Supercharger Installed!!!!!!!

[Alec]

Hey guys,

Keep asking questions if you have them. If y'all can't tell, I love talking about my truck and sharing my knowledge. The SC was a huge project, and took $$$ and time. I know how both these things can be hard to come by, so I really want to help those out that are interested in getting the blower for their truck.

The blower comes with a "piggyback" computer. This module is about 2" x 2" x 5" and has many inputs and outputs that need to be wired to it. Basically, it acts like the plug in modules, but lets the stock ECU help run the truck. The plug in modules pretty much take over the operation of the truck. I think you can see the new computer in the SC photopoint album. It's mounted close to the driver side firewall between the fuse bloc and the fender.

Theoretically, a plug in module could be left in the truck after the addition of the SC. Unfortunately, the module would override some commands from the BBK computer and would have to be reprogrammed to "be nice". The only reason I see to still have a module is to alter the tranny characteristics. The BBK computer really does a great job of engine management. Actually, the tranny is shifting very smoothly now and at decent RPMs. It could shift a few hundred RPM higher, but I don't feel like getting a custom chip just for that.

 

[scapener]

Re: Congratulations!!!!!!

Originally posted by n2knee
I'm out of the loop, but what kind of SC did you install? I know the SC for the 4.0 SOHC isn't out yet. Did you do the installation? And if you don't mind another question, how much was your total cost? I'll have my SC installed after it comes out from the body shop.

We're all excited for you!!!

I see that you have a Eaton blower on your vehicle. That has a magnason kit on it. I have the same kit on my 97 Explorer EB AWD 5.0L I have the following modifications presently done; SVO motor sport headers, 2.5" exhaust from the cat back with flowmaster muffler, 1.7 ratio cobra roller rocking arms, modified air intake, K/N air filter, E/B Shocks, Super Charger with 5-6 pounds of boost, Jacobs electronic ignition, NOS 80 horse nitros kit installed (dry kit), Shift kit(trans go) in the automatic 4r70w transmission, 3.73 gear(stock), jacobs plug wires, Estimating about 420 hp out of the motor. That is based on the output given by the manufacture of the blower.

I have a ws6 firebird on my hit list.....

 

[Alec]

GOOD NEWS!

All the parts are in and my mechanic is overcoming his illness. He either had the flu or really b!tchin' allergies. So Splat is going into the shop Monday morning and should be fixed by the middle of the week. Everyone keep their fingers crossed! Actually, not all the parts are in: the only one missing is the BBK plaque that goes on the intake tube. No biggie, though. But it is something that I have to ***** at them for, again.

BTW Scrapener, sounds like you have one bad-@$$ truck!

 

[Alec]

Just thought I'd annoy everyone with another update:

Splat's in the shop and should be done by tomorrow. As of 9am, the blower was back on the truck after the leak was fixed, and the cruise control module was remounted. Next on the agenda was the fuel pump. I'm gonna give them a call later this afternoon, but I should have Splat back tomorrow morning! Yay!

BTW, I was reading up on the blower that's installed on my truck, an Eaton M62. I got a funny question stuck in my brain and did some hunting around. I was very interested to see that this is the same blower that's installed on my Dad's SLK Kompressor. I think that's kinda funny. His has a built in intercooler, but the BBK kit didn't incorporate one due to the clearance and radiator restrictions. Might be something to think about though. It looks like I could theoretically pull an intercooler system from an SLK and fit it to the Exploder. I would have to get a cowl hood for clearance, though. Just something to think about......

Tune in tomorrow for the final installation update!

PS: Yes, Cameron I did; but I'm sure many other members didn't.

PPS: ITS READY!!! My mech. just called that it's ready. I'm going to pick it up tomorrow morning. He ended up using a Ford Lightning fuel pump, rated at 100 lph. The pump Jeg's had sent didn't work. 100 isn't 155, but it's more than enough for my needs now.

[Edited by Alec on 02-13-2001 at 12:59 PM]

 

[Cameron]

Interesting. Did you know our 4.0 ohv is originally a German design? Kind of cool.

 

[Alec]

So, have I annoyed all of you enough yet? The wait's finally over, though. ITS DONE!!!!

