I just dont have any place to really open it up safely. After 100mph, I dont feel to comfortable on a freeway passing other cars. I know currently when I go 70MPH Im sitting at about 2100 RPM. When I do open it up, 2nd gear will take me up to 80MPH.

My old 94 Chevy 2wd 1500 with a v6 and a 5 speed couldnt go any faster after it hit the top end in 3rd gear. I had 33in tires on the back, and at 80 I was going closer to 100, and that was just about as far as the engine would push it. When I red lined 3rd and threw it in to 4th, it just dogged down. So it would definetly be interesting to see where a Dakota hits that point.

 

Alright bain64, I finally found out tonight what a mostly stock truck does. First, I want to say I have the 3.55 gears, but Im running closer to 2000rpm @ 70mph FWIW, so I dont know why theres such a difference there between mine and yours. Other details are, the truck has a K&N drop in, a Airaid modular intake tube, and a SC tuned to the 91 performance tune and I run 93 octane fuel. For advanced options, the truck has an increased rev limiter to 6000 rpm, and the 1-2 and 2-3 WOT shifts are about 5700. I think the first shift is at 5750, and the second shift is at 5700.

The temp was about 35 degrees on a foggy night. The road was a country road, some bumps, and a couple hills. I didnt do any times or anything, I just wanted to see how fast I could really go. ***** out, my truck will only hit 110 on the average road. If the road was smooth and open, it might be different. I was hitting bumps though and had to let off a couple times for curves before I ran out of road. After 90 though, the pickup is nearly gone. At 110, there is absolutly no power. I guess I dont need my top speed increased to 140, I cant even hit the factory set 112.

Im kind of disappointed. I thought I could atleast hit 110 before running low on power, and 120 before there was no more. I have to find a nice smooth road though to really test this out. With bumps and everything, there were a couple times where I just had to let off.

Now with my 3.55 gearing, is that good or bad? I thought it was good for low end power, not as good for gas mileage. Is this correct? So pretty much, if you had the room, a truck with the 4.10 (or what ever the other option that was available is) gears should be able to go faster than a truck with 3.55 gearing?

 

so what if the gas stations do not have 93 octane? how big of a difference is that going to make if you plan on doing some of the things like rengnath mentioned?

 

It won't be that big of a deal. If you get pre-det "ping" just put the tuner in and load the 87 tune (less aggressive). You can also get octane booster, etc.

 

Technically the 93 isnt even necessary, I just use it because they dont have 91 at the BP gas stations I go to. If I put 91 in there from another gas station, there shouldnt even be a pinging technically speaking.

 

so with the stations here only having up to 90 octane and low as 87 octane, do you think i could get a tuner set to those specifications? also would it even be worth it at all? i mean really what all could i benefit from it?

 

Correct me if Im wrong, but at higher altitudes a 90 octane gas is comparable to our higher octane at a lower alititude, right?

 

i honestly have no clue...i will ask around with some of the guys here though. as soon as i get an answer i will post it here.

 

The only reason I suggested ther higer octane was the proposal for aggressive tuning with hotter plugs. Generally a higher octane fuel will give more power without the risk of pre-det. I say give it a shot and see how it works. The good thing about tuners is you can always put a less aggressive tune in.

 

At least you will get shifting performance.
If you want to go with the 91 tune but are getting the pinging from the engine, you can choose to 1. Switch to the 87 tune or 2. Get an octane booster