CLASSIC LINES, CUMMINS POWER

’52 FORD UP TOP— ’97 DODGE UNDERNEATH

When your first vehicle is a ’50 Ford with a flathead V8, you tend to retain your affinity for classic Blue Ovals. Now fast-forward a few decades, factoring in a few life experiences that include the discovery of the power, durability and simplicity that is the 5.9L Cummins, and you start to see why Tim Galas’s ’52 Ford project turned out the way it did. “I always wanted another Bonus-built,” he told us, “and the Cummins is so simple to work on, not to mention it’s good for a million miles.” It just made too much sense.

Building the “Fodge”

With a complete ’97 Dodge 3500 at his disposal—along with an end goal of towing with the finished product—the 1-ton frame, axles and suspension were used as the perfect foundation. The steering system consists of the second-gen box and a modified steering column out of an old International. For engine cooling, the radiator and fan clutch were retained from the ’97, while a first-gen intercooler is used due to the Ford’s tight engine bay quarters. For interior comfort, Galas’s friend, Jason Fox, installed the Vintage Air system that keeps the cab cool on hot Florida days.

P-pump Tweaks & 5x12s

Seeing no reason to disrupt an engine he believed was just getting broken in, Galas opted to leave the 200,000-mile Cummins alone internally. However, the same couldn’t be said for the injection system. With horsepower being all too easy to add to a late 12-valve engine, the 215hp P-pump was pulled and sent to nearby Accurate Diesel Injection for a few tweaks. Among its enhancements would be a considerable bump in timing, the popular #0 fuel plate, larger delivery valves and 3,200rpm governor springs. A set of 5x12 injectors from Diesel Speed Shop brought another 100 hp into the equation without requiring Galas to ditch the factory HX35 turbo.

Optimized HX35

Thanks to the hard-to-kill nature of the Holset HX35, Galas stuck with it. However, in preparation for the added horsepower from the pump work and injectors, he had the factory charger rebuilt at Accurate Diesel Injection. While under Accurate’s care, exhaust flow was opened up via a 14cm2 turbine housing and a boost elbow was