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Category Archives: Cummins 5.9 (6BT) Information and History

High School Cummins Swap: The Story Of A Student-Built, 6BT-Powered F-350

By Featured Writer Mike McGlothlin Despite the decline in skilled trades courses offered at American high schools, hundreds (if not thousands) of programs have survived the college-or-nothing craze that has swept through the country’s education system. Huntley Project High School in Worden, Montana is one such institution. Here, in a town of just 480…

By Featured Writer Mike McGlothlin How many of us still call a tissue a Kleenex or have that one relative who refers to every type of soda as a “coke?” We’ve all generalized words in our lives, and in most instances it’s harmless. But within the automotive world—and especially in the diesel realm, where turbochargers…

1) Cummins 6BT 5.9 The Cummins 6BT 5.9 is a straight-up, solid, reliable engine. With 25 years’ service in commercial marine applications, it is a popular choice for many, for a variety of reasons. The 6BT can be set up with Keel cooling, Heat Exchanged cooling, dry exhaust, wet exhaust, and an array of PTO…

How To Test and Service Your Cummins Injectors

By Featured Writer: Mike McGlothlin Despite how durable the mechanical fuel injectors are in the ’89-’02 5.9L Cummins engines, they’re still a wear item. That means that even though this ultra-simple, single-shot injectors are known to last 400,000 miles or more, eventually they’ll need to be serviced. Whether the owner notices a change in performance,…

By Featured Writer: Mike McGlothlin On any internal combustion engine, compression is what makes the world go ‘round. For diesel engines, where compression is often at least double what you see in a typical gasoline engine, it means everything. Not surprisingly, being down on compression means you’re down on power—and that can’t happen when you’ve…

Outer Limits: How Much Horsepower Can The 6BT Cummins Handle?

By Featured Writer: Mike McGlothlin For years, the 6BT Cummins has been the hot-rod engine of choice for many in the diesel pickup game. It might’ve left the factory rated at a docile 160 to 215 horsepower between the years of 1989 to 1998, but enthusiasts have proven time and again that those numbers can…

6BT vs. ISB: Comparing the P-pumped 12-Valve Cummins To Its 24-Valve Successor

By Featured Writer: Mike McGlothlin The promise of medium-duty capability in a light-duty application has always made the 12-valve 6BT 5.9L Cummins an easy sell for Dodge Ram 2500 and 3500 owners. The cast-iron inline-six is about as robust as an anvil, features a simple 2-valve per cylinder design, and—thanks to having the kind of…

For years a myth of epic proportions floated around grimy garages and internet forums all the like stating that Ford Motor Company actually owned Cummins Diesel. No way that is true? Right??! Well we are here to set the record straight… yes Ford did at one time own a piece of Cummins. During the mid…

Different Types of Motor Mounts One of the last steps before dropping in a Cummins 4BT or 6BT into an automotive swap is making sure the engine fits snugly in-between the motor mounts. Motor mounts act as both a buffer between the engine and the chassis as well as fastening the motor to the vehicle.…

Is the Cummins 12 Valve 5.9L the Best Diesel Ever Built?

Early 5.9L Engine History Weighing in at 1,100 pounds this heavyweight was brought to market under the hood of the Dodge Ram in 1989. It was originally designed to power agricultural vehicles 8 years earlier and in fact was the brainchild of a Case/Cummins joint venture. The engine marketed as the 6B, 6BT, and 6BTAA…