Why are Cummins engines considered so "good."

maine04max

New member
Dec 11, 2008
1,009
0
0
iirc fully dressed duramax is just north of 900 #'s and cummins something around 1100 #'s
 

dmaxvaz

wannabe puller
Nov 22, 2006
1,132
0
0
46
METRO DETROIT
12 valves? Yes. 24 valve and common rail? No.

Theres no reason a duramax wouldnt be just as reliable as a common rail cummins. You dont ever see duramax engines that are just straight mechanically "worn out". Its always the little electronic/complicated crap "on top" of the motor that either breaks, or fails to the point where it takes out the bottom end.

[B]If you put a mechanical pump on a duramax, got rid of all the "crap", and detuned it to 160hp it would last just as long as any 12 valve.[/B]
LONGER-the dmax has roller lifters and a billet cam; compared to a cast camshaft and solid flat tappets that seem to have issues with rounding off the lobes when some people put the 60 lb valve springs in
 
Last edited:

rulonjj

Member
Mar 14, 2009
50
0
6
Out of probably 15 people that I know that have dodges, 4 of them have replaced engines. One of them twice within six months. All of them were CR and stock turbo, injectors, ect. It seems the ones with mechanical injection last a lot longer at that same power level.(350-450 HP)
 

duratothemax

<--- slippery roads
Aug 28, 2006
7,139
10
0
Wyoming
[/COLOR] LONGER-the dmax has roller lifters and a billet cam; compared to a cast camshaft and solid flat tappets that seem to have issues with rounding off the lobes when some people put the 60 lb vave springs in

wait whoa beep beep back the truck up! Cummins doesnt have roller lifters???? How do they get those things to last? Is the 6.7 cummins still not roller-lifters? I didnt even know non-roller engines still existed. I thought they all went away like 20 years ago.

Learn something new each day...
 

JoshH

Daggum farm truck
Staff member
Vendor/Sponsor
Feb 14, 2007
13,639
679
113
Texas!!!
wait whoa beep beep back the truck up! Cummins doesnt have roller lifters???? How do they get those things to last? Is the 6.7 cummins still not roller-lifters? I didnt even know non-roller engines still existed. I thought they all went away like 20 years ago.

Learn something new each day...
No, they have tappets. You can't even get them out without pulling the cam. You have to stick dowels down into the tappets, pull up on them and use a rubber band to squeeze the dowels together so they don't fall. Then once you pull the cam, you slide a little tray in place of it and pull the dowels out. The tappets fall in the tray and you pull the tray out.

Here's a pic I found with a real quick google search:

tappetcompare2.jpg
 

duratothemax

<--- slippery roads
Aug 28, 2006
7,139
10
0
Wyoming
No, they have tappets. You can't even get them out without pulling the cam. You have to stick dowels down into the tappets, pull up on them and use a rubber band to squeeze the dowels together so they don't fall. Then once you pull the cam, you slide a little tray in place of it and pull the dowels out. The tappets fall in the tray and you pull the tray out.

Here's a pic I found with a real quick google search:

tappetcompare2.jpg

Yes I realize they have tappets...if a pushrod engine doesnt have roller lifters, it has tappets no? Its either one or the other...

I just ASSumed it had roller lifters. Not flat tappets.

Ive seen the wooden dowel and rubber band thing a bunch too, neat trick.

Basically, the only thing I was not aware of is that they are a flat tappet engine, not a roller engine.
 

JoshH

Daggum farm truck
Staff member
Vendor/Sponsor
Feb 14, 2007
13,639
679
113
Texas!!!
Yes I realize they have tappets...if a pushrod engine doesnt have roller lifters, it has tappets no? Its either one or the other...

I just ASSumed it had roller lifters. Not flat tappets.

Ive seen the wooden dowel and rubber band thing a bunch too, neat trick.

