5.7 Hemi Tuning

[Jacob Mangold]

Hello forum. It has been a while since I posted anything but all is well and the T is still doing good. I have moved on to new projects as I need a car I can drive where the Model t can go. I had a 2014 Ram 1500 with the 5.7 hemi at 160,000 miles and it had the notorious lifter tick and low compression and misfire In cylinder 5. I started teardown around March and got it all disassembled by April and discovered that the exhaust lifter on cylinder 5 was destroyed and the corresponding cam lobe was almost completely gone so basically everything except the lower end needed work from that. So basically I think it had a blown head gasket as well as the lifter failure. I bought a new Texas Speed camshaft, MDS delete kit, VVT delete kit, New timing chain components, Hellcat oil pump, Hellcat lifters, racing valve springs, all new seals and gaskets for the whole engine, and a New water pump. I am currently in the process of rebuilding it have the cam and timing assembly reinstalled. What I came on here to ask is if any of you guys know any good outlet where I can get my truck tuned as the cam is far from stock and has higher lift, duration, and overlap. Any information is appreciated.
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Thank you in advance,
Jacob Mangold

[Jerry VanOoteghem]

Jacob,

I'll start by saying I can't help you with your question. For what it's worth however, over the years, most everyone I've spoken with that has installed a performance cam in a daily driver, (as in, "not a race car"), has regretted it. The complaints have always been that they don't last long. My dad used to say, "A horse that sh*ts fast, don't sh*t long." (very profound, I know...)

Best to you in your project & good to hear from your again!

[Mark Nunn]

I found myself in the same situation Jerry mentioned except it was an older car, not a daily driver. As soon as I found a stock NOS cam, I installed that and I'm completely happy with the performance. The so-called high lift cam I previously installed has been in the barn 15 years now.

[TXGOAT2]

I'd avoid a hot cam, especially with an automatic transmission. They can kill torque at normal RPM ranges. I think the stock Hemi cam no slouch. What is your engine's original torque/HP rating? VVT is a great thing, if it's reliable.

[Jacob Mangold]

A 5.7 hemi makes 395 hp and 410 ft. Lbs stock. The cam I have opted for is stock torque converter friendly. It is a Texas Speed Chopocabra. https://www.texas-speed.com/p-18862-tsp ... i-cam.aspx This is the link to the product. I didn’t want to do some crazy cam as I know the supporting mods start getting bigger and more expensive so I decided to go with the one I chose because of its mild performance upgrades. I believe that camming my engine is better than putting it back together stock because I am deleting the MDS system which causes all the lifter issues anyways. I’ve Also heard good things about the cam from people who actually have one too. I will have to see how I like it and if I don’t I can always change it later. I have the skills, time, and tools to do it if I need too. Thank you guys for your advice.

Thank you,
Jacob Mangold

[Craig Leach]

TSP makes a truck camshaft with a torque curve of 1,200 - 5,600 RPM the question is the term tuning ? I will assume that means programing so I
would look for speed shops that specialize in performance programing. I also would think for a truck that a lower torque curve would be better
if you do any towing. I ran a "RV" cam in a 350 cu.in. cheby for years in my service truck that had a 1,000 - 3,800 RPM curve. The truck tipped the
scales @ 8,200 lb. dry & got 12 mpg when I retired that truck it had 380,000 on it. When I scrapped it I kept the engine & trans as I would bet
they have years of life left in them.
Craig.

[TXGOAT2]

I had an "RV" cam in an FE Ford 390 with 10:1 compression and an Edelbrock intake & carb. (Lousy stock exhaust manifolds) It worked very well. NO computer to fight, & 4 in the floor, 4.10 axle, twin 2 1/2" pipes, 36" glasspacks, with a crossover just back of the transmission, like a '60s Mustang.

[Jacob Mangold]

The plan with this truck is to drop it just a little and have a sort of muscle truck so I believe this cam is perfect. It’s a ram 1500 so it isn’t the greatest at towing anything anyways and the most I’ll probably ever tow with it is my 18.5’ bass boat.
Muscle truck is what I’m going for. And yes the question of tuning is programming the ECM to turn off all the MDS stuff and to allow the truck to idle with the new cam.

