If you have a 2007.5-2012 6.7L Cummins, 2008-2012 6.4L or 6.7L Powerstroke, or 2007.5-2012 Duramax LMM & LML then you have a Diesel Particulate Filter “DPF” on your truck. 2011 and newer Ford Powerstroke and Chevy Duramax trucks also have a Urea Injection system. When deciding which diesel exhaust upgrades to make for your diesel, it is important to understand your choices.
So why should you upgrade your exhaust? Your stock DPF-equipped exhaust system has a catalytic converter and a particulate filter, which essentially acts as a soot trap. There are also a variety of EGT (exhaust gas temperature) and oxygen sensors. When the sensors see that the trap is full, your truck increases the EGT’s by adding fuel to incinerate the trapped soot. This process is called regeneration. During this process, the tailpipe temperatures are nearly 2.5 times higher than normal. The most common diesel performance exhaust upgrade for new model trucks is a DPF back exhaust system. DPF-back exhaust systems are designed to improve exhaust flow and cut exhaust backpressure. This is the upgrade for you if you’re interested in keeping your manufacturer warranty intact and your truck street legal in most North American locations.
Some companies like Gale Banks Engineering even make DPF Back exhausts with specifically built designs that can help lower tailpipe temperatures. And like the majority of aftermarket DPF-Back exhausts, the Banks Monster Exhaust systems are finished off with large polished stainless steel exhaust tips. A slightly enhanced, deeper exhaust note is another benefit of these exhaust systems. Most delete your stock muffler. If you’re worried that removing the muffler will make for an excessively loud diesel truck, don’t worry. The turbo, catalytic converter, and DPF filter out most of the exhaust noise. A DPF-Back system just helps your exhaust flow and makes for a better sounding truck.
It’s widely known that upgrading your factory system to a performance diesel exhaust is a great way to increase your engine’s power and fuel economy. Because of all the changes to stock emissions systems over the past few years, there now exists some confusion and questions among diesel owners as to which exhaust upgrade is the best option for them. Parleys Diesel Performance wants to help you make an informed and educated choice, so let’s start by reviewing the basics.
Traditionally, light duty diesel truck factory exhaust systems were 3 inches or 3.5 inches in diameter, with crimped spots along the diesel exhaust system that hampered flow and robbed your vehicle of its true potential. Installing a performance system to increase the diameter of your exhaust allowed your engine to expel exhaust gasses more efficiently, and mandrel bends gave your exhaust a true 4″ diameter. Diesel trucks today come from the factory with catalytic converters, diesel particulate filters, even urea injection systems (also called SCR or selective catalytic reduction). And 4 inch stock exhausts are commonplace.
Late Model Exhaust Diagram
So which exhaust should you choose for your truck?
If you have a “pre-DPF” diesel pickup (anything before the 2007.5 6.7L Cummins, 2008 6.4L Powerstroke, or 2007.5 Duramax LMM) the most common diesel exhaust upgrade is a four inch turbo back exhaust system. The standard 4″ diameter will meet most people’s needs; however, if it’s your intention to upgrade your vehicle to a high horsepower level (think over 550HP), we recommend you invest in a 5″ diesel performance exhaust system. This will allow the larger amount of exhaust your high horsepower diesel creates to flow properly and keeping temperatures down.
In addition to figuring out the diameter of the exhaust system you want for your truck, there are also some other important choices to make. Diesel exhaust systems come in four main materials: T-304 Stainless Steel (high-polish show finish quality), 409 Stainless Steel , Aluminized Steel (similar to your original stock exhaust), and different variations of Black Stainless or Black Aluminized Steel. You also need to decide whether you want to have a muffler or not, and if you do choose a muffler, do you want one that is a high flow performance muffler or one that keeps your exhaust volume low. The majority of Turbo-Back Exhausts come with high flow performance mufflers. If you want a “straight pipe” exhaust, meaning no muffler, a popular choice is the no-muffler series from MBRP Performance Exhaust. Their stainless steel SLM (Stainless Less Muffler) and PLM (Performance Less Muffler – this is aluminized steel) are very competitively priced and work great.
Although less popular, catalytic converter or Cat-Back Diesel Exhausts allow you to upgrade the sound and flow of your exhaust and in some areas are necessary to keep your diesel street legal.
With exhaust systems from all the best manufacturers, Parley’s Diesel Performance can help you choose the proper diesel exhaust system for your truck. Whether you choose to install a Cat-Back or a Turbo-Back diesel exhaust, or if you just aren’t sure and would like help deciding, contact us and we’ll help you make the right decision. In part 2, we’ll help you choose the right exhaust system if you own a DPF-equipped diesel truck.
If you are like many new Chevy Silverado HD & GMC Sierra HD owners, you’re looking for options and ways to upgrade the look and sound of your new diesel. May we suggest for your 2011-2012 Duramax 6.6L LML exhaust the new performance diesel exhaust system from Gale Banks Engineering. Banks Monster Exhaust systems are 100% stainless steel and streamlined with heavy-wall tubing and constant-diameter bends. Finished off with Banks’ proprietary CoolCuff exhaust tip technology, this is a meticulously designed & tested DPF-back system that actually delivers cooler diesel exhaust gas temperatures. It also cuts back pressure by up to 57% and has air-flows up to 80% better than your stock Duramax exhaust. And of course no Banks Monster Exhaust or Banks Monster Sport Exhaust would be complete without an impressive 6″ rolled edge polished-stainless steel tailpipe. It’s double-walled design features a 1/2″ air gap preventing heat from tarnishing its mirror finish. The 4″ Banks Monster exhaust sounds great too, with that proven deep aggressive exhaust note diesel enthusiasts crave.