Basically, the only thing I was not aware of is that they are a flat tappet engine, not a roller engine.
Yes, you are correct. I guess my post came across wrong. You said, "Cummins doesnt have roller lifters????" I said, "No [they don't have roller lifter], they have tappets."
 

'strokeThis_'07

New member
Oct 2, 2009
107
0
0
Laramie, WY
You guys are good at that when the injectors melt the motor down in stock form on a regular basis.

Bud, your preachin to the choir.:D Mines down right now. Melted two pistons back in August. Hope to have it up and running sometime over the T-giving break (half the rod bearings are wrong:mad:)

I will admit, the Common Rails have the tendency to have some issues. ALL of the newer trucks can and do. Just a fact of life. Actually, both of mine have, the 03 completely stock, and the 07 when I got fancy and stacked the Quad Adrenaline with my Smarty. Timings a bitch
 

rcr1978

Active member
Apr 1, 2007
790
26
28
Spring Creek, NV
Bud, your preachin to the choir.:D Mines down right now. Melted two pistons back in August. Hope to have it up and running sometime over the T-giving break (half the rod bearings are wrong:mad:)

I will admit, the Common Rails have the tendency to have some issues. ALL of the newer trucks can and do. Just a fact of life. Actually, both of mine have, the 03 completely stock, and the 07 when I got fancy and stacked the Quad Adrenaline with my Smarty. Timings a bitch

Damn that sucks, how spendy are cummins parts? Probably just like Dmax's it's a diesel so probably twice as much as it should be. Did you have a couple bad injectors or was it from the stacked box's and timing?
 

jneal

New member
Feb 12, 2008
294
0
0
Bloomington, Indiana
12 valves? Yes. 24 valve and common rail? No.

Theres no reason a duramax wouldnt be just as reliable as a common rail cummins. You dont ever see duramax engines that are just straight mechanically "worn out". Its always the little electronic/complicated crap "on top" of the motor that either breaks, or fails to the point where it takes out the bottom end.If you put a mechanical pump on a duramax, got rid of all the "crap", and detuned it to 160hp it would last just as long as any 12 valve.


Completely true, I never really thought about but yeah. Of all the engines i've torn apart I have yet to see one that is just mechanically worn out. Rod, main bearings usually just have the tin layer worn off and cylinders still have cross hatching, cam and rollers usually show hardly any signs of wear. Dmax's are a very stout engine mechanically, electronically they all have their issues.

The main reason alot of people think the cummins b series is better than the Dmax is stupidity. When alot of people hear duramax, they instanty think isuzu japanese crap, When they hear Cummins they think USA made in Columbus, IN. Which frankly isn't the case. Tear apart a cummins and tell me how many parts say made in the USA. It'll be a short list.

Is the Dmax better than a Cummins, nope, vice versa, nope. They're all junk, it just depends on what you want to work on. Just my opinion though.
 

JoshH

Daggum farm truck
Staff member
Vendor/Sponsor
Feb 14, 2007
13,639
679
113
Texas!!!
Is the Dmax better than a Cummins, nope, vice versa, nope. They're all junk, it just depends on what you want to work on. Just my opinion though.
I've said the same thing I don't know how many times! Personally, I prefer the Chevy to Dodge or Ford, but I was raised to love GM products and hate Fords (which is odd becuase my grandfather on my dad's side was a Ford mechanic and only drove Ford). People always ask me at work which truck is the best, and I tell them they all have their issues. What it comes down to is which one you can live with every day. It's really all personal preference in my opinion.
 

coker6303

Keep Calm and Chive On!!
Aug 6, 2009
2,484
0
36
40
Houston, TX
jneal, well put! I don't care for fords much but I do think they have the best looking truck on the road! I think the Dmax has the best stock package available, very easy to make fast reliable power. The 24 valve cummins have a reliable bottom end for big power but they have to have injectors, a turbo, studs, o-rings/fire ring, fuel system, etc. just to get where a dmax can go with a good EFI tune. ya, they are easier to work on but if I do all that work to a dmax I have a beast of an engine!:D

