Ok, so i came apon this site and i thought i knew what i wanted to do to my 98 1500 ram, with 5.9 to increace fule mpg/ hp ( i already have dual exhaust)and with doing some seaching threw the fourms i have become less confident in my plans that i wanted to accomplish and it has made me have great confustion, and wanting some clarifycation on these issues and what would be the best setup cause i kinda think that my 5.9 is kinda slugish, i want to be able just tap the throttle and there is power, cuase now you have to step into it and around 3grand is when the power happenes. and i dont know if this is due to the 265/75/16 tires, cause we went up slightley from stock

1. Air intake system- It sounds like the fellow oweres of these on this site say that they are worthless and do nothing to make better hp/mpg and are a waste of money is this true?

2. Aftermarket Headers- Would buying some get better hp/mpg along with a deeper sound of the truck, and if so what would be the best ones to get?

3. Throtel body spacer- Again another thing that along with the air intake system sounds like it is a total waste of time and money accourding to the people on the site. Is this ture or not, and what would be the best one to get?

4. Programers I.E superchips/hypertech - Now with these is sounds like they are good, but overpriced, and can cause issues and i want to know if they do so i dont hurt my vehical, such as some one said pinging of the engine started, along with would i need to beef up my trans or rear diff. also, my friend and i wanted to get one a slip the coast but some one said on here you can one use it per one truck cause you have to put your vin in the progarmer and it set for the truck and to go to another truck uyou would have to deprograme your tuck. Is this true?

5. Thermostate/ some senser (dont remember, diy mod)- what would this do to hp/mpg and is it safe?

I know this is alot of info, but i want to know what i should to to make a better perforing truck in power and mpg. So it is appreacated any info to help clear my mind of all this confustion i seam to have. Thankx

 

1. air intakes do help. The most cost effective air intake (most bang for your buck) would be the classic round style.
2. Headers are a good upgrade aswell. There are many different brands. I have a set of gibson shorties on my truck and was very pleased with them. You won't notice a big gain from headers by themself. They work best with other mods.
3. Throttle body spacers on our engines are junk and do nothing but take up space.
4. depending on the yeat of your truck programmers are decent. 97 and older trucks they realy don't work very well where 98+ they seem to give better gains. I have had a hypertech, a mopar performance pcm, and the b&g flash and the b&g flash gave me the most gains but is best done after doing some other mods. The programmers can only be used on 1 vehicle at a time. You have to unprogram your truck to be able to program another.
5. Gasoline engines run best cool. That is why many people switch to a 180 thermostat. It gives a little better performance (barely noticable) and helps to prevent detonation (pinging). If you are going to start modifying your truck you need to make sure it is in top running condition. If you haven't done a tune up lately do one. in the process you can do little things like upgrade your wires, use a brass cap and rotor and switch to autolight 3923's to also help prevent pinging.
There are alot of rather cheap mods you can do yourself.
1. CPK mod. You can slot the holes on the crank position sensor to advance the timing which could cause pinging and you may have to use higher grade gas. I did this and noticed a performance difference and a 1mpg difference. (free)
2. a circle air intake to help your truck beath a little better. ($30 if you don't get a k&n filter about $80 with a k&n)
3. A 52mm fastman throtle body (not spacer) This will allow even more air in and add to your performance. This will also improve your throttle response so when you hit the gas it doesn't seem like it takes a secode for your truck to take off.(about $250 from WWW.thefastman.com)
4. an auxilary transmission cooler to help keep that tranny cool and extend the life of it.

 

Air intake system - Improving the airflow into your engine is always a good thing. These can be expensive depending on the manufacturer you choose.

Aftermarket Headers - Purchase as good as you can afford. Go cheap you get cheap. This will improve your exhaust flow but unless you also replace the stock cat, you'll not obtain the full benefit of the headers.

Throtel body spacer - Only good as a paper weight for our multi-port fuel injected engines. I have a Trans Dapt one sitting on my desk as a reminder to never again purchase something without doing my research.

Programers I.E superchips/hypertech - This will help your engine, but again yes they are a little expensive

Thermostat - going to a 180 thermostat will allow your engine to run cooler, but could possibly cause a Check Engine Light (CEL) code.

Crankshaft Position Sensor Mod - No cost, just pieces of knuckle skin. Will allow you to advance the timing of your truck a small amount to offset the death flash in your PCM.

One main fact of doing mods - Each mod is only as good an enhancement to your engine as the sum of all of the mods. If you only improve the intake side of the engine, the exhaust side will restrict the improvements you are seeking.

Also, either you go for power or MPG. You cannot have both in adequate quantities.

 

If you want better throttle responce a cold air intake and a Fastman Throttle Body is your best bet.

As for MPG increases, probably waon't be noticable. They're hard to come by. I have however upped mine a bit with some simple stuff. Lemme know if your interested.

 

So then what would be the best cold air kit to buy, and headers as well with the high flow cat? and does that fastman tb realy make a huge differance?

Also, with the programmer, is it going to hurt my engine or trany cuz im still kinda unclear?

 

It wont hurt ur engine. You will hurt your engine because you will have more power at ur foot and be gunning it all the time. The best way to increase MPG is to get off your foot off the floor. If you have the mods then great. You should have no problem showing someone up if needed, but dont be one of those aholes that pisses everyone off.

So basicly do any upgrades you can. your basicly letting the engine do what it wants to do, so you cant really "hurt" your engine by upgrading, but ur foot glued to the floor will

 

Im not one of thoes people that has it burried all the time i just want some get up and go when i need it

 

as for mpg its a truck and cold air intake might give u a slight difference and u might want to chip it

 

All these members are giving you great advice.......except they forgot to mention the electric fan. I'm still in the process of finishing up my mods ( I still have to install the Edelbrock shorty headers, buy a Fastman TB, and performance cat) but I did get the round style air cleaner and a taller K&N air filter, I am running iridium spk plugs even though it's a split decision on whether they are better or not I see a big improvement, JBA 8mm spk plug wires, brass tipped cap & rotor, Royal Purple motor oil, etc. But when I installed that Flex-A-Lite dual electric fan with adjustable thermostat and AC controls, man my mpg went way up and I noticed the throttle response. I can't wait to buy and install the other components. I beliveve the model I gotwas a 294. So I would suggest adding that to your plethera of ideas.


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what was your mileage before & after the mod?

my .02.... 52mm TB, 8.5 msd wires, coil, headers & K&N FIPK in front of a good 3" single exhaust setup... will get you the best mileage.