The Diesel Power Challenge is one of the premier competitions to put some of the world's biggest and baddest diesel trucks through the ringer. With trucks like Tim Jahn's Ford F-250 in attendance, it is no wonder why this year's podium was swept by Ford.
A Worthy Competitor
The Diesel Performance Challenge is a week long competition put on by Diesel Power/Truck Trend that pits 10 highly modified diesel trucks and their owners against one another in a variety of performance and endurance torture test challenges. The selection process includes trucks from Dodge, Ford, and GM is based on the number of votes that each truck receives, thus those that earn the most votes for their particular make of truck get the nod to join the competition. Representing one of three Ford trucks in this year's DPC was Tim Jahn in his 2008 Ford F-250.
>>Join the conversation about Tim Jahn's F-250 right here in the Ford Trucks Forum!
A Passion Fork Trucks
Jahn is no stranger to diesel as he is a diesel mechanic by trade with 12 years of experience in his pocket. Jahn explains that he did not get himself a diesel truck of his own until realizing the shortcomings (fuel economy, loss of power, etc.) that big, lifted gas-powered trucks experienced. After purchasing and spending 8 years behind the wheel of a 06 Ford F-250 equipped with a 6.0L Power Stroke, Jahn bought himself the truck that would eventually be voted into the DPC; a 08 F-250 with a 6.4L Power Stroke. He chose this particular truck because he "wanted a common-rail (direct-injection) 6.4L engine" capable of big power.
>>Join the conversation about Tim Jahn's F-250 right here in the Ford Trucks Forum!
The Snowball Effect
The journey of Jahn's 08 F-250 began with custom ECM tuning to test the power limits of the truck. Unfortunately, he soon found that limit by way of a blown head gasket, thus he decided to replace the head gasket and a few top-end components for increased reliability. Somewhere along the way, this mild build quickly escalated into a full-blown engine rebuild that saw the engine stripped down to a bare block and rebuilt with only the best of components. The end result could be seen during the dyno portion of the DPC competition as the F-250 put out a staggering 1,337 horsepower and 1,999 lb-ft of torque!
>>Join the conversation about Tim Jahn's F-250 right here in the Ford Trucks Forum!
Big Bad Build
When looking at the specs of the rebuilt engine, one can understand how the F-250 achieved those huge dyno numbers. Jahn used a fully balanced rotating assembly with forged Carrillo rods, flycut and coated motorsports pistons, ARP studs, O-ringed heads, and a Colt stage 2 camshaft with associated performance valve springs and pushrods. The turbo setup consists of a billet Elite Diesel Performance 66mm variable-geometry unit coupled with a 94mm Precision ball-bearing unit. Fueling of this beast is accomplished by way of a Dr. Diesel Twin K16 high-pressure fuel pump and a Fuelab Velocity 200-gph lift pump which feeds the the River City Diesel 150-percent-over injectors. Jahn built the engine and the transmission himself, and also fabricated the turbo intake setup as well as the suspension that utilizes King 3" coilovers coupled with a Rize Industries 7-inch front lift and custom three-link rear.
>>Join the conversation about Tim Jahn's F-250 right here in the Ford Trucks Forum!
A Podium Finish
Tim Jahn did not set out to build a truck specifically to compete in the Diesel Power Challenge, but once he realized the power and reliability of the truck, he knew his F-250 would stack up well. After a grueling week of pushing some of the nation's best diesel trucks to the limit, Jahn finished a very respectable third place, only missing second place by tenths of a point. Although his Ford F-250 performed admirably, the most impressive achievement was that Jahn received the Driver's Choice award that is given to the truck that competitors would take home for themselves if given the choice. That in itself is a true testament to the craftsmanship put into the truck. Congrats Tim on a job well done!
>>Join the conversation about Tim Jahn's F-250 right here in the Ford Trucks Forum!
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