Well i noticed that everyone was posting new threads about their plans, so heres mine. im gunna do a 2" suspension lift on it (its only 2WD..) just so i can fit some bigger tires in there. im thinking of going with 33's if they will fit. im gunna drop a 360 combined with a 4 speed with overdrive manual transmission (currently automatic tho..) into the engine bay. im tinting the back windows to 5% and the front 2 side windows to 15%. im gunna put a tonneau cover on the box and remove any and all dodge or dakota emblems from the body. and for the paint, im thinking of going with a metallic black with a hint of gold flake. that all being said, im gunna have to equip it with an alarm. and last but not least, im gunna build a custom box that completely eliminates the backseat, for my system. i plan on putting in 2 12" square kicker subs, 2 alpine type r 6x9's, combined with a alpine 300 watt amp for the 6x9's and an alpine 1000 watt amp for each sub. gunna run 5 1/4" alpine type r front speakers with an alpine 7 1/2" flip screen deck. gunna stick lockers in the rear diff to get the truck sideways on dry cement when i spin the wheels. thinkin about changing the gears in the diff, but not sure what to go with (any ideas?) as i dont know how the rear diff works completely. im also putting in those aftermarket tail lights, those clear signal and sidemarker lens', along with true clear headlight len's with those xenon blue headlights.

however with all that said and done, im still unsure of exactly what im gunna do to the 360, but i this is what im doing for sure... high flow intake, mopar performance computer, a venom chip (double modding it ), magnum valve covers and thats it for now.

any opinions or other ideas are very much welcome

*EDIT*

I forgot that im also taking the antenna out, and filling that hole, putting 2 3/4" true dual exhaust with a magnaflow muffler, cutting out the cat, and keeping whatever is chrome now, chrome( the front and rear bumper, the grill, and the mirrors). And i was just looking around on the net, and i may just have found a donor truck for the engine. its a 1998 ram, the front end is smashed and he wants $1200 for it, i said ill give him $1000. if i buy that truck, it will be soley for the engine and tranny (gunna use the auto until i can find a manual and when i have a little more money to spend on a new tranny).

 

Most of that sounds good, but a few points are a little iffy.

1st, you will need a little more than 2 inches to fit the tires, and lifting the rear end of your truck is going to be tricky since you can't do it with blocks (axle over spring). I have 31.5's and before I did the 2 inch body lift they rubbed and I have 2 inches of suspension lift on the 4x4.

2nd, you don't need to put a chip and mopar performance computer in there, just stick with the mopar performance computer. I've heard too many times those chips in our trucks suck.

My suggestion about using the Dodge Ram if you buy it is take the 9.25 inch rear axle out of it and use that! Weld spring perches for axle under spring (which will give you plenty of lift) and put a locker in it. It can easily handle the 360s torque.

Just my $0.02, take it or leave it.

The system sounds sick! I have 1 400 watt rms 12" sub that I built a custom box for behind my seat. In that small of a cab it does a great job. I also have polk audio high end door speakers and a pioneer premier head unit.

Keep us updated on your progress!

 

I like your plans. I am shying away from a locker becasue my truck is used for daily driving. LSD maybe, but not a locker.

I added the PCM and it is nice. I can tell that I have more power when I floor it. Mine is for a V6 though. I would recommend putting the K&N air filter, just put it in and I like it a lot.

I have seen the smoke lenses somewhere for the tail lights and headlights. I personally like the looks of those better than the clear, but I am sure either will look good when you are done.
Take lots of pictures.

 

To add one more thing (I forgot about the gear), what transmission are you hoping to go with? I assume the NV3500 or something similar? If so, wait till you get that, because it has a low first gear. Back when I had the automatic I really wanted to go from my 3.55s to a 3.90 or 4.10, but now that I have the NV3500, I want to go a 3.21.

I guess my point is make that the last thing you decide, cause the transmission has just as much to do with gearing as the differential gears do!

 

i thought i saw in the FAQs that if i did a 2 in lift, that it would fit 33's on it, i might have read it wrong tho.

as for the venom chip, ive heard nothing but good things about it, thats why i want to put it in (plus it also boosts HP another 25%)

and as for the 9.25 rear axle, i think thats a good idea, however i dont want too much offset in the rear as i am eventually putting second gen rims on and those will be offset enough.

 

I think it probably depends on the tire on a case by case basis. My tires are fairly wide, and it was the outer edge that was rubbing and only at full lock, so its hard to say for sure. But you should also keep in mind that the 2wd are lower to start with than the 4x4s, so you might need to lift it higher, and that brings us back to how to lift the rear of the 2wd. As it sits right now, the only thing you can do is look for longer shackles. Otherwise you'll have to cut off your spring perches and weld new ones (never reuse old ones) on the top of the axle to make it axle under spring... in which case you'll be about 3 inches higher than a stock 4x4.

I still say if your going to go through the trouble of modifying the axles you should use the 9.25 out of the Ram. It's stronger, has bigger brakes on it, and is only a 1/2 inch wider on each side (1 inch total). If you have any questions about offset, just look at the pictures of my truck, cause I have the 9.25 with the 2nd gen 16" rims.

 

you can go with more than 2 12" i have 4 in a box i build in mine

 

Why? I mean thats cool and all, but there is only so much air you can move in your truck. Having 2 subs is not even close to twice as loud as 1, and having 4 is not even close to twice as loud as 2. When you run out of air to move, your not improving sound quality or loudness at all. The only thing 4 subs is good for is making sure people 100 yards away can hear you with the windows down.

I mean honestly, I had 4 subs and 6 full range speakers in my old car, totalling 2400 watts, and my truck's smaller stereo sounds better when your sitting in the vehicle. The only thing the old stereo had over my current one was the ability to produce a fuller sound outside the car.

*Edit*

And to add one more thing, your not improving the sound, but your straining your alternator for no reason.

 

i have an upgraded alt in my truck for that reason and you r right about people that can hear me but it more like a 1/4 mile away. i was in a parking lot one day with the raido on and this guy came walking up and said i woke up is new born and he lived down the street about 1/4 mile away.

 

Lol, I set off a guys car alarm with my old stereo before... and it wasn't in a parking deck, it was in an open parking lot!