Dodge 1500 4BT 4x4
 

New to dieselbombers, but have spent some time on a few other diesel forums

Anyways, I swapped a 3.9L VE 4BT into my dodge 1500 4x4. I took a ton of pics and some vids throughout the swap and have put about 5k miles on it since this fall.

Ill start loading some pics tonight. I appreciate any comments, questions, or ridicule :)

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Here's the truck. It had a 5.9/46re not worth its weight in dirt. Engine was junk and trans shifted well and gave it away for 250 bucks. I was getting 12mpg hwy lol
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SO, here goes, bear with me on the pics and techniques.

Pulled the bed to tinker with the tank, the truck also had a failing fuel pump at the time
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Pulled the magnum, headers, 46re, and tcase in one swing lol
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Got my 47rh. It had been rebuilt with new clutches, steels, single billet converter, and transgo shift kit
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Tcase went from 231dld to 241dld. Driveshafts bolted/slid right on
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Had to lift up the truck to slide, 47rh under frame rail when sitting on a motorcycle jack
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I used a draw straw going through my fuel pump canister. Sits about 1/16-1/8" off the bottom of the tank. Just unhooked hot wire to the pump motor to disable it but keep my gas level gauge.
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Sucked all the gas out and only swallowed a little bit :s:
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Then I got my 4bt mailed by freight. Cleaned it up some. It was a puled runner from a bread/chip van
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Stock ford mounts would vibrate you to death
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Hacked off my 360 mounts to make room for fluid mounts from chevy step van
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And heres my huge exhaust housing that came on the baby h1c turbo
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Engine mounts I cut, and had a buddy weld them on for me
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4bt resting on them
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Better pic of the mounts
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Heres the valve covers, manifold, and turbo painted red
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Video of the 4bt up and running with some decent oil pressure
http://s1145.photobucket.com/albums/o520/moochoff/?action=view&current=IMG_1403.mp4I just adapted the 360 lever from the old throttle body onto the 4bt lever
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And I also reused 46re tv cable
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I sent my driveshafts out to be cut/lengthened once I knew for sure where my engine/trans were going to sit... 47rh was a few inches longer than 46re
(here they are back in the right length)
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In the mean time, I bolted the radiator, trans cooler, and ac condensor back in. I found some radiator hose reducers on ebay to flow coolant from 4bt openings to radiator
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Added the air intake and filter back on
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Dropped the hood back on (was really dirty from sitting on the floor for up to two months)
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Added 3/4 ton springs to give my motor mounts a little more clearance over the front differiential.
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Drove it around a little bit before getting the full 3" exhaust hooked up.
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And I know I forgot some stuff so pipe up if anyone has questions:c:

So heres a mostly completed vid. Exhaust vibrates somewhere on start up (Im using flex braided pipe too) and belt is squeaking in the video. But never the less, my girlfriend has claimed her truck back

LIKE IT!

Forgot the small stuff
 

So I only mentioned the big parts.. I kinda threw it all on at once, and remembered some more stuff this morning...

Powersteering- I used 4bt ps pump and used 1 line from the truck and 1 from the new 4bt. It was almost a direct swap to the gearbox

Vacuum- At first I just took the brake booster hose from the dodge and plugged it right onto the vacuum pump sitting on top of the motor. I then just got some splitters from O'Reillys to run hoses to make HVAC (in cab fan), and cruise happy.

Cruise-I still haven't hooked up my cruise control cable to the throttle bracket yet.

Gauges-I swapped over coolant temp and oil pressure sending units. It was really easy... The voltmeter, gas gauge (left stock canister with sending unit in tank), and speedometer (reads off of rear end) worked without any tinkering... RPM is another story, I am planning using an interface from dakota digital to run the tach off of my alternator pulses. Other than the stock ones, I hooked up 3 gauges on the pillar from isspro for the cool factor.

Axles/Suspension- The only thing I did was add 3/4 ton springs to the front for a little more clearance. Its more of a leveling kit than anything

In cab switches- I experimenting with some other options but finally settled on having rocker switches by the steering wheel for OD and TC lockup. I also have a chrome switch underneath them to run my FSS. These are basically ran straight off the battery besides the alternator fuse and a 5A fuse added inline...



And Im sure Im still forgetting some other small stuff but shoot away if anyone wants more :humm:

EDIT: I had Ford's version of the 4bt so it had a ford exhaust manifold which made a hassle free mounting the turbo and manifold right side up. I also swapped the externally regulated Ford 1G Alternator to the I.R. 3G. It gained about 40A of charging potential, got rid of the ext regulator, and wiring was less of a hassle than when I initially hooked it up
Jake

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LOL, and heres the part Im sure everyone wants to know....

I have 5,000mi on the swap and after initial tuning, and timing bump. I have seen a best of 23.4MPG at 70mph on the interstate along with a bit of traffic in minneapolis area. I still have some major air upgrades to add as well.

And the swap cost me around $5,000 towards the end... The only work I didnt do myself was cutting/balancing the driveshafts, and welding the downpipe and exhaust to the hangers which was about $600 of the investment. I'm expecting to see my investment returned on fuel savings within 25,000 miles. I also used the cost of a new/rebuilt 5.9L magnum, fuel pump, and sold 46re against the cost of the swap. (it actually costed around $3,000 when thinking like that). And seeing how my girlfriend puts on close to 20k miles a year.

As for the power... I am estimating around 160-175hp and up to 400lb of torque when I finally decide Im done tuning. Its a little more than the stock hp of a 6bt, and the torque is comparable to that of a 454 at a screaming rpm :rocking: Which is good enough for this highway queen

great write up, love the vids. you did a great job on the conversion. exhaust sounds awesome.

Thanks guys.

Wanna sell it? I'll buy it!!:wow:

Haha I think I'm enjoying it too much!

But have some exciting news! Still no I/C yet but- mileage has been awesome when te motor has had a chance to warm up. I've taken 2 small trips about an hour each way. I have Pics of my odometer readings and pump readings for proof too :)

I logged 27.5mpg going south from wilmont mn to spirit lake ia. And today from spirit lake ia to worthington mn, 29.25mpg!

These were both flat roads at 55-60mph tops and mostly interstate. Kinda surprised I wasnt shot on the 4 lane lol

Jake

Im EXTREMELY jealous!!! Nice work.:tu: