Network
Just west of the Atlantic Ocean rests a supremely clean 2008 Ford F-250. The owner, Nick Carroll, of Leonardtown, Michigan, mentions diesel drag racing when you ask about his hobbies. As a diehard diesel performance enthusiast for as long as he can remember, it was only a matter of time before Carroll got a rig of his own to perform with. So, we got the scoop on Carroll’s 6.4-Liter Power Stroke.
Carroll has been into diesel-powered trucks for years. “Ever since I was a kid growing up, I always knew I wanted to have a truck of my own,” said Carroll. “Credit is due to my dad for getting me into them. He has always had a diesel pickup from as far back as I can remember.”
After first purchasing the Ford, Carroll’s dream was to build this truck and bury it deep into the 10-second range in the quarter-mile. But before a feat like that, it started out with only moderate upgrades.
Carroll takes his drag racing program serious as he does whatever it takes to compete against new trucks all over the country. We met him in Crossville, Tennessee during the Rocky Top Diesel Shootout at Crossville Dragway where he raced in the 6.70 index class. After traveling nearlfy ten hours, Carroll and Co. got a taste of the Outlaw Diesel Super Series.
Being from Maryland, Carroll grew up watching Mike Graves of Hollyrock Customs, drag race his Duramax race truck at the local drag strip. “Watching Graves race on the weekends was something I looked forward to,” said Carroll. ” In 2010, when my dad purchased his 2010 6.4-liter, it went 13.00 seconds with just tune, intake, and exhaust I knew a 6.4 was the truck I wanted to build.”
After mimicking his dad’s modifications, Carroll went on to upgrade his Ford was a drop in compound turbo kit which measured to a stock over s472 turbos. With the additional power, Carroll used a set of head studs to keep the heads tightly to the surface of the block. To neutralize the power, Carroll matched his air setup with a K16 injection pump and 30-percent over stock fuel injectors.
For more information on Carroll’s truck and to keep up with the build, be sure and check out his Instagram.
“After upgrading to a K16 pump and compound turbos, other parts were going to be sacrificed,” said Carroll. “Not long after the K16, I added an aftermarket transmission and dual K16 pumps.” Unfortunately for Carroll, the engines head gaskets didn’t make it. While repairing the head gaskets, for the second time, Carroll added aftermarket pushrods and valve springs.
“I ditched the compounds after all the head gasket issues,” Carroll said. “Now, I’ve got the current setup. A single turbo measuring 72mm and a set of 100-percent over stock fuel injectors.” With the help of his H & S Performance MiniMaxx, Carroll can monitor all of the parameters of his truck on and off the track.
Although the truck looks like it has the potential to be comfortable inside, the trucks air conditioning system has been removed. With the dash still intact, the truck still looks factory from the seat forward. Otherwise, everything has been removed to cut down on the weight of the truck.
With this current setup, the 72mm charger, and 100-percent overs, the truck finally had enough to reach his goal. In 2017, Carroll made his 10-second pass. After a 6.955 eight-mile mile time, that was enough to breach the barrier stopping the clocks at a 10.895 at 124.22 MPH. Now that the goal was made, what is next for Carroll and his Ford?
Clearly, Carroll’s Power Stroke is fast, but its capable of much more than speed. The truck has been and always will be taken care of. This super white paint matched with the polished wheels makes this Ford a makeshift show vehicle.
"I wanted to break 10's and with the help of TRM Diesel and Hollyrock Customs, we did it," Carrol said. "Now, I just want to see how fast we can get a crew cab short bed to go on a stock engine."
As you can see, even under the hood Carroll takes care of business. This Power Stroke is equipped with BD Diesel Performance 6.0-liter exhaust manifolds and Rudy’s Diesel Performance custom up pipes for the 6.0 manifolds. Also peeking around in there is the Maryland Performance Diesel single turbo kit which houses the Engineered Diesel S472 turbocharger.
With a truck this large, and an engine capable of so much, Carroll knew the transmission would be the next weak link and he didn’t want to be stingy on the drivetrain. “We decided to go with a SunCoast Diesel Transmissions builds and build up a 4R100 trans,” Carroll said. ” Inside our 4R is SunCoast’s 13-inch torque converter with a 2500 RPM stall. With the full competition build from Suncoast, this 4R100 should handle about anything.
Carroll uses Flight Fabrications four-link suspension kit on his F-250 to keep the truck planted to the ground and to improve the handling of the truck.
Carroll’s F-250 races in four-wheel drive which keep these drag radial tires planted to the sticky track surface. Mickey Thompson ET Street R was the tire of choice and these 305/45R18 tires are wrapping up four 18×10 Mickey Thompson classic wheels. With this wheel and tire setup, Carroll has seen an average 60′ time in the 1.50 range.
At these power levels, it is important to have a tire that will bridge well with the surface of the track. If you were to apply this amount of power to a track not in four wheel drive, your tires wouldn't last too long.
To meet safety requirements, Carroll was forced to install a roll cage due to the speeds he would reach. Thanks to S & W Race Cars, this F-250 has an 8.50-second certified roll cage surrounding his Corbeau LG1 racing seat with a five-point harness.
It was an honor to see such a clean truck on this side of the country and to meet someone with that much passion towards a build and we look forward to seeing what the future holds for Nick and his truck. For more information and to keep up with his build, be sure and check out his Instagram. Stay tuned for more here at DieselArmy.com.