[Jacob Mangold]

Update: I have found a tuner in my area that specializes in mopar equipment and have reached out. We have already talked about a plan and pricing. Once again, thank you guys for your help and valuable advice.

Thank you, Jacob Mangold

[Jacob Mangold]

Just a little update for anyone curious. My truck has ran great for a month so far. It’s noticeably faster and sounds way better. MDS is gone, the engine stays cool, I have plenty of oil pressure with the hellcat oil pump, no fluids leaking anywhere, and zero codes. the biggest struggle I had was getting it ready for smog. In Nevada, you are allowed one under monitor. The one monitor that won’t reset when you have a cam is egr. My Evap system would not run because it is so hot in Nevada. It needs to be 90 degrees or less outside for the Evap monitor to run. I drove the truck around in the middle of the night for three nights straight for the check gas cap and then the cel to come on. I checked codes and I had a small Evap leak and a purge valve code. I replaced the gas cap, esim module, and purge valve. In the process, my oil pressure sensor went out putting it in limp mode however I got it straightened out and was able to pass smog. The next thing I will be doing is lowering the truck a little bit. I’m looking at the Belltech 2/4 drop kit. My Dad used to be into mini trucks and whatnot and he’s never had a problem with their products and I’ve heard good things about them. The only thing I can think of that I don’t like is that my gas mileage is in the toilet but I expected that one. Smiles per gallon not miles per gallon, right? I have a little video on YouTube for anyone that’s curious how it turned out. I’ll link it below.
Video: https://youtube.com/shorts/b-YL8Rn0wY8? ... gQnSH0DaMX

Thanks again, Jacob Mangold

[tdump]

My 04 Hemi is only 345 hp and 375 foot pound of torque.
But it has never failed to tow anything i hook to it, had i had this truck when I was younger, me and it would probably be wrapped around a tree. It has the 8 foot bed and a high top leonard gold crown camper top on it. But when I am on a ramp trying to get onto the interstate and i am doing 50mph or so and I stomp because some jack leg won't let me,, it goes side ways. I don't think i need anymore power!

[Jacob Mangold]

Haha that’s great. They’re really good engines with a lot of power. The MDS system is its only major downfall causing all the cam and lifter issues. They’re very reliable but most of all they’re fun. I have no problem breaking it loose. Hell it would probably still be able to break loose while going 30 mph down the road. Plus it sounds amazing with the cam and exhaust. Lots of fun for sure.

[Duey_C]

I'm not a Dodge guy but find this thread interesting.
Same issues with other brands too. VVT, gas caps and evap troubles. Or Diesels and their def juice etc.
Your pickup has a nice rumble! If you like it, that's what counts!

[Jacob Mangold]

