After halfway through a diesel season and talking to many different diesel shops it is safe to say the diesel market is slowly moving in a new direction!
The higher end diesel trucks keep getting faster and faster but you are lucky to see them make more than a couple of passes. Most of them have found they had to go to a Pro Stock type vehicle in order to go faster. That is stripping the truck of all metal and replacing it with fiberglass body parts, tube frame and minimal interior thus making it a Pro Stock drag vehicle. It is tough to make a full size metal OEM truck get into the 8s and even the 9s on a regular basis.
They all have gone to 1/8 mile racing for the main reason of less breaks on the vehicle on a shorter track. Plain and simple economics which is understandable. I suggested this over 10 years ago and was made fun of on the forums! Larger, heavier vehicles do better on a shorter track, it is just common sense. DIESEL Motorsports runs either 1/4 or 1/8 mile for racing, whatever the competitors want to do depending on the facility.
Street trucks have started to back off of making their trucks 1000+ hp and have dropped back to 7-800 hp trucks so less break while operating. This again is only common sense since people want a hot truck but they want it to be dependable. This leaves a lot of parts still available to sell or buy for your street truck.
The shops are telling me more and more diesel owners are asking for 25% over injectors and not 300% over and the same for their turbo replacements. The shops are rebuilding a lot of trannys and fixing electronic issues.
Sled pulling for trucks again has taken a back seat to tractors at fair pulls just like the two sanctioning tractor associations planned it! Trucks were getting to popular and there were too many of them, thus we were taking over the shows. You fix it by regulating the power with turbo and adding expensive upgrades to the drivetrain/suspension.
Every state pulling association has reported to me a drop in the number of trucks at their local fairs. The diesel shops can afford the upgrades but not the weekly pulling individual who did it as a hobby. That is why DIESEL Motorsports introduced the Hot Work Stock class last year. It allows the daily driver of a street truck the opportunity to pull under mild conditions with a high powered street diesel.
Diesels have moved into the show quality vehicles with some unbelievable custom vehicles whether it is a rat rod, a normal pick-up or a older truck. Chrome and custom paint with notice to details and straight uniform lines on these vehicles make then collector items.
But yet you are going to ask "are there more diesels?"! Yes there is because more people are finding out what great vehicles they can be when properly maintained! Even more diesel autos are being sold even after the VW debacle! More diesel trucks in 1/2, 3/4 and 1 ton pickups are being sold for many positive reasons such as longevity.
The common life of a vehicle is now at 11 years for autos and 13 yrs for trucks, way up from the 90s of 2 years for autos and 5 years for trucks.
I'm heading off to a 1st event next week in Sturgis SD during Bike Week because the Dragstrip said all of the bikers are now hauling their bikes with pickup trucks/trailers and semis!
Where there are trucks I will follow . . . !
The higher end diesel trucks keep getting faster and faster but you are lucky to see them make more than a couple of passes. Most of them have found they had to go to a Pro Stock type vehicle in order to go faster. That is stripping the truck of all metal and replacing it with fiberglass body parts, tube frame and minimal interior thus making it a Pro Stock drag vehicle. It is tough to make a full size metal OEM truck get into the 8s and even the 9s on a regular basis.
They all have gone to 1/8 mile racing for the main reason of less breaks on the vehicle on a shorter track. Plain and simple economics which is understandable. I suggested this over 10 years ago and was made fun of on the forums! Larger, heavier vehicles do better on a shorter track, it is just common sense. DIESEL Motorsports runs either 1/4 or 1/8 mile for racing, whatever the competitors want to do depending on the facility.
Street trucks have started to back off of making their trucks 1000+ hp and have dropped back to 7-800 hp trucks so less break while operating. This again is only common sense since people want a hot truck but they want it to be dependable. This leaves a lot of parts still available to sell or buy for your street truck.
The shops are telling me more and more diesel owners are asking for 25% over injectors and not 300% over and the same for their turbo replacements. The shops are rebuilding a lot of trannys and fixing electronic issues.
Sled pulling for trucks again has taken a back seat to tractors at fair pulls just like the two sanctioning tractor associations planned it! Trucks were getting to popular and there were too many of them, thus we were taking over the shows. You fix it by regulating the power with turbo and adding expensive upgrades to the drivetrain/suspension.
Every state pulling association has reported to me a drop in the number of trucks at their local fairs. The diesel shops can afford the upgrades but not the weekly pulling individual who did it as a hobby. That is why DIESEL Motorsports introduced the Hot Work Stock class last year. It allows the daily driver of a street truck the opportunity to pull under mild conditions with a high powered street diesel.
Diesels have moved into the show quality vehicles with some unbelievable custom vehicles whether it is a rat rod, a normal pick-up or a older truck. Chrome and custom paint with notice to details and straight uniform lines on these vehicles make then collector items.
The common life of a vehicle is now at 11 years for autos and 13 yrs for trucks, way up from the 90s of 2 years for autos and 5 years for trucks.
I'm heading off to a 1st event next week in Sturgis SD during Bike Week because the Dragstrip said all of the bikers are now hauling their bikes with pickup trucks/trailers and semis!
Where there are trucks I will follow . . . !
