Back To The Dyno
Upon our return to DC Performance's dyno, all bench racing and side-bets came to a halt, and the Power Stroke did all the talking. It was strapped to the dyno first, and put down 250 hp at 3,000 rpm and 453 lb-ft at 2,750 rpm. Since a diesel needs to be under load in order to make peak torque, we were convinced our torque numbers would increase by power-braking the truck. We were right. The second run yielded 483 lb-ft of torque at a lower 2,200 rpm. We should end the story there, but to be fair, the 5.8L put down a best of 166 hp at 3,750 rpm and 256 lb-ft at 3,200 rpm.
Diesel Performance: Still Easier, Still Cheaper
One of the things we were most impressed by after our Power Stroke build, was the newfound power on tap. The fuel increase combined with the chip improved throttle response tremendously. Overall, from stock to modified, it's a night-and-day difference, and the truck seems more eager to run. Whereas the Power Stroke struggled to keep up with traffic in stock form, it is now the complete opposite. Minimal throttle input gets the truck up to speed with ease, there is more than enough passing power, and with one on-the-fly turn of a knob, we can break the tires loose from a rolling 20mph start. Needless to say, we're happy with these results!
 After removing the emergency...  After removing the emergency brake pedal assembly, we were able to feed the wiring into the cab, up behind the dash, and through a 3/16-inch hole that we drilled. We were then able to connect the nut and washer included for the adjustable, on-the-fly turn-knob. |  Upgrading a gasoline engine...  Upgrading a gasoline engine like this '96 Ford 5.8L V-8 on the other hand, meant replacing a lot of engine hardware. Edelbrock, an industry leader when it comes to gasoline upgrades, offers a complete Power Package for this 351W engine that replaces the intake manifolds, cylinder heads, and exhaust system. |  Looks scary doesn't it? It...  Looks scary doesn't it? It took Diesel Power Editor David Kennedy almost five hours to strip the '96 5.8L gas engine of its intake, cooling lines, vacuum hoses, fuel system, cylinder heads, and exhaust. Diesel owners generally don't have to go this far into their engines until they're making more than 700 hp. |
 Once we had the gas engine...  Once we had the gas engine apart we honestly wondered if we'd ever be able to make it run again. We cleaned the engine's deck surfaces and bolted on Edlebrock's Performer cylinder heads (PN 60379) with ARP head studs (PN254-4705) and Cometic multi-layer steel gaskets (PN C5511-040). |  Edelbrock doesn't offer a...  Edelbrock doesn't offer a roller-camshaft for the '96 5.8L, so we decided to trick the engine into thinking it had a bigger cam. These Crane Energizer aluminum roller-rocker arms (PN 44746-16) feature a larger 1.7:1 ratio than the stock 1.59:1 arms. By bolting them on we increased our effective camshaft lift for more airflow in and out of the cylinder heads. |  Edelbrock's intake manifold...  Edelbrock's intake manifold (PN 3881) is a two-piece kit. We swapped the stock injectors (look at how small they are compared to the Power Stroke's-Ed) over to the new lower manifold and transferred our thermostat housing and temperature sensors into it. |