I just picked Splat up from the shop. It's really slick out, so I couldn't push the truck all the way, but I'm definately happy. Everything is very smooth and pretty quiet. The blower is actually quieter than when it was first installed. I guess that gasket blew pretty soon after it was put on. Idle is at about 600 in gear, 800 in park or neutral. I might bump up the load idle a bit, but it works well and is smooth. It does putter a little like a diesel, though. The exhaust is louder at all speeds, but still not overwhelming. It sounds great at idle, like a loping V8.

As for power, it takes about half the throttle pedal pressure to elicit the same acceleration as stock. Anything beyond that and you better hold on. I can get it to scratch into 2nd, and even into 3rd. The roads were a little wet, so it might not be so easy on dry pavement. With the road conditions today, flooring in at a light would get me nowhere, literally. I floored it in a parking lot and the truck didn't move, the tires just went on their merry way. I bet with powerbraking I'd get a decent burnout, but I don't have the $$$ for new tires right now.

That's it for now. Dyno and race numbers might be obtained by Spring break, but don't hold your breath.

So, who's next?

 

[AaronE19]

c'mon, man... this thread wouldn't be 47 replies long if we werent' interested it'll be interesting to get those dyno numbers too! so, are you gonna do some Honda hunting now? it'd be kind of cool if the BBK blower was like that Weiland unit from the Road Warrior - that way you could kick it in with a switch so that your truck was the "super sleeper" when it rolled up to a light - they wouldn't know what hit 'em

I was thinking (famous "step-all-over-your-thread" words)... I know that, while roots-type blowers deliver a nicely compressed dose of air, they tend to heat the charge up a little. with the TB at the back of the manifold now, it'd be really easy to run a nice ram-air setup thru some cool looking hood scoops and get some icy-cold air going into your blower. with the TB at the front of the octopus like it was before, it would have been tough. I saw some cool-looking nonfuncional ones from Lund on JCWhitney's page- http://www.jcwhitney.com/product.jhtml?CATID=161132, but they could be made to work easliy enough with a little torch -action and creative fabbing. the way they're shaped would help keep the water out too.

this is all your fault, Alec. you've got everyone's right foot itching for more juice out of their 'sploders! (worse than before, anyway) thanks again for taking the time to post.

Aaron

 

[DocVijay]

Gotta get me one of those!!!

OK, that's it! I've had enough. I'm gonna call up BBK tomorrow and see what I'll have to do to get the Instacharger to fit my `99 OHV. It says the kit is for those up to `97 OHV's, but the engines can't be that different. Alec, you've gotten me determined. I'll get that SC if it's the last thing I do. Of course, it won't be, cause there's always something else to do. Watch out Hondas, here I come!

 

[SteveVB]

Whoa, not so fast...98 and up probs

Doc because of the fuel delivery system in the 98 and ups BBK isnt avail. It has no return system and there are problems trying to bump up the fuel pressure to meet the demands with the blower.

You can check this thread from the ranger board for more info. Brian has worked out a system for the newer models apparantly but you may want to try and get in touch with brian for some other info.

Dead Link Removed

 

[Brian Ward]

Re: Whoa, not so fast...98 and up probs

Originally posted by SteveVB
Doc because of the fuel delivery system in the 98 and ups BBK isn't avail. It has no return system and there are problems trying to bump up the fuel pressure to meet the demands with the blower.

Steve,

While most of the SOHC engines from 98 on do not have fuel return lines or fuel regulators, not all of them are like that.

My 1998 Eddie Bauer has the 4.0L SOHC, but it DOES have a fuel return line and a fuel pressure regulator. If you would like to see pics of these items, let me know and I'll take some and post them for you. What I'm wondering is, since my engine does have these items, would the BBK unit work on my truck? I don't know how big a difference there is between the SOHC engines with or without the return lines/regulators, if there is a difference. Any thoughts on this?

 

[Alec]

1) I have a dyno appointment tomorrow afternoon. I should be able to post the results by Saturday morning.

2) The SOHC engine: from what I can tell, the lower intake manifolds are different from the OHV to the SOHC. This means a new manifold adapter plate would have to be made to enable the blower to bolt to the top of the engine. Also, the computer and FMU would need to be tweaked to fit the new engine. All in all, it doesn't seem that difficult. Maybe there's something that makes it much more complicated?

