Proper Installation of an EGT Probe

Edge Products is one of the most popular and well-known brands of diesel tuners, a reputation they have earned over more than a decade of superior products and customer service.   Edge sends out a dealer newsletter each month, and they recently gave a very concise and insightful "Tech Tip" as part of that newsletter detailing the steps necessary to install an exhaust gas temperature (EGT) probe into your diesel manifold.  All Edge Juice with Attitude tuners come with an EGT probe, and they are an optional accessory upgrade for the Edge Evolution programmers as well as the Edge Insight monitors.

Here are the instructions they give.

1)  Let the engine and manifold cool down before installing the probe to help prevent any burns from hot parts.

2) Make sure you have all your tools needed to install the probe.  You don't want to get halfway done and realize you need to go to the store for a tap!  Tools required to install the EGT probes are:  Drill, 1/8 National Pipe Tap, 21/64" drill bit (5/16" optional), 9/16" wrench, Phillips head screwdriver, pliers or crescent wrench, safety glasses, grease/cutting oil, and protective clothing.

3) Set park brake before going under the truck.  If you raise the truck in the air, make sure proper blocking stands or jacks are in place.

4) Determine where the best location is for tapping the manifold.  The supplied instruction will help you find the location based on your vehicle.  In order to get to the desired location you may have to remove truck parts.

5) One effective way to avoid metal fragment contamination in your engine manifold is to apply grease in the tip of the drill bit and threads of your tap tool when drilling/tapping the hole in your manifold.  Reduce pressure on the drill when the drill breaks through the manifold wall to reduce risk of pushing metal chips into the manifold.

6) Drill a 21/64" (5/16" optional) hole through the manifold wall, and then use the pipe tap to cut the threads.  The pipe tap is tapered, so you will only want to turn the tap until the bottom threads of the tap are slightly deeper than flush with the inside of the exhaust manifold wall.  Use caution not to tap too deep since this would cause the thermocouple fitting and probe to sit too deep.  (Tap deep enough to allow 3+ full threads of fitting to seat in manifold.)
  
7) After the manifold has been drilled and tapped, remove the fitting from the Thermocouple and install by tightening the tapered thread end into the manifold with a 9/16" end wrench.  (Ideally the tip of the fitting would be less than  or flush with the inside of the exhaust flow path.)  Tighten the fitting so that it is securely seated.  Then install the probe into the fitting and tighten the top nut of the fitting just tight enough to keep the probe firmly mounted.  Make sure that the probe cable is positioned to allow best path and minimal bending,  for cable routing to the top of the engine compartment.

8) CAUTION: Do not bend the probe after installed.  If needed, loosen the probe nut, adjust the probe, and re-tighten.  Bending the probe tubing will result in a faulty probe.

9) Now that the probe is installed, hook it to your new Juice box or the EAS. Remember with Edge EAS you can install up to 8 EGT probes if you need/want!

If you have questions about any Edge programmers for your truck, or need help with any other diesel performance parts, trust the pros at Parleys Diesel Performance.

VW Jetta TDI Performance & Economy Upgrades - Part V

People often ask us if it's worth their money and their time installing performance diesel parts like cold air intakes, programmers and exhaust systems.  We wanted to help newcomers and skeptics alike see that there really is money to be saved and a better driving experience waiting for them with just a few easy to install aftermarket upgrades.  Obviously for many VW TDI owners, diesel fuel economy is a primary motivation.

This is the 5th and concluding blog post about installing an AFE intake into a 2012 VW Jetta TDI Sedan.   If you haven't read them yet, we recommend starting at the beginning with the 1st Post.  If you've already viewed parts 1 through 4, read on.

In part 4, we measured an increase in fuel economy of 2.48 MPG on a mostly uphill trip of 217 miles from St. George Utah to Ely Nevada.  While in Ely the car was used so little that we didn't put more fuel into it after our fill up with the odometer at 1141 miles.  Here's a picture again of that odometer reading with a full tank of fuel.

On the trip back to St. George we again drove normally, averaging about 72 mph.  Temperatures were very nice, with about 55 degrees in Ely and 85 degrees when we arrived in St. George.  We didn't fill the tank up until the next day, and when we did the odometer was now at 1363 miles.

So the total trip distance was 1361 minus 1141, or 222 miles.  On our original test trip with the stock Jetta TDI, we had driven 220 miles.  The difference in trips was due to a very small amount of around town driving while in Ely.  Now let's check out the amount of fuel pumped.

With 222 miles driven on 5.012 gallons of diesel fuel, the return trip with the AFE 2.0L TDI intake installed works out to 44.29 miles per gallon.  In blog post 2 of this series, we reported fuel mileage of 41.30 mpg with the stock Jetta sedan.  So with the AFE intake our fuel mileage increase by 2.99 mpg on this trip.  

