about my truck
Thanks for the welcome messages !
My truck:
2003 Ram 2500 Hemi Heavy Duty SLT
mods done by previous owner:
Airaid intake
Rhino liner
Fender flares - color matched
nice Alpine stereo
(but he took out the speakers, just left the OEMs, and lots of cabling...)
running boards
aftermarket 18" rims
My mods so far:
fixed drivers seat foam (based on posts on another forum - I have 2 interstate trips coming up this month...)
ordered inverter and cell phone mount
There was just a bit of "hop" to the side when going over potholes - not death wobble, just a little "wrong" - we climbed under and "inspected" everything - only thing a bit worn was the inner tie rod end (at the pitman arm) - so got that today to put on. (My brother has an old Jeep Cherokee rockhopper with the same suspension - nice to have someone with experience around)
Everything else was tight. A very well cared for truck. Had my nephew the mechanic go over it in detail before I bought it. He said if I did not buy it he would trade in his Dakota for it that day.
next: Tonneau (probably Tonnopro Hard fold) - got to get that this week
I have had this truck 10 days. Daily driver, work and play. (Love the rhino liner already)
Replaced a Camry that is going to my Daughter for college (she needed a car, I needed an excuse to get a truck
Had an old Dodge 1 Ton crew cab up until 5 years ago - big, ugly, and reliable.
So, Tuner:
want to get a tuner - for the mileage boost, and because it does not feel like I am getting all that the Hemi has to offer - nothing "wrong", just seems to lack a little...
Throttle delay seems long, shift points not "just right", etc. It is not as bad as the Ford I drove (E350 V10) - I swear you could count the seconds between mashing the gas pedal and anything happening on that.
Even a little boost in mileage would help - not expecting miracles. And nothing wrong with adding a little "fun" to the daily drive.
After reading lots online, was leaning towards Superchips. Redtuck - thanks for your info - and I saw your ABS light etc. thread on another forum.
I called Superchips tech support today to ask which model would be best (and to ask if the transmission mods would work - thanks for that info too) - and got a clueless sounding tech guy. He "wasn't sure" and "had to look it up" (for everything I asked), and then informed me that they do not support the 2500 for any year, only the 1500. Not just not support the transmission mods - he said they do not support the 2500 at all.
That does not match up with other info I see online (even their website does not ask beyond engine size).
Now I am a little concerned - If he is right, I need to pick something else, If he is wrong, I certainly hope I don't need tech support...
I don't need the extra capability of the Diablo Trinity (nor the extra cost).
I like the sound of the TMR wire mod - I don't think I'll do a switch, just do it carefully and tape it up neat so I can put it back if I need to go to the dealer for anything -- I got the truck from a dealer, and they gave me a 1 year powertrain warranty, so I want to be able to keep it "stock" so they can't use that as an excuse if anything goes wrong...
No lift or major mods going in until next summer, partly due to the warranty, partly due to wanting to keep the mileage as high as possible for the long trips this summer.
Long enough post - appreciate all your advice!