Do you remember your first diesel experience? For Jesse Gulas, it was a 6.2L Chevy that his family used to travel to rodeos around New Mexico. In addition to being slow and loud, the truck left the family stranded in Las Cruces, New Mexico, when one of the heads decided to part ways with the block. This might have been enough to scar some people for life, but the Gulas family headed straight to the Dodge dealer and bought a brand-new '90 dualie with a Cummins. The Gulas family never looked back.
Nitto Mud Grapplers aren't cheap, but Jesse lit up his tires for our camera without hesitation.
Several Trucks, One Brand
Jesse has owned several different trucks since that time. They have all been Dodges though, and they have all had Cummins engines. This includes a juiced 12-valve that had a B1 turbo and custom fuel plate that put down 487 hp. Jesse eventually sold the 12-valve and bought a common-rail Cummins-powered truck with 8-inches of suspension lift and 35-inch tires on 20-inch rims. When someone made him an offer he couldn't refuse on the common-rail truck, Jesse began searching for his next project.
An Urban Legend Comes To Life
We already know that he was looking for a Dodge with a Cummins engine, but Jesse had additional criteria. He needed an extra-cab truck with four-wheel-drive, and he wanted an automatic transmission behind the diesel engine. Ideally, he hoped to find a 12-valve truck since they are the easiest to modify, but he ended up with the '99 24-valve pickup shown here.
Why the change of heart? "I wasn't looking for a 24-valve-powered truck," Jesse confesses, "but this truck was so clean that I couldn't pass it up." It's the sort of story that you hear about someone's cousin's girlfriend's little brother. Jesse purchased the truck from the original owner with 124,000 miles on it. The previous owner was an elderly gentleman who rarely drove the truck and never towed with it. In addition, the pickup was always garaged, and in nearly new condition.
No Rest For Jesse
If the truck had lived a pampered life for its first nine years, that was all about to change. Within three months, Jesse had the engine apart and added a host of aftermarket products. "I can add all the parts I want to this engine for the cost of injectors for the common-rail truck," he reports. The parts list is extensive, starting at the front of the engine with an AFE Stage II intake and ATS High Ram intake manifold. These two products allow more air into the engine-air that is delivered in large volumes by the High Tech Turbo 71 series turbocharger. The turbo has a 71mm turbine with a 64mm compressor wheel and 14mm wastegate for quick spooling characteristics and increased airflow throughout the powerband. The turbo is bolted to an ATS Pulse Flow three-piece exhaust manifold and feeds spent gases through a 5-inch MBRP mandrel-bent, stainless steel exhaust system.