New Tricks For An Old Dog - Compound Turbos 4.0

[Guest Post by: Chris Burandt]

Fabrication and mounting underway for the Aurora Compounds

I was really hoping I was going to have to cut a hole in my hood to fit the compounds.  That way everyone could see how cool and clean the big Aurora 7500 looks like sitting in there.  To my disappointment everything fits and the hood closes properly...bummer :)  It's so sweet how clean this kit is.
I know it's not possible but it almost seems like there is more room under the hood with the extra charger in there.  Really seemed to open things up after they moved a couple things around.  I traded in my boost gauge that only read 35 psi for a 60 psi gauge.  Almost brought a tear to my eye thinking about 50 lbs of boost!
Applied Plastic Coatings received the Fusion Bumpers which will house the LED lighting and began adding the nylon coating in white to match the truck's paint. More pictures to come and we're getting close!

Piping is fabricated for the compound turbo charge pipes	Applied Plastics coats the Fusion Bumpers white
The Aurora Compound Turbo System as seen through the fender well	Chris mounts part of the now coated Aurora Turbo System

New Tricks For An Old Dog - Engine Mods 3.0

[Guest Post by: Chris Burandt]

Now we're talking!  Motor got put back into the truck with a fresh head gasket, ARP head studs and a sweet looking set of ATS manifolds and up-pipes.  Now the fun begins.  Over the next couple days the plan is to get the compound turbo kit installed.  For turbo's, ATS is going to be using the stock charger with their Aurora 7500 which will create awesome response on the bottom and tons of air up top to fix my high exhaust gas temperature (EGT) problem.  It was so frustrating to me with my previous set up that I had tons of power but no way to use it when pulling up the passes because of excessive EGT's.

With the lack of air we have up here in the Colorado high country I'm so excited about compounds!  All this talk of not being able to get a truck with compounds over 1200 degrees has got me smiling.  I've seen 2000 degrees on my current set up!!!  YIKES.  Bring on the air!!

Chris at ATS mounted up the Twin CP3 kit.  After talking with Clint Cannon, the owner of ATS, I really like what the twin CP3 kit brings to the table.  Even though we're going to be running stock injectors for this towing set up the extra fuel provided by the twin CP3 kit not only maintains desired rail pressure at all times but it also makes the truck run way smoother.  What I also like about this kit is it allows me the option to go bigger in the future with my injectors or a more aggressive EFI live tune as well.  Oh and that billet pulley that drives the second pump looks way cool too!

 

My wife actually told me I was pathetic when after I signed the papers on this truck. I only made it the 17 miles from the dealership to ATS's shop to get the first modification done.  I originally bought this white beauty with 80,000 miles on it and I new 2 things as soon as I drove it off the lot; One was that I couldn't leave it stock, and two was this poor truck would have a trailer behind it 75% of the time.  So it was a no-brainer to me to have the boys at ATS throw in one of their big bad purple transmissions with a Five Star Torque Converter and Co-pilot to handle any load or amount of power I could throw at this thing.  To date it has been the best modification I have ever done to the truck.  It's funny when I get in another diesel and drive it around, especially a modded one that doesn't have any tranny work, how much more solid mine feels than the stock ones.  What a difference!

Can't wait to see the compound turbos next!

New Tricks For An Old Dog - Lift and Suspension Mods 2.0

[Guest Post by: Chris Burandt]

And so it’s begun!   The boys at ATS are elbows-deep into turning my once stock riding, grandpa-looking, super clean dually into a compound (twin) turbo breathing, Cognito-lifted pull-any-trailer-way-too-fast, beast of a truck!  With 170,000 miles on the ol’ girl we decided to do the head gasket, add some head studs and check the injectors.  Come to find out the head gasket showed some signs of leakage and there was one injector out of spec.
 
I’m really glad ATS leaned me towards going through the motor.  It would have been a bummer to put all the goodies on and then have to tear it back apart later down the road.  With a new head gasket and injector this bad boy 6.6L will be good for another 170,000! 

