Beasthttps://mopar1973man.com/blogs/blog/10-beast/Details on 2nd Gen, 24-Valve, Modifications, Repairs, and any other work done on Beast.

Beast's original features included baseline structure plus electric door locks and electric windows. Beast has over half a million miles with 20 MPG up to 31 MPG. He has Diesel Auto Power +150HP VCO Injectors (7x0.010) with Quadzilla Adrenaline Tuner and Airdog 150 which was modified to 165. There is also a Wolfbox 850, dash cam with rear back up view and GPS location recording. More additions/modifications to come.

]]>enVP44 Injection pump - 505,363 Miles - May 23, 2026https://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/104-vp44-injection-pump-505363-miles-may-23-2026/Our last trip down to Boise ID we were going to dry camp with the RV as @Tweety Bird had medical appointments. While down in Boise / Eagle area Beast just died and jumped back to life.I called it and was the VP44. Fast forward we get home and park Beast beside the RV. Fast forward again yesterday i went to start Beast and move.Nope no start. Bummed I was going to have to work out in the yard. This morning I figure to try starting Beast again. Long crank but it started. Quickly move over the garage door so I could start the replacement. Managed to just get the pump out. Sad part is im not as strong as I once was and everything seems so very over tightened. Really its not im just that weak.

]]>104Sat, 23 May 2026 18:54:45 +0000Front Driveshaft U-joint replacementhttps://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/97-front-driveshaft-u-joint-replacement/I had a vibration starting on the truck that was noticeable by about 70 MPH. I have already crawled under once before to attempt greasing the joints and check for play, but the u-joints seemed good. This is why I always suggest a full removal of the shaft so it's not loaded by hanging / gear tension. Now it's been some time since I've really been a mechanic, due to my cancer (strength), but I need to keep up with my repairs on Beast. @Tweety Bird came out to document while I was working. Strangely enough @Doubletrouble called while I was working and helped him set up a Quadzilla on his truck at the same time.

I was smart and bought a full rebuild kit for the front driveshaft. 3 u-joint and the center bearing for the double cardan joint. When I got the front joint removed from the front axle, the one bearing cup fell off. Yup, I found the bad joint in the front u-joint, but I continued to remove the entire shaft to check the full range of motion to see any other damage to the u-joints. The double cardan joint was fine. I broke out the grease gun and pumped a good load of marine grease into the double cardan joints. Replacing the front u-joint was a snap with a pair of needle nose pliers, pluck the snap rings out, and using an old socket tap out the one bearing cup and tapped it back the other direction. Popped the other cup out. Quick clean out of the front yoke and slipped in the new u-joint, but remember to place your grease zerk in the proper location so you can reach it later! Now finish up and install the driveshaft again.

@Tweety Bird went with me for the ride. The truck is so smooth, even with a quick blast to 90 MPH, it's like glass again. Smooth, no vibrations, and very enjoyable to drive. I'm so happy the double cardan doesn't require rebuilding.

]]>97Fri, 08 May 2026 21:52:03 +0000Back to work for Beast!https://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/96-back-to-work-for-beast/As far as my wife and I are concerned, Beast is going to be retired to strictly trailer hauling. I'm in the process of getting the RV ready, and the same with Beast. @Tweety Bird has medical to deal with down in Boise, Idaho. To save on motel stays or just driving back and forth. We are hauling the RV down and going to start in an RV park, but eventually move to a random spot where we are not in an RV park. As for Beast, I need to look into a vibration in the driveline, which I'm pretty sure is my front drive shaft. If I can get the shaft out quickly today, I'm going to inspect all the joints for looseness. I have replacement joints I can install, plus the center bearing too, between the double cardan joint. My wife and I want to start traveling soon in the future to go out and meet you guys and gals out there. I still have the knowledge, but I can help people repair their trucks with my knowledge. We are going to start building the RV up for travel. I just picked up a 1 x 4 x 8 to allow me to mount the CPAP machines in the bedroom.

]]>96Fri, 08 May 2026 17:08:13 +0000Nearly 10 years of service! Passenger side failed - Morimoto D2S HIDshttps://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/94-nearly-10-years-of-service-passenger-side-failed-morimoto-d2s-hids/

During my trip to Lewiston, Idaho, the passenger side headlight failed. I assume the bulb was blown. I attempted to get a replacement bulb in town. Not possible. We stayed to daylight travel to get home. I returned home and ordered a set of 55w ballast and 55w D2H bulbs as a set. As I was disconnecting wires, the passenger side power plug from the MotoControl had burned one of the power pins. I had to contact RetroShop to order the new MotoControl. I've just needed a good weather day to get the headlights installed again.

]]>94Tue, 28 Apr 2026 15:39:33 +0000On the road.https://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/92-on-the-road/Wife and I took the RV and headed to Lewiston Idaho for shopping and a bit of down time. Ive had my first problem on my trip my passenger headlight finally blew the bulb. Come to find out Lewiston doesnt even have and D2H bulbs for HID headlights. Im going to order new ballast and bulbs for Beast from Amazon.

https://a.co/d/0hjxRZNE

Upgrading from 35w ballast to 55w ballast and changing from 5000k to 6000k bulbs. Finding a bulb with the right connector is tough.

