5.2 magnum turbo

[e_hartzell17]

I have a 2001 ram 1500 with a 5.2 magnum. The truck is slightly cammed and tuned but am looking for something to give it more power. I at first thought turbo but now that I think of it a supercharger would make more sense for that motor. I looked up prices and found a slightly used eaton m90 stage 5 for sale and also seen this video https://youtu.be/Pe8LfXyc39s which uses that supercharger. All I need to do is find the right adapters to mount it exactly how he has it mounted. Need help. Thank you

 

[chrisking318]

Hi Mate! First of let me introduce myself a bit by saying how much i love those LA based mopar engines especially the new type known as Magnums, The new heads design is much better then before and the efi is really simple to play with. Love these motors so much i bought a 07 Magnum sxt for family purposes with the v6, already planned to swap a 318 into it, btw its already in there and running, now just started the turbo setup phase.
Lots of folks argued that i should've bought an R/T instead but the price difference for 100 more hp ain't worth it IMO, plus having to own a Chrysler scan tool to heck tranny fluid level ect is ridiculous to me, I love the simple stuff. I did ''Back then'' turbo'ed 2 of my previous ram trucks.
Had the same initial dillema, SC or turbo!?! Like u, i tough SC was a better option for this engine, i was wrong! First I gotta mention that i've always upgraded my boosted engines with forged pistons, cost about 500ish$, Rods and crank will take it no problem ''Never planned to make over 500-550hp'' plus ARP head studs and stronger heads gaskets, & if u plan on making good hp #s i recommend to install the plennum fix kit from Hughes engines since ours are famous to crack.

Started first by custom fit a Centrifugal unit '' Powerdyne'' I had laying around. Not the most technological advanced unit on the market compared to new vortechs or prochargers but tried it still. Near 9 psi the belt start slipping like most centrifugals plus needs lots of rpms to provide the ''wanted''boost. In other words unless u don't mind seeing good hp #s only near cutoff then its not worth it IMO. Some centrifugal kits out there will perform better but be prepared to spend ridiculous amount of money on it.

Then wanted to try a eaton root style setup, a friend of mine sold me a good condition m112 for cheap so i went for it! ''BTW a m90 isnt big enough for a 5.2, rated for 3.0-4.0 engines only'' . Those blowers produces lots of heat so if u expect it to push 9-10 psi + you'll need an Intercooler/aftercooler setup,to be efficient, those blowers need to be as close as possible to the IM, Since i didn't want to craft my own water cooled IM as the actual IM I've mounted it on the side of the engine bay so i have room for Piping/tb setup '' u'll have to relocate the TB @ the Blower inlet'', with all that done results werent that great. about the same gains hp wise compared to the centrifugal exept i had way more low end tq/hp. Not worth all the custom fab. i'm sure the blower would've made bigger #s top mounted but i didnt feel like building a custom water cooled IM lol.

Then finally i went Turbo, Took the time to mock up the setup and ended up choosing Single turbo. What i did was to invert both exhaust manifolds ''minor fab required'' so they both faced the front, merged them with a u style pipe then welded a y style pipe to the turbo flange, mounted on the front. Then intercooler setup, Bigger inj. high flow fuel pump with a turbo grind cam with low LSA and Hughes engines Big Gulp TB with a Holset HX40 turbo @ 13 psi it made 455whp, Kept it on the safe side and didnt went higher boost.

 

[dapepper9]

If you can weld and fab, turbo will be much cheaper.

If yout cant, supercharger will be much easier but much more costly.

Myself I'm going the route of supercharger via a Vortech v2. They used to make a kit for these engines but no longer however i was able to find pretty much everything i needed to do a more modern version.

The Eaton m90s, as mentioned above, are way too small and build a ton of heat. Going through all the work of installing something like that is like strapping a sausage to your leg and wearing skinny jeans to the club. People are impressed and all but when it's time to perform, you'll flop.

