The Block That Survived 4,500 HP
Tearing down Josh McCormack’s 4,500hp deck-plate Cummins, a new dyno record at Firepunk, and a budget-friendly stand-alone ECU for diesel owners.
What will Josh McCormack find inside the garage-built engine that made 4,461-rwhp on the chassis dyno? It’s the same, seemingly indestructible bullet that survived 20 passes down the drag strip (including a personal best, 5.46-second eighth-mile), withstood a brutal sled pull, and won UCC 2025… Not bad for a wet, cast-iron 6.7L block (albeit deck-plated) Cummins. Of course, having the right operator at the helm no doubt contributed to Josh removing a running engine from his ‘07 Ram rather than pulling it out in pieces. So, what do things look like beneath the Bean Machine valve cover? You’ll have to tune in to Mr. McCormack’s YouTube channel to find out. Be here when he cracks it open.
On The Dyno
Big Numbers At Firepunk
No Ultimate Callout Challenge competitor is happier than Michael Brown right now. The endless effort he and his team at Postal Performance have poured into this year’s UCC build was rewarded with a very successful visit to Firepunk Diesel’s chassis dyno. Not only did the regular cab Ram clear 1,957 hp on fuel, but with very little nitrous sprinkled in it made a whopping 2,698 hp and blew past last year’s UCC number (2,457 hp). It also earned Michael the top spot on Firepunk’s infamous leader board. The near-2,000 hp number on fuel is proof that Michael’s compound turbo’d, Enforcer series D&J Cummins is getting the most out of its Exergy CP3’s and the latest set of competition injectors from Flux Diesel Injection.
Transmission Tech
10R140 (TorqShift) Vs. 10L1000 (Allison)
They’re the same yet different. Call them “paternal twins,” according to Calibrated Power Solutions‘ 10-speed technician, Jared Ewert. Spearheading CPS’s transition toward building more 10L1000 Allisons, Jared has become highly familiar with the GM 10-speed’s worst pattern problems. These include gouging of the aluminum main drum, burnt up E-clutches, imploding bushings and, on ’22 and older models, rampant valve body issues. Remedies for these problems include hard anodized coatings being available for the main drum, as well as a steel insert to resist internal drum wear, machining to accommodate additional clutches and frictions in the E-clutch assembly, and complete, aftermarket replacement valve bodies. But not so fast, Ford owners. you’re nowhere near in the clear with your 10-speed TorqShift. According to Jared’s interview on the Diesel Performance Podcast, 10R140 failures are beginning to pile up as the miles continue to climb on ’20-newer Super Duty’s…
Coming Soon
A Budget-Friendly, Stand-Alone ECU Option
Bet you didn’t see this coming. Since late 2024, Exergy Performance has been working hand-in-hand with ECUMaster to develop a budget-friendly, stand-alone ECU option for diesel owners. After putting an EMU Pro ECU and diesel driver through its paces over the past few months—effectively exploring and expanding on its capabilities in lower horsepower setups—Exergy is targeting a release date for the fourth quarter of 2026, and possibly even Q3. As an entry-level stand-alone option, look for this arrangement to support milder horsepower applications—at least initially. In time, and as both parties continue to pour more R&D into the project, look for the Exergy/ECUMaster stand-alone arrangement to support nearly everything a full-blown Bosch Motorsport system can.
7.3L Tech Talk With The Big Guns
What happens when you ask a renowned 7.3L engine builder to share the floor with a premier 7.3L tuner and do it in what has essentially become the industry’s 7.3L turbo headquarters? In this case, you get Kill Devil Diesel’s Jared Alderson and Matt Robinson of Gearhead Tuning talking engine efficiency at KC Turbos. At the forefront of the conversation was airflow, a timely subject being that Kill Devil Diesel recently brought its Delta Series CNC ported 7.3L heads to market. Not only do KDD’s ported (and O-ringed) heads flow 40-percent more air than stock, but they promote the kind of efficient, in-cylinder swirl that limits smoke while simultaneously maximizing horsepower. On top of that, they allow the same (or more) horsepower to be made at lower boost levels—meaning life is made that much easier for the engine. Watch the in-depth conversation in its entirety here.
Written by Mike McGlothlin