Features
Extensively tested & validated
Improves flow up to 80%
Unique CoolCuff design
100% stainless steel – no aluminum here!
Huge 6″ polished rolled-edge tip
Won’t void factory warranty
Lifetime Limited Warranty
Street Legal exhaust system
Awesome Deep Exhaust Sound
Parley’s Diesel Performance carries a complete selection of Banks Monster and Monster Sport Diesel Exhaust Systems for all of today’s diesel trucks and VW TDI’s.
Fass lift pumps are a great way to increase your engine performance and diesel fuel economy by removing air and water from your fuel. It is well known that as your truck moves the diesel fuel in your tank is constantly in motion. This creates multiple problems with fuel delivery to your engine. While the injection pump draws fuel from the tank it’s creating a vacuum that produces fuel vapor and as the vehicle is in motion it creates fuel vapor that is mixed with the air. Resolve that issue by installing a FASS Lift Pump from Parley’s Diesel Performance and as a added bonus you will get higher power and reduce injector tip erosion. Typical No. 2 Diesel Fuel already consists of about 10% air. That issue is compounded by dirt and other debris that can be found in a diesel fuel tank. A FASS Lift Pump will address these issues head on by meticulouslyfiltering out such problematic air & vapor (along with other contaminants in the fuel) before it reaches your truck’s injectors. Knowing about these latent dangers in the fuel at the diesel pump, can you really go on feeding it untreated to your truck? We at Parleys Diesel Performance strongly advise against it… and believe a FASS diesel lift pump is an excellent diesel performance upgrade choice. Get the most out of your diesel engine and your fuel dollar with a FASS fuel pump from Parleys Diesel Performance.
Features
Removes AIR / Vapor from Your Fuel
Consistent Flow of Fuel
FASS Lift Pumps are Reliable High Volume Pumps
Increased Horse Power
Increased Torque
Increased Fuel Economy
Reduces Carbon Monoxide & Carbon Dioxide
FASS Lift Pumps have a LIFETIME Warranty on Most Applications
The Diesel Power Digi PD module from Diesel Power is a VW TDI Performance power module that increases fuel economy and horsepower in 2004-2006 VW TDI PD engines. This diesel performance module will increase your horsepower and torque by 15-30%, is adjustable and depending on your driving style will increase diesel fuel economy by 2-4 miles per gallon.
Many people decide to install a performance chip, or diesel performance parts tuner on their diesel engine in order to make more horsepower and improve diesel fuel mileage. Although a tuner makes a significant improvement, it only does half of the job when it comes to power optimization. The other half of the equation involves air; many people seem to forget that the increased airflow provided by a performance turbo is critical to improving power and fuel mileage. Parleys Diesel Performance carries a complete line of performance turbos for Dodge Ram Cummins, GM Duramax and Ford Powerstroke pickup trucks.
For 2001-2007 GMC/Chevy Duramax owners, a performance turbo that we highly recommend is the SuperMax Turbocharger Kit by BD Diesel.
Now what does this “performance turbo” actually do for you? The SuperMax can add enough airflow for 550 rear wheel horsepower (rwhp) at 40 lbs. of boost on diesel fuel only. The compressor wheel on the SuperMax Turbocharger spools quicker, while the overall efficiency lowers EGT’s. That’s not all, it reduces exhaust emissions and improves fuel economy. That is the overall goal of most diesel owners; to improve power and fuel mileage without damaging your truck.
BD Diesel backs their turbo with a one year parts and labor warranty for the SuperMax. If you are thinking about upgrading the turbo on your diesel, count on the pros at Parley’s Diesel Performance to help you choose the right one.
Parley’s Diesel Performance has great news for all you TDI owners and TDI Performance connoisseurs out there! Van Aaken Technologies has just the product that you have been looking for. If you drive one of the many 1.9L Volkswagen diesels in the U.S. there is no question that you have been in need of a little extra power; sure the economy is great but why not have a little extra power while you are at it right. Van Aaken was kind enough to hook us up with one of their Smartbox TDI performance chips so that we could put it on our project vehicle to test it out. Here is what we think:
Why The Van Aaken Smartbox?
10 Minute Install- We have seen some easy installs, but wow, this one is a cinch. Since we made the install video for this tdi performance module we have had customers with no previous mechanic/performance experience reporting that they were able to install their smartbox in 6 minutes. You cant beat 20+hp in 6 minutes.
Economy Gains- So if 40-50 MPG wasn’t enough for you how about 1-2 MPG More. In our performance tests with the Van Aaken Smartbox on the rare tank when we could keep our foot off the throttle we were able to see an increase or 1-2 MPG which some might say isn’t huge but when you have a much more enjoyable driving experience the increased diesel fuel mileage is sort of icing on the cake.
Quality Product- We were very impressed with the overall quality of the product. The hard resin case of the smartbox is completely weatherproof and very durable.
Does NOT Void Warranty- If your vehicle is still under factory warranty all you have to do is take the Van Aaken Smartbox off before going to the dealership and they wont be able to tell that it was ever there, it leaves no footprint or flags in your system to show it was ever there.
Why Not the Van Aaken Smartbox:
Who Knows?- It was hard for us to figure out a reason why you wouldn’t want this tdi performance chip. The main reason we could come up with is if you are one of the more “Extreme” TDI Performance Enthusiast then you might be more interested in a more customizable performance upgrade like chipping which requires removing your vehicles ECM and sending it into a shop and getting it back a couple of weeks later and will most likely void your warranty. For some people those things sound like more fun than a 10 Minute Install, but for most of our clients this is the exact product they are looking for.
