1995 5.9 4wd upgrades

[TomLockwood]

I have a 95 std cab short bed 4wd with a 5.9. I have been reading a lot about potential upgrades to the engines. I like the Hughes FI Airgap idea but I am concerned with the ability to make the engine run right with the cam and such that i want to use. It seems like the tuners i see available seem to start at 1996 and go up from there. Can the 1995 trucks be tuned? As it turns out I have an Airgap manifold from Edelbrock. No FI provisions but I could potentially go with the ****** EFI for less than the FI Airgap, fuel rails, throttle body, and tuner. And theoretically it should be able to make as much power as the Hughes manifold. It would also support the Holley digital dash, which intrigues me. Interested in views on this idea.

 

[crazykid1994]

Switching to a tuneable computer from Holley would probably be in your best interest if you are trying to make any kind of power in my opinion. 96 was the start of the obd2 setup in the trucks and correct me but does your truck use throttle body injection? Multi port would be more beneficial for you if you do swap but I know Holley offers throttles for their computer systems for vehicles converting from carbs so may be something to look into

 

[TomLockwood]

I haven’t actually looked that close but i thought so. I think it has the kegger. Did they use that with throttle body injection?

 

[TomLockwood]

The ****** setup contains all of the electronics in the throttle body. And has can bus connectivity to run their dashes. Supports up to 650 horsepower. Way more than i need.

 

[crazykid1994]

I haven’t actually looked that close but i thought so. I think it has the kegger. Did they use that with throttle body injection?

Not sure. Been a long while since I’ve looked at the magnum engine. Easy to tell though. It would not have fuel rails in either side. It would be a fuel line to the throttle. If you do have MPI instead of throttle injection you are better off in my opinion as MPI makes power more efficiently.

 

[TomLockwood]

So. The ****** TBI setup is almost exactly the same as the Terminator X management system. A little less actually. I am going to have a look and see what I see, but I think bang for the buck, the ****** wins. The question is does that leave much on the table compared to the multiport setup and is the difference worth the extra 1000.00 plus....?

 

[crazykid1994]

@Wild one rick what’s your thought.

 

[Wild one]

@Wild one rick what’s your thought.

Really got nothing for him Khris,as i never played with the older Magnum engines,and i haven't done enough reading on the Terminator X to really offer any advice. If it was me,i'd seriously be looking into converting it back to the earlier LA 360 and run a carb,and use mechanical gauges,but i'm old school and carb tuning doesn't scare me,lol

 

[18CrewDually]

Your Magnum is multiport injection. The throttle body only manages air.
Like said, there is not alot of support for pre-OBDII. Jegs/Summit still sells piggyback "chips" tuner that goes between the harness and computer. I'm currently running one on my 1994 5 2 Dakota.
Currently looking to go with a stand-alone system for dyno tunability.
This is in the top running.

MS3Pro EVO Standalone Engine Management System w/ Harness

MS3Pro EVO by AMP EFI supports GM LS Engines, Ford Coyote (including VVT), Bosch Motronic, New Hemi and a bunch of imports as well! +Harness

www.diyautotune.com

Another option I considered was swap to a newer 96+ harness and PCM but that has its limits too.

 

[TomLockwood]

Carb tuning doesn't scare me, but I like the reliability and consistency of Fuel Injection. I remember when people were using junkyard OEM throttle bodies, mostly from GM vehicles, to convert to a basic form of EFI. I considered it, but never took that plunge. At this point carbs really don't interest me. Now that I could get a
superior throttle body system to those old OEMs, like the ******, or a sophisticated MPI EFI system like Terminator X or X max, I can see no good reason to go to a carb.

This discussion was really meant more to compare the advantages and disadvantages of the most logical EFI setups based on performance or performance limitations, overall cost, and tunability. Because of the limited resources available to a 1995 vehicle using OEM engine management, I don't see that as a viable option.

I have already determined that I want to use an RPM Airgap manifold, either the original or the Hughes version. I like both of them, and I really like the Hughes MPI ability but since I have an original Airgap intake, I have to decide if the perceived advantages of MPI over modern throttle body injection is worth the added cost. The Hughes intake would add about 1250.00 to the cost after the intake, fuel rails, and a throttle body. And the Terminator X is about 1250.00 to start and could require additional pieces. Adapters, connectors, etc. So I would be close to 3K to do all of that.

The Sn1per is also around 1250.00 but since that includes all of the electronics, sensors, throttle body, etc. it is definitely the least expensive. I honestly think that at the power level I am planning to be at, there is probably not a significant handicap to using Sn1per throttle body EFI compared to Hughes Airgap/Terminator X EFI. If this were a max effort race build I believe there is a handicap, but for this I am inclined to think not. This is the conversation I was trying to start here. Cost vs trade offs of the three, but the OEM 95 stuff is already off the table now. That leaves the two third party options.