need advice on my ram 1500
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need advice on my ram 1500
Ok guys so I'm new on here and I got a whole bunch of questions....probably already been answered but I'm a bit lazy 
. So heres what I'm working with a 95 ram 1500... as far as the sticker on the hood says among other things I have the 5.9 magnum dana 44 front axle crystler 9.25 ltd slip rear (I hear that axle is a turd) my truck has 230,xxx miles on it and runs decent aside from minor leaks and a slight hard shift from 1st to 2nd. Id like to use this truck mainly for daily driving some towing when need be but definitely some wheeling as well I live in cali so im in the desert quite often however I live near the mountains and mountain trails are just oh so fun I cant stay away however the problem im having is moving this heavy beast up the steeper trails in 4 low without heating up, my truck usually runs just slightly above cold no matter what while street driving ive only had this truck on a trail twice in the 2 months ive owned it due to it being broken the last month (damn wheel hub broke) my main question is can I free up some power and maybe run a little cooler on the trail by removing the mechanicle fan and using say a electric taurus fan on a switch im running 33's and a factory lift (3inch?) so I'm not expecting fuel economy gains or anything im going to mount 35's this week and a little extra lift I just want to stop the damn heating problem and have a little extra power to play with. I might chop my exhaust right after the cat as well and go with a nice Magna flow Muffler to a turn down before the axle should I expect a low end power loss with this? Im new to fullsize 4x4 thing last thing I built was a 89 cherokee so the dodge is a little different. Sorry if im talking in circles im known to be a bit hyperactive plus im 19 and no one my age really knows what we are talking about. Oh forgot to mention truck is a single cab long bed completely stock aside from rims and tires. Any advice or criticism will be appreciated intake exhaust lift tire sizes anything and everything I wanna know whats best to do and not to expensive im in between jobs at the moment
. So heres what I'm working with a 95 ram 1500... as far as the sticker on the hood says among other things I have the 5.9 magnum dana 44 front axle crystler 9.25 ltd slip rear (I hear that axle is a turd) my truck has 230,xxx miles on it and runs decent aside from minor leaks and a slight hard shift from 1st to 2nd. Id like to use this truck mainly for daily driving some towing when need be but definitely some wheeling as well I live in cali so im in the desert quite often however I live near the mountains and mountain trails are just oh so fun I cant stay away however the problem im having is moving this heavy beast up the steeper trails in 4 low without heating up, my truck usually runs just slightly above cold no matter what while street driving ive only had this truck on a trail twice in the 2 months ive owned it due to it being broken the last month (damn wheel hub broke) my main question is can I free up some power and maybe run a little cooler on the trail by removing the mechanicle fan and using say a electric taurus fan on a switch im running 33's and a factory lift (3inch?) so I'm not expecting fuel economy gains or anything im going to mount 35's this week and a little extra lift I just want to stop the damn heating problem and have a little extra power to play with. I might chop my exhaust right after the cat as well and go with a nice Magna flow Muffler to a turn down before the axle should I expect a low end power loss with this? Im new to fullsize 4x4 thing last thing I built was a 89 cherokee so the dodge is a little different. Sorry if im talking in circles im known to be a bit hyperactive plus im 19 and no one my age really knows what we are talking about. Oh forgot to mention truck is a single cab long bed completely stock aside from rims and tires. Any advice or criticism will be appreciated intake exhaust lift tire sizes anything and everything I wanna know whats best to do and not to expensive im in between jobs at the moment
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From: Clayton MI
What size tires are you running now? If you go to 35's, expect to lose more bottom end, and struggle up hills, unless you regear. (4.56 would be good, 4.88 would be even better.)
What kind of shape is your cooling system in? The stock system should have no trouble keeping things cool.... I would be tempted to get it flushed, and replace water pump and thermostat.
Electric fan will free up a few ponies, but, I doubt you will notice it. Might be more efficient than the clutch fan though.... I would set up a controller of some sort though, even if it is just a temp switch somewhere, so you don't need to continually worry about that.
Head on down to the 2nd gen tech section for some other good pointers. But, the best thing you can do for your truck is make sure everything is working the way it is supposed to first.... Tune up, plenum, timing chain and gears, since your truck is high mileage.... etc.
What kind of shape is your cooling system in? The stock system should have no trouble keeping things cool.... I would be tempted to get it flushed, and replace water pump and thermostat.
Electric fan will free up a few ponies, but, I doubt you will notice it. Might be more efficient than the clutch fan though.... I would set up a controller of some sort though, even if it is just a temp switch somewhere, so you don't need to continually worry about that.
Head on down to the 2nd gen tech section for some other good pointers. But, the best thing you can do for your truck is make sure everything is working the way it is supposed to first.... Tune up, plenum, timing chain and gears, since your truck is high mileage.... etc.
