[DirtBikePilot]

If they use the same turbo and same tuning, then the power output should be about the same I would think. It's the quality of the parts offered that makes the difference. One thing I worry about with the CFD kit is the custom exhaust manifolds leaking over time between the manifold and the head. How thick is the flange on the CFD kits?

 

[DirtBikePilot]

The difference in price is more than I expected.

I looked at confederate's kit on their website, and it says it doesn't include the down pipe from the turbo. I think the SPE kit is complete with everything needed.

 

[DirtBikePilot]

Does either place offer a military discount?

 

[DirtBikePilot]

I understand the lack of room to discount price. Your offer is very nice though and 100 helps.

I do NOT like that the spe kit uses the factory plastic tube from the intercooler to the throttle body assembly. I've seen multiple posts about that blowing. See attached picture.

 

[DirtBikePilot]

I am also learning a good bit from this thread. I have absolutely nothing to do with either company. When I bought my ford almost exactly two years ago, I had never heard of confederate diesel or SPE. The guys at SPE seem like very knowledgeable people. I don't have any experience with the guys at CFD other than on this forum. The review of the CFD kit done by another member a few weeks ago was very positive and they seem pretty good at holding their cool here even though Alan at SPE seems like he really dislikes CFD for some reason.

I also agree that there is absolutely nothing wrong with calling another company out about their products. I am not a professional welder, but have some experience with MIG welding on steel. It is not fair to compare a mig weld on steel to a tig weld on aluminum or stainless steel. Mig welders splatter much more and the welds do not look as pretty. Having perfect looking welds is great, but not nearly as important as customer service or how a product actually functions.

I'm not sure which kit I'm going with yet, but I'm not impressed with the kit from SPE and I'm even less impressed that they are not willing to participate in a straight up comparison like this. If someone did a ford vs chevy comparison and ford said they weren't going to play, that looks bad for ford. They all participate and we find that each has its own advantages and disadvantages. I might consider their system if they would get back on here and explain in detail why they think it's better and why it costs more and comes with less. They can say they have more r&d, but do they really? How many hours has their kit spent in how many different trucks? Same question goes out to CFD. I actually like that SPE uses the stock exhaust manifolds because they have heat shields and are proven to not leak. I hate exhaust leaks.

Again, I have no affiliation with any company whatsoever. I just want the best product for my truck. It's our only vehicle and its currently not operational due to ford's woefully inadequate POS turbo system.

Questions for CFD: does your kit completely replace the stock plastic tube coming out (cold side) of the intercooler? I can see that part of the stock plastic tube is gone (the part shown in the SPE kit, that clamps onto the intake manifold), but is the lower plastic part still used? I'm concerned about heat build up in the engine valley when towing extremely heavy loads in high ambient temperatures. How much extra would you guys charge to put heat shields on your exhaust manifolds? Maybe wrap them like the up pipes? This turbo is oil cooled and while I really like your oil supply idea, it lives in an extremely hot spot with exhaust manifolds on both sides.

Question for SPE: do you have any plans to offer a replacement for the stock plastic tubing between the intercooler and the intake manifold?

Anybody wondering why I'm asking these questions, refer to my earlier post showing pictures of failures of this particular part.

 

[DirtBikePilot]

Thanks for answering my questions. I don't want any part of that plastic tube in my truck. I'm going to be towing over 20k pounds on occasion and it makes me nervous.

Could you post a price for an upgrade to get rid of the rest of that plastic tube?

Upgrading the turbo also gets rid of whatever little exhaust brake our trucks have. I'm planning on installing a blue ox exhaust brake after the down pipe. Can you foresee any problem with your turbo kit with an exhaust brake? I'm going to pressurize the exhaust to see how much pressure it takes to float the exhaust valves, then set the brake maximum to about 70% of that pressure.

 

[DirtBikePilot]

Dman- what hp did you dyno at?

CFD- What hp difference could be expected if Dman went with a 63 instead? Any torque difference? What is the difference in lag at 7000 feet elevation? Which one would be better for towing very heavy loads? Thanks for your participation in this thread and answering all my questions. Could you please tell us a little history behind your company, like how long you've been in this business and what your experience is? Feel free to send me a pm if you would rather do that.

 

[DirtBikePilot]

I don't know how much this bit of info helps, but here is what was posted by h&s on their forums about the breaking point tune:


"There is not much to the tuning. All that was done is fueling was increased. Diesels are VERY simple if you understand their basic operating principles. The stock 6.7L Ford is limited by fueling amounts because the stock high pressure fuel pump is maxed out. Once you get your fuel supply there, you can increase fuel and make more power. You will then run out of turbo, so you replace the turbo.

