Moon Lake sits in west-central Pasco between SR 52 and Ridge Road, strung along a county road that is 4 lanes for its first stretch and 2 lanes after that. RDI Power has no shop here. At about 27 road miles, our Brooksville location is a genuine drive, so this page is straightforward about when to make it, when to call for a technician and what happens once a Moon Lake diesel reaches our bays.
From Ed Haley’s dude ranch to Moon Lake Estates
Moon Lake’s origin story is an unusual one. Between 1933 and 1937, Ed Haley, who owned Clearwater’s Fort Harrison Hotel, built the Moon Lake Gardens and Dude Ranch on about 6,000 acres, with a log lodge, cottages, bridle paths and a game preserve. World War II closed the ranch. Afterward, the land around the lodge and the lake was sold off in lots and paved as Moon Lake Estates, and for a time cattle took over: a 1951 newspaper counted 200 head roaming the old resort grounds across 7,600 acres. The name itself is older still, appearing on an 1880 map.
Today the Tampa Tribune’s description holds up. Moon Lake is the community between Ridge Road and SR 52, defined by Moon Lake Estates on the east side of Moon Lake Road, with the Water’s Edge subdivision across the road to the west and a pavilion at Moon Lake Park. Addresses carry the New Port Richey postal name in ZIP 34654.
Moon Lake Road, 4 lanes and then 2
Everything in Moon Lake connects to Moon Lake Road (CR 587), and most of that road is still 2 lanes. By 2017 only its first stretch southwest from SR 52 had been widened into a divided 4-lane road. Farther south it stays 2 lanes, and in 2024 drivers reported alternating one-lane traffic while developers built turn lanes, with the county’s own widening not slated for funding until 2028.
For a diesel, that means time spent creeping and idling. Slow, stop-and-wait driving keeps exhaust temperatures low, which is hard on particulate filters and EGR systems, and it heats the cooling system and transmission with little airflow to help. A truck that lives on Moon Lake Road and rarely gets a long run is a candidate for regen trouble; our Moon Lake truck repair page goes into the pickup side of that problem.
2 Parkway routes between Moon Lake and Donto Way
The route we measured from the middle of Moon Lake goes north on Moon Lake Road to SR 52, east on SR 52 to the Suncoast Parkway, north on the toll road to SR-50 and east into Brooksville. The whole trip runs about 27 road miles and a little under 40 minutes.
The south end of Moon Lake has a second option, the Ridge Road Extension. Its 4.2 miles run east from Moon Lake Road to a diamond interchange on the Parkway, and 2-way traffic has used it since December 31, 2021. Either way, the shop opens at 7:00 AM on weekdays, and a truck that leaves early can be in a bay by the time the day’s work starts.
How a Moon Lake diesel gets diagnosed
We do not replace parts on a hunch, least of all on a truck that drove 27 miles to see us. The process:
- Listen first. When does the problem show up: cold or hot, loaded or empty, in traffic or at speed?
- Read the modules. Ford IDS on Fords, WiTECH on Rams and heavy-duty scan tools on the big trucks pull the codes, freeze frames and live data.
- Test the suspect. Fuel pressure, boost, injector balance, a smoke test of the intake, whatever the data points to.
- Show the proof. Photos and the technician’s notes reach you in a digital vehicle inspection before you approve a repair.
- Back the work. Moon Lake repairs carry RDI Power’s labor warranty: 3 years or 36,000 miles.
The engines on our bench run from the Power Stroke 6.0, 6.4, 6.7 and 7.3 to Duramax, Cummins, Detroit, Volvo and Caterpillar, which we are certified on, across light, medium and heavy duty trucks, buses and diesel pushers. Injection parts come from our Bosch dealership and from Alliant Power. Owners who want to read about us first can find 250+ Google reviews. Moon Lake owners curious about systems beyond the engine can see the diesel service and repair page.
Moon Lake’s other pages and River Ridge next door
If the truck cannot move, or it is stuck in that 2-lane stretch of Moon Lake Road, start with mobile diesel repair in Moon Lake. Heavy truck and fleet pages for Moon Lake are listed with this one. Just south, where Moon Lake Road meets Ridge Road, River Ridge has its own page: diesel repair in River Ridge.
Phone (352) 433-3800 with the symptom and the Moon Lake street the truck is on, and we will help you weigh the drive against a technician.