Hi guys, I am a 17 year old Canadian kid who owns a 1998 Dodge Ram 1500 SLT Laramie (so says the badging behind the door) short box regular cab.

I love this truck! She sports the 5.2L 318, 4 speed automatic. I purchased it for $3000 with 146,000 km's on it. Now that i'm done rambling I am curious as to what I can do to the truck to increase horsepower and gas mileage! I have a few things in mind but I figure asking the guys that will know the best answer is the way to go!

So, what can I add to the truck to increase horsepower or gas mileage? Keep in mind I'm only 17 and won't be dropping in any large amount of money! Thanks for the help!

 

Well I will keep you posted on how much a throttle spacer does, just installed it today, and my rpms are staying lower while cruising at 35 than they used to be, so I will keep you posted. Also just do a simple tune up, spark plugs, wires if old, and air filter.

 

Throttle body spacer equals a waste of money, you can mod your throttle body and gain a little topend, CAI or a 14x3 for the airintake both of these are fairly cheap, exhaust if can get rid of the cat do that if not go with a high-flow and a better muffler could do turn downs to keep the cost down.

Also dont forget about the plenum and doing a tuneup, if any of this went over your head a search of any of this will be filled with threads to read.

 

I think you must have bumped your TV cable when reinstalling the air cleaner assembly, which would have changed how your transmission shifts. No CAI, 14x3, TB mod, etc. should do anything to your RPMs at a certain speed. Help you get more RPMs faster, as in more power, sure, but not less/more RPMs at the same speed, unless you change gear ratios or do something with your transmission.

Either that or you suffer from the same placebo effect that a lot of TB spacer users suffer from. These are port injected trucks, the fuel does not enter the TB at all. All the TB spacer does is delay the air from getting to the cylinders a tiny little bit longer, and how would that gain anything? Even if you look at the ones that supposedly "swirl" the air for better A/F mixture, the air has to go through our big half barrel of an intake manifold before it arrives at the cylinders, so any "swirling" effect is useless.

 

The swirl effect was to better mix air/fuel in a throttle body injected application. As ours is a dry flow manifold (no fuel), a throttle body spacer does absolutely nothing. They are a waste of time and money.

Best bet is to be sure all maintenance is up to date. Check/change all fluids (including the differential(s)), Good tune up parts. Tire pressures, etc.

One of the most important things you want to do, is pull your air cleaner assembly off, grab your self a flashlight, crawl up onto the engine, open the throttles all the way, and look down into your plenum. See any oil? Time to yank the intake, and change the gasket/plate on the bottom. (which also presents a golden opportunity to do the 'kegger mod'.) Check the FAQ's forum for LOTS of good ideas, and required ones.

 

yeah its like adding sides to yout throttle body when you want to remove that its stupid. cutoff the flys on your throttle body and get a 14x3 .

 

Thanks for the replies guys. So what I gather is I should tune it, get rid of the Catalytic converters, and perform regular maintenance. New plugs and wiring wouldn't be a bad idea at all! I also want to put a K&N Cold Air intake on it. Is it worth it? I see alot of vehicles with them so they must do something. Sorry i'm so uneducated I don't get alot of time around vehicles... .

Also is getting it chipped worth time and money?

 

I would personally not get the K&N cold air, why for less than $50 you can get a 14x3 or you can be like me and spend $80 on a cold air from ebay, seems like a smarter move since the difference in gains between the $300 K&N and the cheaper ones is unnoticeable.

Getting a tuner is a good idea, do a search on SCT and you will find some threads, Its 275 for a canned tune or 375 for a custom either way a good idea

 

PM Hemifever and he ill get you a good tune for 275 american (comes with SCT).

DO NOT GET THESE:
1. TB spacer
2. Cold air intake

GET THESE:
1. go to canadian tire and get an edelbrock pro flow air filter (low profile mesh in a triangle shape). Less than 20 dollars. It works.

2. THE STAGE 1 PACKAGE: Will be like driving a different truck AND will be more reliable with better gas mileage
--Hughes plenum plate kit (plus the hardware kit): $130
--Fastman TB, or mill your throttle body $250
--180* thermostat 12.99 (jet performance stainless steel)
--SCT tune from hemifever $275
--Change cap and rotor, (check spark plugs and wires)
Stage 1 package is about 700

Stage 2:
1. 1.7 RRs (kinda like installing a camshaft) $349 from summit
2. Iron Ram heads from Hughes engines (ones with stainless steel valves $799)
This package is 1200 (gaskets are extra)

The plenum kit is a necessity at your mileage.

 

Not to go against you but there is a reason to go with a CAI over the proflow

If you do any offroading and are going through puddles with more speed than needed you are likely to suck water with the proflow or similar 14x3 while some of the CAI's are designed in a way making it very hard to suck up water unless submerging front end, I have had my truck to the point it was missfiring and throwing a code for a tranny harness from going down a road with 2 foot puddles and my filter was completely dry...never would have made it with a proflow

Also the 180 thermostat is a good idea for the summertime or in areas were cold temps are not an affecting factor, but during the winter it can keep the motor at too cold of a temperature and has raised complaints from some of the northern people

just trying to help the OP