owner/ operator

[Rurey logging]

Just scored a 1988 superliner with a 500 hp E9 engine. What needs to be done to increase hp to 650 hp runs good sounds good ,has 680,000 original miles any info would be appreciated . thankyou ,, Dave

[Joey Mack]

Why,???  your just gonna hurt it.   What transmission and rear end ratio??  

[The Rubber Duck 006]

Leave the Dog where it lies or you're gonna git bit and it's gonna be an expensive Bite.

[mrsmackpaul]

As mentioned already, your just gunna hurt it

These weren't real tough motors tp begin with

610 was as high as Mack went with all electronic E 9

Reckon these were in Australia and New Zealand only, never in North America, the brains trust on here will know for sure 

 

Paul 

[AZB755V8]

1 hour ago, Rurey logging said:

Just scored a 1988 superliner with a 500 hp E9 engine. What needs to be done to increase hp to 650 hp runs good sounds good ,has 680,000 original miles any info would be appreciated . thankyou ,, Dave

Well that depends on several things. How much do you have to spend? Can you do your own work? Is there emissions testing where you are at? The V-pump is what you have on that 1988 E9 and can go to 650 and that is about it but at a cost. That is where the cost and doing your own work comes in. Parts are scarce these days and big $$$ if found. You will break it or the trans, clutch, diffs, driveshaft, etc. Better have a spare engine or two for parts. If that does not scare you this has to not be your money maker and "The Spare Truck" as reliability will not be there, not to mention a one driver truck. even at 500hp. In the wrong hands this truck will be down more than running. This is from personal experience. Find some of my past post on the E9s for some education. My RW is really tuned up but rarely out without having to work on it. 

 

[BOBWhite]

500hp out of a mechanical motor is a lot different than a new 500hp electronic motor. Unless your using this in a boat or a tank like the French did 500 is plenty for a semi. 

[The Rubber Duck 006]

Honestly if you're just turning it up because you can and wanna brag to all your flip-flop Bermuda Shorts wearing Yuppy Yuppy Boys at the local bar or cook out....You sure don't deserve That truck 

[mowerman]

Oh my God duck that was brilliant ha ha… bob

[mowerman]

I’m sure he would ever be happy with the 205 and a quad box

[The Rubber Duck 006]

18 hours ago, mowerman said:

Oh my God duck that was brilliant ha ha… bob

I couldn't resist 😆 Then I said it out loud as I was typing it 

[Rurey logging]

FULLER 18 spd. Mack 4.17 rear ends, I read on the internet about all the great thing this engine is capable of, Canadians run 600HP Aust. run 800 HP in Europe the run 800 hp in there Tanks,THESE are all mechanical engines.. the sled pullers run 2100hp. BUT you dont think it is capable of 600 hp.WHY?  we no longer log . At present am hauling asphalt oil from great Fall mont. to Post Falls ID.  RUNNING 104.000 lbs have 3 passes to climb. Present engine is a 99 E7Etec set at around 500 Hp pulls pretty good, but the 600 cats and Cummins go around me like I was going backwards.YES do all mech. work my self, on the Etec we sent the injectors out and had the nozzle holes drilled bigger. because they were as big as MACK made them, put on higher out put turbo. Putting out way more than rated 460HP..SO your saying all the info on the internet is BS and the E9 would spill its guts if you turned it up to 600Hp Doesnt make much sense to me..

[Mark T]

An E9 that runs like it should is a pretty impressive engine.....in the year 1995.   They can be a run'n mofo, and go like a son of a gun.  Today ?  They're hard to get parts for, and expensive.  Unless you have a war chest or spare exhaust manifolds and head and such, they're not the best mouse trap for power in this day and age.  Big Cat is about the easiest fly by wire to get lots of wallop out of, and even those are getting a little long in the tooth. Gotta remember, big power from an engine displacing 1000 cubic inches equals shortened life .