3) Non fuel return OHV: Like was said earlier, there are 98+ OHV Ranger guys trying to put the blower on. I think you'd have to change the fuel pump and add some fuel lines. The kit comes with a new FMU, so you just have to adapt the system to add the return line. An experienced mechanic should be able to figure it out.

4) From what I can tell, Splat is running really well. I don't know if he's as fast as he was before the vacuum leak, but he's tuned down a bit due to weather and to break in the new parts. The weather is 50 degrees warmer than when the blower was first installed, so I'm assuming that's what the big difference is. It's also very humid. I have 2 runs tomorrow on the dyno, and I'll play with the timing controller. The FPR is dialed in well, so the only variable is the boost/retard controller. I'm hoping for at least 200 at the wheels, maybe as much as 205 or 210. 200 at the wheels would give me 250-270 at the flywheel due to drivetrain losses. 210 would give me 260-280 at the flywheel. I seriously doubt I'm making 280 in this weather. Oh well, we shall see tomorrow!

 

[DocVijay]

Fuel return clarification.

Are you talking about the vapor return system? If so, I believe that they all have them (OHV and SOHC). I could be wrong, as I haven't gone out to double check, but I'm pretty sure. If this isn't what you're talking about then what is it?

 

[SteveVB]

The fuel return runs from the pressure reg back to the fuel tank with the excess fuel.

Alec, You are very optimistic! in my view I think you will show around 175 -180 at the wheels. Thats my guess.

It would be cool if you could let us see the charts and numbers throughout the rpm range, a couple of peak numbers while fun dont mean that much.

Good Luck - hope you make the 200

 

[Cameron]

Oh!, I thought you had a 4X4? I take it you don't. Or did you find the rear 4-wheel dyno?

Good luck with the dyno. Take pictures as well.

 

[BExplorer]

Just to keep in touch...

Bump

 

[Chad Summers]

Very Kewl Any thoughts on which would be better, the sc or a v8 conversion? The differences I can come up with seem to be pretty even.. 6 should be lighter, 8 would probably be more dependable.. sc would probalby be less of a headache for installation than a conversion? etc... Whats everyones thoughts?

 

[Alec]

Well you hit some of the main points of the V8 swap vs. the supercharger.

First of all, if your motor has over 60 or 70k miles I'd really consider a small rebuild or a really good tune up before you install the blower. If the motor's in good shape, changing all the gaskets and a visual inspection should suffice. That being said, here are some points I can think of:

Weight: V6 wins
Drivability: even
Reliability: even (a properly installed blower on a good V6 will probably need less maintenance than a decent V8, but a new V8 vs the V6 is probably about the same)
Mileage: the V6 wins bigtime
Power potential: V8 wins
Cost: depending on where the V8 and tranny come from, the blower is most likely cheaper
Ease of install: V6 by far
Whoohoo factor: even
Sound: the V6 will have a rumbling exhaust and a supercharge whine; the V8 will have a more throaty rumbling exhaust and more deep engine noise.
Tunability and weather changes: the V8 will be more consistent through various weather conditions, but the blown V6 can be easily tuned to compensate for weather changes (but doesn't have to be)

Hmmm, that's what I can think of off the bat. I think it comes down to the condition of your current V6.

 

[SteveVB]

one more

I would add one more to Alecs list- Emissions. Swapping out the 6 is impossible in some areas. Some states/localities engine swaps are difficult to impossible due to the laws surrounding the emmisions control equip and the inspections vehicles must go through. So SC on the 6 is a good way to go IMO.

Alec did a great job summing it all up.

 

[Chad Summers]

Thanks guys I deffinitly wanna hear the dyno #'s (and how they would compare to a mildly built v8) though before I can make up my mind.. I'm looking for something thats going to have over all good driveablility and reliability I guess but I also what the torque there when I need it.. (pulling small trailers.. the occasional mud pit.. maybe even truck pulls at county fairs..) The sc is sounding better all the time.. How will it make the 6 compare to an 8 in these areas though? As far as my engine goes I only have 42k but its giving me trouble.. I've looked through some of the posts and came up with changing the tps but didn't fix it.. (actually, it runs fine but the check engine light keeps coming on) I guess that and the small oil leak I found will give me something to keep me occupied for a lil while.. oh.. btw, I couldn't get the pics of this install to come up?

 

[Troll]

Any of you superchaged Explorers ready to race me yet?
I'am still waiting. Is someone ever going to go as crazy as me? Troll