GETTING BULLET PROOFED

INSTALLING A BULLET PROOF DIESEL LEVEL 2 KIT IN A 2004 FORD F-350
People choose diesel-powered rigs for a number of reasons: hauling goods, tremendous pulling power, and overall performance. But what they all have in common is that they want diesels that are reliable. It’s why these trucks regularly hit over 200,000 miles, and if you want your diesel to last longer without seeing common failures, then you need it to be bullet proof.

That’s what Bullet Proof Diesel does: They make diesel engines—particularly the Power Stroke Fords—run like clockwork. By installing their kits, you’ll have a truck that runs well for much longer than it ever would from the dealer, and that’s awesome.

01_BPD1703 — 1 Here’s the original 6.0L under the hood of Pinky’s F-350 in all its glory. First step was disassembly. The fuel filter assembly, turbo, and a bunch more were removed.

04_BPD1703 — 2 The intake manifold plus oil cooler and filter assembly were removed next.

05_BPD1703 — 3 Here’s what we were looking at come the end of disassembly of the engine itself: Everything was cleaned up, taped off, and protected from any debris.

06_BPD1703 — 4 Removing the condenser was up next. After the AC was removed from the system, the lines from the compressor to the condenser were disconnected with a wrench. Note that the tool tray and hood latch were already removed prior to this step.

08_BPD1703 — 5 The Level 2 kit includes all the parts shown here—Bullet Proof Diesel FICM, stainless EGR cooler, remote oil cooler system, oil and fuel filter caps—but that wasn’t all that was on our plate. There were a ton of other goodies, too.

11_BPD1703 — 6 The Bullet Proof oil transfer block—also pink, as you might’ve already noticed—was first for prep, so a new gasket was installed into the base. This part, manufactured in the USA, facilitates removal of the factory oil cooler from the engine’s valley to allow a new cooler to be mounted elsewhere, eliminating the issues that the factory oil cooler was riddled with.

14_BPD1703 — 7 Pinky then installed the oil transfer block in the valley and torqued it down to factory specifications.

16_BPD1703 — 8 Pinky installed her new ODawgs Diesel intake manifold next, which was, naturally, pink. Before dropping it in, a new Bullet Proof Diesel EGR Cooler was installed as well. The turbo is next.

19_BPD1703 — 9 Lowering the turbo into place wasn’t fun, but it was doable.

20_BPD1703 — 10 Next up was the mounting of the remote oil cooler. It will be going in the radiator stack, between the condenser and intercooler. Step number one was removal of the transmission cooler. The lines were cracked and drained into a pan, and then the mounts were unbolted. The transmission cooler was then pulled out and set to the side.

21_BPD1703 — 11 With the transmission cooler removed, you can see the original mounts riveted to the cooler. It will need to be moved to make room for the new oil cooler. To do this we needed to drill out the original rivets and bolt the replacement mounts in place.

22_BPD1703 — 12 Next up would be mounting the Bullet Proof remote oil cooler to the AC condenser, which required first mounting the oil cooler to its bracket using the provided hardware.

24_BPD1703 — 13 The fittings were then installed in the oil cooler using a wrench. Later we’d mount two lines, supply and return, to these fittings and run them back to the previously installed oil transfer block.

25_BPD1703 — 14 See the holes on the lower portion of this condenser? That means it’s the OEM condenser, not an aftermarket one. Bullet Proof Diesel has pictures of the differences between the two in their installation guide; just know that they sell brackets for both if necessary.

26_BPD1703 — 15 With the oil cooler bracket laid on the condenser, you can see how the mounts line up. Again, Bullet Proof Diesel has the alternate bracket if you need it, but you’ll want to check your condenser before you order the parts.

27_BPD1703 — 16 These are spacers that stop the oil cooler and condenser from rubbing against each other and potentially causing damage. We set them in and proceeded to secure the oil cooler for good.

31_BPD1703 — 17/18. Before reinstalling the condenser and trans cooler, the new Bullet Proof Diesel oil filter adaptor needed to be assembled and installed.

32_BPD1703 — 19 Removing the bracket that holds the driver’s side of the bumper to the frame gives you clearance to mount the oil filter bracket. However, if you have leafs up front, you’ll also want to cut the shackle bolt down for extra room.

34_BPD1703 — 20 The bracket is bolted in place using the factory bumper hardware, making for a superclean install.

35_BPD1703 — 21 Now that the transmission cooler has the lowered mounting brackets in place, it’s ready to be bolted back using the factory hardware. The tranny fluid and lines will be redone as well.

36_BPD1703 — 22 This now gives us room to put in the condenser and the oil cooler as one assembly.

37_BPD1703 — 23 Looking down through the gap in the bumper, you can see the oil line from the cooler being connected to the oil filter mount. There are two lines to connect, and you’ll want to make sure they don’t rub against any sheet metal while you put everything back together.

38_BPD1703 — 24 On the other side of the engine bay, the hose running from the oil cooler is routed and connected to the oil transfer block.

39_BPD1703 — 25 The alternator can now be reinstalled and the belt reconnected.

40_BPD1703 — 26 The intake tubing is next up; Pinky replaced hers with some new powdercoated pieces.

41_BPD1703 — 27 A PSP Diesel wire loom cover was also powdercoated to match the rest and installed in place of the ratty plastic model.

42_BPD1703 — 28 The remaining oil line is connected to the shop’s oil pump, and the oil system is refilled using factory specs and high pressure. This gets the system primed and ready for use.

43_BPD1703 — 29 Once everything is filled, the line is connected to the oil transfer block and tightened in place. The AC is also recharged and the truck is taken out for a test drive.

44_BPD1703 — 30 The completed kit not only adds to the reliability of the truck, but now all those extra pink parts fit the owner’s style perfectly.

In this situation, the truck in question was a 2004 F-350 SRW with some good mileage under its belt, and the goal was to not only customize under the hood with some fancy powdercoating and anodizing work, but also to add a Level 2 upgrade to the 6.0L Power Stroke. As you probably know, there’s a problem that the 6.0L Fords have wherein the oil and coolant mixes, putting the engine in a bad place. By separating the two systems using Bullet Proof’s oil transfer block and remote oil cooler, you can eliminate the problematic factory oil cooler and thus eliminate the aforementioned problem, therefore enhancing reliability. By the way, if you’re wondering why everything is pink, it’s because the truck’s owner is Christine “Pinky” Ruggles (yes that’s her real name, Pinky) from Bullet Proof Diesel, so naturally the pink hue was a requirement.

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The installation can be done in a day, maybe two if you want to stretch things out a bit. And in the end, your truck is that much closer to being bullet proof.DW
SOURCE
BULLET PROOF DIESEL
480.247.2331
BulletProofDiesel.com

PSP DIESEL
713.941.1135
PSPdiesel.com

ODAWGS DIESEL
657.999.4034
ODawgsDiesel.com

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