Dr. Performance Is Out Of Business – Now What?

Because we still get phone calls every day asking for information about Dr. Performance power modules, we wanted to let you know that they went out of business in the summer of 2011.  Questions we are most often asked include “How do I get warranty work on my Dr. Performance module that I bought a few years ago?” and “Do you know how we can get in contact with Dr. Performance?”  The unfortunate truth is that they are completely out of business, haven’t answered their phone in almost six months, and any repair work on a damaged or faulty Dr. Performance module at this point is impossible.

The most frequent question we hear from customers interested in a diesel performance module next is “Since Dr. Performance modules aren’t available, are there any other manufacturers of diesel power modules?”  Thankfully we can answer in the affirmative that there are several companies that make diesel performance modules that have the same beneficial characteristics that Dr. Performance modules had.  Some of the reasons Dr. Performance modules were so popular included improved power without increased operating temperature, they were great for towing, and they gave substantial diesel fuel mileage improvements.   They were also widely used as a trustworthy pressure box by diesel owners who wanted to “stack chips.” It didn’t hurt that the majority of them didn’t leave a footprint in the vehicle’s ECM because they were simply rail pressure boxes that uninstall quickly and cleanly from the rail pressure sensor harness.

Depending on the diesel truck you drive, we recommend a power module from two different manufacturers.  If you’re looking for improved 6.4L Ford Powerstroke performance, we really like the TS Performance Power Play MP-8.  On the 6.4L Powerstroke, the MP-8 is a fuel pressure only power module that adds up to 100 Horsepower and installs in just minutes by plugging in to a 15 pin fuel sensor connector.   Just like the Dr. Performance module, the Power Play MP-8 doesn’t increase your diesel exhaust temperatures and most users report gains of 2-4 mpg in fuel economy.

TS Performance Power Play MP-8

For common rail owners looking for improved Cummins diesel performance or Duramax diesel performance, the Digi CRBB Power Module from DieselPower has quickly become our favorite choice here at Parleys Diesel Performance.  Backed by an unheard-of 3 year manufacturer warranty and built from some of the best electronic components available, the DieselPower Digi CRBB is easy to install, doesn’t leave a “footprint” in the truck’s computer, can be adjusted quickly to any desired power level, and adds a decent amount of horsepower.

DieselPower Digi CRBB Common Rail Pressure Box

Because the Digi CRBB is a fuel rail pressure module it can be “stacked” with a Smarty programmer on the Dodge Ram Cummins diesels yielding loads of power that you almost have to feel to believe.  Operating temperatures are kept down, and if you don’t drive the truck like you stole it fuel economy can be improved significantly.    The Digi CRBB is also effective for “stacking chips” when using EFI-LIVE tuning on your Chevy or GMC Duramax diesel.  If you have any questions about these or other options for your diesel truck, call us and we’ll be happy to help.

Taking Exhaust Stacks to “The Road”

We’d like to thank one of our clients for the good laugh he gave us a little while back when, after he had received a set of exhaust stacks from us, he sent us a follow up email with these pictures included.

Now although these had just been staged in the bed of the El Camino, we had a good laugh.  Although, after having a good laugh and being the diesel nuts that we are, our minds started thinking about the possibility of a Duramax conversion into an El Camino.  Maybe if we find one a little less cherry than this original 1970 SS 396 El Camino we could make something happen.  With the advent of EFI Live into the Duramax diesel performance world your imagination is really your only limitation when it comes to Duramax Conversions. We’d like to thank Glenn for the great pictures and for keeping our imaginations going.

Shop Parley’s Diesel Performance for all your diesel performance upgrades.

Duramax Diesel Performance

Duramax Diesel Performance…. what more needs to be said?  The Duramax came out with the fastest truck in the nation with their high horse power LBZ motor.  The duramax is ideal to build up for power because of the almost bullet proof Allison Transmission that the truck comes with. In this article I will talk about a few of the popular modifications that are done to the Duramax.  The most popular modification for any diesel is the diesel performance chip.  One of the most popular ones out there for the Duramax is EFI Live which allows you to put custom tunes on your Duramax.  You can use it to custom tune your own engine and transmission, so you aren’t restricted by pre-made tunes.  It increases power, economy and shifts.  Another popular tuner for the Duramax is the Diablosport Predator which comes with three performance tunes.  It is uploaded into the trucks diagnostic port and puts in the performance or economy programs of your choice and has the ability to check trouble codes and adjust the speedometer for bigger tires.Another popular modification for the Duramax is a diesel cold air intake.  Probably the most well known are intake systems from Advanced Flow Engineering or AFE.  AFE intake systems come with five protective layers and give maximum air flow with premium filtering.  They also have a filter upgrade available that has 7 protective layers. Getting air into the engine is important because the more air that gets into the engine, the higher the percentage of fuel that can be combusted.  So you get the power at the wheels and increase diesel fuel mileage versus losing it out the tailpipe in a black cloud.The third most popular modification made to the Duramax is an upgraded exhaust system.  This is important especially if running a chip because the higher flow exhaust system will keep temperatures lower and the engine won’t have to exert the effort to push the exhaust away if it can flow freely away.  The free flowing exhaust increases power and economy and relieves engine stress.  Many people don’t want to pay the full price for a complete exhaust system.  So a lot of people are using what is called the Aero Turbine Muffler.  It is just a muffler replacement, but the Aero Turbine Muffler acts like a jet engine and increases the speed of the exhaust as it flows through giving benefits similar to a full exhaust system.

