I just purchased a 1996 Dodge Ram 2500 4X4 with the 5.9 liter V8, and I had a few questions about performance mods. I am really interested in installing the following upgrades.

K & N cold air intake
Fastman 52mm throttle body
Gibson ceramic coated headers
JBA cat-back exhaust
Car Sounds catalytic converter

I'm hoping to see about an increase in power of about 100 HP and 120 ft/lbs of torque. If this happens would my stock auto transmission be able to handle this increase in power, and would I need to make any other modifications to handle this amount of power???

 

aight man lemme lay it out for u....u will not get close to a 100hp increase with that....not even in the ball park...u wanna get up there...geta supercharger.....otherwise....dont even bother hoping....i wouldnt get the k and n since they cost about $300 and u can get a fine cold air intake for under $200....try www.360intakez.com....i also have a 96 ram but mine is a 1500....ive got pretty much what uve just named off for exhaust...except for the headers....still working on those...and do not get the throttle body...they are such a waste of money.......if it isnt carborated then it isnt worth it.....but if u seem to have money burning holes in ur pockets....id get the intake...the pipes and converter...and save the rest for a supercharger....and your tranny will be fine....and by the way...i had a friend dyno the k and n intake....you get their 18 hp increase that they say at about 5500 rpm...otherwise it isnt much..and idk how much ur going to be driving like that.....

 

I agree with almost everything mxracer said, except:

1) The K&N is a better CAI because it has a heat shield and locates the filter in cooler air up front by the grill rather then in the hot air right above the exhaust manifold. If you fab your own heatsheild though, then they are probably about equal, but out of the box, the K&N is superior.

2) The Fastman TB is an excellent upgrade, one of the best I have done. Mxracer is thinking of a TB spacers. Those are only good for carburated engines, and are a waste of money.

To get closer to 100 hp, you could try one or more of the following:
-get an m1 intake, cam, and a blower.
-1.7 ratio rockers are an excellent upgrade (not in conjuction with a cam though).
-Nitrous
-lastly, the upgrade I would recommend the most is to change your gears. That doesn't actually add hp per say, but it will give your motor a better mechanical advantage. Makes it feel like you gained like 50 hp.

If you serious about making lots of hp, I recommend you contact Dan Arcand aka the Fastman (www.thefastman.com), or John Mercedes at South East R/T (www.southeastrt.com). They know more about making power out of a 318 and 360 then just about anyone I know.

Good luck.

 

How about an engine swap to the v-10..... Seems cheaper than a blower.... Now if only John would finish those long tube headers I have been bugging him for... That would be a nice power booster....

 

Yea V-10 swap or a Hemi swap.....started looking for salvage titled trucks with Hemi's and V-10's in them...Should be able to pick up a few soon for rather cheap....Would love to have Hemi in my 97 all the power and no new car payments...

 

Screw the K&N I have seen 3 of them with the plastic tubing destroyed from simple age....
get the AFE system, I just did one on mine, LOVE the fit, finish, and DEFINITLY performance...


http://www.afefilters.com/5410112.asp

 

Silver_Dodge-
the 360 intakez power shot does have a heat sheild and it also does place the filter like the k and n...ive done my homework on this...the way u get benafits from the 2....the 360 is much more benaficial because of its $

and yea guess i got it confused with a spacer

 

I going to go with zeeks and silver dodge. The best way to make that kind of power is. I know that you can also put a magnum crate motor in. as for the air filter. Im all for K&N. not some company that Ive never heard of. Hey trippen, is it even possible to put in a hemi without modifing the hole chassis?

 

I am not sure. I am still doing some basic calculations. When I finish calcs I let you know. So far seems like it would. but i cant find a spec on the engine mounts. They can allways be moved and welded in place. I am looking for a whole drive line and trani also. Of course for a resonable price. A crate Longblock hemi is 8-10k depending on what you want in it last time i checked. So its gotta be cheeper then that.