Fuel Air = power. Just keep increasing both variables until you achieve the desired HP goal.

So basically, you cannot run the breaking point tune on your truck unless you have the fuel and air system to support it. The stock fuel pump is only capable of 500HP and under."


I think the timing and other aspects of the tune (except fuel duration) were kept the same as their standard tunes, but does anyone know for sure?

 

[DirtBikePilot]

When I spoke with Amy at SPE she said they used as many stock components as possible because they wanted to keep the price down. It seems as though the honest answer is bacause they wanted to keep the profit margin high. And yes I am upset about it because I WAS going to get one of their kits. SPE is NOT going to get my buiseness. The more I think about how little their kit comes with and how much it costs, the madder I get. I really want the others to hurry up so I can make a decision. Who is rcd?

 

[DirtBikePilot]

30000 miles on the original kit. Looks dirty but still going strong.
We actually just pulled that off and replaced it with a brand new kit.

I'm confused. You say the original kit now has 30,000 miles on it? I thought it broke the turbo shaft and had been fixed. :dunno:

 

[DirtBikePilot]

Amy: I should apologize for my earlier post. It was a couple shades harsher than it needed to be. I got a good laugh from the name confusion. Sorry 'bout that. :rofl:

 

[DirtBikePilot]

Cfd- minor detail, but you may consider editing the last line in the first post of this thread.

 

[DirtBikePilot]

Are you suggesting there is something wrong with that?

 

[DirtBikePilot]

Powerstroked162: you need to get off this thread, and off this forum altogether. You have nothing to add but childish insults and garbage. Just look at your avatar! Every post you've made here is completely worthless.

 

[DirtBikePilot]

This is H&S performances exhaust manifold.

Is that really the pedestal H&S is going with? Do you have any idea how hot that thing is going to get when towing up a long grade? That pedestal has a coolant passage in contact with the bottom of it, does it not? Said coolant is going to get fried, along with the gasket/o-ring that seals it to the bottom of the pedestal. The bottom is also right over the cam, right? It is in contact with the oil? The oil is going to get fried as well and the overall head load taken into the oil is increased substantially. That to me is a major engineering mistake. I suppose some sort of insulating plate could be used between that pedestal and the engine, but the overall surface area of very hot things is still increased by making a pedestal like that, and that kind of heat surrounding an oil cooled turbo is BAD. Hopefully I'm wrong, but I call stuff as I see it.

 

[DirtBikePilot]

I'm not saying I'm going to buy their kit, but the idea is on the table. I'm looking at their first kit with the following perception: They had 3 weeks to make the first ever kit to do what a customer asked them to do. Could I do better? Could you do better? I really doubt it. There are some ugly welds in there, but GET OVER IT!!! It worked until some random gasket failed. And did they run away, stating it only had a 90 day warranty or some bs like that? NO. They fixed it and put a brand new kit on the truck. That says a lot to me.

I'm willing to give someone a second chance. They didn't kill a bunch of kittens. They tried to satisfy a customer, which is what I would have done in their situation. I don't make stuff for other people, so let me get that out of the way right now. I make lots of custom stuff for myself. It's not always pretty (usually it is not), but it usually gets the job done very well.

Now, if other people could be half as professional and courteous as CFD is being in this thread, we might have some productivity.

To the moderators: you are doing a piss poor job of keeping the name calling and disrespect under control. Do your job.

 

[DirtBikePilot]

Ok, what EXACTLY did they lie about? Please send me a PM about the different username stuff. I don't know any details about that.

 

[DirtBikePilot]

:rofl: Oh geez. I guess I deserved that native language bit, but I got a good laugh out if it. I thought there was something else they were begin accused of though. Making up multiple usernames and pretending to be customers is extremely bad.

Now that SPE has dropped their price back to what they originally told me, they are also on the table once again. They are probably pretty mad though about my earlier post calling bs on their original price. :look:

 

[DirtBikePilot]

Exactly what part of their current kit looks like cobbled up garbage? It looks pretty good to me.

 

[DirtBikePilot]

Fantom- I've looked through ALL of your posts on this thread. You have contributed ABSOLUTELY NOTHING USEFUL in any of your posts. I'll be glad if you don't post anything else here.

Granny- good job and thank you for stopping "The Diesel Powered Days of Our Lives".