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]]>92Thu, 09 Apr 2026 23:38:36 +0000Lewiston Idahohttps://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/91-lewiston-idaho/After many little mistakes like me forgetting my ostomy supplies. Trip home. Then back to camp. The last blog was easy 48 miles. We left Whitebird Idaho and got into Lewiston Idaho. Climbing grades like Whitebird Grade 7%. Oil temperature barely touched 180°F even though EGTs 1,100 to 1,350°F as my set limit but touched 1,400°F once. Enging coolant stay 205 to 215°F most of the climb. As we can down grade the oil temp cooled of back to 172°F. Beast is doing good but tripped a P0341 but the light went back out. Im grabbing a new cam sensor while in town.

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]]>91Sun, 05 Apr 2026 14:59:34 +0000Towing Tune / Break timehttps://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/90-towing-tune-break-time/Wife and I have started a trip to Lewiston ID. Its a work trip being we need groceries and supplies. Yeah its extremely tough to get even basic repairs done waiting for weather and not laying in the mud. Took most of the day to get packed up to roll. Made it to a pull out near Whitebird ID. Grabbing breakfast.

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]]>90Sat, 04 Apr 2026 18:39:10 +0000Beast is falling apart!https://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/88-beast-is-falling-apart/Beast is falling apart completely. The plastics are failing left and right. I've got to pull the dash apart to fix a speaker problem. @Tweety Bird telling me just order the plastics and get them coming. I placed an order through LMC truck for the new plastics for the dash, and then found a smaller part supplier that has the rear quad door cables for a pair at $30. Cheap! Yesterday I was out and had enough dry weather to install the rear speakers and then move the rear camera to the rear bumper. The Wolfbox dash camera works awesome. New pair of door cables for the rear quad doors and then new dash plastics!

]]>88Fri, 27 Feb 2026 19:56:22 +0000Beast gets a new radiator!https://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/66-beast-gets-a-new-radiator/Finally, I'm getting back to doing things with the trucks. Beast has been rolling on a blown radiator for 2 years with a 200℉ with zero pressure. Yeah, I bought time (too much) and just clipped off the vacuum breaker part of the radiator cap. Now I'm getting the radiator installed in Beast and have a 16 PSI pressure once again.

First off I gotta show off my mini shop for now so I can keep our vehicles in working order. It's tiny but its dry space somewhat. We are still sorting out stuff and getting @Tweety Bird moved into the house. The garage here in the main house is small.

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Let's get that coolant drained. Opps! this a screw plug type of drain. Unscrew the drain and then still your hand in front of the stream and deflect the flow into the 5-gallon bucket. Yup, a mess.

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Typical removal, nothing out of the ordinary. The new radiator is fully assembled and ready to drop into the truck. I got the new radiator all installed and pulled the 200℉ thermostat and saw the inside of the block at 501k miles. Well water and coolant is doing awesome, barely any surface rust on the cast block.20251210_153330.jpg

Just a tip to all of you that do a radiator drain and flush, just make sure to pull the thermostat and replace it while you're there. The refill can be done with the thermostat out, so the block can burp air out quickly. Nice green hue with a 50/50 mixture of coolant. Now drop in the thermostat and run the three 8mm bolts back in snug.

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]]>66Thu, 11 Dec 2025 00:33:45 +0000Whoa! Rear brakes are rusted.https://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/45-whoa-rear-brakes-are-rusted/Yeah, I just got done doing brakes on Beast. Both rear brake calipers had rusted pistons that were so jammed that I couldn't seat them. @Tweety Bird was telling me just get it repaired, we need the trucks to function properly. I most likely got a little tear in the rubber boots, and the road salt finally ate the calipers up before the pads were even worn out on the passenger side. The driver's side rear pads were nearly gone due to the rusted pistons. In my position, without a shop, it makes it rather tough to get creative with rebuilding calipers. Yeah, part changer, but at least Beast is safer to drive.

]]>45Wed, 30 Jul 2025 16:40:51 +0000Shade tree mechanic back at ithttps://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/33-shade-tree-mechanic-back-at-it/Both @Tweety Bird and I gotta have a break from all this. I had to deal with rusted slide pins on the calipers front and rear axle. We managed to find enough of my tools to at least do a simple repair. Suzanna has been busy packing the RV so we can go take a break camping locally.

I'm kind of amazed. Got the front brakes done with slide pins. Both side you had to beat the pins out of the boots. The last time I did brakes at 350k miles till now with 497k miles and rolling.

Finished this project. Sadly I found my MPG loss. Driver side rear was stuck on the side pins and ate those pads up about 1/4 of a inch left.

]]>33Thu, 26 Jun 2025 20:17:12 +0000Long Nap for Beasthttps://mopar1973man.com/blogs/entry/19-long-nap-for-beast/Beast, is nearing 500k miles on the odometer. I'm doing the smart thing at this time and parking Beast back in the garage for a long nap. I need to do both a front and rear crank seal on Beast. Beast needs to be parked and left in storage for the time being. I want to be out and building new tunes for Beast. Thor is going to take the lead at this time. This will allow me the time to fix Beast properly. Beast final project was the chasing the truck bed and tailgate.

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