First Gen Dodge D350

A Crew Cab Dodge Packing An Allison, Air-Ride, And Late-Model Interior

In less than a year, Chris Ohl purchased a First Gen Cummins-powered ’82 Dodge D350, tore it down to a bare frame, and rebuilt it to his liking. In the process, he put together the first-gen dually he’d always wanted. A fresh 12-valve 5.9L Cummins sits under the hood and is ready for a million miles of service. It’s backed by an Allison transmission that has been prepped to do the same. For heavy hauling, the rear suspension is four-linked and bagged. And for utmost comfort in the four-door cab, fourth-gen leather (and power) seats provide a plush ride. It’s a fully functional, old-school dually that was built to tow anything, anywhere—and do it in style.

First-Gen 5.9L

With an unknown history behind the P-pumped 12-valve that was in the truck when he bought it, Chris erred on the side of playing it safe and replaced the Cummins with the one he had sitting in the corner of the shop. First, however, the ’93 model year 5.9L took a ride to Scheid Diesel for a complete rebuild. From the oil pan to the one-piece, billet aluminum valve cover-up top, the overhaul featured a mix of factory parts and aftermarket upgrades. The block was machined to accept fire rings, the forged-steel factory rods were shot-peened, graced with ARP rod bolts, and topped off with stock compression, cast-aluminum Mahle pistons. Scheid improved the valvetrain with one of its street cams, heavy-duty pushrods, and stiffer valve springs.

5.9L Cummins fire-ringed, ARP rod bolts, stock compression, Mahle cast-aluminum pistons, Scheid’s street cams, cylinder head, heavy-duty valve springs, ARP head studs — Although the truck had already been Cummins-swapped when Chris Ohl got his hands on it, he decided to make the ’82 Dodge D350 his own and started with a fresh 5.9L. After enlisting the help of Scheid Diesel, a ground-up engine was put together based on the core ’93 Cummins Chris provided them. At Scheid, the block was fire-ringed, a set of shot-peened factory 12-valve rods were equipped with ARP rod bolts and connected to stock compression, Mahle cast-aluminum pistons, and one of Scheid’s drop-in street cams went in. Up top, a cylinder head fitted with heavy-duty valve springs anchors to the block by way of ARP head studs.

Benched VE & 5x13s

Sticking with the Bosch VE pump, Chris had the folks at Scheid Diesel treat it to a refresh as well as several fueling tweaks. The 12mm rotary pump now sports a modified fuel pin, makes use of a 4,000-rpm governor spring kit, and sends fuel to a set of Scheid’s Lightning injectors. Each injector is fitted with a 5x.013-inch nozzle, which is conservative enough to tow with but serious enough to get the truck into the 400hp range. A 100-gph Air Dog II low-pressure fuel supply system routes diesel through ½-inch lines and maintains ample pressure for the VE pump.

Subscribe Our Weekly Newsletter

Dodge 5.9L Cummins with Bosch VE, Scheid Diesel 12mm rotary pump, 4,000-rpm governor spring kit, modified fuel pin, 5x0.013-inch nozzle Lightning injectors — No, it’s not P-pumped, but with a goal of 400 to 450 hp, it didn’t need to be. For the tow-rig duties Chris has in store for his old Dodge, the Bosch VE will suffice just fine. But for a little something extra (of course), the folks at Scheid Diesel went ahead and maxed out the 12mm rotary pump, added a 4,000-rpm governor spring kit, a modified fuel pin, and installed a set of 5×0.013-inch nozzle Lightning injectors downwind of it.

Allison-Swapped

Ushering the old-school Dodge into the modern era, a six-speed Allison 1000 is mated to the First Gen 5.9L Cummins. Sourced from Custom Automatic Conversions, the commercial-grade automatic uses a billet torque converter and benefits from a 10.5-quart Mag-Hytec deep pan. The Allison is also kept cool thanks to a 40-row, Derale Performance Hyper-Cool Extreme auxiliary transmission cooler mounted along the passenger side frame rail. Dash-mounted buttons in the cab control the Allison’s Tow/Haul mode and Overdrive lockout.