Just like before, we decided to figure out a combined mpg trip average.  439 total miles traveled (217 going, 222 coming) with 10.646 gallons of diesel used (5.634 going + 5.012 returning) equates to a trip average of 41.23 mpg.  The original trip average was 38.50 mpg, meaning with the AFE cold air intake we improved our overall fuel economy by 2.73 mpg.  And, we had better power and improved turbo spool.  

With results like these, we're convinced that adding an AFE cold air intake is one of the easiest and best ways to get improved VW TDI performance.

Next up, we're excited to test this car out on the soon to be released all new Diesel Power modules for 2012 & 2013 2.0L TDI's.  We're being told a pre-Christmas release date is likely, and since just like many of you we've been waiting over a year for this exciting upgrade, we can't wait!   The new Diesel Power modules for 2011 2.0L TDI's should be available in limited quantities by the 10th of December.  And all preliminary testing shows great driving characteristics, 20% torque gains, and fuel economy improvements too!

VW Jetta TDI Performance & Economy Upgrades - Part IV

Now that we have an AFE Stage 2 Si Cold Air Intake installed in our 2012 VW Jetta TDI Sedan, it's time to see what kind of fuel economy gains we'll get from the intake.  We originally took a trip from St. George Utah to Ely Nevada with a stock car to get a fuel mileage reading.  As mentioned in Part 1, this trip involves a decent amount of uphill driving, and our fuel mileage was 36.03 MPG on the first run.

It was about 100 degrees Fahrenheit in St. George the day we left on our first trip in August.  This trip was in early October, but it was still pretty warm, about 90 degrees.  Temperatures were cooler on the trip, especially as elevation increased.  After filling up the tank, we took a picture of the odometer.  924 miles on the car.

Just like our original trip in August, there was about 800 pounds between people and luggage in the Jetta.   Just like the first trip, we didn't stop much, averaged about 70-75 mph, and just drove "normally."  When we got to Ely we were very interested to see what results, if any, would come from having installed the TDI cold air intake from AFE.  After filling the tank in Ely, we took another picture of the digital readout.

The odometer now read 1,141 miles.  The receipt from our fill up in Ely showed that we had used 5.634 gallons of diesel fuel.

Doing the math, we take 1141 miles minus our starting miles of 924, for a total of 217 miles traveled, exactly the same distance as our original baseline trip.  Dividing 217 miles traveled by 5.634 gallons of diesel fuel, the mileage on our trip with the AFE cold air intake installed was 38.51 miles per gallon.  That's an increase of 2.48 miles per gallon - not too shabby.   Not scientific, either, but our best guess is that the AFE intake gave us a boost in fuel economy as advertised.

In the next part of this blog post thread, we'll see what fuel economy we get on the "downhill" return trip to St. George, and if this almost 2 and a half MPG increase was a fluke, or something we can expect to continue to get.  Thank you for reading, and remember we have a huge selection of performance diesel parts for VW TDI's, Ford, Dodge and GM diesel trucks.

S.E.M.A. 2012 Award Winning Vehicles

One of the best things about being involved in the aftermarket performance diesel parts business is being able to participate in exciting industry conventions where we get to see all of the latest and greatest gadgets and inventions from all of the top manufacturers.  The pinnacle of these get-togethers is the SEMA or Specialty Equipment Market Association convention in Las Vegas each fall.  What better way to spend a week than meeting with old friends and making new ones, all while getting to eyeball literally 1000's of show trucks, muscle cars, off road beasts, you name it. From Ferrari's to F-350's it's all at S.E.M.A.

Each year we like to post pictures of some of our favorites from the S.E.M.A. convention, but to start we thought we would first show you which vehicles took home the coveted SEMA Awards.

Check out our blog in the coming months to see a bunch of pictures of our personal favorites from S.E.M.A.  Now we have to get back to work, and dream about next fall when we get to go to Vegas again.  Until then, give us a call or check out our website for a great selection of diesel tuners, cold air intakes, diesel exhaust systems, and all your diesel performance needs.

VW Jetta TDI Performance & Economy Upgrades

"What fuel economy gains can I expect from this upgrade on my diesel?"  That's a question we hear many times every day, so we've decided to do some rudimentary tests for some of our most popular aftermarket diesel performance parts and report the results back to you via this blog.  

Let's start by looking at a 2012 VW Jetta 2.0L TDI Sedan with an automatic transmission.  Our test car is basically brand new, with less than 250 miles on it.  The first thing we wanted to do is establish a baseline mileage reading on the bone stock vehicle.  To do this we used a trip of approximately 217 miles from St. George Utah (elevation 2941) to Ely Nevada (elevation 6427).  On August 9th 2012, we filled the fuel tank and took a picture of the odometer.

