What is the REAL maximum HP/Torque that can be put to a RTLO16913A ?

Discussion in 'Trucks [ Eighteen Wheelers ]' started by Guntoter, Mar 12, 2018.

  1. Guntoter

    Guntoter Road Train Member

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    Only on the dyno when it was built, its been in "break-in" mode since. Im asking about transmission and rear end issues because the guy that built it said we're good to go with any amount of power I want (he said it was ok at 10K miles but I've been waiting till it needs to go back in to do it, I'm doing the overhead soon so Im thinking about bumping it up then but I'm nervous about destroying the drivetrain).
     
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  3. Guntoter

    Guntoter Road Train Member

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    Its powder coat/jet coat on all the brackets, covers, mounts, and turbos and regular Imron truck paint on the block and head.
     
  4. SAR

    SAR Road Train Member

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    I was quoting superhauler and teasing him on his engine.

    I think you'll be OK on your driveline as long as you drive it like you have and egg between your foot and the go pedal.

    I like the color of your engine, looks very cool!
     
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  5. Guntoter

    Guntoter Road Train Member

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    I guess the answer is: Nobody really has a real max number for HP or Torque that I can put to the ground for a few reasons.
    1). I guess there are different ways of reading a dyno so how do we know what my actual number is if three different dyno operators have three different ways of interpreting my reading (IE: Did he run it in high gear, did he put the correct tire diameter and gear ratio into the equation?).
    2). Do I run in direct instead of OD all day? Is it ok to run my engine at the RPM that does the least amount of harm to my transmission (meaning, am I lugging my engine and hurting turbos at 1,100 RPM or over-revving and wearing parts at 2,000 RPM all day). Will my fuel economy suffer if I run at the best RPM for my transmission to not be damaged (Direct drive or overdrive)?
    3). Does any of this change if I run a cooler on the trans and rears, meaning, If there were a definite number that a transmission can handle, maybe 3,000 pounds of torque, will a cooler bump that number up? Will a cooler make no difference in how much torque it takes to break something, but a cooler will extend the life of trans and rears?
     
  6. snowman_w900

    snowman_w900 Road Train Member

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    Looks great!

    I'm wanting to paint my next engine white, kinda like paccar used to do in petes and KWs back in the 70s and 80s.

    Is it a base clear or just a single stage?
     
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  7. SmokinCAT

    SmokinCAT Road Train Member

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    My biggest question is why didn’t they give you a printed readout of the dyno run?

    How an engine is ran on a dyno has nothing to do with everyday use, direct is used for consistency as well as being the most direct route for power through the transmission.

    Your transmission will give you signs that it doesn’t want anymore, when your engine pulls down under a hard pull and you hear the bearings rattle it is time to down shift and get away from peak torque.

    Temperature is another tell tale sign, if it’s running hot then yes a cooler would be ideal.
     
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  8. Superhauler

    Superhauler TEACHER OF MEN

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    I ran a 169 13 spd over 1 million miles heavy hauling. (132000 to 150000 lbs) with a 1760 driveline on 40000 rears at 3.70 ratio. Never had a failure except one front rear at 1.2 million miles. That was with about 700 hp at the time. Changed trans to a 189 18 spd at 1.3 million miles when the 13 started to (rattle) a little on a hard pull, but it never failed. It is how you drive it. Hard and fast failure will happen. Easy and soft could last forever. Now, the truck I run now has 46 rears with a 229 18 spd and spl driveline. One Trans failure from poor workmanship on rebuild and one rear failure from a bearing failing. Go figure! But I also work in some crapy mud holes also. And I'm pushing north of 750 hp to south of 1000 hp.
     
    Last edited: Mar 14, 2018
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  9. SmokinCAT

    SmokinCAT Road Train Member

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    When I first got the Astro I used to have it had an 11609 behind the 3406B, even cranked I never hurt that transmission until I did something silly.
     
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  10. Guntoter

    Guntoter Road Train Member

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    Single Stage, very little of the block is actually visible anyway so its not important for the shine to be perfect. Just important that it sticks.
     
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  11. Guntoter

    Guntoter Road Train Member

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    Im going to try to get the KW dealer to find my printout. I never got it, the guy that built the engine did. Its a complicated money i still owe vs. work done vs. time taken to do it... kind of problem. But I'm sure KW would give me the printout of the first run when I go in for the second one after I turn it up. I just wanted to have a ballpark HP/Torque number that I could safely step up to when I do it. It runs really well now so Im not in a big hurry to turn it up (at least not until I have a new transmission and rears sitting in my garage ready to go).
     
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