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Mild chip recommendations: Heavy towing and nothing else

GM Guy

Manual Trans. 2WD Enthusiast
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Location
NW Kansas and SC Idaho
Hey guys,

My boss is looking into giving his 03 QCLB cummins 6spd 4wd a little boost in power with a chip, but only wants to get a safe one that wont hurt the truck when towing heavy. He will be up into 3x,xxx combination at times with a tandem dually 32' GN.

What do you all recommend?
 
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First, does he have gauges on it.

ANY added power at that kind of weight is gonna be pushing the EGT's up there.

I wouldn't recommend anything over 40 HP with that what he has right now.

Edge runs too hot, so don't go that route.

My recommendation is this....

EGT and Boost gauges combined with a Smarty Jr.
 
I got an edge mileage max, supposedly 25hp, and 77ft lbs of torque...I bought it to get the fuel mileage and I LOVE it..and it gives me the snap to burn the dualls up in 5th gear on damp roads.... i get like 14-16(depending on how hard I run it) around town, and i get almost 22 on highway(ive only tracked it running 70mph on highway)..truck is the cummins in my signature...Check on ebay, I grabbed mine as a factory reman unit for $80!!! ive gotten well more than my $80 back in fuel savings!!! BUT when the high idle kicks on, my fuel mileage goes to the crapper......
 
Boss was looking at a Quadzilla. how are they? I think he is looking at the mileage max module

and is Smarty Jr. the model, or the brand? if it is model, who is the company?

Sorry for the dumb questions, but I am not a D/C expert by any means!
 
Ignore the ? on the Smarty JR. I googled it and found my answer. It does look like what he needs.

As for guages, boss is not afraid to spend a little more for the best, but would like to not spend too much if he doesnt have to. Would autometer be the best choice?

Surely boost and pyro are the first two to add, but what shall fill that third void in the pillar pod? It is a 6sp, so trans temp is not nearly as important as it would be with an auto.
 
He can get a 2 gauge pillar if he wants, but.....

My recommendation on ANY of the common rails is a Rail Pressure gauge. This is a CRITICAL function on the common rails.

Any time you mess with tuning on a common rail (or even leave it stock) the RP gauge is your KEY indicator of engine performance.

If the engine skips, burps, farts or otherwise, you'll see it in the RP before you see it anywhere else.

Almost any driveability or power loss issue on a common rail can be seen in the RP.

Next to EGT, this is the second most important gauge you can put in one.

Now, the RP gauge is the expensive one, but it's one that I won't do without in my truck. Being that his turbo is mechanically controlled and not electronic, I would even do the RP before I'd do the boost. Without putting in a boost elbow, he's not going to see over 30 psi anyways.

I would go with the Isspro's before I'd do the Autometers. DiPricol's are the best match to the factory interior, but the RP gauges are ALWAYS backordered.....2 - 3 months is the norm.
 
The nice thing with the Smarty Jr is that it runs MUCH cooler than the Edge will.

Edge uses a lot of duration to make it's power and that duration turns into higher EGT's.

For a daily driven truck, tow rig, light mods.....he'll be happy with a Smarty JR.

What I've found on the Smarty Jr is that it's advertised HP is almost dead on, it's actually a few HP higher in most cases when we put them on the dyno.

If it's on a 40 HP tune, you're getting 40 HP. I've got a customer with a bone stock '06, other than the Smarty JR, South Bend OFEK clutch and gauges and the truck makes 411 HP to the wheels on the dyno. Stock on that same truck is 289 HP to the wheels.
 
could you explain the term duration? Is it how long the squirt is? rather than many small squirts, does it go on a constant spray pattern for a bit? aka, more fuel for long periods?
 
Duration is the total time that the injector fires for the main firing event.

Hold the duration for too long and you get fuel burning in the exhaust stroke and your EGT's go through the roof.

Duration is good for power, but it has to be timed right. If it's too late or too long, you blow a ton of smoke and the temps go up.
 
Just .02 cents, but I am a big fan of the Smarty Jr. as well. Three settings, 40hp, 70hp, and 100hp. Any of the three power settings truck runs very smooth and little to no smoke. Even on very hard excelleration, there is a slight haze but it will go away in a matter of seconds and if I punch it while rolling, say at 30-40 mph, I'll get a shot of black smoke for no more then 2 seconds or so. I'm not really looking for big smoke, as all it's doing is burning fuel, so I can tell the Smarty Jr. tuner is a fairly clean tune.
 
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