24V Cummins Turbo Upgrade – Any Ways to Get it Go Better?

The 5.9-liter Cummins engine was one of the coolest alternatives to big V8 gasoline units in Dodge trucks. This 6-cylinder engine with 4 valves per cylinder was widely known as the 24-Valve Cummins and it's now popular thanks to its longevity and potential performance after upgrades. This is one of the most interesting project engines you can find for your vehicle.

Today, we'll be mainly talking about the 24V Cummins turbo upgrades and some ways to make your big diesel engine go better. And we'll open some secrets you should know. Of course, upgrading the turbocharger for your relatively old diesel engine is still a hard task. But with some of our tips and hints, it will be much easier to do.

The 24V Cummins engine - is it at all a good engine?

You could think that the Cummins 5.9 is a V6 engine. But actually, it's a straight-six engine, one of the largest in its class. The unusual construction has gained some important advantages for this engine and has made it popular.

To answer if this engine is good, we should remember one thing. In 2004, the 24V Cummins was on the list of 10 best engines in America (Ward's 10 Best Engines). Only a couple of diesel units have actually made it to this list, so it's a pretty important fact we should remember.

Then, we also have to say that the engines were basically the same from 1998 to 2007. Engineers worked under a higher-performance version but they didn't change the construction of the legendary 24V Cummins much. And this proves that the engineering was good from the very beginning.

Here are some important facts about the 24 Cummins 5.9 (ISB):

• the engine has a very simple construction that is not going to let you down however harsh the conditions are;
• the straight construction of the engine ensures fewer problems with the head (there's only one head, one gasket, one pair of manifolds, etc.);
• with the displacement of 5.9 liters, this is the largest straight-six diesel engine among all popular units we know about;
• the engine uses Bosch injectors and a Bosch fuel pump with an electronic system of injection control;
• the coolest part of this engine is that it has a traditional ecology system without EGRs and DPFs which makes it more durable and cheaper to maintain;
• the only system that works for ecology is the electric injection control module which isn't problematic;
• the engine is turbocharged, it offers 325 horsepower and 610 lb-ft of torque - wonderful torque for nearly all tasks.

The main application of the engine is light trucks and also school buses. This means the engine is very strong and can withstand nearly any load. Immense torque shows that you can tow pretty much everything with this engine. Thank goodness, engineers equipped it with wonderful transmissions that didn't need any expensive maintenance.

Also, the engines are wonderful in terms of fuel mileage. If you are an economical driver, you can get about 28 mpg on highways. For this, you should keep the RPMs at about 1,800. Also, city driving is not that bad in terms of fuel consumption. You can get about 22 mpg which Is great for a 6-cylinder engine with 5.9 liters of displacement.

Turbochargers in 5.9 Cummins and some upgrades

A turbocharger in this engine is not something you might be dreaming about. It's just a simple turbo allowing this engine to squeeze a little more power thanks to a really high compression ratio - over 17:1. On the other hand, it's good because the fuel efficiency is just wonderful. On the other hand, such compression and low turbine efficiency may be improved much.

You may have noticed that the engine has a wonderful toque but the power is not really good for the 5.9-liter displacement. It's only about 55 horsepower from one liter of displacement, and that's not a lot.

So, here are some thoughts you may get:

• a turbocharger should work more efficiently to boost the power of this wonderful engine to at least 420 or even 470 horsepower;
• the block is made of iron, so it can withstand pretty much any power you can add by installing a new turbocharger system;
• the potential of this engine is really huge and it shouldn't lose much durability because of upgrading the turbocharger;
• you will get much higher top speed and also much better acceleration, some tasks will be easier to complete;
• your truck is going to be just a beast after you complete all those changes, it will compete with sports vehicles on the road;
• not many other upgrades are needed to take much more power from this engine, just installing a more efficient turbocharger.

So, the first thing you are going to do after reading this list above is to close this article and go to a turbocharger shop to buy a turbo kit for your Dodge RAM truck equipped with the 24V Cummins. But please read further and spend another 5 minutes of your time to make sure you are not making a big mistake.

First of all, after upgrading the turbo, you will need to upgrade some other things:

• air intake system;
• fuel management;
• fuel supply;
• exhaust system;
• ECU tuning;
• intercooler tuning;
• oil supply tuning.

We believe, the first problem is going to be money. A decent turbocharger (without the kit) will cost you $2,000 - $3,500. The installation kit will add another $1,000. The list of additional upgrades that we've just given above will take another $3,000 to $5,000. Are you sure you want to spend that much?

What problems can occur after you upgrade the 24V Cummins turbo?

Upgrading your turbocharger will allow you to get much more power. But is it always so good? Well, we aren't sure that your old truck will be happy. We should understand that the truck is probably a high-mileage vehicle because these diesel trucks were bought for work, not for going to supermarkets.

A high-mileage vehicle may just start falling apart after serious upgrades. Here are some units that may start getting on your nerves:

• automatic transmission - the traditional transmission can withstand high torque but it can't deal with a lot of power;
• clutch in a manual transmission - even if you have the manual gearbox, it's going to get a hard time after turbo upgrades;
• oil supply problems - the OEM Cummins turbocharger is not very demanding in terms of oil, but the new one will need proper oiling, otherwise, it will fail and need repair;
• fuel consumption - you will not get these wonderful figures of mpg on your dash anymore once you upgrade the turbo;
• suspension problems - if you install a really efficient turbo with much power gain, you will need to think about new suspension;
• brake problems - new power needs a new braking system with higher efficiency and better braking.

Well, a lot of factors can make you think twice. We believe you agree that the financial losses may be too huge for a 20-year-old truck. Yes, if it's your project truck that is going to earn money on racing or shows, why not invest some dollars in it. But if it's a truck that helps you on your farm or just carries you and your family around the city, it doesn't make much sense.

What's the durability of the 24V Cummins?

Without any upgrades, the 24V Cummins 5.9 will live up to 400,000 miles, according to reviews and specialists' opinions. The average longevity will still be a little worse - at about 350,000 miles. After this mark is hit, the truck may be too expensive to maintain and repair.

Though, if you decide to turbocharge the engine, it will live a much shorter life. We would say the longevity will drop to 250,000 miles even if the upgrades weren't major and didn't add much power.

This is a very significant loss that should be considered when you start investing money in upgrades of your Cummins. Unfortunately, it will be hard to stop after you just install a new turbo or upgrade the old one. After that, you will need to invest in many other things and lose more money without a chance to stop and say "It's enough!"

Final words

If you want to get much more power from your Dodge light truck equipped with the Cummins 5.9 V24 engine, the best option is to work with the turbo. Unfortunately, when the engine was engineered, the turbochargers for diesel engines weren't that efficient. Now you can get a much more interesting kit to install in your engine.

But you should remember that this will also affect the fuel mileage, the durability, and also reliability of the engine. And there is one more problem - the cost of upgrades will probably be higher than the price of your truck.