Repowering a Peterbuilt

[Peashooter67]

Here’s the skinny. Monday or Tuesday I’ll find out weather my rebuilt isx has a bad block or not.

Please no engine bashing here ! This is an either or and pros and cons of my question specifically. I don’t want suggestions about anything except the two motors I’m about to ask the question about.

Sooooo,,,,,, to the question? What do I do from here? My thoughts.

No caterpillars because I don’t want an accert motor and anything earlier is just way to expensive.
This is pre meditated that this will be at my expense......

Do I “assuming my block is a boat anchor?” Get another block and put all my new parts in it or sell the parts and repowerr with a 14.7 Detroit?

My Pete currently has and was borne with a Cummins ISX and was rebuilt 280 miles ago.
I’m 98% certain the block has a cracked oil journal and has to be replaced.

I have and operate 3 trucks
1 06 379 w/isx
2 02 w900 w/isx
3 06 fld 120 with DDEC V

My Cummins ISX is very anemic compared to my Detroit and so far the Detroit costs less to operate and maintain by the ecm it has 1.3 million miles and going strong and the Cummins need more maintenance, costs more to operate, parts cost more, and needs rebuilt sooner than Detroit’s do.

If I sell my isx or parts to help fund and buy a lightly used or rebuilt Detroit how hard is it to repower a truck from a Cummins to a Detroit? What is involved in the switch and is it cost affective not including the motor it’s self?

[Rawze]

The only advantage an ISX has on other engines is

A) - It is the easiest to maintain and work on yourself. Insite, Quickserv, etc.

b) - They are just as bullet proof as anything else out there with some decent custom tuning / demandate. they DO NOT HOWEVER LIKE BEING NEGLECTED OR ABUSED! and that is the main reason people have any kind of issues with them. All modern engines are like this now, so you had best get used to it.

c) - The ECM programming is like play-dough -- you can tune the thing to exactly what your needs are and that is really its only advantage over anything else. Without this they are as prone to emissions and other issues as anything else these days.

it is when they are neglected, abused, bad programming, etc.etc. that you have issues with them. if you want something that is modern with modern engine effeciency you never have to work on then by all means go get u a detroit, volvo, paccar, isx, or anything else you can think of based on the droves of company driver opinions, who could barely even tell you what color their engine is, and trade the truck in every 300k miles or so for a new one so that you never have to work on it. - Great business plan if you want to fund the engine and truck makers, relying on that false sens of "Warranty" instead of putting money into your own wallet.

if you want a million mile + modern engine you can work on yourself, tweak to suit your needs, etc... a well built ISX it is. -- YOUR PROBLEM is that you have so far, relied on the broken down network of nit-wits to fix on your engine, then blamed the equipment for all your problems instead of the morons who have worked on it + the previous owner who abused it into the state it ended up in.

A custom build + all the things recommended on this forum to do to it during the build -- == VERY VERY RELIABLE ENGINE! + all the advantages of its modern features (better fuel efficiency, response, etc.) that make it worth having.

if your looking for a different answer -- YOU ARE ON THE WRONG FORUM !!!

[Waterloo]

I would stick with the ISX, it is not a simple or cost effective move swapping engines from one manufacturer to another. Why reinvent the wheel? Rebuild it and properly tune it, that 870 is a work horse. Just make sure whoever is doing the in frame knows what the hell they are doing. Don't be a victim, again. Just my .02

[Chamberpains]

If your gonna repower it, I'd entertain upgrading and dropping in a demandated CM871 full turn key engine. That electronic controlled VG turbo is where the $$ is at over the CM870.

Detroits aren't known to internally last past 1.1-1.2 million befote the rings and cylinders are worn out. But I've ran in to more than a hand full of guys that took there ISX's over 1.4-1.5 million and piston/cylinders still looked not just good, but great and questioned if they should've torn it down.

[Peashooter67]

The answers above are what I’m looking for.

Especially if you have been there done that. I can easily buy the wire conversion to change with plug and plat as well. Besides the wire harness what else is involved.

If there is any benefit to repower even if I put a redhead n14 in inplace of my isx.
I have been Priceng replacement blocks at around 3k and DDEC v at about 18K.
If I sell all my new parts for cost “which I don’t think will happen” the repower would not be much more expensive.

The reason I ask about repowering my Pete is I may be in a situation where my block is bad and the whole motor hast to come out and the block replaced. At that point except for a rewire at the ecm plug I can go any direction motor wise. This is why I ask if this would be advantageous in my situation?

I was comparing my 2002 Cummins to my 2006 detiot and so far my cumins cost more to maintain than my Detroit and my Detroit our pulls my cumins with ease.

I change oil every 10-12k miles and overhead 100-120k miles.
Both are rated at 500 hp and my Detroit cost less to maintain or repair.
I’m looking at long term cost or benifits to either stay with cumins or change to a Detroit.

I’m not dead set on a repower but more at options and long term cost benefit pros. and cons..

Once my current block is pulled out what are all my possible options with in reasonable cost?
Who and where I get some things done?

The motor in my Pete had already had the egr delete but I don’t know who or how other than it’s gone.

[Nilao]

A short list...wiring harness for engine, motor mounts, transmission bellhousing is engine specific as well i think. Fan clutch assembly also....

[the missing link]

I'll tell ya this , on the older motors I would not be scared to put in an n14 motor. They are a hell of a motor for their time . I think a rebuild on a n14 would be more then a series 60 . Keep in mind that's well over a million miles on them .
The three head design on them I absolutely love .Some people had a hard time keeping oil leaks at be bay , but I never did.

If I could , it would be a properly built 871 with a top self tune that would go in it .

[Peashooter67]

(11-11-2018 )the missing link Wrote:  If I could , it would be a properly built 871 with a top self tune that would go in it .

Pm me about this please.......
I have only had this Peterbuilt and put 280 miles on the motor and now possibly looking at replacing the block, this if you read this thread you already know.
I can tell you it has already had an egr delete but vgt is still on motor. I have no idea as to the extent of program tuning or other modifications the program has had.
If I stay with this motor , while the engine is down and being pulled ............

Who, what , and where to send ecm? Ideas ? Good bad and ugly? Where , who, and what to avoid?



I have had this done to my Detroit and that truck is now a real hoss and oil analysis shows its tuned good. Won’t know the rest till I get to doing an inframe on it in a few years.

[Peashooter67]

(11-11-2018 )Nilao Wrote:  A short list...wiring harness for engine, motor mounts, transmission bellhousing is engine specific as well i think. Fan clutch assembly also....

So.........unless you have a donnar truck sitting there it can be quite expensive to switch?
Usually the motor “used” come with bellhousing, ecm, engine wire harnes on the motor but all accessories removed.