Hello once again forum. After yet another hiatus from the Model T world, I am finally back, hopefully for good. A lot has changed since I begun working on my T. I have had little break in the past 2 years and always have my hands full. I am now 17 years old, in highschool and also enrolled in college concurrently. Not to mention I have a full time job building Hot Rods, Street Rods, Classic Cars, and Muscle Cars professionally for a little bit over a year now. Who would have known I would be employed with such a cool job this early. I have worked on everything from a 1937 Cord 812 to 2nd Gen F bodies all the time, to a ‘65 Rolls Silver Shadow, to a 1991 Ls swapped stepside Chevy C1500. I get to work on a little bit of everything. My shop is a Roadster Shop Chassis dealer and in fact, the only one in Nevada currently. We currently have 3 cars in the works that will be sitting on a RS chassis when it is all said and done. A 1981 Trans am Firebird, a ‘62 Vette and a 1967 Mustang. Our latest RS chassis project was a 1948 Ford SuperDeluxe powered by a 454 with a 700R4 and Ford 9” rear end. Super cool to say the least. With that being said, in the past year I have learned so much about the classic car industry. I have become a decent fabricator so far seeing as everything I do at work isn’t an exact fit because we do so much custom work. I have gotten deep into welding and am proficient at Tig welding carbon and stainless steel and currently improving my aluminum Tig welding. I also Mig weld all day long for general fabrication where it doesn’t have to be super pretty. I am also in the middle of rebuilding the drivetrain for a 1957 T Bird project that I sort of threw myself into as well. Lesson learned, T birds are absolutely horrible to work on and I have people that can second my statement. Now back to the topic. As for my Ram. She’s better than ever. Different custom grind cam and heads now. Wanted a bit more. Also have long tube headers, high flow cats, 3 inch exhaust, and bigger injectors. I have my suspension set up for drag racing. It’s lowered 3 inches in the front and 5 inches in the back on lowering springs, upgraded shocks, adjustable panhard bar and adjustable 4 link control arms. I also have relocation brackets on the rear end to correct control arms angle in the rear. Truck dailys well but also performs in a straight line. About a mid to low 12s car which isn’t so bad for a 5500 lb truck. It is getting about 490 HP to the wheels on a pretty conservative tune. It is a whole lot of fun. Now onto the T. Truth be told, I have not driven her around as much as I wanted to. The main concern with it is the wheels. My wheels desperately need to be respoked. I am nervous to drive it much due to the state they’re in. I have tried all the old tricks in the book. Soaking the spokes, linseed oil, shimming the hubs to no avail. The wheels just like to do the Irish jig when I drive. With that being said, the old girl has been sitting for a little. (Drained of all fluids besides oils, I’m not a monster). Anyways, I finally got the reality check today when talking to a friend. He said you never know if today is going to be your last day so you should do what it is you want to do now so you don’t regret not doing it when you no longer can. That sort of flipped the switch for me. Being busy with other responsibilities is no excuse to put my Model T dreams on hold. With that being said, I have decided to pull my T out of the mothballs
and actually have a little bit of fun with it this year. Might as well as it is my final semester in highschool. I always wanted to drive my T to school but it is just a bit too far for me to be comfortable on the sketchy wheels. Other than that, it still runs ok, will probably need to refresh the carb and am ditching the junk water pump and returning it the way Henry Ford designed it. Last time I fired it up it had a bit of a misfire, I think I have a sticky valve every now and again. I swapped the headgasket and inspected the top end and all the valves moved just fine with the head off. Other than that, my pistons are basically brand new, same for the cam and all the Babbitt on the crank bearings and rod bearings. Magneto does not work but It may just need to be recharged. As far as cosmetics go It really only needs a roof back on it which is easily done with fabric from the local crafts store. Especially with the help of my assistant, aka my girlfriend that I have employed to help me get the Model T ready to go. She says she wants to learn how to work on cars so this is the perfect opportunity. Anywho, sorry for the novel but I’m glad to be back.

Thank you to all on this forum who have helped me and thanks in advance to those who will continue to help me,

Jacob Mangold

Edit: If anyone would like to see some pictures or videos of any of the stuff I’ve done feel free to ask and I’ll post them.

[TXGOAT2]

A stock Model T will not shimmy or shake if the wheels, tires, and chassis are in good shape. It's possible to add modern type hydraulic shocks to a T without invasive modification, and doing so will add a lot to stability and handling. Ford wire wheels are best for highway driving. The later, "Improved" T chassis are better adapted to modern road conditions than are the earlier ones.

[Jacob Mangold]

The spokes are loose on every wheel. Chassis and suspension wise it rides just like a T should. You can feel the play in the wood when you’re driving it. It is a TT as well so that makes things interesting when it comes to rebuilding the wheels or possibly swapping to wire wheels. I have seen the AA axles adapted to a TT rear end so that you can run AA wire wheels. Any direction where to find spokes for TT rear wheels is appreciated. I have a set of 20 inch rear wheels as well as the earlier 23 inch rear wheels so I will rebuilding whichever I can source the spokes easiest for.

Thank you, Jacob Mangold

[TXGOAT2]

There are several wood wheel rebuilders. They service T wheels. I'm not sure about TT wheels.