The big thing with centrifugal units is like mentioned above, belt slip. There are several ways around this. Procharger systems for example really don't seem to have much of an issue with belt slip on our layouts and at the rpm we run. Their P-1SC will push 10psi reliably and make good power. Few months back Flyinryan tuned one running edelbrock aluminum heads, big cam, 58mm throttle body and longtubes running 10psi through a procharger and made 525rwhp. Pretty impressive. The Vortech headunits are more efficient as well but have had issues with belt slip in the past as well as being non-intercooled usually and brackets being hard to find. However, a guy named Todd Ognibene created an extra pulley setup that increased belt wrap and eliminated slippage and intercooler setups aren't hard to fab up

 

[e_hartzell17]

Hi Mate! First of let me introduce myself a bit by saying how much i love those LA based mopar engines especially the new type known as Magnums, The new heads design is much better then before and the efi is really simple to play with. Love these motors so much i bought a 07 Magnum sxt for family purposes with the v6, already planned to swap a 318 into it, btw its already in there and running, now just started the turbo setup phase.
Lots of folks argued that i should've bought an R/T instead but the price difference for 100 more hp ain't worth it IMO, plus having to own a Chrysler scan tool to heck tranny fluid level ect is ridiculous to me, I love the simple stuff. I did ''Back then'' turbo'ed 2 of my previous ram trucks.
Had the same initial dillema, SC or turbo!?! Like u, i tough SC was a better option for this engine, i was wrong! First I gotta mention that i've always upgraded my boosted engines with forged pistons, cost about 500ish$, Rods and crank will take it no problem ''Never planned to make over 500-550hp'' plus ARP head studs and stronger heads gaskets, & if u plan on making good hp #s i recommend to install the plennum fix kit from Hughes engines since ours are famous to crack.

Started first by custom fit a Centrifugal unit '' Powerdyne'' I had laying around. Not the most technological advanced unit on the market compared to new vortechs or prochargers but tried it still. Near 9 psi the belt start slipping like most centrifugals plus needs lots of rpms to provide the ''wanted''boost. In other words unless u don't mind seeing good hp #s only near cutoff then its not worth it IMO. Some centrifugal kits out there will perform better but be prepared to spend ridiculous amount of money on it.

Then wanted to try a eaton root style setup, a friend of mine sold me a good condition m112 for cheap so i went for it! ''BTW a m90 isnt big enough for a 5.2, rated for 3.0-4.0 engines only'' . Those blowers produces lots of heat so if u expect it to push 9-10 psi + you'll need an Intercooler/aftercooler setup,to be efficient, those blowers need to be as close as possible to the IM, Since i didn't want to craft my own water cooled IM as the actual IM I've mounted it on the side of the engine bay so i have room for Piping/tb setup '' u'll have to relocate the TB @ the Blower inlet'', with all that done results werent that great. about the same gains hp wise compared to the centrifugal exept i had way more low end tq/hp. Not worth all the custom fab. i'm sure the blower would've made bigger #s top mounted but i didnt feel like building a custom water cooled IM lol.

Then finally i went Turbo, Took the time to mock up the setup and ended up choosing Single turbo. What i did was to invert both exhaust manifolds ''minor fab required'' so they both faced the front, merged them with a u style pipe then welded a y style pipe to the turbo flange, mounted on the front. Then intercooler setup, Bigger inj. high flow fuel pump with a turbo grind cam with low LSA and Hughes engines Big Gulp TB with a Holset HX40 turbo @ 13 psi it made 455whp, Kept it on the safe side and didnt went higher boost.

Any pics of your setup


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[chrisking318]

The ones i had on my pc went to dirt when my hd when capouuuttt .. but ill take some tommorrow and post em'

Chris

 

[e_hartzell17]

The ones i had on my pc went to dirt when my hd when capouuuttt .. but ill take some tommorrow and post em'

Chris

Ok cool I have long tube headers on my truck now and really wanna turbo it after research, but don't wanna cuts and hack at my headers, wish someone could just fab me up a turbo manifold


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[dapepper9]

Ok cool I have long tube headers on my truck now and really wanna turbo it after research, but don't wanna cuts and hack at my headers, wish someone could just fab me up a turbo manifold


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If you do end up going turbo, pm me if you're interested in selling those longtubes. Give ya a lil extra cash in your pocket

 

[e_hartzell17]

If you do end up going turbo, pm me if you're interested in selling those longtubes. Give ya a lil extra cash in your pocket

Will do sir


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[dapepper9]

Any other questions on your plans though?

 

[e_hartzell17]

Not really other than turbo options, sizes and brands and ****. And by the way I'm only 15 working to build this truck so those headers have zero miles on them just run time


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[Max78]

On3 76mm with the .80 A/R at $320 would be a great starter turbo you don't have to feel too bad about destroying during the process. You can then upgrade to a Borg Warner S375 later down the road when you see a need.

