Power Slug gets an upgrade
It’s been about a year since doing any significant work to the Power Slug. To date, she’s gotten a new right-front brake caliper, new front shocks, a new, lower temp. thermostat to help keep cool, a 2” tow hitch, upgraded speakers all around, and a sub-woofer. There are plenty of other things that I’ve wanted to do as well, but just weren’t a priority, yet!
With spring break around the corner and a pandemic still raging, flying anywhere and staying in a hotel or resort around lots of people really isn’t an option. What IS an option is renting a private house on the beach and road-tripping! And road tripping in the Power Slug means long haul highway driving and high engine temperatures while 90-ish horses try to lug us up and down hills from Ohio to Florida. To keep her in top working order, I gathered input from the great owner community that exists on-line, and began planing for a few modifications and upgrades.
Without sufficient time to order and install a new aluminum radiator from over-seas, the next best option for adding power and bringing engine temps down at the same time is a tried and true turbo diesel modification of water/methanol injection. Since this modification requires access to the intake manifold after the turbo, it provides impetus for another modification, which is the removal of the EGR (exhaust gas return/re-circulation) valve. This mod, in turn, provides impetus for yet another modification, which is the addition of an EGT (exhaust gas temperature) probe and gauge, which requires access to the exhaust manifold at the point the EGR valve is removed. This reading will help me better regulate my driving on long hauls to prevent extreme temperatures from causing engine damage. win, win, win!
Also on the upgrade list is new, more (slightly) highway friendly tires. They will be slightly larger with a (slightly) quieter tread pattern, but still technically off-road tires. The result should be a tad more speed from each gear, and a little less road noise. I’ll also be stuffing all her nooks and crannies with foam and sound insulation where appropriate.
Let's look at the water/methanol injection project...
| The kit: SNO-301 | And where it goes |
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The Procedure:
- Remove the EGR valve and interconnect pipe from the engine where it attaches to the exhaust manifold (in red above), and where it attaches to the intake manifold (in blue above).
- curse
- drink beer
- curse more
- victory
- Drill and tap the blanking plates for each manifold; one for the EGT (exhaust), and one for the W/M injection nozzle (intake).
- Mount EGT probe in the exhaust port blanking plate.
- Mount the W/M nozzle in the intake port blanking plate.
- Mount each plate into their respective ports. (red and blue circles above)