Long over due for a new project vehicle, we had a hard time with our choice for the 1997 project vehicle. With the ever popular Dodge/Cummins trucks and the Ford Power Strokes battling it out for top dog in the tow vehicle market, it was a very hard choice. There is so much potential for both of these engines and lots of good performance products becoming available. Dodge won out for this year, maybe when the new Ford body style is available in '98 our next project will be truck a Ford Power Stroke.

We of course have added all of our goodies that have made it a ground pounding - tire shredding - monster. The list of performance products includes our Davis/Cummins power upgrade kit, a Banks Powerpack, a Gear Vendor over/under auxiliary transmission, and a host of other secret tricks. On our dynamometer we had already seen some of our modified Dodge/Cummins engines go well over 300+ hp and 800 ft pounds of torque! Our new project truck boasts 365 hp and 985 ft pounds of torque. Other popular accessories include a PAC engine exhaust brake, and a full array of ISSPRO and VDO test instruments and gauges to monitor the performance of the vehicles vitals. Some special suspension and handling improvements include Bilstein shock absorbers, a Kelderman Air Ride suspension and a few other goodies that make it the ultimate tow vehicle!

Of course we have not forgotten to make it look pretty as well, something that will help those out there see what a special project truck can look like.

Why have such a special truck if it doesn't have anything to pull? We answered that question with a 30' wide body, 3 axle Wells Cargo enclosed trailer. The trailer, loaded weighs in just about 17,000 pounds for a combined GCVWR of the truck and trailer at just under 27,000 pounds. The combined weight of both the Dodge truck and the Wells Cargo trailer ensures that the performance products used by us will withstand the every day rigors of hauling the heaviest of 5th wheelers or trailers safely down the road.

Eric's RV Performance Center has also been using the truck and trailer to haul and display those performance aftermarket products, that you all want to see, to your favorite rally and RV shows. At the rallys and shows where outside display areas are available, the trailer is used as a walk through display outfitted as a mini showroom. We do of course haul our Chevrolet P-30 motorhome display chassis on which we have a full assortment of goodies, along with Chevrolet and Ford gas engines equipped with Banks Powerpacks, and our popular diesel accessories. We also display RV accessories, Roadmaster (formerly Ipd suspension products, auxiliary transmission coolers and gear splitters, DSS satellite systems, and much more.

The trailer has lighting, cooling, awnings, and a separate shop space and tool room to work out of for doing some repairs and installations at rallies, and storage for parts inventory.

The 1997 Dodge Ram 3500 dually arrived on 13th of January, only four weeks late, leaving little time to get ready for the first road trip to Quartzsite, AZ– 1476 miles from Sequim, WA. The truck looked kind of naked as we drove it from the dealer lot. We ordered it white - it came black. It looked pretty clean but after the trip down I5 and across I10 with only 2600 miles on it it sure is hard to keep clean. The first thing we needed to do is get some miles on it before we started in on the performance upgrades. A trip to Tacoma was the first to pick up the our new 30' Wells Cargo three axle trailer. A few more long drives in the evening and we began working on it day and night. In the matter of 10 days the truck accumulated 1500 miles enough for Buster and Chris, our diesel performance specialists, and the rest of the crew to begin installing all the performance enhancements.

First was the Banks Powerpack which gave us a gain of approximately 35 more horsepower. Then we loaded it up with a two whole panels of gauges - pyrometer - for measuring exhaust gas temperatures both before and after the turbo, a boost gauge - for measuring the turbo boost, engine oil temperature, transmission oil temperature, exhaust brake back pressure, and a few more for special measurements that we will be doing.

The next project was a PAC exhaust brake, and a Gear Vendor overdrive - including a gauge to measure the Gear Vendor fluid temperatures. Having 9 forward gears out of a 5 speed manual transmission proved interesting but also a dream to drive when pulling the trailer. We also installed a new quick turbo on the drawing board at Gale Banks Engineering which may find itself to market later this year.

Dyno testing before any of our modifications revealed that the stock engine could not put out the rated 215 hp Dodge shows in their literature - more like 185 hp at the rear wheels. After the above improvements for performance, including a few key adjustments and some modifications installed into the injection pump we were almost ready for the road!

The truck still looked naked. A trip to the Van Factory in Puyallup, WA gave it a black Lund sun visor and molded fenders and running boards. On the way back we stopped and had Rhino Lining applied to the bed. On the drive home we realized that you can't see anything from the stock Dodge mirrors. After searching all our product catalogs it was really hard to find anything to replace the stock mirrors that would look not too tacky. A few phone calls to some of our suppliers found just the type of mirrors that we wanted. A company called Power Vision makes a really neat after market mirror conversion that replaced the stock Dodge mirrors. Power Vision mirrors are not only very attractive looking. they provide about 25% more viewing area and they extend out 6 inches with the touch of a switch adjustable from the drivers seat, allowing the driver to see the entire length of a 102" wide trailer. The also have a breakaway feature in case you get too close to something forward or while backing. They also have a fold away feature. Driving with these mirrors is a real pleasure.

We quickly realized the trip to Quartzsite would required more fuel stops than the support motorhome that would house us on the trip. This was quickly solved by installing a 64.7 gallon diamond plated aluminum Transfer Flow fuel tank. Another necessity was covering the product displays and literature that would fit in the truck bed so after the Rhino Lining we added a Leer XL canopy - black to match of course.

We really hustled to ready the truck the trailer and a bunch of new displays. We assembled, packed and loaded everything in the trailer Saturday and Sunday and got a few hours sleep before leaving early Monday - tail lights down the road before the sun came up.

The truck and trailer performed flawlessly the whole trip - with a quick stop to adjust the equalizer bars one more link tighter. Over the the Siskeu mountain pass - then over the notorious "Grape Vine" in California we pulled at 50-53 mph in 4th overdrive - which we thought not too bad considering that a trip across the truck scales revealed that we grossed in at a combined vehicle rate of 26,800 pounds. Not only did the engine and truck perform great but the addition of the PAC exhaust brake allowed us to descend down the long passes without the use of the vehicle service brakes - except to stop at the gas pumps and a couple of stop lights in Sacramento.

We made a few stops in the Los Angeles basin to check out new products and a tour of Gale Banks Engineering in Azusa to see some things that most of you may see in the coming year or two. There is a tremendous amount of great talent and engineering required to bring quality products to market.

After a day in Los Angeles it was back on the road towards Quartzsite - via Desert Hot Springs for a soak in the mineral hot springs. By morning it was down the road to Quartzsite again arriving on Thursday before the 9 day show starting on Saturday, February 1st.