Cat 3126 Diesel and other l6 industrial diesels

Jeff said:
I'm surprised at everyone's comments about them being slow and low powered. I used to run a '00 Freightliner FL70, 33k gvw with a 3126B and a 7 speed and loved it. I regularly towed a loaded 20 ton tag along, or one of our big chippers, all without any real issues. No speeding tickets, but seriously, what 33k truck is a speed queen with 15 tons behind it??
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Having the seven speed makes a big difference. Seems the majority of them if manual have a 5 speed and if auto have a 4 speed which really makes em feel like a dog.
 
tc262 said:
Having the seven speed...
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Eaton 7 speed, Tom. It was the stiffest, tightest, most closely spaced truck tranny I've ever driven. Like flicks of the wrist more than actual lever shifting. I seemed to be the only guy in the company that could drive it because I figured out how to float it. Everyone else was mashing the clutch but still couldn't find a gear to save their life.

Nice throaty bark from that Cat too.
 
My crane has a 300 HP 3126. Solid engine. Every 200 hours it gets serviced by a diesel shop and I insist they do all fluids and filters. This truck is a dog on the steep hills, but cranks on the flats. It all depends on the HP that yours will come with. If maintained they will last a long time.
This engine is actually ideal for me because its reliable, easy to maintain, and just sips fuel. With both 40 gallon tanks filled I can get well over a week of this think running all day long.
My crane is a 30 ton and it has enough HP at 300 to get it around these parts:)
 

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96coal449 said:
I'm looking at an aluminum dump on a 33k gvw truck with said engine. Has an allison 5 spd behind it with 70k miles on the odometer. I've heard a little bad rep on these cats and was wondering .... are these that bad? I know the 3208's are junk but know little on these. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks.
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Exactly what DTS and Jesse said, change the oil, filters regularly and make sure you have a mechanic check it and look at the block and make sure it's not glazed. They are solid and good on fuel, don't like hills..... At all! Mines in a F750 with a versa lift. Only had it since sept but had it checked before we bought and and runs great.
 
Gorman said:
How often do you guys do the fuel filter? I do mine every 4 or 5k
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Every 5K miles or 2-250 hours, whichever comes first. I do it all. All fuel filters, water fuel separator, oil filter and new fluids. Costs about 900 per truck. But it keeps me on the road and I have had almost 0 major repairs.
 
We run around 20 of these engines , always start in cold , more power then a 5.9 Cummins and less problems then the newer DT466e ,
Only thing is service them and don't buy 320 horse or more they are too much power to hold together .
 
This truck sold 2 days before my inquiry. I'd like to thank everyone for their advice.
I'd also like to leave this thread open for discussion of all l6 industrial diesels. Had I known a little more about the Cat 3126, I would be sporting a 33 gvw aluminum dump.
Thank you all.
 
I am going to look at and most likely purchase a '97 Int. with a 466E. What is the "E" designating? And what do I need to look out for if anything?
 
96coal449 said:
I am going to look at and most likely purchase a '97 Int. with a 466E. What is the "E" designating? And what do I need to look out for if anything?
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There E is telling you the engine is operated electronically. Basically, it can not run or work without the computer working. Where as no E would be an engine that is all mechanical. Most of those engines were before 1996 (the mechanical's). This is my understanding on it.
 
96coal449 said:
I am going to look at and most likely purchase a '97 Int. with a 466E. What is the "E" designating? And what do I need to look out for if anything?
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Yep the e designates electronic. When they first went to the electronic motors they went with a high pressure oil system to fire the injectors. It's called hydraulic electronic unit injection or Heui (hugh-ey). It's the same system that's used on the 7.3l powerstrokes.
 
Thank's guys. I'm already familiar with the HEUI system so I feel comfortable with this engine already. Now to get out there and snatch that truck up.
 
I don't have any experience with the early DT466E's, but I drove one of the early Cat 3406E's in a KW for a while. Biggest thing I noticed was the slow throttle response. You couldn't 'blip' the throttle when you were trying to float to a lower gear.
 
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