[The Rubber Duck 006]

As a Driver of 18 yrs and former logger myself and present flat bedder etc... Who Cares if other trucks pass you up on hills if your E9 is Functioning properly and reliable and never let's you down....Then let the sleeping Dog lay where it's at and be content...That's the problem with Truck owners now a days they can't be content with an engine being Stock because some Concrete COWBOY passes them up on a hill or straight Stretch of road...also 2100 hp out of a pulling truck is different than if it were a OTR Truck A pulling truck motor is basically bare bones and has alot taken off of it just to make it run to do a Pass and that's it.....

[mrsmackpaul]

All I can say is the E9 is no were near as tough as a E6 or E7

I have no doubt at all that they can be turned right up 

"Every action has a equal and opposite reaction"

The last E9 fitted to any truck in the world was fitted to a Australian Titan in 1999 and was a 610

The E9 was a huge motor in its day but it was never as reliable as other brands or other Mack motors of the time

Tripple road trains back then were 115 ton or 253000 pounds in north American talk

These trucks ran at 55 MPH gear bound (diff ratio) before electronic speed limiters

5.73 was a quick  road train ratio, a lot were in the 6's 

525 was as far as any mechanical motor was turned up for this type of work, this was in the days when you could buy a brand new off the shelf E9 long motor for less than 20 grand Australian 

So no one gave 2 hoots about chasing parts as they were plentiful 

Bottom ends seemed to be okay but heads were prone to dropping valves 

A bloke in Australia I was yacking to maybe 4 or 5 years ago at Dubbo Mack was running a R 700 with a E9 turned up pulling road trains and couldn't keep the 12 speed Mack box together

So you can read  into what I have written how ever you want

I think you can definitely turn the E9 right up and make bucket loads of power, but keeping it going pulling weight up and down hills is a lot different than pulling the power for a few seconds on a dyno

The advice I offer is just that, advice and should be taken with a grain of salt 

And now a "Sunday morning sermon" as we called them after a big night out and parents gave us a lecture about been idiots while we supported a bloody good hangover, oh and it is 5.30 am Sunday morning in Australia at the moment as well 

Many decades ago before I was hatched into the world my Dad was on his way to work one morning

Some ass clown coming towards Dad had blacked out behind the wheel,  the car drifted across the road leaving my Dad no were to go 

The result was a head on collision, Dad spent 8 months in hospital, 2 busted legs, crushed ankles and a whole host of other injuries 

When he left hospital, one leg was 2 1/2 inches shorter than the other

Fast forward 37 years and Dad decides to get his leg lengthened and repaired

In Dads mind it was gunna be a simple proceedure, leg lengthened, a few months to all heal up and battah bing battah boom, a new man

Turns out limping around for 37 years meant every other joint was stuffed and lengthening the leg stopped the limp but the knees, ankles and hips were buggered 

Now I have no doubt the medical staff and doctors fully explained what Dad was in for and what the expected results might be but, Dad I felt only heard the bits he wanted to hear

Now what might this have to do with a E9 Mack, absolutely bloody nothing at all

However we only hear what we wanna hear

If we are searching on Google we all have a habit of coming up with results that we search for, after all we punch it into Google and it searches for what we put in there

How many people that are serious gamblers talk about their losses and not about their wins ?

We only ever hear about the wins in life and rarely about lifes failures, it would all be a bit depressing if we all spoke about failures

So I guess we (the jokers on this forum) are not a Google search engine and as such you might not get the same answers as if you Google the answer

And most of us don't like seeing Macks getting broken so our advice maybe a little more conservative than some other sources, as we may well be slightly biased

I wonder if our thoughts will be different if E9 parts were plentiful and cheap as chips

Last bloke to get a E9 built in Australia that I know spent 70 grand on the motor, it is bullet proof and is turned up a fair way

Good luck with  it all and keep us posted 

And yes I seriously do mean that, good luck and keep us posted 

There's lots of advice on here from years ago about cranking up Mack motors for more go, that attitude has changed over the years, I guess we all wanted to tear ass in hot rods once 

 

Paul

 

[Joey Mack]

Paul,, I relate to some of what you say. times have changed..  quickly at that..  I say run the E-9 as it is. E-6 and E-7 's are very reliable..  You talk about 70 G's for a built E-9..    Makes me think of how it would cost me $1,500.00 + to build my small block chevy to have the power and ability that a friggin V-6 in a modern car would have, and it would still pass me in a race.   With that said, I have 2 S.B.'s and 1 B.B. Chevy engine that I need to freshen up...  Sure wish I was wealthy..      

