Hi,
I have a 95 dodge ram 3500 dually long bed 2x4, custom stretched(crew cab), 230,000 miles that i will be taking cross country pulling a significant load. I have put a significant amount of money into the transmission to upgrade it with Goerend parts.
I am moving from cali to ohio so that is the big trip but will be using this truck for all manner of towing and camping in the future.


Current issues: the brake pedal sticks down when you press it and so you have to put you foot under it and pull it back up to release the brakes. Ive been told this is a sticky caliper? I am considering doing the rear disc conversion and am generally looking for suggestions on new brake calipers/wheel cylinders and rotors/drums to ensure I have reliable brakes on my road trips. Is the rear disc conversion necessary or a good investment?

#2: the truck used to not make very much boost like no more then 10 or 11psi. Its been sitting for a while but the last time it was being driven i put a hose clamp on the "blow off vavle hose"? I think amd ran it up a hill by my house several times adjusting the hole clamp tighter until it got up to about 17psi max. I know this is not the right fix and given my upcoming cross country drive with family i want to fix it right. Any suggestions as to why the boost was low or how to test to see which part is the culprit? I am good with engines but less experiancesd with turbo stuff. Always had NA vehicles in the past.

#3 I will be needing new batteries and tires for the truck any suggestions for ohio climate?

i know that was a lot so any comments will be greatly appreciated on any or all of the above.

Thanks again,

DJ

 

I would more suspect an issue with the brake booster, (hydraboost on yours?) or the master cylinder. Sticking caliper won't affect pedal not coming back up.

Is the blow-off valve bad??

It snows in ohio. So, keep that in mind when looking at tires.