Phase 2, the lift.  When the tech got the Sawzall out I thought he was just joking around with me.  Then the safety glasses came on…real funny guys.  Then I had to jump out of the way so I didn’t lose an arm!  I could tell this wasn’t Chris’ first rodeo with Chevy suspension installs.  After weeks of research on the internet it was clear the only way to go up with the dualler was a lift from Cognito Motorsports.  Cognito’s patented products, insanely good fit and finish, and the ability to retain stock drive angles made this purchase a no brainer.  For all the towing this truck will be doing with 5^th wheel and goose neck trailers I decided to go with the 4-6 inch lift.  I was able to get my low rider off the ground, but nothing too crazy to affect the great towing characteristics of the truck.  I can’t wait to see what this thing looks like when it hits the ground!

This is truly one heavy duty lift.  I’ve had lifts installed on several other vehicles in the past but nothing as overbuilt with OEM like fitment as this Cognito kit.  I haven’t even seen the truck on the ground yet and I’m pumped!

Like a kid on Christmas I couldn’t get the Fox RacingShox box open quick enough.  I run Fox Shox on all my snowmobiles so again running these bad boys on my truck was an easy choice.  I went with remote reservoir shocks front and rear.  Pictures don’t do these things justice.  Between the burly looking Cognito kit and the trophy truck like Fox shox this really is going to feel like a brand new truck.  As you can tell by the aggressive tread pattern I like to run on my 215s I can’t wait to throw some new meats on.  Is there anything better than new tires? OK, enough torture, can we please quit taking pictures and put this thing on the ground!  I wanna see it! 

New Tricks For An Old Dog - Making Your Truck New Again 1.0

ATS Diesel has teamed-up with X Games Snowmobile Champ Chris Burandt for a retooling of his GM Duramax Truck. With the current price of new diesels and low trade-in value offered by dealers, Chris decided to go a different route rather than buy new; Teach an old dog some new tricks.
[Guest post by Chris Burandt]:

The day is almost here!  On Oct 17 my truck goes under the knife under the careful hands of the crew over at ATS Diesel Performance.  It's time to take the 'ole dualler up a couple notches.  Make that a bunch of notches!  Compound turbos, Twin CP3's, head studs, EFI Live tuned by ATS, Cognito 4" lift, Fox Shocks, Fusion bumpers front and rear, Rigid Lighting, N-Fab steps and a wrap from Fineline graphics.  That should do the trick!

This crazy project all started when a buddy of mine brought over his new Duramax and we went for a test drive.  After riding in the very quiet, super smooth and pretty decent powered stock truck I got the new truck itch.  (That new car smell gets me every time!)  So down to the dealer I went with my super clean 04 Duramax which just cracked 170,000 miles.  Just got er' broke in the way I like.

Now I know I haven't bought a new truck in a while but holy crap have things got expensive.  This is where things started to get a little eye opening for me.  The truck I was looking at replacing my sweet ride with ended up being over $61,000!  Yeah that first number is a 6!  So I took a pretty big gulp and said, "Ok, so how much will you give me for my truck?"  Now I'm thinking even though it's got some miles on it, I'm super anal about my truck and it get's washed more than my 2 year old son does.  So that should be worth something right?  When the salesman told me he could give me $12,000

I thought to myself, "Is he just trying to buy the tranny, turbo and sweet exhaust brake off of my truck for $12,000?"  Nope, $12,000 for the whole shoot-n-match.  So let me get this straight, this guy wants my perfectly good truck and $49,000 for this shiny new thing sitting in front of me that has half the power of my rig and has none of the fun stuff that we all do to all of our vehicles.  Say what!?!  Let's just say that didn't make much sense to me.  So I jumped back in ole white and headed down the road.

This got me thinking, why not take a fraction of the money I was going to have to pony up to buy a new stock truck and just make my perfectly good dirtymax new to me!  Thus, all of the goodies above.  Stay tuned as through out the build I'll be posting some pictures and updates of how the transformation is going.  Can you say TWINS Basil!!!!  (If you haven't seen Austin Powers that last line won't make much sense to you.  But if you have, you've got a smile on your face just like me!)

Stay tuned!
-Chris Burandt

KBPI Radio's Metal Shop 7 Truck Build At ATS Diesel

KBPI DJ Willie B. Shows Off The Truck To Be Built

For the 7th edition of KBPI Radio's Metal Shop Vehicle Build, ATS Diesel was chosen to be the 2011 host. Each year the radio station locates a donor vehicle and product sponsors. The vehicle is then rebuilt and modified with performance upgrades. This year's vehicle is a 1977 F-150 Pickup which will receive a diesel engine transplant along with a grocery list of other upgrades which will all be voted-on by the listeners.

