Cummins Diesel Forum banner

best upgrades for the buck

31428 Views 7 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  Rabbit66
hey guys, just wondering what upgrades u would install for more power on a 1999 dodge 2500 4x4 quad cab automatic transmission? my injector pump just failed and i'm goin to replace it soon. i've been reading all kinds of info on the products for this truck and was wondering what is the easiest to change and most power for the dollar. right now with the injector pump off i thought it might be a good time to upgrade the injectors. how much should i go? i see 50-250hp increases but don't want to stress the injector pump or tranny out too much. i pull a big boat with it once a week and would like a little more power and while it's down i figure it would be time to add a few things. how bout the air intake? is it worth the money for hp gained? or what. any ideas welcome and the best products as far as dependability would be appreciated. thanks in advance....Jeff
1 - 8 of 8 Posts
Is the truck stock? If so a cold air intake, 4" turbo back exhaust, gauges and a good fueling box like the edge juice, or quadzilla adrenaline would definitely be a good start. Plus you'd need a bigger turbo and tranny work before looking at injectors.
First things first,
your injection pump went out because the fuel delivery system on the 24v VP-44 equipped trucks is inadequate, especially if you intend to upgrade at any point. I'd suggest a fuel system upgrade in the form of a better fuel pump, i.e. Walbro, FASS, Airdog, etc. That should be your FIRST upgrade. Second on the list, and still extremely important, GAUGES!!! A fuel pressure gauge is key to keeping your new injection pump from going south again. Those two upgrades are pretty much a given if you intend on keeping your truck for any significant length of time. Intake and exhaust will help if you plan on going upwards in the HP later as will injectors. Hope this helps.
:thumbsup
gauges.... airdog. 75-150hp injectors, straight 4in exhaust..... BHAF intake (cheap and easy) plus they last forever, I use a child teashirt thats camo and has a funny saying as a shroud on my air filter.
after that... look for used chips and boxes, I chose to stack my fueling and timing (it was cheaper to get them seperate and yields very tunable power and smoke)
then you can start looking for a built transmission, btw what block number is your engine? you may not want to push the 53's too hard.
thanks guys for the info. i knew that there was alot of bolt on things to really increase the hp and torque. i heard the tranny is really a piece of crap stock. only want a little more added and definitely changing to a fass or air dog lift pump system and a gauge or warning light on the fuel pressure when i get it going again. will check to see if my block is a 53. that's just all i need....uuuggghhhhh. could anyone enlighten me on the procedure for pulling codes on this truck? i've heard it's something with the key switch and shows on the odometer?
Turn the key on/off fast and the third time leave it in the on position and you will see the pcu and ecu codes scroll by in the odometer area. Not sure if it will work on your 1999 though. Mine is a 2001, think it works for the 2000-2002 model. I'm sure someone else will chime in if I'm wrong.
the 53 block stuff is absolutely bs i was worried to at first trust me dont loose any sleep over it i have a 53 block with 266,521 miles no crack yours is prolly fine get yourself full set of gauges a FASS a BHAF smarty and a edge comp and hang the hell on lol
hey guys thanks soooo much for the info. man i learn sooooo much everytime i check in and just read some of the latest post in different forums...great stuff. just checked and of course mines a 53 block...uuggghhh. but oh well i'm not into the doggin and high horsepower and if something happens to it oh well. that's what life's about. i am definitely doin the better pump and gauges thing first off like u guys said. next will be the intake, exhaust, chip and injectors and so on. yeah i'm a big kid and love to tinker with my toys...lol. thanks guys
1 - 8 of 8 Posts
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top