Feel free to ignore or comment... I'm mainly doing this to keep track of all the stuff I am doing to the Dak.

1995 Dakota SLT Club Cab
Factory & Aftermarket @ time of purchase:

• Four Wheel Drive
• Towing Package
• 22gal Gas Tank
• Limited Slip Differential
• Infinity Premium Sound
• Automatic Transmission
• 5.2 Liter V8
• HD Cooling
• Cab-height camper shell

Condition at time of purchase:

• Purchased January 2013 for $2000
• 145,000 miles
• Mechanically near perfect. Radiator clogged
• Radio malfunctioning
• Inoperable gas gauge
• Steering wheel worn
• Bad lift struts on camper shell
• Good tread on Goodyear Wrangler tires
• Faded wheel arch flares and airdam

Goals for this vehicle:

• 20mpg highway at 80mph
• Comfortable for two + one (12yr old son)
• As much performance as possible without giving up MPG or reliability
• Reliable enough to get in, turn the key, and go to Alaska if we want
• Should not stand out – no modifications should be visible

 

Baseline
Whenever I purchase a vehicle, I like to get a solid baseline. My first project was simply to get it ready to upgrade. The following parts were researched extensively and chosen for their reliability, quality, longevity, and performance potential.

• Brass terminal cap and rotor
• STI spark plug wires (made in the USA and a lot cheaper than Magnecor)
• MSD ignition coil
• MSD StreetFire multispark ignition box
• Oil change with Mobil Super 10-40 & Purolator Gold filter
• Transmission flush
• Replaced camper shell lift struts

Thoughts: I honestly don't think the MSD stuff adds any performance, but it does idle smoother with the multispark box than without.

 

Chasing the cooling system
My first big challenge was an overheating problem. I redid the entire cooling system to ensure reliability. An upcoming project will replace the clutch fan with an electric fan.

• New fan clutch
• New hoses
• Factory radiator
• 180 degree high flow thermostat
• New coolant with Redline Water Wetter

Thoughts: With the new cooling system, I have never seen it get to the halfway point, even idling on 95deg days with the AC on full blast. The future switch to efans is simply because I can't leave well enough alone and I want to free up as much rotating mass as possible.

 

Breathing
The Magnum engine is plenty powerful, but I hate lost potential. The modifications below allow the engine to inhale and exhale much more efficiently. The next step in this department will be a switch to headers and a high flow cat and the Hughes intake manifold (shhh, don't tell the CARB).

• Edelbrock hot-air intake with Edelbrock breather
• Ported & polished throttle body
• Aluminum intake manifold plate mod
• Dynomax Ultra-Flo stainless exhaust

Thoughts: It is disturbingly easy to break the tires loose. I can outrun Mustangs until physics realizes I'm driving a brick. I'm not sure why I would want more, except that more is often more fun. It also sounds very dramatic when I drive in tunnels, and I enjoy scaring little old ladies when I start it.

 

Interior
This is where I spend most of my time, and I'm used to driving slightly more expensive cars... So I'm a bit spoiled.

• Blaupunkt San Francisco CD/iPod receiver plugged into factory Infinity amplifier & speakers
• Wheelskins leather steering wheel cover
• Invisible storage for my Benchmark maps, handgun, hatchet, Mag-lite, knife, and basic tools
• Baofeng UV-5R FRS/Ham/FM/etc handheld dual band transceiver
• TomTom GPS for on road and topo GPS apps on my old Android phone for off-road driving

Thoughts: I do love having an extended cab truck... Trying to figure out where to put the rifle out of sight. The Infinity speakers sound mighty good too, and I listen to everything from Zac Brown to the White Stripes to David Guetta. The Blaupunkt has an SD Card slot, so I just tossed a 16gb SD card full of MP3's in there.

 

If you manage to get 20mpg at 80mph, you need to share how you pull it off lol

 

When I first got the truck, I did a drive from Half Moon Bay to Morro Bay down Hwy 1, then back up 101 to San Francisco... the first half was winding mountain roads. Averaged a GPS-confirmed 16mpg. On the drive up, with the cruise control set at 75mph (and getting passed by 18-wheelers), I averaged 18mpg. That was with a bad radiator and no upgrades. I know it's a stretch goal, but it would be pretty cool

 

well from the looks of your upgrades, it would seem pretty possible holding about 65-70, but 80 is another question entirely since your rpm will be 1k higher if not more plus wind drag

 

Maybe I'm geared funny, but for me 80mph is not that much over 2000rpm...

 

might i suggest saving some money and getting exhaust manifold from a 92 or 93 v8 magnum. those 2 yrs had a less restrictive exhaust. and run a cold air intake instead of hot air intake. just my $.02

but you have really solid ideas... i like... haha