Salt Lake City Has a Range of Diesel Performance
I’m a big 6.0 guy,” says Ty Davis, owner of Wasatch Diesel Performance in Salt Lake City, Utah. “I love the 6.0. I think it’s a very good truck engine.”
The 6.0L Davis is referring to is none other than the second generation of Ford’s Powerstroke diesel engines, and while the entire Powerstroke line represents their primary focus, Wasatch Diesel Performance covers the gamut and offers a wide selection of products and services to get a mountain of power out of anything running a Cummins or Duramax diesel engine as well.
Turning wrenches came natural to Davis as a young man, and after graduating from high school, he worked for local shops until deciding to join the army as a mechanic. After years of service to Uncle Sam, Davis had developed a passion for diesel performance and decided it was the perfect time for Salt Lake City to benefit from what he had to offer, and Wasatch Diesel Performance was born.
The foundation of Wasatch Diesel is its “Diesel Solution” packages – offering a variety of upgrades for different levels of performance. Designed to “bulletproof the future” of an engine and offered for many popular diesel powerplants, customers can choose a package that fits their budget and the performance they want. Packages are spec’d out to make easy decisions for customers and include engine work, performance parts and upgrades, fluids and machine work.
As an example, the stage three solution for the Ford Powerstroke 6.0L includes; Testing of the original cylinder heads, ARP head studs, complete gasket kit, OEM head gaskets, a KC Turbo upgrade kit, a new serpentine belt, OEM Ford updates if available, new Degas bottle, IPR EGR upgrade, an OEM oil cooler, an OEM high pressure oil pump, WDI injectors with new solenoids and upgraded spool valves, an S&B intake, 6.4 banjo bolts and pushrods, as well as a coolant backflush with Ford VC-9, oil change with OEM filter, OEM fuel filter and G05 coolant.
Their attention to detail is clearly evident and reflected by customer feedback on social media. In addition to their performance builds, Wasatch Diesel also specializes in all types of regular maintenance and repair and is known for their honesty, dependability and quality.
Currently, the machining work is performed off-site, but all engine assembly and the remainder of the performance upgrades are done in-house.
“I work with Kill Devil Diesel and Diesel Doctor in Tennessee, and also a couple of local machine shops,” Davis says. “I make sure I get the best machinists around.”
Increasingly strict emission regulations are a constant challenge facing performance shops, but Davis is willing to meet this challenge head on. “Without an emissions system, we’ve got 2,000 to 3,000 horsepower trucks out there,” he said. “I’d like to see a truck with emission systems intact that can do that.”
Recognized as an authority on diesel performance and repair, Davis is a firm believer in networking with other local shops and is more than happy to help them out. “My strong belief is there’s no such thing as a shop that specializes in everything,” he says. “Our strong suit is Powerstrokes. That’s what I specialize in. I do work on Dodge, I do work on Ford, but if there’s something I’m stumped on, I call a local shop that I know specializes in them. We all kind of work together.”
Operating in a 3,000 sq.-ft. facility and staffed by Davis, his wife, a shop manager and lead mechanic, Wasatch Diesel has built a solid customer base, but Davis would eventually like to branch out into other markets.
“The biggest downfall is that I can’t grow because I can’t find good, reliable help or people that take the job serious enough to ensure that they’re doing the quality of work that I want,” Davis says. “I think the main reason diesel and mechanic markets have suffered is because of education ¬– we pushed for going to college, but guys are coming in with no tools and no experience whatsoever wanting to make $25 per hour.”
When time permits, Davis and his staff have been designing and building custom charge pipes but are not able to focus heavily on it right now, since it’s the general repairs that are keeping the doors open. As Davis is able to find additional help, he would like to design and build more custom parts and eventually manufacture custom parts in house.
“I want to get to a point where I can comfortably have four to five employees, then have a three-man team that gets to do the fun customization and represent us at PRI and SEMA,” he says.
The Ultimate Callout Challenge (UCC) brings out the best of the best in diesel truck motorsports, and Wasatch Diesel Performance supports the series as well as local competition. Davis says that the diesel performance scene is not as big in Utah as it is on the east coast, but they are pushing to grow that segment of the market with their support and presence in motorsports.
Davis is heavily invested in OEM software and special equipment to offer the most accurate diagnostics and service, and in the future he will continue to invest heavily to keep the shop on the cutting edge of technology and bring their goals of product development to reality. Quality, passion for the industry and solid business practices are the proof that Wasatch Diesel Performance is forging their own path to the top.
Davis is also happy to spend time outside the shop’s four walls where he is involved in helping his community and country. Davis got his auto dealers license, not to strictly buy and sell vehicles, but to buy trucks from auction and fix them up. Davis is currently repairing a truck and donating all the time and money for a law enforcement officer who was involved in a bad accident.
“I want to get to a point where we can buy a truck from the auction, fix it up and give it away to a veteran family in need,” Davis says. “I have high hopes to do that one day.”
Those high hopes in business and beyond are what will keep Wasatch Diesel Performance atop the diesel mountain in Salt Lake City, Utah.
