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My first diesel - a little help please
Hi all!
I've been perusing the forums here for months now in anticipation of buying my first diesel truck. I finally pulled the trigger a couple of weeks ago on an 05 Ram 3500 DRW stock everything. I'm sure what I am asking has been answered before but I finally give up searching through the forum as there is just SOOO much information to dig through.
Anyway my purpose for getting the truck is:
1) Daily driver, but I don't drive all too much, maybe 8-10000 miles/year.
2) Family toy - I purchased a slide in camper already and will eventually haul a boat as well.
What I'm trying to gather is the best way for me to upgrade my truck slightly in terms of pulling power and mpg without killing my pocketbook. I'm not all to interested in getting the fastest 1/4 mile or blowing as much smoke as I possibly can. I also have no interest in spending thousands on a new turbo, transmission, injectors, etc... So far I'm getting around 14-16 mpg driving around town/highway. With the camper on I get around 9-10. I live in Colorado so I'll be headed up and down mountains frequently on weekends in the summer and I don't want to be that guy struggling to do 50 in the right lane. Are there any suggestions for an easy way to add a bit of power and fuel economy.
Another thing, the truck has 88k miles, runs wonderfully. I really hope to give this truck to my son when he turns 16 (14 years from now). I'll follow all scheduled maintenance to a T, but any other suggestions as to how to keep this truck going good for a looooong time? I mean like do I need to use synthetic oil only, certain (not mopar ) filters, etc...
Many thanks guys, this forum is pretty awesome, the biggest problem is that there is too much info, especially for a newbie like me. That's a good problem to have! Thanks again for your time!
I've been perusing the forums here for months now in anticipation of buying my first diesel truck. I finally pulled the trigger a couple of weeks ago on an 05 Ram 3500 DRW stock everything. I'm sure what I am asking has been answered before but I finally give up searching through the forum as there is just SOOO much information to dig through.
Anyway my purpose for getting the truck is:
1) Daily driver, but I don't drive all too much, maybe 8-10000 miles/year.
2) Family toy - I purchased a slide in camper already and will eventually haul a boat as well.
What I'm trying to gather is the best way for me to upgrade my truck slightly in terms of pulling power and mpg without killing my pocketbook. I'm not all to interested in getting the fastest 1/4 mile or blowing as much smoke as I possibly can. I also have no interest in spending thousands on a new turbo, transmission, injectors, etc... So far I'm getting around 14-16 mpg driving around town/highway. With the camper on I get around 9-10. I live in Colorado so I'll be headed up and down mountains frequently on weekends in the summer and I don't want to be that guy struggling to do 50 in the right lane. Are there any suggestions for an easy way to add a bit of power and fuel economy.
Another thing, the truck has 88k miles, runs wonderfully. I really hope to give this truck to my son when he turns 16 (14 years from now). I'll follow all scheduled maintenance to a T, but any other suggestions as to how to keep this truck going good for a looooong time? I mean like do I need to use synthetic oil only, certain (not mopar ) filters, etc...
Many thanks guys, this forum is pretty awesome, the biggest problem is that there is too much info, especially for a newbie like me. That's a good problem to have! Thanks again for your time!
1 - 20 of 25 Posts
Smarty jr is a nice product cheap and easy to install.
Not to start a war or anything. But I would also look into this. Its a little more expensive. Wouldn't make huge power but will be nice for towing and a little fun. Dodge Cummins Edge Evolution CS Tuner Gauge Display 85100
I like this because it comes with gauges so that you can monitor everything.
Not to start a war or anything. But I would also look into this. Its a little more expensive. Wouldn't make huge power but will be nice for towing and a little fun. Dodge Cummins Edge Evolution CS Tuner Gauge Display 85100
I like this because it comes with gauges so that you can monitor everything.
On both of the dodge cummins trucks I've bought used, regardless of mileage I've always changed all the fluids and oils shortly after bringing it home just as a piece of mind to know exactly when it was done last. I like to change engine oil every 5-6k miles with rotella 15-40 and run fleetguard filters. Fuel filter every 10k miles. And personally like to run amsoil in the trannys, transfer case and diffs. Both the transfer case and auto tranny uses synthetic ATF regardless of brand you choose.
Proper Fuel filtration will yield good injector life
If you have a 4x4 you may want look into the factory updated t-link steering upgrade
I personally like the smarty programmers for a "can tuner" for these trucks along with with gauges to keep everything in the safe zones. I personally ran the edge cts for gauges.