There are several people that have run On3 turbos successfully and its currently what I have on my LT1 camaro.

I built my turbo system in my cramped ass camaro compartment with a Harbor Freight PortaBand (chop saw would have worked better) and a Harbor Freight 90amp flux core welder. It was FAR from pretty, but its functional and leak free.

I did a passenger log manifold that goes under the oil pan into the back of the driver side header and the turbo is just in front of the driver side header. It's not pretty, but its very functional.

I got the saw and welder for $50 each through a sale, so it can be done for cheap.

If you want to do it then do it, don't let others beat you up about how its useless and unless your running a $1k+ turbo and all the bells and whistles its crap. I have a minimal amount of money into my setup and I have hung right there with supercharged GTO's and smacked around more than a few vetts.

 

[e_hartzell17]

On3 76mm with the .80 A/R at $320 would be a great starter turbo you don't have to feel too bad about destroying during the process. You can then upgrade to a Borg Warner S375 later down the road when you see a need.



There are several people that have run On3 turbos successfully and its currently what I have on my LT1 camaro.



I built my turbo system in my cramped ass camaro compartment with a Harbor Freight PortaBand (chop saw would have worked better) and a Harbor Freight 90amp flux core welder. It was FAR from pretty, but its functional and leak free.



I did a passenger log manifold that goes under the oil pan into the back of the driver side header and the turbo is just in front of the driver side header. It's not pretty, but its very functional.



I got the saw and welder for $50 each through a sale, so it can be done for cheap.



If you want to do it then do it, don't let others beat you up about how its useless and unless your running a $1k+ turbo and all the bells and whistles its crap. I have a minimal amount of money into my setup and I have hung right there with supercharged GTO's and smacked around more than a few vetts.

I have my two long tube headers going into a y where currently they run out the back. But would it work if I cap off where the two headers join by the oil pan and basically cut a circle out of the front on one of the headers where I can add a flange for the turbo and connect the existing exhaust to the turbo. Would that work


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[e_hartzell17]

On3 76mm with the .80 A/R at $320 would be a great starter turbo you don't have to feel too bad about destroying during the process. You can then upgrade to a Borg Warner S375 later down the road when you see a need.



There are several people that have run On3 turbos successfully and its currently what I have on my LT1 camaro.



I built my turbo system in my cramped ass camaro compartment with a Harbor Freight PortaBand (chop saw would have worked better) and a Harbor Freight 90amp flux core welder. It was FAR from pretty, but its functional and leak free.



I did a passenger log manifold that goes under the oil pan into the back of the driver side header and the turbo is just in front of the driver side header. It's not pretty, but its very functional.



I got the saw and welder for $50 each through a sale, so it can be done for cheap.



If you want to do it then do it, don't let others beat you up about how its useless and unless your running a $1k+ turbo and all the bells and whistles its crap. I have a minimal amount of money into my setup and I have hung right there with supercharged GTO's and smacked around more than a few vetts.

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[e_hartzell17]

]





Like this


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[dapepper9]

Aside from the obvious hardware requirements there are a few other things to worry about.
1. Fuel system: more air=more fuel required and this couldn't be more true than in a boost setup.
-Being as you have a 2001 you have the EV6 USCAR injector style (like myself) in which case i would recommend Ford Cobra Mustang #39 fuel injectors. I can post up the part number for those if you wish.
-i would recommend a 255lph walboro pump as well to feed those injectors. Hipotek sells one that is plug and play, install as if replacing factory
No other fuel modifications needed for a mild setup
2.TUNING: this is the really important part. You can go cheap on hardware and tools and labor but if you go cheap on tuning it will fail. The performance and more importantly reliability is all in the tune. For this, Frptuning.com is the best source. The owner/tuner Ryan Hogan is the absolute best at what he does and in my opinion, for the product you're getting the prices are very very reasonable
3. Ignition: these engines have proven themselves reliable and effective at fairly high power levels using strokers boost juice and any combo of the 3 with the only ignition upgrades being better wires and colder plugs. MSD, Firecore, Davis Unified Ignition (DUI for short) all have great wires and NGK BKR7E plugs are what most boosted guys run with great success

 

[e_hartzell17]

^^that's really the way to do it too.

