Want extra power and torque........First buy a diesel truck, then turn it up!. It seems over the last few years Tow Rigs and trailers have seem to become the "In Thing" for getting your Jeep, buggy, hotrod or 4 wheeler to the trail or car show. More recently Diesel performance has seen a huge increase in products and after market upgrades.. A few years back I bought a used 1999 Ford Power Stroke 4x4. I really liked the truck in its stock form and it proved to be a huge improvement over my 94 Chevy Suburban. Over these last few years I kept seeing Diesels (All Makes) with big exhausts, chips and other mods basically blowing right past me as I cruised along towing to the trail or driving in traffic. As much as I tried to resist the urge to "Turn Up" my PSD I had finally had enough. I wasn't looking for a speed machine, but I wanted more usable power and better fuel economy as well.

Enter Bully Dog Technologies. After doing some research of many different Diesel Performance company's I contacted Bully Dog. Bully Dog Technologies is one of the most respected Diesel performance manufacturers in the market and offer simple bolt on items all the way to full on custom performance packages. We talked about options for the PSD and Shawn Udy from Bully Dog invited Lance Clifford and myself to Bully Dog's factory and shop located in Aberdeen Idaho. Bully Dog was about to awaken my PSD and show me what Diesels can really do. Lance and I regularly spend countless hours on the road during the Rockcrawling Competition season so a quick drive (626 miles...1 way) out to Idaho was nothing but a chance to listen to some tunes.

Bully Dog recommended that we install the following items be installed:

• 4" Rapid Flow Exhaust
• RFI (Rapid Flow Intake)
• E40D Transmission Shift Kit
• Ford 4 Bank Chip
• Ford Flip Switch

We arrived at the Bully Dog facility bright and early to meet Shawn and the staff that would be working on my PSD. Did I mention it was cold as......... Bully Dog's facility is really clean and there is never a lack of diesels in the shop or parking lot!

The stock exhaust system removal is a pretty basic job and can be done in about 2.5 hrs with a sawsall and airtools, if you have a helper expect 1 hr for the installation and removal of the old system. Aaron is Bully Dog's chief installation tech, he makes quick work of the factory downpipe and exhaust system.......Sawsalls rule!

I actually expected my stock system to look worse, but is was in pretty good shape considering the truck has 100K on it.

Here is a picture of the stock system once removed.

Bully Dog recommended that we install the 4" Polished stainless Rapid Flow Exhaust system. Bully Dog claims a 14HP to 20HP increase over stock and this sytem can drop the EGTs up to 200 degrees. Its one of the nicest kits that I have seen and it easily clamps together with the supplied hardware. This kit also uses the existing hangers for ease of installation.

You can see in this picture the new muffler and the old one next to it. Is there really any comparison?

Here are a couple of pics of the fully installed system. The new downpipe is a snug fit and takes a bit of wiggling but it's not difficult. The new system is about as straight as you can get from the downpipe to the tailpipe exit. Bully Dog claims that their systems have some of the lowest degree angles on bends in the industry.

RFI (Rapid Flow Induction)

Bully Dog next moved to installing a Rapid Flow Induction system. This system replaces the stock airbox that would been to restrictive with the upgrades that were being installed on the PSD. The new 4 layer cotton gauze Conical cone filter is inverted to allow more filter surface area and fits perfectly in the metal heat shield which is part of the system.

Installing this new filter system was easy and takes about 20min. with common hand tools.

Here's a picture of the old K&N filter I had installed. As you can tell the surface area of the Bully Dog cone is greater than that the factory system.

After removing the stock airbox Aaron slides in the new RFI system. This installation couldn't be easier.

Here Aaron tightens the last screws and finishes installing the RFI system.

Here's a pic of the final product installed. Its a nice clean installation and looks great.

I was told that the Turbo noise would be more noticeable with this type of system. We shall see...........or hear!

E40D Transmission Kit Installation

Everyone that has owned a PSD with an automatic knows of the potential problems with the Ford E40D transmission. Though some people haven't had any problems I have. I replaced the torque converter about 10K before this trip to Bully Dog.

I wanted a little more insurance with the added HP & Torque and this kit was exactly what I needed.

What this kit does is basically increase the line pressure, which reduces torque converter slip and adds a solid shift.

This kit is quite easy to install as well with common tools and should take about 1.5 hours to put in. Make sure you have a new filter and ATF on hand to complete the installation.

There are only (4) parts to the kit.

• (3) New valvebody springs
• (1) New steel valve accumulator body

The 1st order of business is to remove the tranny oil pan and remove the ATF.

After you drop the transmission pan you can see the filter that bolts to the valvebody. This is why I said have a new filter before the install of this kit. You dont want to put back in a dirty filter.

Here's the valvebody with the channels for fluid transfer.

