During World War I, Great Britain was in desperate need of a countermeasure against the German U-boats that were demolishing convoys of cargo ships carrying much-needed supplies. The solution to this problem was the creation of the Q-ship. It would pose as an easy target-disguised as an old tramp steamer-but, in fact, carried hidden armaments. Once a U-boat surfaced to fire its guns (since torpedoes were in short supply), the Q-ship would quickly transform itself from a defenseless sheep into a ravenous wolf. False panels dropped to reveal hidden firepower that was used to strafe the German submarines.
From those early war years, the Q-ship expression has since expanded to include all sorts of conveyances that camouflage their true nature. Take Mike Drever's '04 Ram, for instance, which might appear to be somewhat sheep-like at first. Crack the throttle, though, and it clearly has the horns of a Ram. While certainly not disguised as a tramp steamer, you'd never expect this champagne-colored Dodge 4x4 to have the kick of tequila under its hood. Yet when menacing diesel rigs surface on the dragstrip, Mike lowers his false front and proceeds to blast off a quarter-mile run in the 11s. Who'd a thunk it?
Not even Mike. When he bought the pickup back in October of 2003, it was just a work truck for his job running an oil field company based in Medicine Hat, Alberta. Not surprisingly, his initial upgrades were modest and tentative, but he soon became addicted to power-adders.
It All Started With A Chip
"I started by putting a single chip in it to increase power and fuel mileage," Mike recalls. "I really hadn't been bitten by the diesel bug at this point, but that didn't take long. Just for fun, I stacked another chip on top and saw quite a difference. This was the start. I had been bitten-and bit hard!"
School Of Hard Knocks
The truck was making good horsepower, especially when he decided to put on a 66mm turbo and 100hp injectors. Unfortunately, he ended up blowing the stock transmission, not once, but six times in all. As any diesel performance enthusiast already knows, getting things covered by warranty can be a tricky thing once you start playing around with the engine output. Knowing that a stock transmission wasn't going to hold up to the increased horsepower, he experimented with an aftermarket unit.
Mike still had to attend some other classes in the school of hard knocks as well. "I also blew up the original motor when I started monkeying around with propane," Mike admitted. "Thankfully, my wife Charr is behind me 100 percent and has often told me to do whatever it takes to make this truck one of the fastest diesel trucks out there." (We can imagine that a lot of unattached diesel guys are wondering if she has a sister.)
 |  Air enters through an AFE...  Air enters through an AFE Stage 2 intake before heading into the turbo and intercooler. |  Then it's routed into the...  Then it's routed into the Cummins through a Banks High-Ram intake manifold. |
With family felicity still intact, Mike forged ahead despite encountering even more problems. "We had the truck running pretty hard all by ourselves, but we were breaking lots of parts," Mike said. "Instead of having the truck setup and dialed in correctly, we were just running it off of feel."
Professional Help
To take a precise and methodical approach, Mike made a call to Barry Voltner, co-owner of NADP. "He became my go-to guy. I talked to (Barry) about my truck, what I'd done to it already, and my dream of where I wanted my truck to go. NADP asked if I'd be game for letting them try some prototype mods. I was definitely game! Upon completion of these mods, the truck ran down the strip in 11.70 seconds at 115.25 mph."
Engine Modifications
Those upgrades included a CP3 Stage 2 fuel pump to keep up with all the extra boost from a 66mm Silver Bullet Turbo and ZEX Nitrous. He also dropped in a Banks intercooler to keep things from boiling over. There's also pair of piggyback computers working in concert: a 130hp Predator box and a 210hp PPE Programmer. Lastly, NADP's Voltner installed what he calls an "Area 52 package" (this secretive expression refers to both engine and tranny tuning, along with some internal mods, but no propane or water methanol mix). For better venting of black exhaust, Mike bolted on a 30-inch Flow Pro muffler as well.
 The Industrial Injection 66mm...  The Industrial Injection 66mm Silver Bullet turbo is designed for a quick spool up and gets its name from the 66mm extended tip compressor. |  An upgraded CP3 injection...  An upgraded CP3 injection pump makes sure the common rail-fed Cummins doesn't starve for fuel when the nitrous kicks in. |  |
Half-Track Carnage
Getting back to the track testing, "The next run was even better, but she threw a little tantrum-not my wife, the truck!" Mike said with a laugh. "We tore the transfer case in half, ripped the center out of the flywheel, and snapped the billet input shaft. This happened just after the eighth-mile with the truck hitting 99 mph." They were amazed by the power and speed but were also amazed by the damage caused in that short run. But this proved what Mike's Q-ship was capable of, and with a little fine tuning, his decoy rig could run consistent speeds and times. And be capable of even more.
Quarter-Mile Adventures
Once repairs were complete, Mike went back at it with a vengeance on his home track in Medicine Hat, Alberta. Even though the temperature outside was 100 degrees Fahrenheit (with a corrected altitude of 6,000 feet), right out of the gates, he fired off a run of 11.50 seconds at 119.86 mph, using just one shot of NOS. He kept at it, and after six back-to-back runs in the 11.50-11.60-second range, he knew he had the right ammo for going into battle.
 A FASS lift pump and filter...  A FASS lift pump and filter system makes sure the fuel that reaches the CP3 is not full of air bubbles, which causes excessive wear by reducing the amount of fuel that lubricates the pump. |  After blowing six stock Dodge...  After blowing six stock Dodge 48RE transmissions, an aftermarket gearbox was installed along with this ATS Co-Pilot transmission controller. |  |
 Spent gasses are expelled...  Spent gasses are expelled through an ATS exhaust manifold that's fitted with an EGT probe. |  Chrome 20-inch MKW M26 wheels...  Chrome 20-inch MKW M26 wheels are wrapped in 305/50R20 Toyo Open Country All Terrain tires for performance on the dragstrip and in the dirt. | |
"I raced for the next four months without a glitch or a 12-second pass," Mike recalls. The best was yet to come, though: "One of the highlights of the season was the NADP August Blackout held in Edmonton, Alberta. This was my first big event, and I was rewarded by taking home the Fastest Dodge and Fastest Truck trophies. I also took first place in the Drag Wars with an 11.52-sec pass at 116.83 mph."
Mike is still on the prowl for more dragstrip combatants, and he's planning to come out this spring with a new sort of camouflage treatment that conceals even more firepower. "I want to taste 10s," Mike says. "To the best of my knowledge, this truck is the fastest common rail Dodge in North America, so if you're looking for a little competition, look for me at the dragstrip." Gentlemen, load your weapons.
"This truck is the fastest common rail Dodge in North America, so if you're looking for a little competition, look for me at the dragstrip," Mike says.