Grass Roots Diesel Truck Shows as American as Apple Pie

Photo courtesy Diesel Motorsports

Now that the Covid tide has receded things are beginning to open up again. What many people seem to be noticing is how much people have been flocking to diesel events across the country. Over the weekend I saw this story about a Diesel Jam that was used to raise money for scholarships in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania. 

Next I came across a story about the Western Nebraska Truck Show that was coming to Bridgeport. That event will take place this coming weekend, same time as the NADM East Coast Nationals sponsored in part by Blue Flame Diesel Oil.

All this grass roots diesel enthusiasm has not gone unnoticed by sports journalist. That's why on July 1 PRI's Drew Hardin published Alive & Growing, a story detailing this surge in diesel enthusiasm. 

The article begins with a question. Is diesel racing dead? Gregg Holley of the Outlaw Diesel Super Series (ODSS) assures us that diesel is hardly dead. In fact, it may be more popular than ever. According to Jolley, attendance has tripled over the past three years. Even during the pandemic it was huge. This year ODSS is setting record sales number. 

But it's not just diesel drag racing that gets the blood flowing. Greg Lussetto of the Heartland Pulling Series shared with Hardin how truck and tractor pulling has begun expanding to the further reaches of the country from East to West. 

One reason diesel action is getting so furiously flavorful is because these diesel drag racers have become so fast, faster than ever imagined. For those not paying attention, dragways switched from running quarter-mile passes to eighth-mile. Why? Because these diesel trucks have become so darn fast it was getting dangerous.

The growth in popularity of diesel drag racing has spawned a new series called the Hole Shot Diesel Series. The HSDS was created by the Ultimate Callout Challenge in partnership with Hole Shot's Secret. The new series helps fill the void left by the demise of the National Hot Rod Diesel Series two years ago.

The Texas Truck Jam is being expanded to a two day circus now, especially since everything else is big in Texas.

Ron Knoch of the National Association of Diesel Motorsports noted that at their Numidia, PA East Coast Nationals the drag strip and pulling track are adjacent to one another and run simultaneously. "People can watch both. If there's a lull duringthe drag racing, they can watch sled pulling."

Photo courtesy Diesel Motorsports

Hardin also spoke with Jared Jones of the Scheid Diesel Extravaganza in Indiana where they have a similar setup to Numidia. The tractor pulling takes places just a few hundred feet from the drag strip.

Chris Searle of the Ultimate Callout Challenge (UCC) pointed out one difference between their event and most others. The UCC requires competitors use the same truck setup for the pulling as the racing. You're always looking for that sweet spot. It's tricky because you want a lighter vehicle for racing and a beefier truck for the pulling. UCC is also different because they specify a limited number of competitors, 30 in all. 

What's apparent to everyone is that diesel is still alive and well. And by being family oriented, the kids get an early introduction to activities that may inspire them to carry the torch to future generations.

Read the full article here at the Performance Racing (PRI) website. 

Flashback Friday: Seven Tips to Improve Diesel Truck Performance

They say you can never have too much of a good thing. I believe this applies to advice as much as anything else, as long as it's good advice. There's value in being committed to lifelong learning, and value in re-visiting lessons learned. 

While looking for something else I found this article at the Revolution Motors blog, simply titled, How To Improve Diesel Truck Performance.  The title is straightforward. It's not fancy-schmancy clickbait. No references to celebrities. No sizzle-words like "awesome" or "stunning" or "dazzling." It's a "Just the facts, m'am" type of article, with solid fundamental reminders.

Revolution Motors is a diesel performance shop in Edmonton, Canada. Here's their list of recommendations to keep your diesel in tiptop shape.

1. Use Diesel Fuel Additives

One key to smooth, efficient performance is to make sure your injectors are clean. Diesel fuel injection cleaners are fairly essential to longer service life from your engine. There are other fuel additives that serve specific purposes as well including deposit modifiers, corrosion inhibitors, freeze depressants and more.

Two fuel additives from Champion Brands that you may be unaware of are Diesel Flo Fuel Conditioner and Power Plus Diesel Fuel Additive with Cetane.  The latter will not only remove deposits but also reduce emissions, provide corrosion protection, increase cetane and improve power, a multi-functional diesel additive for today's high-pressure common-rail injectors and modern diesel fuels.