Stock auto trannys don't like much power over stock and if you're towing a decent amount of weight through the hills or adding a fair amount of power you'll want to look into upgrading that as well.
Proper Fuel filtration will yield good injector life
If you have a 4x4 you may want look into the factory updated t-link steering upgrade
I personally like the smarty programmers for a "can tuner" for these trucks along with with gauges to keep everything in the safe zones. I personally ran the edge cts for gauges.
Stock auto trannys don't like much power over stock and if you're towing a decent amount of weight through the hills or adding a fair amount of power you'll want to look into upgrading that as well.
Right on, thanks guys! So from what I can see the Smarty Jr was built for exactly what I'm looking for. I'll look more into the Edge evolution as well.As part of the deal when I bought the truck I had the dealer replace the front/rear brakes (pads/rotors), perform the steering upgrade, change the oil and air filter as well as a couple of other little things. I guarantee they grabbed the cheapest products they had available.
I'll really be trying not to have to upgrade the tranny but eventually I think I'll have about a 3500lb camper along with maybe a 8000lb boat in tow. If you all think I should do some tranny work also, what should I do?
Also the 3rd setting on Smarty Jr. has an increase of 100hp. They say that's no problem with a stock truck is that true? Seems like a gamble to me to run that much extra power but I'm not sure.
I'll really be trying not to have to upgrade the tranny but eventually I think I'll have about a 3500lb camper along with maybe a 8000lb boat in tow. If you all think I should do some tranny work also, what should I do?
Also the 3rd setting on Smarty Jr. has an increase of 100hp. They say that's no problem with a stock truck is that true? Seems like a gamble to me to run that much extra power but I'm not sure.
Everything I've read/heard anything over 60hp tune the tranny is on borrowed time...a lot of guys have had different results.
Check out suncoast, goerend, and dtt for reasonable reliable tranny upgrades.
Check out suncoast, goerend, and dtt for reasonable reliable tranny upgrades.
You may just be able to get away with a torque converter and valve body upgrade maybe.
As far as that goes I'm in the same boat with my first auto dodge cummins.
As far as that goes I'm in the same boat with my first auto dodge cummins.
Cool thanks man!
These transmissions aren't as much junk as they are made out to be. I threw the biggest tune I could at the stocker and absolutely tortured that poor thing, yes it did eventually submit to my torture and the converter gave up the ghost. I'm talking 4x4 boosted launches and just hammer down all the time and it kept going, and going, and going, and going...for 9 months. Impressed the hell out of me.
Of course you're turning up an approximately 8-9 year old truck, and you have no clue how it's been treated before: it could take a Smarty Jr for 100,000 miles, or it could pop on stock power this weekend. It's always a crap shoot with a used vehicle, nature of the beast.
So, should you be worried with a Smarty Jr? No. Should you be prepared to fork over some cash if it fails? Absolutely. Whether you choose to do a converter (the weak link) and valve body somewhere between now and a potential future failure, that's your call. I say drive it, load up the Jr and drive it.
BTW, congrats on the new truck.
Of course you're turning up an approximately 8-9 year old truck, and you have no clue how it's been treated before: it could take a Smarty Jr for 100,000 miles, or it could pop on stock power this weekend. It's always a crap shoot with a used vehicle, nature of the beast.
So, should you be worried with a Smarty Jr? No. Should you be prepared to fork over some cash if it fails? Absolutely. Whether you choose to do a converter (the weak link) and valve body somewhere between now and a potential future failure, that's your call. I say drive it, load up the Jr and drive it.
BTW, congrats on the new truck.
Good point and thank you!These transmissions aren't as much junk as they are made out to be. I threw the biggest tune I could at the stocker and absolutely tortured that poor thing, yes it did eventually submit to my torture and the converter gave up the ghost. I'm talking 4x4 boosted launches and just hammer down all the time and it kept going, and going, and going, and going...for 9 months. Impressed the hell out of me.
Of course you're turning up an approximately 8-9 year old truck, and you have no clue how it's been treated before: it could take a Smarty Jr for 100,000 miles, or it could pop on stock power this weekend. It's always a crap shoot with a used vehicle, nature of the beast.
So, should you be worried with a Smarty Jr? No. Should you be prepared to fork over some cash if it fails? Absolutely. Whether you choose to do a converter (the weak link) and valve body somewhere between now and a potential future failure, that's your call. I say drive it, load up the Jr and drive it.
