While not a Mopar product, many of us have a great deal of affection for the 5.9 Cummins Turbo Diesels that have powered our heavy duty Rams for nearly twenty years. We've seen them hopped up with bigger turbos, higher rpms, injectors, turned up pumps etc. with pretty impressive results. Compound turbos are nothing new either, we've seen them on Super Stock pulling tractors since I was a kid. Now apparently, compound turbos on 5.9s for a stout street hot rod is a thing.
Robert "Bob" Berry has brought his crazy contraption to Drag Week the last three years. It's a diesel powered rat rod truck that he calls a 45 Chevy CK, but the bed is from a Studebaker, the front fenders from something else, and parts from every manufacturer you can think have been put to use. The 5.9 6BT with a single turbo averaged a 13.81-96 in 2014, 12.06-114 in 2015, but he stepped it up with compound turbos in 2016, and despite blowing the intake pipe off on the first day, claimed one of the coveted quick 32 spots in Street Machine Eliminator!
Robert Berry "Rust" 45 Chevy Day 1: 12.09-113.6 Day 2: 10.66-125.1 Day 3: 10.83-120.2 Day 4: 10.64-121.7 Day 5: 10.78-123.9 Final Average 11.002-120.94
Jesse Harris pulled his Cummins out of a crew cab 4X4 that had ran a best of 11.0, and slammed it into a tubbed, back halfed short bed C-10 just days before Drag Week. Like Robert, first day teething issues left him behind the pack, but a string of ten second runs secured his place in the quick 32 as well. Not bad for a couple of inline 6 oil burners!
Jessie Harris Orange/White 80 Chevy C-10 Day 1: 11.59-127.5 Day 2: 10.94-125.0 Day 3: 10.29-129.8 Day 4: 10.42-128.9 Day 5: 10.35-130.3 Final Average: 10.724-128.34
"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks"
4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
