have gained in the diesel industry over the years.

As some may know if you install the pickup tube provided with the Air Dog pumps the way they specify in their instructions you will have issues with the pickup tube swinging around in the tank causing the truck to run out of fuel once you get to a quarter of a tank going around sharp corners. Here is my personal fix for this problem that I have been doing for years.

First I drop the tank and clean all of the dirt from around the sending unit so that once the sending unit is removed the dirt can not fall into the tank. Here are my before and after pictures I took of a truck we worked on Saturday.



Once the sending unit is clean you can use a large flathead screw driver and a hammer to pound the lock ring counter clock wise. This will allow the sending unit to be lifted out of the tank. Be very careful not to yank it out as you can bend the float arm that reads fuel level.




Once you have the sending unit out and on the bench you will notice there is a honey comb pattern molded into the plastic top. There is also the factory supply elbow which is also molded into the top of the sending unit. We no longer need this fitting since the Air Dog will be getting it's supply from the new pickup tube. I grind off this elbow as well as some of the webbing around it to make room for the black rubber grommet that the pickup tube slides into.






Once you have the grommet installed you are ready to cut the pickup tube to length and install it through the grommet. If you are working on an 05 or newer Cummins you can remove the factory lift pump from the bowl at the bottom of the sending unit. I use a pair of large dykes to cut the plastic fingers holding it in place. Measure from the top of the fuel tank to the bottom to get the length of your pickup tube. Don't forget to take into account the thickness of the bottom of the sending unit.



Once you cut the pickup tube to your required length either make a groove in either side or cut it at an angle so the pickup can not suction it'self to the bottom of the sending unit.


I also drill 5 5/8" holes as close as I can to the bottom of the bowl to allow fuel to fill the bowl up as fast as possible. The factory sending unit has a very restrictive mesh that allows fuel to slowly trickle through from the bottom filling the bowl. This slow trickle is fine for supplying the little factory lift pump. But the Air Dog moves so much volume that it will suck the bowl dry instantly without drilling holes in the sides of the bowl. Do not drill the holes directly in the bottom of the sending unit. This will allow the Air Dog to suck up large amounts of sediment that can pool up at the bottom of the tank. The mesh will keep the dirt out of the bowl.



Now you can install the pickup tube into the sending unit and make sure everything lines up good and the sending unit fits properly into the tank.


At this point I revert back to the Air Dog instructions to complete the rest of the install. I hope this helps someone else out as much as it has helped us to reduce issues with our customers trucks.

we all know you are easy....

TRUCK DOES NOT LIKE TO FREE REV AT ALL! IS FINE UNDER A LOAD. IS THIS CONSIDERED A NORMAL CONDITION WITH THE PISTON/INJECTOR/GOVERNOR COMBO I AM RUNNING?
THE TIMING IS SET AT 17 DEGREES NOW. I HAVE HEAD STUDS, O-RINGS, AND MARINE PISTONS SO I AM CONSIDERING INCREASING TIMING- HOW HIGH SHOULD I GO AND WHAT BENEFITS WILL I SEE. IT DOSENT SEEM TO HAVE ANY USABLE POWER FROM 3000 TO 4000 RPMS. ALSO CONSIDERED NORMAL??

Finally got around to installing my custom oil cooler, after close to 6 months of gathering parts.

Cooler installed behind the bumper:




No pics with the bumper on because nothing is visible. The bumper needs some sort of vents for extra airflow.

Oil thermostat over the stock water-oil cooler, from underneath:


Almost invisible from under the hood:


At the same time I installed an oil temperature gauge and here is where things have me wondering..
Normal driving, with some long hills, 30F outside temperature I only saw oil temperatures up to 160-170F, water temperature is at around 200F and my oil thermostat opens around 200F. I feel stupid because I never got around to measuring without the extra oil cooler...
Could the oil be apparently too cold because of the cold day outside ? Oil pressure was in the normal range and the oil cooler was cold to touch, so the thermostat was closed.

As my transmission failed and is currently torn apart, I talked to the expert at the best shop in town. Bottom line is the transmission was doomed from day one as there was no clearance in the forward clutch. FYI, A1 Transmission in Red Deer are a bunch of crooks, DON'T EVER GO THERE!
Anyway, Mel (the expert) and I were talking about sensor location. Specifically this one, circled in red.


The reason this location is bad is due to the temperature sensor depth. It protrudes too far and can cause the forward clutch (i believe) to not fully engage.




This is the port that Mel strongly suggested.



Reason is that it is part of a cross drilled passage, and will not effect anything, but is still in excellent position to acquire very accurate transmission temperature. The rear sensor in the first picture is also a good location, but not as good as the location Mel suggested.



Hope this helps in the decision of sensor location. Oh ya, the reason for two sensors is one is a mechanical gauge sensor, and the other for the EJWA.

This is the wire that can be tapped into to get power that is adjustable by the dimmer. Brown wire in the bottom left corner of the big connector plug, when viewed from the rear of the switch.