2. Consider Diesel Programmers

Programmers, also called tuners, are easy to install, cost-effective and greatly improve fuel economy. There are a various types of tuners that will help manage your engine's performance. Some, like EFI Live tuners, enable custom tuning. 

3. Install Performance Air Filters and Cold Air Intakes

The power is generated by pressure and heat applied to the air-fuel mixture. This step is about improving airflow by means of aftermarket filters and cold air intake kits. You want max airflow while effectively removing contaminants. More air results in more power but you can't do this by removing your filters because 90% of the debris that gets into the engine comes in through the air. You want a filter that captures the contaminants while letting the air flow unimpeded.

4. Upgrade the Exhaust System

Whenever you read articles about the top three or top five things to upgrade on you diesel truck, they nearly always include this tip. The exhaust system plays a major role in diesel performance. It's not just a pretty pipe. This is one area where bigger is better. The more horsepower you have, the more exhaust that needs to be expelled. 5. 

5. Upgrade Diesel Fuel Injectors

Another way to get more power and improve fuel efficiency is to upgrade to performance fuel injectors. Some fuel injector modifications claim increased diesel power by 50 or even 100 hp, assuming you have it adjusted correctly. The key is in the hole pattern, which designed to give optimal fuel delivery.

6. Install a Turbocharger

This is another frequently cited performance upgrade, an excellent investment for increased power. According to Revolution Motors it's "especially useful if you use your diesel for towing and hauling heavy loads." A turbo forces more air into your diesel's combustion chamber. More oxygen equals more power.

7. Schedule Regular Diesel Tune Ups

Getting your initial setup right is invaluable. Just as pianos get out of tune over time, so does an engine. Developing a routine maintenance regimen is one key to a long, healthy life for your diesel engine. That's one of the great advantages that diesels provide, durability. But optimal performance isn't automatic. If you take care of your engine, it will take care of you.

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Read the full article here: How to Improve Diesel Performance

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What do YOU consider the most important upgrade for better performance?

Leave a comment. We'd like to hear from you.

Performance Diesel Podcasts for Your Listening Pleasure

There was a time when your only options for what to watch on television were what the networks produced and fed you. With the exception of ham radio enthusiasts, radio content was also created for delivery via the airwaves and you listened to what they generated. With the advent of cable television your choices were broadened, but also you were still limited.

Then the Internet came and the monopoly of the networks was broken forever. Nearly anyone could be a content producer or develop a show to share on YouTube, Vimeo or other platforms. In fact, 500 hours of new content is being uploaded to YouTube every minute. This amounts to 720,000 hours of content each day. Imagine how big Google's hard drives are to hold all that information.

Two decades ago the concept of RSS feeds was emerging and Podcasting began to emerge as a viable force. Podcasters are similar to radio programs except they use audio files that can be played on the listener's devices. Just as there are millions of people uploading videos to YouTube and Facebook, so too there are currently 850,000 podcasters who have produced over 30 million podcast episodes.

Many podcasters produce a series in which a host or hosts interview guests on a theme or cover news around a related topic. It should come as no surprise then that there are literally hundreds of podcasts for diesel enthusiasts. 

One way to find channels you like is simply to Google it.  Here's a popular one called Diesel Performance Podcast. DPP has been archiving shows since 2015. Recent topics include:

Talking Fabrication and Sled Pulling with Jason Wehrli

Frank Kuperman of RevMax

Black Friday 2020

Reasonable Upgrade Lists for Every 6.6L Duramax

There are a wide variety of ways to listen to your favorite programs. You can subscribe via RSS, listen on Apple Podcasts, download to your laptop, email to your iPhone, listen on Stitcher or Spotify or head over to YouTube. In short, the power is in your hands.

The best part is, if you think you can do better then you can share your own Diesel interests with a podcast of your own. If you do, leave a comment and tell us about it. 

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Links
Diesel Performance on Google Podcasts 

More Diesel Performance 

Backtracks Diesel Performance Podcasts