With 244 miles on the odometer, we hit the road with a full tank of diesel with no additives.  Temperature that day was about 100 degrees Fahrenheit in southern Utah.  With 3 people and luggage for a weekend trip, we had about 800 pounds in the car.  The drive is mostly in rural, farmland, or even high Great Basin desert terrain, with minimal traffic and only a handful of stops.  The average speed on the trip was about 70-75 mph, and it seemed that if we had kept to about 65-70 mph our rpm's would have been in a better fuel economy "sweet spot."  However, we just wanted to get where we were going, so mileage wasn't worried about - we just went the speed limit, or maybe a little over. 

After getting to central Nevada, we refilled the tank.

The odometer was now showing 461 miles.  

The receipt from our fill up in Ely showed that we had used 6.022 gallons of diesel.

So the math works like this; 461 miles on the odometer minus 244 miles on the odometer at the start of the trip equals 217 miles traveled on 6.022 gallons of diesel fuel.  Dividing 217 miles by 6.022 gives us a final trip average of 36.03 miles per gallon.

Since this trip takes you up over 3000 feet in elevation we were interested to see what fuel mileage it would get on the return trip with lots of downhill stretches of road.  We're also curious to see what effect "breaking in the engine" over the next year will have on fuel economy.  

Join us for our next blog post where we show you the numbers from our return "downhill" trip with the stock Jetta TDI sedan at the end of the weekend drive.  Thank you.  And don't forget to shop Parleys Diesel Performance for all your VW TDI performance needs.

Banks Ram-Air Intake System for 2010-2012 Dodge Ram 6.7L Cummins

If you own a 2010-2012 Dodge Ram truck with a 6.7L Cummins Diesel engine and have been looking for a sweet deal on a new intake system - Parleys Diesel Performance has one (1) Banks Ram-Air Intake System (Part #42180) available as an "Open Box Item" at the heavily discounted price of $299.00!

Banks Ram-Air Intake System #42180 - $299.00

The intake system is in "New/Like New" condition and includes Free shipping to the Continental U.S. This intake system normally sells for $410.97 which means you save almost $112 off of retail pricing!  To order this open box item, call our sales staff during during our business hours (9am - 5pm M-F MST) at 801-938-4891 Option 1.

Be sure to shop Parleys Diesel Performance for your Cummins performance parts and any other diesel performance part needs.

Edge Products Summer 2012 Sale

New Edge Products Sale Prices!  Now through July 15th, Parleys Diesel Performance has taken 10% off all Edge tuners, programmers, and modules.  In addition to 10% off from Parleys, Edge is kicking the summer savings up another notch with their Summer Kickback mail in rebate program.  

From now until July 15th, You can get a check back for up to $50 on Edge Products tuners.  Here's a breakdown of the rebates:

• $50 back on Edge Juice with Attitude CTS
• $40 back on Edge Juice with Attitude CS
• $25 back on the Edge EvoHT
• $25 back on Edge Evolution CTS and Edge Insight CTS
• $15 back on Edge Evolution CS and Edge Insight CS

Rebate claims must be postmarked by July 31st, 2012.  You can get to the rebate form by clicking on the Summer Kickback banner below.

For all your diesel performance needs, shop at Parleys Diesel Performance.  

More SEMA 2011 Trucks...

We can't wait to see what SEMA 2012 has to offer in the way of new diesel performance parts!  Until then, each week we'll post a few more of our favorite diesel truck photos taken at SEMA 2011.

We love the clean look of this Ram truck.  Judging by the H&S Performance sticker on the back, this is probably a real sleeper with tons of Cummins performance upgrades under the hood.

Parleys Diesel Performance also carries Powerstroke performance upgrades that will take your Ford truck to great heights!

The owner of this truck loves Duramax performance parts.  That's a super sick lift and suspension system he's got there. 


You can check out more SEMA photos on our Facebook page.


Visit Parleys Diesel Performance for all your diesel performance upgrades!

Diesel Vehicle Sales On The Rise

We love diesels. We love the power, the torque, that sweet diesel sound, and the potential for great fuel economy - potential that can be realized simply by installing diesel performance parts on our vehicles. That being said...we came across this interesting article and video yesterday regarding diesel fuel mileage and vehicle sales:

Fox News - Energy In America: Diesel Fueled Cars Making Comeback

Parleys Diesel Performance carries a large selection of diesel performance products to help you increase your diesel fuel mileage. We highly recommend installing a performance diesel cold air intake, diesel exhaust system, and a diesel tuner or programmer to help you get the most out of your diesel!

Visit us today for all your diesel performance upgrades and maximize your vehicle's fuel economy potential.

Excitement growing over SEMA 2012!

SEMA 2012 is just around the corner and we are very excited to see all the new diesel performance products and latest diesel toys. Although we really enjoy just looking at all the sweet rides, we also always come back from attending SEMA with great diesel performance upgrade ideas for our customers.

Here are a few of the awesome diesel trucks we saw at SEMA 2011:

 For improved Duramax diesel performance visit Parleys Diesel Performance.

We've got a great selection of Powerstroke diesel performance upgrades.

And you know we've got all your Cummins diesel performance needs covered!

Visit us today for all of your diesel performance parts needs.