FYI I have a couple of die hard cummins fans back home and one of them just bought an 08 duramax dually for a work truck. I hooked him up with a quadzilla and 4" MBRP and they are all amazed at how well it runs and tows on the 50hp tune compared to their cummins. People under estimate the duramax, it truly is an impressive powerplant. :thumb:

But to each his own!! i may be cussing my dmax next week if it drops a piston!! :confused:
 

'strokeThis_'07

New member
Oct 2, 2009
107
0
0
Laramie, WY
Damn that sucks, how spendy are cummins parts? Probably just like Dmax's it's a diesel so probably twice as much as it should be. Did you have a couple bad injectors or was it from the stacked box's and timing?

Spendy enough:D

1400 for pistons, main/rod bearings was 13 or 14, cam/pushrods/springs 13 even, gaskets right around a grand

Yea I think it was I didn't really know what the Adrenaline was doing. I did have timing off on Smarty, but most likely the fact I didn't call Quad like I meant to. Probably cracked nozzles, possibly something hung them open. I don't know, didn't send them off. But it did run the best it ever has right before it went BOOM!:rofl:


My pistons say Made in America. My block says Brazil, as do the 24v rods I got. Head says Brazil too I believe. Crank...I dunno, probably Brazil as well.:rofl:

The Duramax is a damn good engine, as is the Cummins. Anyone that argues either (typically Ford guys...) either has blinders on, their head is firmly implanted up their ass, or they are just plain stupid. The creme de la creme IMO

I love my truck, cuss it and threaten to get rid of it when it breaks, then that first test spin after its fixed, I'm in love with it again. Too bad I'm not the same with women; once they piss me off, the ride isn't so great as it used to be and, off to the next one
 

towboattrash34

New member
Sep 30, 2010
212
0
0
Picayune, Ms
Both Cummins and Duramax are good engines... We have Cummins in our tugboats.....do they last longer than others..No... after 6 months they usualy start leaking oil.... but so far they are the only ones without any kind of epa crap.....

They are both money pits when you start building them... Heck i went threw 3 engines on my Harley @ 6,500.00 an engine not including the heads or cams....
 

GeneralTJI

Turbo Todd
Jun 1, 2010
1,272
0
36
Colorado
The main reason alot of people think the cummins b series is better than the Dmax is stupidity. When alot of people hear duramax, they instanty think isuzu japanese crap, When they hear Cummins they think USA made in Columbus, IN. Which frankly isn't the case. Tear apart a cummins and tell me how many parts say made in the USA. It'll be a short list.

My question to those people is why would a Japanese design/influence etc. be a bad thing? I realize the dmax is built in the USA, and that Izuzu doesn't have anything to do with it anymore. But they were in on the original design, which I think is a good thing! Sure you can bitch because we want stuff made in America, but a lot of things built in Japan are of extremely good quality. You can talk shit about Honda's and Toyotas being ricers but anybody who puts down Japanese quality is a dumbass!
 

duratothemax

<--- slippery roads
Aug 28, 2006
7,139
10
0
Wyoming
My question to those people is why would a Japanese design/influence etc. be a bad thing? I realize the dmax is built in the USA, and that Izuzu doesn't have anything to do with it anymore. But they were in on the original design, which I think is a good thing! Sure you can bitch because we want stuff made in America, but a lot of things built in Japan are of extremely good quality. You can talk shit about Honda's and Toyotas being ricers but anybody who puts down Japanese quality is a dumbass!

x2 I completely agree. I mean WTF, Isuzu is one of the top diesel mfg's in the world. Those stupid hillbillies are so caught up in the "USA RULES EVERYONE ELSE DROOLS" thing that they dont realize if you go OUTSIDE the USA, Isuzu diesels are EVERYWHERE. They have been in the diesel engine business just about as long as cummins has.