If you own a diesel engine truck, you may have encountered suggestions, advice, and recommendations about bulletproofing it. Custom tuning is an aftermarket option that may be undertaken for various reasons – better performance, fuel efficiency, more sturdy parts, etc. It also syncs your vehicle with your driving style and aligns reality and expectations in your truck.
What Is Bulletproofing?
Before we go any further, let’s figure out what “bulletproofing” really means.
One of the issues that plagued the Ford 6L Power Stroke V8 engine was that it had a head gasket and oil cooler malfunction that were almost inevitable during the vehicle’s lifetime. If you run your diesel truck for business purposes, you’d know how disastrous downtime, service disruptions, and missed deadlines can be.
Bulletproofing may help to take the uncertainty of the engine’s reliability and performance.
It essentially means replacing factory-installed parts with sturdier, more reliable, and better designed parts that address the core issues.
What Parts Are Bulletproofed?
Through the 6. 4L Powerstroke displays better parameters, but up-grading the vulnerable parts would be an option to prevent failure chances.
Engine Oil Cooler: This is a typical problem that occurs in these diesel engines. Though the failure isn’t a result of poor design, it tends to occur because the cooler passages get blocked with soot, silica, and other debris. The blockage is only a symptom of a more serious issue with the entire cooling system, and it needs to be attended to before it causes a major crisis. This could typically happen after the vehicle has run about 50,000 miles, although this figure is not consistent across all vehicles.
OEM coolers are manufactured to specifications that prioritize cost-savings and compliance with government emissions regulations. As a result, the EGR cooler casing is made of less sturdy material and comprises flat, thin passages. EGR coolers are also subject to intense thermal pressures as temperatures are raised to very high levels during combustion. When the casing gets damaged due to metal fatigue, the engine-coolant and exhaust gases may get cross-contaminated. This results in a range of engine problems.
Replacement of the OEM cooler with a patented BulletProof product may help to address these issues.
Water pump: There is a moving part inside the 6L Power Stroke engine’s water pump known as the “impeller.” This component is a plastic one in the factory-installed engine. It may develop cracks or become more liable to break due to continuous use. Bulletproofing can replace this plastic part with a metal one that has a much longer life.
Studs: The Head Studs installed by the OEM may be of a more fragile quality. They may stretch out of shape, resulting in the lifting of the head, and finally, in the failure of the head gasket. This is because even the most tiny lifting of the head causes excess coolant flow, leakage in the combustion chamber, pressure points, etc. on the head gasket, making it weaker and less able to withstand the huge pressures of the combustion chamber.
FICM: The Fuel Injection Control Module is another pain point that deteriorates in performance with age. The lower voltage produced by this unit causes the air/fuel mixture to become leaner. A suitable replacement can be installed before the problem gets out of hand.
Fan Clutch: Electrical clutch units tend to wear out faster, and bulletproofing includes replacing them with a mechanical clutch. This increases reliability and performance.
Advantages of Bulletproofing
As conducted by the original company, BulletProof Diesel, the process of bulletproofing is a thorough and systematic one that addresses each issue in a meticulous, step-by-step way. The main problem spots are identified and replaced with top-quality, sturdier, and more durable products.
Replacement of the five main problem parts known to be the most vulnerable in the diesel engine helps prevent malfunction of these parts. Known in the trade as “pattern failures,” these points of failure can cause larger problems and expense if left unattended.
It saves the vehicle owner much time, effort, and money in smoother operations, less downtime, increased fuel economy, and better performance.
As many diesel trucks may be used as working vehicles, their reliability and performance are crucial to business operations.
OEM or stock parts may be manufactured, keeping certain financial priorities in mind. Cheaper materials and lower labor costs could result in parts that don’t last the lifetime of your truck. Bulletproofing addresses this issue by ensuring that replacement parts are sturdier and more reliable.
The replacement of EGR, oil cooler, and head studs may help to shore up your diesel engine’s vulnerable aspects. Some engines may be trouble-free for a long time, but problems may crop up with aging and extensive use.
Bulletproofing can also give better acceleration and fuel economy than what the stock engine did, with improved transmission lines on the oil cooler. This could help you haul heavier loads than the truck could previously.
It may also help protect your engine if you plan to add other modifications to improve performance and reliability.
Estimating The Costs
Having taken the potential benefits of bulletproofing your diesel engine into account, it’s time to look at the costs in dollar terms.
As a business owner, you can weigh the risks against the expenses and come to your own conclusions. Downtime, the cost of expensive repairs and replacement, loss of business, delayed orders, missed deadlines, etc. could impact your business in a major way.
Truck owners who don’t use the vehicle for commercial purposes, but prefer to enjoy riding for recreational purposes can also understand how much inconvenience and safety risk such pattern failures could cost them and their fellow passengers.
You can choose to replace all the problem parts or some of them, based on your needs, preferences, and budget. In general, the bulletproofing process costs may range between a few hundred and a few thousand dollars.
When fitting an upgraded cooler or head studs, the labor costs may not be billed to you.
Any costs of parts that you incur in the upgrade can also be swiftly recovered. When measured against what the impact of a single breakdown could be on your business or your leisure trip, the answer may be pretty obvious to you.
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