[mrsmackpaul]

Joey I could never dump 70 grand into a motor, and that was about 5 years ago

With the clowns running the show today it would be probably 85 grand

You can buy a good late model truck with more power and more reliability  for less money

But it won't have that E9 sound

They do sound tough and have a very distinctive note, bop bop bopping along

I reckon there's a Aussie song about bop bop bopping along in my Superliner 

There is a song about nothing can be finer in my valueliner or some such thing

 

Paul

[mrsmackpaul]

Relax everyone, I found it

Crank up the volume, poor your self a cold one and enjoy 

 

 

Happy days everyone

 

Paul

[mrsmackpaul]

Did I just steer this topic into the side cut

Bugger me Paul, you've done it again

 

 

[mrsmackpaul]

Last Mack built in the world with a E9

 

So perhaps think about this, your wanting 30% more power out of nearly 40 year old motor from a design thats 50 years old

And you want it reliable

I see no issue with that

Also to consider, that back in the day when big power and running fast was everything, if it was that simple to get extra power out of these Mack wouldn't of thought of it

First E9's were 400 for a Maxidyne and 440 for the Thermodyne 

Things came a long way since then, 50% more power

Maybe it is doable, I dunno enough about the E9

 

Paul

[AZB755V8]

2 hours ago, Rurey logging said:

FULLER 18 spd. Mack 4.17 rear ends, I read on the internet about all the great thing this engine is capable of, Canadians run 600HP Aust. run 800 HP in Europe the run 800 hp in there Tanks,THESE are all mechanical engines.. the sled pullers run 2100hp. BUT you dont think it is capable of 600 hp.WHY?  we no longer log . At present am hauling asphalt oil from great Fall mont. to Post Falls ID.  RUNNING 104.000 lbs have 3 passes to climb. Present engine is a 99 E7Etec set at around 500 Hp pulls pretty good, but the 600 cats and Cummins go around me like I was going backwards.YES do all mech. work my self, on the Etec we sent the injectors out and had the nozzle holes drilled bigger. because they were as big as MACK made them, put on higher out put turbo. Putting out way more than rated 460HP..SO your saying all the info on the internet is BS and the E9 would spill its guts if you turned it up to 600Hp Doesnt make much sense to me..

Dude,

Don't get your wad in a bunch. All that is being said is stock the E9 is formattable. You talk about an E7 which is a good engine. No where have you said you have RUN the E9 truck before having to have MORE POWER. How does the E9 pull compared to the turned up E7? You sound like my son, before he even get to run something he is trying to make it bigger, better, faster, stronger. Going broke trying to do it too. I'm the old man, a hot rodder from before I could legally drive. I keep saying leave it alone but NO he does what he does and Man it is impressive. Only thing it runs for a week or two and BANG, Dad, I broke this one too. All to impressed the outer Guys that just laugh and say let us know when you get it back to getter so they can laugh again!

All said He is the fastest and coolest for a short time. Meanwhile I'm in my stock truck driving be him week after week. Even being asked if he can use my truck, HELL NO!!

You want to know how to turn it up I told you to go back and read some of my past post, it is ALL THERE. Think even part numbers and specs to do it. So get off your horse and come down to earth and talk to us old farts. You what the knowledge be a little humble.

Yes, My Superliner is turned up 1500hp at the flywheel, 1150hp/4000ft/lbs to the ground. It was done to Steve Trevitz, the Godfather of the E9 at Mack. He did all the HP mods for the tanks, marine, land speed, E9s. Single turbo, double and quad turbo setups. A lot of that knowledge is gone when he passed away.

The Superliner is a single turbo EX-sled puller, had to turn it down to pull a trailer, way down. So as I said I work on it more time than I drive it, and for what? To roll coal, dust (literally) any car with less than 500hp, pull a house down. Not many people care anymore. Get a new High Output 500/1200 as I did and have a blast and it is under warranty! It has more than any chipped Powerstroke that I had before and is stock.

