6.0L Nissan, Perfect Pairing of Two Different Genres

A 6.0L Nissan, The Perfect Pairing of Two Very Different Genres

Yeah, it’s a 6.0L Power Stroke powering a Nissan GT-R up Pikes Peak in hopes of setting a new diesel record up the mountain. Do you act like that is something you’ve never seen or heard of before? Truth be told, it’s something we’d never seen or heard of before either, and to be quite honest, we think it may just be one of the coolest diesel builds we’ve seen yet. We can definitely say it’s the most unique, there is no doubting that fact. When good friends Clay (owner of Riffraff Diesel) and Cole (owner of LYFE Motorsport) decided to team up to build something the industry had never seen, I don’t think they even imagined it coming out quite like this.

LYFE Motorsport is a shop diesel enthusiasts have probably never heard of, but they’ve become quite popular among the road race, Grand Prix, and GT-R circuits as they build some of the most competitive race cars on the track. Their attention to detail, engineering, and mind for building anything fast has proven to be a winning combination when it comes to racing cars. This specific car, dubbed Frank the Tank was originally built and raced back in 2015 but was soon replaced with a lighter, faster, more road-ready version of itself. So, for more than six years, Frank found himself collecting dust in a tucked-away corner of the LYFE shop. That was until Clay at Riffraff approached Cole with a hair-brained idea to convert it to diesel and race it up Pikes Peak in Colorado.

Riffraff has specialized in the 7.3L and 6.0L Power Stroke markets for more than a decade, so with their knowledge of the power plant and LYFE’s knowledge of the car and racing, the two decided to jump in headfirst and build something incredible. They went into the car build with a couple of main goals, first and foremost, the car had to be usable, they weren’t building a show car you’d be afraid to put on the street. Their second goal, capture the diesel record at Pikes Peak. While this car had previously been built and raced in the past, the chassis was really just a starting point as virtually everything on the car would have to be modified and changed to support the weight and planned torque output of the 6.0L diesel engine.

Knowing what they would be up against at Pikes Peak, with the extreme elevation change from the bottom to the top of the mountain, horsepower and airflow were going to be key when it came time to be truly competitive on the road. Countless hours went into planning and building the perfect engine for this kind of torture test and there were some parts of the engine and transmission engineered specifically for this car. While the engine block is stock, it has been bored out slightly and converted to run a Peterson Dry Sump oiling system to maintain optimum oiling through the G-forces and inclines it would be subjected to. A custom oil pan was also fabricated to fit the engine in the chassis better. The factory pistons were replaced with a custom Mahle piston attached to sturdier billet connecting rods from CP-Carrillo. A Stage 2 Kill Devil camshaft was also used, which was better suited for the power and boost levels that would be run. The factory cylinder heads were used but modified with some mild porting, Smith Brothers Pushrods, and all new valves. The engine was also upgraded with a high flow cast intake manifold from O-Dawgs which then had to be modified by the LYFE team to allow better fitment in the engine compartment of the R35 Nissan chassis.

Since air gets so thin and hard to come by near the summit of Pikes Peak, a lot of time and effort went into crafting the turbocharger system for the car. They had hoped to run a single turbocharger for simplicity but knowing how important response out of the corners would be, the airflow required from a large single turbo would really hurt low-end spool-up so with the help of KC Turbos a custom compound system was engineered using KCs off the shelf Stage One Jetfire VGT turbo a custom Borg Warner S480 KC’s spec specific for the build. The variable geometry high-pressure unit allows total control over the low-end response and spool-up, while that big 80mm atmosphere can pull in as much available air as possible. The system runs dual Turbosmart wastegates to limit boost at around 65-psi and a custom-built water-to-air intercooler was fabbed up to keep intake charge temps as low as possible.

On the fueling side of the engine, Riffraff opted to run a 250cc injector from Full Force Diesel with their 100% nozzle on them, this would allow fuel for 850-900hp without fighting major smoke issues. A Terminator Engineering T500 high-pressure oil pump was also installed to ensure maximum injection pressures for the best atomization in the cylinders possible. Tuning is done through an SCT X4 device with calibrations from KC Turbos. They’ve also added a specialized Nitrous Express nitrous system to aid in power and smoke control off the corners when the driver feels the need for the extra boost on his way up the mountain.

To back that powerplant, Riffraff opted for a modified 4R100 4-speed that is normally used behind the 7.3L Power Stroke. Built by John Wood, the valve body was set up specifically for the car and allows the use of steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters. A Suncoast triple disc billet torque converter helps with fluid coupling and getting all that power to the ground. For electronics and data logging in the car, an AEM dash and their full data logging system were installed, along with their super trick PDM 32 with 12 button keypad switch controller.

Getting back to the chassis, LYFE had to make extensive changes to the firewall, transmission tunnel, and suspension to handle the added weight from such a massive engine and turbocharger system. There was a lot of time spent calculating where all the fluid hoses, exhaust piping, and cooling systems could be routed and mounted. Limited by real estate, but needing maximum cooling capacity, many of the systems were run to the back of the car, with custom fabbed air dams built to take full advantage of the aerodynamics of the car exterior to get air pushed through coolers mounted all over the chassis, including the unique 3 core CBR radiators.

One of the biggest changes made to the car during the build was the need to completely rebuild the roll cage midway through the fabrication and assembly phases. Due to the extreme weight added to the car, the original 1” roll cage tubing wouldn’t meet Pike Peak safety requirements, so the cage was cut from the car and a new 2” cage was fabricated, which took up even more precious space in the chassis and required even more problem-solving. The new weight of the car and the switch from running an all-wheel drive to rear-wheel drive meant major changes for the suspension as well. Weight distribution and the transfer were going to be vital for a properly handling car on the mountain.

JRZ Shock Absorbers are used on all four corners, with 3-way adjustable dampening. Swift coil springs were used and allow ride height adjustability to further fine-tune the aerodynamics and downforce on the car at higher speeds. The car runs Brembo Brake calipers and pads with a Wilwood master cylinder to make sure it can slow down consistently coming into the corners and Winters’s quick change rear end allows the team to change gear ratios on the mountain easily. Plating that power to the ground is 330/710R18 Yokohama race tires on 18×12.5 CCW wheels. The front and rear of the car had to be tubbed to clear the massive rubber but still runs an otherwise original stamped steel OEM chassis. The steering system was upgraded with a Porsche Motorsports electric power steering pump and GFR quick steering rack.

Upon completion of the build, the car made a quick trip to the chassis dyno to help fine-tune engine calibrations and fine-tune wastegate settings for the best turbocharger performance under load. Running a lower fuel tune, the car laid down an easy 850hp and 1300ft-lbs of torque, with the nitrous bottles still available for an extra boost when needed. After some seat time, the suspension, transmission shift strategy, and power transfer were dialed in and it was ready for the trip to Colorado for its first attack at the summit and diesel record.

With all the determination and dedication in the world, the LYFE and Riffraff teams were ready for whatever the mountain could throw at them but some issues within the oiling system of the engine were holding back their true potential on the road. While they made some great test passes and qualifying runs, their goal of reaching the top in record time will be postponed one more year as they develop a new billet front cover for the engine to allow better oil flow and oil pressure under extreme conditions of 10,000+ feet elevation. You can see and learn more about the build process at the LYFE Motorsport YouTube channel or by visiting the Riffraff Diesel website. Overall, the car has already been considered a major success and is definitely one we’re going to be excited to continue watching evolve and pushing diesel motorsports into the future.