At this point Aaron removes the valvebody from the transmission and prepares to install the shift kit.

With the valvebody removed and taken to a clean area the new springs and valve body accumultor can be installed.

Aaron installs the new spring "inside" of the factory springs. These springs are what give the firmer shift that decreases torque converter slippage. This step is completed 2 more times.

The next and final item to install is the valve accumulator body. The E40D comes from the factory with an aluminum valve accumulator. Bully Dogs new piece is an upgraded steel piece that doesn't wear as fast as the aluminum stock unit.

With the factory piece removed you can see the wear marks. With the 2 pieces side by side you can see the difference with the steel replacement unit.

After replacing the springs and new body the steps are reversed for putting the components and tranny back together.

Gauge and Chip Install

The next installment that Bully Dog did was put in a 3 gauge cluster thats consists of Pyrometer, Boost & Tranny Temp. These gauges are top notch in the quality dept. and have the Bully Dog logo printed on the face. As you can see in the pictures this installation takes some time, however Bully Dog's instructions will lead you through the steps and ease the install.

Here Aaron pulls the factory cover off of the "A" pillar and starts routing power wires and the gauge lines.

Next is the gouge pod itself. and after a quick shot of Ford factory match paint it looks like its a factory piece.

Once all of the wires are ran it slips back into place and is held in by clips and the factory rubber weather strip. Now the gauges get wired up and dropped in the pod.

Here is the finished look of the pod and the gauges.

The next and final pieces to install would be the Bully Dog's 4 Bank Chip.

When installed with the Bully Dog Flip Switch, this chip allows the following settings: Stock, 50HP, 70hp, 100HP. Bully Dog burns their chips in house and can customize HP settings to meet your individual driving style.

Here you can see my custom chip being burned.

This chip is then installed onto the factory computer. Its a piggy back style chip and not a programmer. Bully Dog states that the contacts must be clean for a proper connection.

Here you can see Aaron cleaning the contact surface with a little rub of a Scotch bright pad. Be careful not to rub hard and remove the contacts!

Here is a picture of the completed setup consisting of the chip and the flip switch.

The chip is now ready to be installed on the computer and reinstalled back into the truck.

Here Aaron reinstalls the puts the chip onto the computer and reinstalls it in the truck.

Test Drive!

After a quick check of everything it was time for a test drive with Aaron to see and feel the changes in the PSD. 1st off the exhaust sounds great and is really deep. The next thing I noticed was the immediate turbo noise while revving the motor. This extra noise is an indication of the RFI filter system.

The 1st pass down the 2-lane road was in the stock setting. I could tell a seat of the pants difference right away. I was also rewarded with a solid bang of a shift and not the normal sluggish sloppy shifting I was used to. I guess the tranny kit works! Next was the 50HP setting. This was a huge difference in throttle response and the truck felt like it had a shot of adrenaline! It delivered very smooth roll-on power. I also noticed a little black smoke out of the tailpipe, notifying me that fuel was being delivered at a speedy rate!

Onto the 70HP setting...... (Recommended for Off-Road Use Only) ...... Here we go! The truck basically wanted to smoke my 35" BFG All Terrains right to the cords. I could also tell the engine sounded different and idled a little rougher. Aaron explained that on the 70HP setting the timing is changed to account for additional fuel delivery.

Of course then came the 100HP setting. (Recommended for Off-Road Use Only) This setting I felt was almost the same as the 70HP setting. From a standing start the truck would just want to bake the tires but once hooked up is felt like a rocket ship. Here's where I was educated on keeping a watch on EGT's. I was doing about 70MPH still dumping black smoke and Aaron said, " Hey look at that EGT gauge" it was reading 1200*. Time to back out of the throttle!

Its important to note that Bully Dog strongly recommends that if towing you only use the 50HP setting. The 70HP and 100HP setting can overpower a stock auto or even slip a 6spd clutch. Like I have mentioned above the 70HP and 100HP are recommended for Off Road Use Only.

During the test drive and the 6-hour drive home I can say these mods to the truck far exceeded my expectations. I did notice a 2 to 3mpg gain while rolling back home to California. This was recorded while using the 50HP setting. This is about the most ideal setting in my opinion. It offers great power and some gains in MPG but is really the most usable and daily driver friendly setting. However the 70HP and 100HP are only a toggle turn away.

I can get used to these kinds of pictures!

Make sure and visit Bully Dog's website or give then a call before you purchase your Diesel performance items. They even offer the most advanced Propane and Nitrous injection kits available. Bully Dog offers performance parts for Dodge, Ford, Chevy and even tractors and Volkswagens. Give em a call and Git'er Done!

Contact Information

Bully Dog Technologies
2854 W 2200 S
Aberdeen, Idaho 83210
208-397-3200
http://www.bullydog.com/