EFI Live and AFE Intakes are ideal Duramax Diesel Performance upgrades. – Nathan Young

Smarty Tuner Anyone?

So I finally convinced the buying department that is was time to start carrying the Smarty Tuner by MADS Electronics.  Now don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t pushing the buying department to buy in because I have a lot of experience with the Smarty Tuner;  I just know what it is capable of and as soon as I finish my tranny buildup, I know it’s the diesel tuner that I will want running on my Cummins.

The Smarty comes with 10 settings which offer huge power gains–up to 230hp!  In my opnion the Smarty Tuner is the closest thing to EFI Live for the Cummins (that is until the Van Aaken C5 software is released!) Here are the main selling points for the Smarty:

 

• DTC (Diagnostic Trouble Codes) reader with on-screen plain text
  interpretation of the codes.
  
• ABS programming for tire height adjustment.
  
• Upgrades through built in USB connector
  
• Automatic recovery of the ECM in case of an interrupted update.  
  
• 3.5 – 6 minutes required to update ECM depending on truck model
  
• Programmable speed limiter

 

 

Go ahead and check it out for yourself and if you have any questions let us know. Be sure to shop Parley’s Diesel Performance for all your Cummins performance needs.

Diesel Power Challenge….Best of the Mediocre?

So in this months issue of Diesel Power magazine they featured coverage of the Diesel Power Challenge 2007, and for the third Challenge in a row a Duramax drove away victorious. Coincidence? I think not. I must admit that even though I drive a Cummins now I am pretty stoked that Chevy has finally been able to stake their claim in the diesel performance market. After years of trying to convince myself and others that there was such a thing as bow tied diesel performance as I drove my 1996 6.5L GMC in high school I gave up and went the Cummins performance route.

It was just my luck that shortly after going to the “Dark Side” that GM decided to actually enter and begin dominating the diesel performance market. Duramax performance has become quite the hot topic as of late but even if you are into Powerstroke performance or cummins performance it’s hard to deny the sting left after that shiny red Duramax took its second straight challenge by storm.

Now I don’t want to get into the fact of whether or not the the Diesel Power challenge is an better test of who’s truck is actually the best or who’s truck is alright in three different areas. Most of the people into Sled Pulling or Drag racing only that I have talked to would like to take on some of the trucks who have won or placed high in the challenge in their specific event and see who came out on top.

I will leave it at that but I do want to talk about what some of the tools are that are making all these wins for the Duramax possible and what tools might be on the horizon for the Cummins to help them compete even better with the Duramax.

The Trucks that have been winning most consistently in the diesel power challenge are running a nice little program called EFI Live For those of you who drive a Duramax and dont know about EFI Live you are missing out. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have COMPLETE control over your tunes. Or have the ability to log everything your engine is doing and then build custom tunes around what you see. That is why, in my opinion at least, the Duramax has been so dominant in events like the Diesel Power Challenge because you can have a completely custom tune for each event….Easily.

So does this mean that the rest of the big three are out of luck? Well if you drive a CR Cummins Christmas is just around the corner. We have been talking to some of the Beta testers who have been testing not only the new C5 module from van aaken but the custom software that will soon be released with it as well. From what they are saying this is going to be the closest thing to EFI Live the Cummins might ever see. Now we can’t tell you much more but when the new software drops expect big things including an almost non existent red line and COMPLETE control over your Cummins.

Duramax Performance….Jr.

So we have some good news and some bad news, which would you like first? Alright, we will get the bad news out of the way first, Parley’s Diesel Performance is sad to announce that GM has sold off their Allison Transmission division. Yup, they recently sold off their commercial and military portion to the Carlyle Group and Onex Corp for 5.6 Billion Dollars. When GM was questioned as to why they were selling it off they said that it was all part of, “supporting [their] heavy investments in new products and technology.”

What kind of new products and technology might you ask?

Well that is where the good news comes in! For those of you out there who have been dreaming of a lighter duty, “hers” Duramax Diesel to match your heavier duty “His” on the driveway, you are in luck. GM has finally announced that they will be releasing a new four valve DOHC Duramax V-8 for pickups with a gross vehicle weight of less than 8,600 pounds and FOR THE HUMMER H2! This Duramax Diesel is going to be a 4.5L and will likely make more than 310hp and 520 ft-lb of torque. So for all of you Duramax Diesel Performance enthusiasts, it looks like you have yet another way to get your fix. The real question is who will be the first to step up to the plate for performance for these lighter duty Duramax Diesels. Will EFI Live be able to take the next step and let people reprogram around regen phases etc.. If you have any input let me know.