Ok guys, im new to the truck world and i just got a 2004 dodge ram 2500 5.7l hemi and im looking for a programmer for it. Looking to get better gas mileage.. Just let me no what yall think. Thanks

 

With an '04, your only real choice is a Superchips. Diablo doesn't support ANY transmission functions in the '03/'04 Hemi and believe me, even if you don't want to sharpen up the shift points, the increased line pressure and diminished torque management is worth the entire price of the tuner unto itself.

BUT, don't buy a tuner ONLY for MPGs, none will pay for themselves in saved gas, or at least not in any realistic amount of time, despite what ANY tuner company (or worse, those "chip" companies) claim.

You may pick up a mpg or two at most, if you can keep your foot out of it with the performance gains (I can't). Buy it for the performance, added HP & torque, better transmission shifting, code reader/clearer, and tire size speedo adjustment, but for solely fuel economy, spend the money on a tune up, synthetic fluids and new filters, you'll come out ahead.

If you are looking for a mod with a modest little HP boost and better fuel economy, then look into replacing the clutch fan with an efan, it's about the only mod that will pay for itself in fuel savings without waiting 100,000+ miles for the payoff...

 

is the superchips a programmer.. i was looking at a superchips mileage xs economy programmer

 

Believe it or not, of the four tunes on the full blown programmer, I get the best gas mileage out of the Performance Tune, even factoring in the added cost of 91/93 octane fuel, my cost per tank is actually slightly less than either of the 87 octane safe tunes (87 performance or Mileage XS).
Most people I talk to who use(d) the Mileage XS are not thrilled with running the truck de-tuned nor see any appreciable fuel economy gains.

Remember, this engine has a fairly high compression ratio and is setup to run on 89 octane, any tune that is 87 octane safe is de-tuning from factory specs and as such must retard a bit of timing, I can't see how you can have any mileage gains with the timing retarded.

Rule of thumb: decrease in power = increase in throttle pressure to achieve the same acceleration, speed, etc. Increase the throttle increases fuel consumption.

To see any measurable gains from de-tuning the engine you would have to change your driving habits, hell if you are gonna change your driving habits to increase fuel economy, why not just do it and not spend the money on the tuner???

 

so whats a good superchip to get...

 

You'd want the 3865. Unless I'm mistaken, the XS mileage model only has that ONE tune, and lets you reprogram for tire size and read/clear CELs only.

The 3865 has 87 perf, 91/93 perf, towing perf and mileage XS. It also has full transmission support (firmness) and drops torque management a good bit. Adding the Transmission recalibration option allows you to change shift points and decrease TM to whatever you want.

But as stated, don't buy either one of them if your sole objective is better fuel economy, you can spend the money elsewhere and see better fuel economy gains than any tuner will provide...

 

how hard is it to put the 3865 on. where does it hookup too.

 

if you can read a book, you can install a tuner.

Plugs right into the DRBIII port under the dash, from there you simply follow the prompts and choose from the choices.

Just make sure you plug the thing into your PC, register it and update it BEFORE plugging into the vehicle. No telling how long the programmer has been sitting in inventory and these tunes are constantly being update.

Procedure is pretty much the same no matter what brand tuner you buy.


With certain year models/amount of modifications on the truck one brand may be a better choice than another. Diablo is strong on newer trucks that are HEAVILY modded and may require a custom tune, but for your '04, the Superchips is not only the best, but really the only choice. Diable, SCT, etc. just don't have the support for the '04 PCM that Superchips does...

 

ok thanks... because right now it shows my truck getting 9.6 mpg. would a tune up help my gas mileage too.. it has 103000 miles on it and im not sure when the last tune up was.

 

Of course it would! An improperly tuned vehicle and improperly inflated tires are the two biggest things accounting for gas mileage loss...