looked at kodiak with 3208 motor, you folks have me a bit hesitant on motor truck is great shape--mint with 50k, this other truck going to make another 2 hour commute to check out wed, doesn't look to be as good a shape but has a 20 ton trailer that come with it for less money then to kodiak. Both have air breaks, how is the int. 6.9 liter motor.
It's an s1600
I'm not quite sure what you are doing with it, but all things being equal I would take a 3208 over a 6.9. The 3208 is a much stouter motor. The 6.9 is basically the same one that went in pickup trucks. The 3208 is 10.4 liters displacement.
International s1600 Hi Kirt, Welcome to a new member from another relatively new member. I own a 1986 s1600 with the 6.9, bolted to a 5 speed with a split rear axle and have been driving this truck for about a year and a half now. I like the truck with the exception of it seeming somewhat underpowered when hauling a full load (8 yds) of material, or when trailering my mid sized loader backhoe. You may have better performance with the 8 speed transmission. I'm interested in how you make out with this. Maybe take some pics?
That's a nice looking IH. The 6.9 is the same engine that was used in pickups from '83-87. In 1988 the bore was increased to gain 7.3 liters and other subtle upgrades were made like upping the head bolt diameter from 7/16 to 1/2" These engines are by no means monsters in the power department, 180hp N/A, 250 crank hp is about max with a turbo, good pump and injectors. The 7.3 in my pickup puts 217hp at the rear wheels with a turbo and that is a very respectable number. The medium duty engines are governed at about 2,800rpm's compared to the pickup's 32-3,300rpm's On the up side, with a little care they are pretty darn reliable and parts are very cheap compared to other engines. I have an '87 C70 Chevy dump. It has the 8.2 Detroit fuel pincher engine, naturally aspirated. It too has the 5 speed split rear combo. It's a slug and I am certain that I could get a turbo'ed 6.9/7.3 to walk all over it. Of course I would like to see what the 8.2 could do with a turbo as well. I do not know a whole bunch about the Cat 3208. I do know my brother steered away from anything Cat powered because he said the parts were outrageously priced. He wound up getting a DT466 IH. The 6.9 is an aged engine at this point and you need to know what parts to get for it and where to get them. For example, the OEM Motorcraft/Beru glowplugs are really the only ones you want to use, others will swell and break off in the head when you need to service them down the road. There are also many companies that are building sub par injection pumps for these engines. Oilburners.net has more information on these engines than any other place on earth and the moderators keep the place real nice, similar to the HEF. Its always a pleasure and you will have answers in about 5 minutes when you post a thread over there. The stickys have faq's and other good readings about these engines. I would jump at the opportunity to get a 6.9/7.3 International dump. It will definitely be under powered, especially compared to anything newer, but I know that engine better than any other diesel and a turbo will make them livable. I know for fact of a wrecker operator that logged and documented 980,000 miles on a 7.3 in an F-superduty rollback. They can take a beating they are just old and most want more power than they can deliver.
drove a mid 80 IH 4900 with the dt466 in it also ran a freightliner with the 3208 cat. the 466 will bury that kitty for power and fuel economy. both were tandem axle trucks with 3800L fuel tanks. the 3208 is still a respectable motor for any medium duty truck but i much prefered the 466 just not the 6 plus tranny backing it up. ford truck engines are made by navstar another name for IH.
I appreciate your knowlege of these engines and wonder if my little 6.9 could be fitted with a turbo, and would the benefits be worth the cost. I'm planning on keeping this truck cuz I like it! Thanks for your time and consideration with this.
You can find a turbo kit for about $800-$1000 in good used condition. Banks, Hypermax and ATS were the three most common companies to offer kits for these engines. With a good pump and injectors, you should see a 50% gain in HP. I would intercool the truck as well and make sure to run boost and pyro gauges. An injection pump from a pickup will up your governed rpms from 2800 to 3300ish. The engine is plenty capable of handling all of this as well. Go to http://conestogadiesel.com/ for your pump and injectors. I have met the owner, Mel, numerous times and he has a great deal of time vested into the injection system on these engines. If you decide to turbo the truck, you will have to turn up the fuel screw to give her some added fuel to go with the new found boost. Good luck with your truck, if you are interested in more information, http://oilburners.net/ has a ton of it and the site is very friendly as well.
Thanks for the speedy reply. It seems as though the cost of this is within reason too. Obviously need to find all the necessary components, and then someone qualified to do this type of work. Not having a lot of background in diesel technology, could you help me out with the intercool thing? I've heard of the term before, but am not sure about what is involved. Does the turbo go on the intake or exhaust side? Again, not sure, but I thought I'd heard of them being applied one way or the other. I appreciate your patience with all my questions. I looked in on the Conestoga guys, good information there. Tried to register with Oilburners, but the site is closed to new members I guess. Thanks again and Best Regards for the New Year!
If you do intend to keep and work this truck for any amount of time do yourself a huge favor and replace those tube type bias tires with tubeless radials. Yes you will need new wheels(22.5X8.25 or 22.5X7.5) but they are abundant used.
Oilburners should not be closed to new members. PM me and let me know what the issues are. I have phone numbers for a couple of moderators so we can take quick care of any issues. Tireman is right with the 20" tires. I ditched mine for 265/75-22.5's on Budd style rims. It's a good upgrade.