57mm S300 BorgWarner turbo, Steed Speed exhaust manifold, Vibrant Performance silicone intercooler boots and stainless steel clamps,Mishimoto intercooler, AEM filter — A 57mm S300 BorgWarner turbo from Scheid sits on a Steed Speed exhaust manifold and crams boost through a Mishimoto intercooler. The Power Stroke-intended air-to-air unit was made to work using a Far From Stock install kit. Vibrant Performance silicone intercooler boots and stainless steel clamps help hold down the fort under boost, and the S300 breathes through a custom intake tube Chris built himself, and that’s topped off with an AEM filter and outerwear.

six-speed Allison 1000, upgraded billet torque converter, Mag-Hytec deep pan — Surprisingly to many, there’s no four-speed Chrysler transmission behind the Cummins, but rather a six-speed Allison 1000 from Custom Automatic Conversions. An upgraded billet torque converter and Mag-Hytec deep-pan help it both handle the torque and remain cool while doing it.

Bombproof Dana 80

Every tow rig’s most important component is arguably the rear axle. Knowing he would usually have a trailer behind him, Chris contacted East Coast Gear Supply for one of the strongest Dana 80s on the market. The axle has been beefed up with a ½-inch wall, 4-3/8-inch diameter axle tubes, 40-spline axle shafts, and an ARB air locker. It also utilizes 4.10 gears, which with the double overdrive of the Allison transmission provides low cruising rpm. The Dana 80 also wears a layer of bed liner coating that Chris applied before installing it.

To further cool the Allison, a 40-row Hyper-Cool Extreme auxiliary transmission cooler sits on the passenger side frame rail. Chris upgraded the remote mount, stacked-plate heat exchanger with higher flowing -8 AN lines, all but guaranteeing his Allison will never see excessive heat.

billet-aluminum oil pan, Kingspeed Race & Repair standard depth pan — For a bit of bling underneath, Chris threw a billet-aluminum oil pan in with his engine build. The fabricated, standard depth pan came from Kingspeed Race & Repair.

Dodge Cummins leaf springs, Far From Stock bolt-on frame brackets, Wide Open Design 7075 aluminum links — With no leaf springs to speak of in the rear, Chris built his own air ride and four-link system. The bolt-on frame brackets were sourced through Far From Stock, while the beefy 7075 aluminum links came from Wide Open Design.

Dodge Ram four-link rear suspension, 7-inch diameter Firestone air bags, dual Viair compressors, Kelderman’s manual height control valves — An airbag mount kit and 7-inch diameter Firestone airbags with a 125-psi rating came from Far From Stock, while Chris designed his own trac bar. Also notice the Kelderman manual height control valves here, along with the Bilstein shocks and bedliner coating he added.

Air Ride Rear Suspension & Brand-New IFS Relying on names like Kelderman, Far From Stock, and Wide Open Designs, and thanks to his own homegrown fabrication skills, Chris pieced together a well-designed four-link rear suspension with air ride. The 7-inch diameter Firestone airbags are inflated courtesy of dual Viair compressors and the system also features Kelderman’s manual height control valves to maintain proper ride height. Upfront, the factory IFS arrangement was retained, albeit with new parts and components from head to toe. Among other things, this entailed fresh wheel bearings and sway bar bushings, but also 2-inch taller coil springs, the corresponding extended length shocks, and isolators from Far From Stock, which made the truck sit level.

East Coast Gear Supply’s 40-spline Dana 80, chromoly 40-spline axle shafts, 4.10 gears, ARB air locker — You can never overbuild an axle for a tow rig, and Chris pulled out all the stops in this category by opting for East Coast Gear Supply’s 40-spline Dana 80 monstrosity. It boasts ½-inch wall axle tubes that are 4-3/8-inch in outer diameter, chromoly 40-spline axle shafts, 4.10 gears, and an ARB air locker. A one-ton big brake kit was also included, complete with 13-inch rotors.

Far From Stock upper control arms, 2-inch leveling kit — Upfront, all new suspension exists, with Far From Stock upper control arms and a 2-inch leveling kit (springs, shocks, isolators) getting the call. Fresh Timken wheel bearings, new sway bar bushings, a hydro boost conversion for the braking system, and a Red Head steering box also helped update the truck.

A Fully Restored First Gen Classic

While the First Gen truck was Cummins-powered and already equipped with an Allison when he bought it, Chris still tore the truck down to a bare frame after he brought it home. During that process, the frame was blasted and powder coated, he undercoated the cab, fenders and bed, repainted the firewall, inner fenders and core support, and then gutted the interior, added Dynamat, and installed fresh carpet. In short, he performed a full-on, frame-off restoration in order to build the truck he envisioned—and he did it all within a year’s time. His fabrication skills, wrenching ability, attention to detail, and overall aesthetic taste are all a part of the finished project. Chris’s Cummins-powered, Allison-shifted, crew cab definitely adds a unique twist to the first-gen’s timeless charm.