PDI Engine Overhaul Kits

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PDI Overhaul Kits

CAT began making engines for onroad applications in 1939 and continued to manufacture them until 2010. They made many well-known and respected engines including the 3406 series, C9, C12, and C15. However, with the new century came a renewed interest in environmental safety which led to repeated compliance that called for lower emissions.

Between 2003-2010 the standards increased three different times, and it became supremely difficult for a few companies, CAT included, to alter the design of the engine enough to meet the new changes. While they were able to comply with the 2003 and 2007 updates to the standards, CAT ultimately decided to head in a different direction, and announced in 2008 that they would be leaving the on-road market to focus instead on their off-road applications.

Why are PDI Overhaul Kits a big deal?

Even though CAT no longer manufactures new diesel engines for on-road applications, their previously manufactured engines are still being bought, sold, traded, and used today. Why? Because they are good engines. However, as amazing as an engine may be, no engine’s components will last forever. Whether your engine is 15 years old or 50, if it’s running poorly because of age, then an overhaul kit could be just the thing to bring it back to life.

What does it mean to overhaul an engine?

Overhauling an engine is the act of taking apart, cleaning, and swapping out any worn out parts. While a general overhaul won’t fix a broken block, it will fix the majority of issues caused by old components. Pistons and other working components wear out over time as dust, debris, and contact with other parts causes damage. Gaskets and O-rings tend to stretch out, crack, or lose their strength which results in leaks both liquid and gaseous. With a proper overhaul all these parts get replaced—making your engine secure and able to run like new.

What do PDI Overhaul Kits Include?

PDI Overhaul Kits are designed to provide you with everything that your old CAT engine may need. These kits feature complete sets of pistons and liners, gaskets and o-rings, and piston oilers. Made with the same Big Boss quality that PDI promotes for all their products, these kits guarantee optimal engine performance.

Additional Features:

1 Year Unlimited Mile Warranty
Made in the USA

PDI Overhaul Kits - Signs that an engine needs an overhaul

Engines have many ways of letting us know when an overhaul is needed or necessary, though the most obvious are visible symptoms of poorer performance or problems related to the oil or coolant. Here are a few of the ways that your engine might alert you that it is need of an overhaul:

Oil related problems

Many of the engine components that require overhauling at regular intervals either use engine oil, or are used to help contain and channel the engine oil. When these components start to fail, you may experience any of the following issues:

Oil Sludge

Oil becomes sludge when it gets bogged down by excessive dirt and other debris, is exposed to excessive heat for prolonged periods of time, or a combination of the two. All engine oil, if not changed at proper intervals will eventually become sludge, however, if your engine oil changes to sludge faster than it should, that is a strong sign of an internal issue that could potentially be fixed by a proper overhaul.

Metal Shavings

If you see metal shavings, no matter how small, in your engine oil that is a sign that one or more of your engine’s components are being damaged. This is dangerous both because the damaged component(s) is compromised, but also because the shavings will be carried by the oil to other parts of the engine where they can cause additional wear and tear.

Increased Oil or Coolant Consumption

A properly running engine has a measured expectancy of consumption for fluids like oil and coolant. However, damaged gaskets, o-rings, and other components often lead to these fluids being consumed faster because of engine inefficiency and fluid leaks. If you notice that your engine is consuming fluids much faster than the normal consumption rate, it may be a sign that it is time to overhaul the engine. If that is the case, PDI Overhaul Kits have everything you need to get your CAT engine back to running like it should be.

Exhaust Related Issues:

Excessive Exhaust issuing from your tailpipe is a sign of failing engine components. Diesel engines are built to hold up to very specific exhaust regulations, which limit the amount of exhaust that they are able to release into the atmosphere at a time. As components like gaskets and o-rings wear out, they create avenues for additional exhaust gasses to escape the flow. This is dangerous for the environment, but even more pressing is that it can be dangerous for your vehicle.
Exhaust gasses are extremely hot and can cause damage to wires, plastic, and any other material that has not been properly treated to withstand the intense temperatures. These glasses are also hot enough that they can ignite dry grass and other flammable materials. While there are parts of the exhaust system that help reduce the temperature of the gasses, having an excess of gas in the system will reduce the effectiveness of those components. PDI overhaul kits give the engine the sealing power it needs to keep the exhaust gasses where they should be.

Noise related issues

If you are hearing loud knocking noises from under your hood then you need to get it checked ASAP. Knocking sounds are generally caused by poor bearings, faulty fuel injectors, wrist pin failure, or compression problems. Some of these issues can be resolved with the installation of PDI overhaul kits as the overhaul should restore any issues with lubrication channels, and replace various parts that may be failing.

Engine Milestone

While these things sometimes happen faster than expected, it should be noted that they are times where engines are speculated to be in need of an overhaul. These times are called “milestones” and represent a certain number of miles that the engine has traveled.

Barring any unforeseen problems, good engine maintenance requires an overhaul be done when the engine hits the milestone of 700,000 miles. There are engines that may last to the 1,000,000 mile mark, but generally speaking if your engine is between these two benchmarks, then it is time to get it overhauled. Holding off much longer puts your engine at risk of various problems that can cause a lot of damage in a short space of time.

This is not a comprehensive list of all the possible reasons why an engine may need an overhaul, but it does include some of the most likely. Fact is, no matter what CAT engine you have, it would be considered old. Whether or not you are experiencing the above mentioned issues or not, if your engine hasn’t had an overhaul in a while it may be a good idea to grab yourself one of the PDI overhaul kits, and get it done preemptively.