Right on no spacers. What would the impact be of changing the throttle body to that of a V8? More airflow or what? To answer Dan it is a 2WD. I don't know any other specifics at this time for the transmission. Also I do not know what a "Dana" is. Sorry for the rookie lack of knowledge. I'm doubtful that I will be willing to spend that much at this time for the gear upgrade.

 

doing the V8 TB swap, you lose a touch down low, but it breathes so much better from 2000 RPM on up. The rear gears are steep yes, but very worth it under load.

 

Thanks alot for all the help here. So someone earlier mentioned a Fastman TB, then Dan was talking about going to a V8 TB. Would the combination of the two options be just as good? Say a Fastman V8 TB? Also are there any changes I could make to the throttle body as it is to improve it's performance? Would there be any reporgramming involved in these options?

So far what I have identified the need for is an external xmsn cooler, gear ratio upgrade, those mirrors that help see around the thing, some sort of throttle body change, but I haven't heard anything about exhaust. Any thoughts on the exhaust part of all this?

 

I also forgot to ask about spark plugs and spark plug wires. To my knowledge the benifet from "performance" products in this area is mostly neglegable. Can anybody correct me on that?

 

A throttle body from a 5.2L V8 will swap out with your current one easily and with no problem. If you find one from a junkyard for cheap that is awesome. Clean it and voila you are golden. Fastman is a guy who alot of us with V8s use to bore out our throttle bodies. You having a V6 are just fine upgrading to a regular V8 TB and that is all you will ever need.

You can remove exhaust restrictions but it won't gain you much other than some sound and a few hp. Spark plugs are often neglected so just buying good copper plugs and keeping them in good working condition will be good enough.

 

I called our local auto recycling place and they are telling me that for TB's interchangable with the 03 Dakota there are only 5.9 and 4.7's available. He is saying that the 5.9's are $50.00, and the 4.7's are $75.00. Which one of these would be more "Plug and Play'ish?"

 

false. Any 5.2 or 5.9 TB will interchange. However, you need the throttle cable to go with it. The V6 and V8 cables use different couplings on the TB side. pedal side is the same.

Just bring a wrench that matches the 4 bolts on top of the TB (or a crescent), and a pair of channel-locks and regular pliers for unhooking the throttle cable from the firewall. It has 2 clips that engage to the firewall. Pinch them together and it pops free.

 

Thanks a lot for clearing that up. I think i'm going to put the 5.9 V8 TB on there just because its a bit cheaper. A buddy of my brought up something interesting. With the TB do I have to get a Performance Tuner, and what would you all recommend? Also if I were to change the gear ratio do I have to get the speedo recalibrated?

I do have a lingering question about air intakes. I have a home made short ram intake. I don't know if it would be worth my time to route it down as a cold air under the bumper. I thought that a snorkel system would be nice but I can't find one for the 03 Dakota.