Aside from the obvious hardware requirements there are a few other things to worry about.
1. Fuel system: more air=more fuel required and this couldn't be more true than in a boost setup.
-Being as you have a 2001 you have the EV6 USCAR injector style (like myself) in which case i would recommend Ford Cobra Mustang #39 fuel injectors. I can post up the part number for those if you wish.
-i would recommend a 255lph walboro pump as well to feed those injectors. Hipotek sells one that is plug and play, install as if replacing factory
No other fuel modifications needed for a mild setup
2.TUNING: this is the really important part. You can go cheap on hardware and tools and labor but if you go cheap on tuning it will fail. The performance and more importantly reliability is all in the tune. For this, Frptuning.com is the best source. The owner/tuner Ryan Hogan is the absolute best at what he does and in my opinion, for the product you're getting the prices are very very reasonable
3. Ignition: these engines have proven themselves reliable and effective at fairly high power levels using strokers boost juice and any combo of the 3 with the only ignition upgrades being better wires and colder plugs. MSD, Firecore, Davis Unified Ignition (DUI for short) all have great wires and NGK BKR7E plugs are what most boosted guys run with great success

Giving that I can only run 12psi ish max lol I was thinking mds ignition coil, I have a edge cts2 tuner, but injectors would be a must, would my current set up work other than injectors, oh ya and I have a mild comp cam


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[dapepper9]

Giving that I can only run 12psi ish max lol I was thinking mds ignition coil, I have a edge cts2 tuner, but injectors would be a must, would my current set up work other than injectors, oh ya and I have a mild comp cam


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12-ish is where the heads tend to lift with factory bolts do that's a good place to cap it.

If you do go with an msd ignition coil, 8228 is the pn to run if memory serves me. **** accell and don't run a blaster coil as they kill our PCMs without an MSD box.

Tuning: sct is your only option. Edge is basically only good for monitors

 

[Max78]

I would ditch the long tubes for some stock manifolds, you loose too much heat and exhaust gas velocity with long tubes. Long tubes are designed to have a scavenging effect on a NA engine, when you bolt on a turbo you lose that effect as the pre-turbo (hot side) is now under pressure because the exhaust gases are trying to escape through the turbine.

if you could get some stock manifolds and point them forwards to exit towards the front of the engine and then plumb right into the turbo I would go that route.

For all your pre-turbo pipe I would stick to 2.25", or even 2" to keep the EGV up, I have all my hot side made out of 2.25 exhaust tubing and don't have any issues running that 5.7 LT1 up to 7k RPM.

As stated the Walbro 255 is a great choice, that's what I'm running the the Camaro.

And as dapepper9 stated, and I cant stress enough about how important the tune is!!!! On stock components all it takes in one pre-det under load to shatter a piston!

Edit: if this is going to be a 2wd street truck and you want to get it up and running quick, look into doing a remote mount Turbo tucked up under the bed of the truck. Rather than run more exhaust pipe toward the front, just move the turbo back further. If you go that roust I would suggest warping as much of the exhaust system as you can to retain as much heat and velocity inside the exhaust.

 

[dapepper9]

I agree with ask of the above though i would prob go 2.25 myself. With the amount of cfm exiting the engine, 2.25 would choke an NA or supercharged exhaust system. I don't think you'd have to worry much about EGV

 

[e_hartzell17]

I would ditch the long tubes for some stock manifolds, you loose too much heat and exhaust gas velocity with long tubes. Long tubes are designed to have a scavenging effect on a NA engine, when you bolt on a turbo you lose that effect as the pre-turbo (hot side) is now under pressure because the exhaust gases are trying to escape through the turbine.

if you could get some stock manifolds and point them forwards to exit towards the front of the engine and then plumb right into the turbo I would go that route.

For all your pre-turbo pipe I would stick to 2.25", or even 2" to keep the EGV up, I have all my hot side made out of 2.25 exhaust tubing and don't have any issues running that 5.7 LT1 up to 7k RPM.

As stated the Walbro 255 is a great choice, that's what I'm running the the Camaro.

And as dapepper9 stated, and I cant stress enough about how important the tune is!!!! On stock components all it takes in one pre-det under load to shatter a piston!

Edit: if this is going to be a 2wd street truck and you want to get it up and running quick, look into doing a remote mount Turbo tucked up under the bed of the truck. Rather than run more exhaust pipe toward the front, just move the turbo back further. If you go that roust I would suggest warping as much of the exhaust system as you can to retain as much heat and velocity inside the exhaust.

I think I'm gonna attempt to set it up like I drew since this truck is 4wd and i don't got muck space to work with, I'm gonna try and see what happens


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