 

The Old E9 when the water intercooler as on it. 13mm inline, 94mm turbo. Had to turn it down to pull the trailer and other trucks to shows. Dropped valves, wasted turbos, trashed heads, replaced pistons and sleeves, etc. $$$ and time.

Just so you know a Mack Trans will not shift above 2500rpm, so you better be in the right gear first.

6.7 Powerstroke

 

[The Rubber Duck 006]

6 minutes ago, AZB755V8 said:

Dude,

Don't get your wad in a bunch. All that is being said is stock the E9 is formattable. You talk about an E7 which is a good engine. No where have you said you have RUN the E9 truck before having to have MORE POWER. How does the E9 pull compared to the turned up E7? You sound like my son, before he even get to run something he is trying to make it bigger, better, faster, stronger. Going broke trying to do it too. I'm the old man, a hot rodder from before I could legally drive. I keep saying leave it alone but NO he does what he does and Man it is impressive. Only thing it runs for a week or two and BANG, Dad, I broke this one too. All to impressed the outer Guys that just laugh and say let us know when you get it back to getter so they can laugh again!

All said He is the fastest and coolest for a short time. Meanwhile I'm in my stock truck driving be him week after week. Even being asked if he can use my truck, HELL NO!!

You want to know how to turn it up I told you to go back and read some of my past post, it is ALL THERE. Think even part numbers and specs to do it. So get off your horse and come down to earth and talk to us old farts. You what the knowledge be a little humble.

Yes, My Superliner is turned up 1500hp at the flywheel, 1150hp/4000ft/lbs to the ground. It was done to Steve Trevitz, the Godfather of the E9 at Mack. He did all the HP mods for the tanks, marine, land speed, E9s. Single turbo, double and quad turbo setups. A lot of that knowledge is gone when he passed away.

The Superliner is a single turbo EX-sled puller, had to turn it down to pull a trailer, way down. So as I said I work on it more time than I drive it, and for what? To roll coal, dust (literally) any car with less than 500hp, pull a house down. Not many people care anymore. Get a new High Output 500/1200 as I did and have a blast and it is under warranty! It has more than any chipped Powerstroke that I had before and is stock.

 

The Old E9 when the water intercooler as on it. 13mm inline, 94mm turbo. Had to turn it down to pull the trailer and other trucks to shows. Dropped valves, wasted turbos, trashed heads, replaced pistons and sleeves, etc. $$$ and time.

Just so you know a Mack Trans will not shift above 2500rpm, so you better be in the right gear first.

6.7 Powerstroke

 

Amen Preach on Brotha!!! Introduce him to the Boy Son!!

[BOBWhite]

I know it is frustrating listening to these "no nothing old farts" on an online form (believe me I've been there) but at the end of the day we don't want to see another E9 blow. Every year more of them are taken off the road and it sickens me to think they could become extinct one day. While they are very capable motors and can outlast us all if taken care of properly, it is crucial they are taken care of if we want future generations to witness this trucking icon. 

Sorry to get so philosophical lol. And WOW Joey that Australian county music ain't half bad!! Make a thread and share some more of that!

[Rurey logging]

THANKS a lot for the info. No have never driven an E9, thats why we bought it. bought it for 5000$ just to see how well it performed. meny guys around here had superliners back in the day, there are still a bunch still running, the owners all love them. no body claimed they had a lot of trouble with them . A friend has 6 E9 superliners , that hauls logs with. the only trouble he has is finding drivers. Am interested in seeing how it pulls at 500hp compared to the E7 etec set at about the same hp.. Well if every body thinks should not push it, so be it, will let you no when the engine installed in our 92 superliner, WE havent pulled an oil sample,or checked compresion yet

[Rurey logging]

FORGOT to mention, got line on 2 more E9 we are going to try and pick up for a song and a dance, one is in pieces but heads  have been rebuilt all the rest is good no turbo though, the other is running but has a leaking head gasket  Dave

[mechohaulic]

short version of all this from an old mans point of view; really doesn't make much difference if a 450 hp is brought to 1000 hp or what ever .. the key to survival is how the operator having controls handles it. slower up the hills but still gets there works. paid by the load could be a factor. 500 horse doesn't get there fast enough then get another paid by hr job.