DW Performance is a MBRP Performance Exhaust Distributor!

When I started writing this blog it was my goal to make a post at least once a week. Little did I know I was going to be busier than a one-armed paper hanger this year, which is a great thing!

Just to bring you up to speed; we have decided to sign as a warehouse distributor for MBRP, Inc. MBRP is a manufacturer of performance exhaust systems for both diesel and gas applications. I am very excited about this new vendor, it’s going to greatly expand our exhaust offering. We have been working feverishly to get all the new part numbers loaded in our system and on the web site which takes loads of time. Along with MBRP Performance Exhaust, we have also decided to take on Pacbrake, which offers exhaust brakes for light and medium duty applications as well as Jacobs replacement parts and air bags for heavy hauling.

Besides setting up new vendors to add to our arsenal of performance products I have also been working on some pretty cool projects from a custom upgrade turbo for a customer that specializes in Audi’s to a high output twin turbo Porsche. Even the tractor pulling business is picking up earlier than normal.

Apparently the word is getting out that DW Performance is becoming a leader in the gas and diesel performance world! Keep it coming!

Put The (Exhaust) Brakes On!

Light and medium duty exhaust brakes could be one of the most misunderstood products in the DW Performance arsenal.  A couple of years ago I attended the BD Diesel dealer boot camp and dyno days. While there I spoke with many fellow dealers from out west and all of them raved about their exhaust brake sales. Now I realize with mountain ranges like the Rockies and the Cascades there is a definite need to be able to stop your load but we are not exactly flat here in the northeast.

Let me back up for a minute and explain what an exhaust brake is and how it works. There are many vendors out there for exhaust brakes, but aside from each company’s little design changes, they all generally work the same way. Its is a common misconception that an exhaust brake is the same a ”Jake Brake” which is a brand name (Jacobs) that is commonly used on larger over the road trucks. Although the principle is the same, they way they work is very different.  A Jake Brake modifies the timing on the exhaust valves so that, when braking is desired, the exhaust valves open right as the piston reaches the top of the compression stroke. The energy gathered in the compressed air is released, so the compression stroke actually provides braking power. With an exhaust brake nothing is installed internally on the engine, instead it is typically installed on the outlet side of the turbocharger or further downstream in the exhaust . The exhaust brake slows the vehicle by retarding the engine’s ability to push out (exhaust) compression. There is a butterfly valve in the brake that closes when the brake is activated, which causes the back up of compression into the engine, in turn slowing the RPMs. The slowing of the RPMs causes the vehicle to slow thru the attached drive train. The use of an exhaust brake can make your vehicle’s brakes last up to three times longer.

Without an exhaust brake you could end up here

We have sold and installed some exhaust brakes here at D&W but  nowhere near the numbers you see out west. The common misconception I typically hear is “my vehicle has a tow/haul setting, I don’t need an exhaust brake”. Your vehicle’s tow/haul feature works by downshifting the transmission to slow your vehicle, although effective, this method does not stop your vehicle like an exhaust brake. The customers that have had the brake installed love them, with the added stopping power and control they cant imaging towing without them. Not to mention the savings in wear and tear on your vehicle.

Although we do not have the mountains they do out west,  if you do any towing with your diesel pickup I highly suggest you seriously look at installing an exhaust brake on your rig. You will not be disappointed!

UPDATE: The hard work has paid off, as DWPerformance has signed on as a retailer for Pacbrake and MBRP!  These parts will be available on www.dwperformance.com soon, and are available now by calling us at 888.296.8074

Bully Dogs GT Tuner

Now that the holidays are over and I am starting to get a little caught up with ongoing projects, I thought I would take a little time to talk about the newest tuner from Bully Dog. The GT Tuner was initially released at the SEMA show in 2008 but we dealers didn’t have them in our hands until around January of 09. Over the last year I have had the opportunity to be involved with many installations of this product and all I can say is “congratulations Bully Dog, you hit it out of the park with this one!”  Bully Dog has always striven to be the ”first to market” with their products and in the past my opinion has been, although they were the first, they were not always the best. This one, however, is both first and best.The first downloader / monitor combo Bully Dog released was the Triple Dog with Outlook Monitor Combo. To my knowledge this was the first product that offered multiple monitor capabilities, on the fly horsepower adjustment (with Triple Dog) and automatic de-fueling if your pyrometer temps get too high. When these worked, they worked decently at best…. The single “joystick” style control was clunky and difficult for larger fingers to control and the durability of these units wasn’t the greatest either; we saw many warranty issues with these units (which I will add Bully Dog took care of with out too many hassles).

The next “hot” product Bully Dog released was the PMT (Performance Management Tool). This really revolutionized the tuner market, being the first downloader and monitor all in one unit! There were a bunch of new features with this unit which included many more de-fueling parameters, monitoring capabilities and design features. But as with the Outlook there are some issues. We have had multiple harness and OBD2 plug warranties as well as issues with the cradles and monitors. In my opinion there are just too many connections with this set up that are way too fragile for the environment they live in.

The latest release from the master minds at Bully Dog is the GT Tuner. As I said earlier I really believe Bully Dog did their homework on this one. The packaging of this unit is very retail friendly, it looks good and it allows the customer to preview the functionality at the counter while the product is still in the package. The installation of the GT Tuner is like no other. On 08 and up trucks with DPF (Diesel Particulate Filters) the install is as simple as suction cupping the unit to your window, running one wire to a fuse tap and plugging into the OBD2 port. For earlier trucks without DPF you will just need to add the optional pyrometer kit. Now for the functionality: once again this unit is like no other! It is a downloader and monitor all in one which means you get all the functionality of the PMT but in a smaller and in my opinion more rugged package. On top of all the normal features Bully Dog has also added their all new Driving Coach Software to the GT. This software allows you to grade your driving style and show you how to drive more economically and in turn receive better fuel economy. The GT works on MOST trucks, Bully Dog will tell you it works on all light duty diesel trucks from about 2003 to 2009 but I know from experience the 2008 and 2009 are still hit and miss especially on the 6.4L Fords. The GT, like their other models is internet upgradable so if it doesn’t work for your vehicle initially, eventually they will have a tune for you!

All in all the GT Tuner is one of the best products that has been released from Bully Dog in a while. If you are looking for a good reliable downloader with monitoring capabilities then the GT Tuner is the unit for you!

Check all of these products at www.dwperformance.com

Happy Holidays!

Wishing you and your a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year!! I hope you get all the hot rod parts you asked for, for Christmas.

The Elusive Whitetail II

This year's doe with my future hunter

Good news!! My family isn’t going to starve this winter! I was able to bring home the venison! Just kidding we were never going to starve but I was getting frustrated with my hunting abilities. Last Saturday I went out with some buddies to do some driving or as some call it pushing. Basically you surround a piece of woods with “watchers” and the send a few people through said piece of woods and hope to push or drive the deer to the watchers. On one particular drive I was a watcher and was lucky enough to have a nice mature doe pushed out to me and was able to harvest her! This week and weekend are late bow and muzzleloader season, so I might take the old smoke pole out and try for one more. Could be a long winter…

As for the performance world: things are good. This, typically being our slower time of year, gives me a chance to do some of the things that I can’t do during the “hot” season. So I have been loading new parts in our system and checking out new vendor opportunities. I just recently updated our clearance section at DW Performance and loaded a whole bunch of parts, I recommend you take a moment to check them out!