BTW, congrats on the new truck.
As far as the smarty jr, I'm assuming I should get some gauges with it. Are any preferred with the Smarty jr?
Edge Insight would be my pick. Have it in my 03 and love it.
Might want to look into additional fuel filtration also, a good 2 micron set will help protect the injectors.
Agreed!!:thumbsup:Might want to look into additional fuel filtration also, a good 2 micron set will help protect the injectors.
I am running the edge evolution cts and absolutely love it, it replaced an out-dated bullydog power pup and the power gain was night and day difference as well as a lot less pre-boost coal burning. I went with it because the gauges i was looking at were 500 bucks and i paid 580 for the evo and dont need gauges now. I did end up spending another 120 bucks for the expandable egt probe. I have never ran a smarty so cant compare them but i am very happy with the evo, and i think its the best bang for the buck
Bully Dog also has the Watchdog for monitoring gas mileage and whatnot. I understand you don't want anything flashy, so that is what came to mind. If you want a one-in-all monitor and tuner, I would go with the Bully Dog GT over Edge. If you want to combine/stack, go with a Smarty with Edge CTS. I have had my Bully Dog GT for awhile (upgrading to a SSR/UDC Tune soon). I do admit, if I would have known about Smarty when I lived in Idaho, I would have gone with it because of what I did to my truck afterwards. Although, It has been a good standard tuner for when I started out. It runs about $700, and is easy to install. You go with a Smarty and Edge CTS, your looking at $500 for a Smarty Jr and $429 for a CTS. You could invest in a standard two pillar gauge as well. With all that towing, you want to monitor your EGT's, so I would get a pyrometer probe. The Edge or Bully Dog displays will allow you to monitor the same, especially your engine temps if you towing uphill. You also might want to start off with a new intake (I recommend S&B) and exhaust (for you just a standard 4" turbo-back), then go to a tuner. Hope it helps, I remember being in your shoes when I started! Be careful...it's addicting.
Sorry for my ignorance, is that just replacing my fuel filter with a better one. It seems like the recommended one here is the Baldwin model?Might want to look into additional fuel filtration also, a good 2 micron set will help protect the injectors.
Thanks for the info, yeah I don't doubt this being addicting. I've already sunk a grand into suspension and now looking into another grand at least for these upgrades and that seems like just the tip of the iceberg. If I went with the Smarty or Edge CTS I don't think I would ever run them over level 2 just to be safe. I'm glad you guys have narrowed things down to 2 products for me but now through further research I'm having a tough time deciding. I've read quite a bit here about the stock intake being just fine, just curious why I should start off with that in your opinion?Bully Dog also has the Watchdog for monitoring gas mileage and whatnot. I understand you don't want anything flashy, so that is what came to mind. If you want a one-in-all monitor and tuner, I would go with the Bully Dog GT over Edge. If you want to combine/stack, go with a Smarty with Edge CTS. I have had my Bully Dog GT for awhile (upgrading to a SSR/UDC Tune soon). I do admit, if I would have known about Smarty when I lived in Idaho, I would have gone with it because of what I did to my truck afterwards. Although, It has been a good standard tuner for when I started out. It runs about $700, and is easy to install. You go with a Smarty and Edge CTS, your looking at $500 for a Smarty Jr and $429 for a CTS. You could invest in a standard two pillar gauge as well. With all that towing, you want to monitor your EGT's, so I would get a pyrometer probe. The Edge or Bully Dog displays will allow you to monitor the same, especially your engine temps if you towing uphill. You also might want to start off with a new intake (I recommend S&B) and exhaust (for you just a standard 4" turbo-back), then go to a tuner. Hope it helps, I remember being in your shoes when I started! Be careful...it's addicting.
ISSPRO gauges are a good brand, or you could get the smarty JR and the Edge insight that has the capabilty to run like 8 gauges, EGT, Fuel pressure, Intake air temp, trans temp(must have with an auto), battery voltage, boost, RPM, and what gear your in.
I always post on the bottom not noticing there is a 2nd page.... Stroke beat me to it. lol
I always post on the bottom not noticing there is a 2nd page.... Stroke beat me to it. lol
You say this now, and I said this before I got my truck, my truck is on constant hot tune on my Edge with Juice, I get better fuel mileage than on any other level.If I went with the Smarty or Edge CTS I don't think I would ever run them over level 2 just to be safe.
1 - 20 of 25 Posts
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