Cold Start For The F-150

The Build Area Is Prepped

This week as the build process begins the '77 Ford was dropped-off at ATS Diesel. The crew at the shop began clearing and prepping the area where the build will take place. This week KBPI has a page on their website devoted to allowing listeners to vote on which power plant will be installed into the truck in place of the 460 gas engine. The engine options are the 5.9L Cummins from the Dodge Ram, 6.6L Duramax from GM Diesels, and the 7.3L Ford Power Stroke.

Whichever engine is decided-on, the truck is going to need some serious help on the front end to support the additional weight versus the 460 gas unit. Body work and interior upgrades will also be happening along the way and this truck should look a lot different very soon.

Turbocharged Weekend In The Rockies - 2010 Diesels On The Mountain

2010’s Diesels On The Mountain At Bandimere Speedway

ATS Diesel will host the 2010 installment of Diesels On The Mountain at Bandimere Speedway’s Thunder Mountain located in Morrison, Colorado, as well as an ATS open house in Arvada, Colorado. Diesels On The Mountain and Truck Fest take place August 6-8. Competitors from across the US and Canada will converge in Colorado to battle for top honors in sled pulling, drag racing and the show-n-shine categories (many using one truck for all events). Cash, trophies and prizes will be awarded to top finishers.

Friday August 6th ATS will host an open house and Armed Services Appreciation BBQ for Colorado area military members at our Arvada facility. Activities at ATS will begin around 10:00 a.m. Various areas of ATS’ manufacturing plant and grounds will be open for tours for those interested in how our diesel upgrades are manufactured.

Saturday August 7th features the sled pull/ truck pull at Bandimere Speedway’s unique mountain-side venue. Action will take place in Bandimere’s outlying dirt lot with gates opening at 11:00 a.m. and pulls beginning at 1:00 p.m. All competitors and spectators are invited. Classes will range from stock trucks to heavily-modified dedicated pullers. 2010’s sled pull will be cosponsored and sanctioned by NSPA (National Sled Pullers Association) and will feature NSPA’s pulling sled which is one of the newest and latest technology sleds in the country.

Sunday August 8th Truck Fest transfers the excitement to the upper paved drag strip portion of Bandimere Speedway - sponsored by Cummins Rocky Mountain. Events for Sunday include drag racing, vendor midway, rock crawling, and show-n-shine competition starting at 8:00 a.m. Spectators will see some of the most unique and detailed vehicles in the truck genre. Many of the country’s fastest trucks will be in attendance to lay down impressive quarter mile times. As with Saturday, Sunday’s competition and spectator opportunities are open to everyone. Drag racing trucks are required to either have upward-firing exhaust stacks, or use a temporary exhaust turn-up pipe for this year’s racing. This change was made at the request of the track which must manage issues presented by smoke from trucks that can damage track property and disqualify racers due to issues with the timing light system. Clamp-on exhaust turn-up kits can be acquired by calling ATS directly.

Sounding A Sour Note - Utah's Congressional Bill To Ban Aftermarket Exhaust

Senator Patricia Jones from the Utah State Legislature recently introduced a bill (S.B. 106) this year which would effectively ban all aftermarket exhaust in the state. She must have missed her calling as a congressional rep in California..
The billed called for all vehicles to be equipped with an exhaust system that is “installed by the original manufacturer of the vehicle and is not modified; or meets specifications equivalent to the muffler installed by the original manufacturer of the vehicle and is not modified.” Each time that members of congress attempt to enact such laws one has to wonder if they realize the damage that they are doing to the economy and our freedoms. Whatever the initial intention was of this bill, it would be a lethal blow to many aftermarket companies who produce upgraded vehicle exhaust systems. Such laws can be compared to the ridiculous recent ban of all youth ATVs and motorcycles due to lead-based paint which has damaged the income and livelihood of countless companies.
OEM manufacturers are constrained to producing vehicle components cheaply in order to compete for price points in the market. This causes them to use lesser materials for things like exhaust systems. In contrast to aftermarket exhaust systems which are often produced out of stainless steel, the OEM system will typically be aluminized material. This leads to materials deteriorating over time and the advent of rusted pipes and mufflers which do not work as efficiently as intended (or as effectively as the aftermarket solutions). Whatever the initial intention is of bills like this one, the end result is lower quality products for consumers and less competition to drive innovation.
As is typical with bills such as S.B. 106 much of the enforcement by law officials would be left to subjective judgment as to whether the exhaust was in violation.
Luckily, for anyone who values freedom, within the past couple of days S.B. 106 was terminated for the remainder of the 2010 legislative year. Perhaps this was due to an overwhelming landslide of complaints from constituents who heard the news about the plan. Whatever the cause for the 2010 cap of the bill, aftermarket enthusiasts can almost certainly count on it rearing it's head once again in the near future. Emailing and calling congress members will continue to be critical in ensuring that more power-grabs like this don't become law.

