ATS turbo 008

[gunnars92f350]

I have an ATS 088 Turbo on my 92 f350 crew cab 4x4, I was wondering how you guys who have this turbo on your truck feel about it and any advice you might have for me to improve on it. I don't have any complaints about it it just feels a little slow in the 1st and 2nd gears. Could just be because its a manual and a heavy truck. thanks Gunnar

[alantbird]

I had a non turbo 6.9 (DOG) I have a 7.3 ATS mutch mutch better, but my 93 cummings can still beat the pants off of the ATS and I believe its the difference btwn direct and non direct injection.....You could try removing the muffler!
I have a cherry bomb on my 7.3 and its sounds nice!

[David85]

Do yourself, and your neighbors a favor, leave the muffler on. If you just make short trips with the truck than I guess it doesn't matter, but if you make longer trips, it will cause a headache from the mid range drone.

I have te 088 ATS and it is a little weak in the lower RPMs. I believe its possible to replace the compressor wheel and housing with a larger one, but this could cause overboosting in the higher RPMs.

This is what I am getting right now with my setup:

2 psi at 1500 RPM
4-5 psi at 2000 RPM
7-8 psi at 2500 RPM

All of that is with very little or no visible smoke, and EGTs usually max out at 850 (pre turbo). I am considering turning up the fuel slightly to see what happens, but I have enough power for my needs at the moment.

Are you getting any smoke?
What are you getting for boost pressure?
What about EGTs?

[gunnars92f350]

I actually did cut off my exhaust and ran around like that for a few months( untill I could afford to have it redone). I replaced it with 4" turbo back and put a flowpro muffler on. It made a huge difference in take off power and it's quieter than ever, before every diesel wanted race and I was over that pretty quick.. David 85 i'm getting about the same as you on psi and rpms so thank you I feel better, I can get it up to around 10 at 3000rpm @80mph but I don't like to do that often, and my pryometer is not working for some reason, I traed the wires and can't find any exposed for loose ends, maybe i'll have to get a new one. Oh and I get quite a bit of black smoke if I start off in second, bout a vwbug size cloud, thanks guys for the help

[David85]

There is a lot of turbo lag by today's standards. I have an automatic, but I can certainly see why you could have a puff of smoke when the clutch grabs. Also, the turbo is pretty much useless below 2000 RPM if you want real power. It does make a difference below 2000, but the real power only kicks in after about 2200RPM.

I could probably get 10 psi as well, but with my gearing, I have no reason to go to such high RPMs.

Any smoke once you are at a steady speed?

[gunnars92f350]

No smoke once i'm up and cruisin she pretty much does what I need, The guy I bought it from said it had long legs and i'm pretty sure she was built for highway travel. It pulls good in the high gears.

[David85]

If its running clean right now, you can try and turn the fuel up as that will make more boost in the high range, but with diesel pushing $5, I would leave it alone for now.

My truck is a business vehicle so my fuel is written off letting me have some fun with it, but even then my first concern has always been MPG.

Sounds like your truck is well tuned for fuel economy with tall gears and 5 speed.

[gunnars92f350]

If I baby it I can get about 14mpg, which is very good from what I hear, usually about 12 is what I normally get around town.

How can I turn the fuel up? just wondering, not sure if I will but might be fun to play with. Also I noticed you have a ram air on your truck, did that make a difference because with the set up from ATS it seems like when I shut the hood it cuts off the scoop for the intake?

[David85]

The air intake location on your 92' is differnet than the 1986 model. My air intake is on the side of the rad. I'm not quite sure how it works on the 1992 body style.

Here is a good article on turning up the injector pump:

"Fuel injection pump adjustment article"

Not that I think you will do this but if you reach the max of the fuel screw, back off before finalizing the adjustment. Running with the screw bottomed out could kill the IP rather quickly.

The ram air intake was something I made up one afternoon in our shop. Most ram air setups for these trucks are home made.

I ran with the ram air setup for a few months before I found the turbo kit that I now have. I can't say it made a huge power difference, but it was worth 1-3 MPG on the freeway. The only reason I know is I calculate my MPGs on every fillup and on one trip the ram intake was damaged resulting in a drop in economy. I fixed rather quickly when I realized the difference it really made.

14 MPG would be a bit low normally, but with the advent of ULSD fuel, it is probably on par. My economy is not very good in city driving either. Highway can be better but I rarely baby it, so 16 MPG is usually the best I see.

[DT 466Man]

i'm seeing 16-19 mpg an i have 4.10's but i rarely take it over 55mph.

maybe your injectors are worn out.