Need opinions on Water Mist injection vs. 97+ cooling mods?

[Shaun091382]

Anyone have any opinions or advice about the water mist injection kit for the 6.5td vs. the 97+ cooling mods? thanks,

Shaun

[JoeyD]

I would do the 97 cooling mods anyway, water injection or not. The cooling mods give more flow to the heads to prevent cracks, it also makes the motor run cooler.

Who's water injection kit were you going to use?

[GARY PAGE]

Interesting question you bring up. Bennie Avant was working with some folks trying to set a land speed record for the 6.5 and he mentioned the use of alcohol and water spray in the turbo path (bug spray). I assumed it cooled the charge air. What else do you know about this? It seems logical it would cool the air charge. Is it possible if metered in time of a hot air charge one could use this in place of a intercooler? I don

[DogDiesel]

I think FIRST--you have to ask the question:
What will I use my diesel for?
Racing? Daily dependable driving? Towing?

I recently returned from a recent trip towing, and my average between fill-ups was 700 miles. HMMHHMM. I put an extra tank so that the only reason I need to stop is to take a break, and I can shop for fuel versus desperate fill-up buying. I can stop, take a break without filling up...

With my intercooler, my truck is incredibly cool, and I do not require a water tank.

Diesel weighs about 8 pounds per gallon, so my 50 gallon extra tank taxes my GVWR 400 lbs, and since water weighs about 6 lbs to a gallon, a 50 gallon cooler tank would be an additional 300 lb tax. 700 lbs I cannot tow.

While I have listened to the arguements, and do not protest the benifits of water mist cooling, of nitro and propane providing extra power to diesels with reduced smoke, I will not be racing.

I installed my intercooler seven years ago, and it provides the same benifits today, as upon first installed. Hopefully it will not wear out in the life of this truck.

Setting land speed records and racing are events but they are not events that happen on the road, where diesels provide their efficent service. Hopefully.
I want a truck that can pull a large load up a ten mile or more 7% or higher grade without overheating or backing out of the throttle. I don't wanna be worring about small stuff.

Imagine that desperate feeling you get when your needle points to empty, and you don't see a fuel stop. Mirror that when your temps start climbing and you realize you need to stop for water.
Or worse, you do not realize, and a headgasket gives way in "ten-buck-two."
My vote- the intercooler.

Wayne
PS: The 97 plus cooling mods work. No regrets on installation. Imagine long-winded (arguments) from me that say install them, you won't regret installing them, they work (but you don't have to read the long post-cause there is no need to write them).

[rjschoolcraft]

DogDiesel:

Good post. I can't imagine having a water tank big enough to keep the water mist on for the whole time between fuel stops even on my Suburban with factory 42 gallon tank while towing.

One correction, though. Water is actually 8.345 lb/gal and diesel is around 6.5 lb/gal. It looks like you got them reversed in your post.

[cruzer]

My vote is with 97 cooling. I doesnt effect the reliabilty of the engine and allows for good foundation for added performance in the future. I'm for more fuel/boost w/intercooler, big exhaust and proper cooling for my reliable tow vehicle. I would think once you do water mist you are kinda stuck with it. What other mods do you do to get more power? Maybe exhaust? I can't imagine you would be able to get the power I have, or others w/similar mods, just by water. I will have to say, I am not familiar w/water mist other than a cooler charge and water taking the place of air to increase compression.Alot of us are doing this in a more traditional & proven way.

Just think'n about it makes my head hurt.

[HowieE]

I think we missed a point here. Water injection is ot used on a 1 to 1 ratio with diesel so the weight calculations that compared the tank sizes was unnecessary. Even while towing you would only need water on demand as in climbing a hill or passing.
My truck is propane assisted and if water can produce comparable results I would consider it a worthwhile project especialy if you are towing a camper which already has water on board. Using the camper tank would be no harder than my using my propane tanks on the camper.

[rjschoolcraft]

It's 315 miles from Las Vegas to Lone Pine, CA. I towed that stretch (across the Mojave Desert) in early June. If nearly all of the posts from the past years were'nt gone, you could have read about my experience. At that time, I had the HO water pump and dual thermostat cooling mods, a clean radiator, a Kennedy chip, K&N filter and Banks exhaust. My truck ran hot all the way across there. I had to stop twice to let it cool down. For the water mist to work, it would have been need for the entire 315 miles (plus more in other areas on that trip). I bucked a head wind and had to pull several grades along that route. I now have added a Kennedy fan clutch and late model 20" steel fan and Kennedy intercooler. The cooling performance is significantly improved. While I haven't been back to Mojave yet, the towing around here and down into Tennesee shows significant improvement in both performance and cooling from before.

I don't think that the water mist is a viable solution to real, over-the-road towing demands. If it were, the semi's would be using it. As I've stated before, I have been involved in using it on aircraft for improved take off performance...but it is only used for short periods of time during take off, then it's shut off. Besides, it's one more thing to keep filling up.

[GARY PAGE]

As I said he brought up an interesting point. As for the racings impact on the automotive world it

[cruzer]

Isn't water injection/mist used for added power
rather than cooling? I would think that using it
you will get more power and not get hot as quick,
but temps would still rise. I know at tractor pulls they use it for power. Power=heat? I can't
believe it's an equal trade off.

[tom.mcinerney]

Since water is (with CO2) one of the primary endproducts of hydrocarbon combustion, its addition to the charge should slightly retard combustion.
I believe the commercial airlines experimented with water injection on air cooled IC radials for cooling; it was helpful if only used rarely. Used often can promote sludge on rings and oil, i think.
'97 mods & fan/clutch first, then intercooler if need. All that won't much help if heat exchangers are'nt clean, unobstructed.