Sawdust And Loud Noises - ATS Diesel Remodels

Customer service can be difficult with the droning buzz of a jackhammer mere feet from your desk. The customer service crew at ATS Diesel has found creative ways to be 'flexible' and persevere through the daily construction that has been part of a massive building overhaul at their Arvada Colorado HQ. Since neither the construction nor the day-to-day operations at ATS can be put on hold, much of it has occurred during the same hours.

Somewhere around six months ago the ATS building began undergoing the second major remodel in its six year history (the first being the initial move-in during the 2004-2005 transition). When the 104,000 square foot building was first purchased it was just an empty shell and it was difficult to know exactly what layout would be most effective. Over the years a number of ideas and plans were discussed to help streamline the production of a product line that now covers some six hundred products.

With many of the truck owners who upgrade their diesel wishing to have installation happen at ATS, the Arvada building tends to become a temporary home during the day to those that travel to Colorado from other areas of the country. For that reason the showroom and lobby areas have been a big focus and include some new amenities including a projection screen entertainment center lounge and video game room.

Complete ATS Newsletters: http://www.atsdiesel.com/ats2/newsletter/issues.asp

Manufacturing is being streamlined and departments such as engineering are shifting to different areas of the building to update procedures and increase efficiency. The ability to have a clean engineering area with updated technology will mean that products continue to be the best quality and fit for installation on trucks. Consolidating production areas like converter machining and laser cutting are already helping to make a difference in production turnaround times. Things have come a long way from the previous ATS facility and even the current building in its original form.

A Billet Converter By Any Other Name Is Not The Same

We see a lot of 'billet' torque converters on the web and in ads these days and wonder how many people understand the inner workings of them enough to know the differences in brands and what offers the biggest advantages. So many of the converters available are simply a stock-style rebuild stuffed into a billet cover with few true modifications to make them better and stronger than stock.

While the billet cover is a feature that we build into the Five Star and TripleLok Torque Converters which prevents warping and 'mushrooming', that is just the beginning. The other main components of the converter's internals are just as critical to supporting increased power output from the engine and serious towing weight. These other areas include: lockup clutch system, lockup apply piston, turbine and impeller, stator, bearings, and hub. When ATS builds diesel torque converters all of these areas are given equal attention and all aspects are greatly enhanced.

Torque Converter Info

By looking at the internals of the Five Star or TripleLok Torque Converters compared to the stock unit (above) it is clear how much work is really done to provide increased strength. Most other upgrade converters simply change part 'A' (billet cover), but the rest of the internal structure is mostly just a stock rebuild. The ATS cover begins to show drastic differences from all others in the fact that the mounting surface features a twelve bolt design (with bolt holes incorporated into the cover) versus the factory six (with bolt holes welded on externally). Stock converters are completely missing section 'B' and have a single clutch friction surface bonded to part 'C' (piston). Our design is very different in that we add a multi-disc clutch pack (part 'B') which more than doubles the torque-holding ability by distributing load and using locking square tabs on each disc. The square tab design is patented and exclusive to ATS. The stock stamped steel piston 'C' is replaced with a billet dampened piston that doesn't warp and provides a cushioned engagement compared to other aftermarket designs which don't have a dampener. The turbine and impeller (parts 'D' and 'F') are furnace brazed and reinforced to prevent flattening or damaging of the fins due to fluid pressure wear. Finally a proprietary billet CNC machined stator ('E') is used to provide optimized fluid redirection between the turbine and impeller.

Conveying how different and how much stronger the ATS design really is versus stock and other aftermarket units is always a challenge, but those that have visited our manufacturing facility in Colorado instantly see quality and workmanship that set the Five Star and TripleLok Converters apart from all others.