cummins donor search? what to look for?

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otisd85

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Feb 1, 2011
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okay fellas, i am relativly new to the forum scene, and this is my virgin post on this one, so here we go!

i am looking for a donor cummins to inplant into the truck in my sig, i have decided to go with a 12 valve for the reliability and simplicity of being mechanical, and the 94-98 because of the legendary p7100's power potential. i have been looking for a complete truck for some time now but for some reason nobody wants to get rid of their truck for what i want to pay for a engine and tranny:nail:, go figure. so looking at used engines that outlasted the shell built around them has come to be my next best option, but thats okay to because after some more research i found i want a nv4500 out of a 98.5+ that came behind the 24v not 12v.

i found several engines for a reasonable price (to me, ie. 1250-2000) but they all seem to be higher milage (again to me, ie. 200,000-400,000). im looking for a donor to "freshen up and fire ring", not something thats going to need a major overhaul.

i have a engine im interested in but its 6 hours away and i want to be sure its what i want before i go look at it because if i go that far i want to be at least 95% sure ill buy it unless i notice something catastrophically wrong with it.

so i need some advice from all you cummins connoisseurs out there on what im looking for, what questions i need to ask, and what tools i need to bring to do as much diagnostics on a engine that is out of the the vechile as i can?

as far as what i already know about the engine is the seller is asking 2000 obo, he says it has 2500rpm gov springs, it has 66,000 miles, its out of a ford bus. the engine id tag, or as much of it as i can read states,
manufactured by cummins engine co. for ford motor co.
dom 10-4-1994
cid 359 / L 5.9
model # b5.9-190
cpl 1351 (im not 100% about the "3")
timing tdc 11.5*
valve lash cold int .010" exh .020"
firing order 1 5 3 6 2 4
ford p/n F4HT-5007-JGATN4A
hp 190 at 2300 rpm

there is quite a bit of other info on the tag and i can read the numbers but cant really tell what the numbers are for.

any info you could give to help me make a more informed purchase would be a huge help and if there is any more questions i need to ask the seller or any questions you have i may be able to answer let me know

sorry for being so long winded but thanks a million for taking your time to read this and thanks even more if you take your time to post any info helpful to me.

otis
 
just a couple more things, on the ip where the forth line from the front (or third from the rear) goes out up by the nut it looks like there was some fuel leaking, is this a big deal? how do i make sure this is a p7100, so i dont end up with a p3000 or anything else?

thanks again
 
The engine serial number and pictures might help to identify the engine and condition...
 
i have a pic of the drivers side and rear of the engine but i cant get them to load it says file size to large and i guess im not smart enough to make it smaller:doh:

where do i find the serial number?

on the id tag it says engine no. (i think but its hard to read) the numbers are 45080451

is this any help?
 
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otisd85 said:
just a couple more things, on the ip where the forth line from the front (or third from the rear) goes out up by the nut it looks like there was some fuel leaking, is this a big deal? how do i make sure this is a p7100, so i dont end up with a p3000 or anything else?

thanks again
Click to expand...

The leak at most should be a cracked injector line...complete used sets can be had for $50-75 off ebay or here in the classifieds.

To verify it is a 7000 series, there should be a tag on the driver's side of the pump. Look at the PES6P... series. The last four digits of that sequence will denote what series it is. 7000 series is 7xxx and 3000 is 3xxx...hope that helps some.

Welcome to the site! Tons of great people and great info on here!
 
Just a note about the NV4500, the ones in the 98 12v were the same as the 24v, with the newer bolt on shift tower. 94-97 were the ones with the ****ty style shifter.
 
cummins dont have glow plugs? how do you do a compression check, if they dont have glow plugs? do you have to take out the injectors or is there a better way? is there a tool to take out the injectors and is there a adapter for the copression tester made specifically for the cummins? just thought a comp. test might be a good start in checking a engines condition.
 
Are you planning on using your Chevy's tranny and mate it with a Cummins engine or use Dodge tranny? Auto or manual?

If auto then your best bet would be to buy a complete truck with bad 47RH tranny so you will get the ECU and harness with it. Bad tranny in the case if you start to tune the engine then you will need a built tranny anyway.

If you will use a manual trans then you need to update the clutch and the later year 12V engines have slightly bigger P-pumps. Then only the engine is your best bet if that is all that you actually need.

And then there's the aftermarket scene...

Ideal deal would be a 1998 12V with 215 P-pump, 47RH auto and DHD transfer case. But you will not find this combo unless some individual has done it since this combo never came from the factory.
 
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otisd85 said:
cummins dont have glow plugs? how do you do a compression check, if they dont have glow plugs? do you have to take out the injectors or is there a better way?
Click to expand...

no they do not have glow plugs. they use a grid heater on the intake manifold to heat the intake air. and yes you have to pull the injector to do a compression test.
 
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i am planing on using a nv4500 from a dodge unless i come across a nv5600 for the right price
 
found a 95 cummins with a nv4500 2 wheel drive with 280,000 for 2600 bucks, if i am replacing the output shaft to do the updated 5th gear nut can i just use a 4wd tailhousing or is it more hassle than that? what do you guys think of this deal? if i buy a whole truck i can drive it home and i get the intercooler too.
 
I would buy the whole truck if you can. The 95 has the right tranny for an easier swap. If you search on here you can find a few threads on swapping the tailhousing so it's very possible.
 
just an update, i havent found a engine yet but i found a tranny. ive been spending quite a bit of time doing research on this project and i think my build up is going to be an off frame restoration. the tranny i decided to go with is a fuller fso-8406a, it came out of a 2000 freightliner fl-80, it has a manual clutch linkage, and came with a good dual disk ceramic clutch for a 14" cummins flywheel. there is quite a bit of info on putting a fuller trans behind a cummins at http://www.cumminsforum.com/forum/98-5-02-powertrain/41978-nv5600-fso6406a-6-speed-fuller.html. i picked mine up for $350 off craigslist
 
i think the next thing in my quest for parts will be a sae #2 flywheel cover and a flywheel for a 14" clutch. if anyone can give me some info on finding these parts or how to identify the casting numbers on the flywheel housing that would be great. i would prefer the drivers side mount starter to help with room for exhaust on pass side. thanks
 
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