Dave3500

Probably all of your questions are answered at this point, but I bought a 4" kit from Summit Racing, cause they are local, $263.00. Aluminized, I don't plan on driving it in the Winter, came w clamps, SS muffler. Not the greatest instructions, found a vid on YouTube on how to place the muffler in the correct factory location & where the clamps fit best. It was a fun project, I did it while I was recovering from a hernia operation, so it was fairly easy after I watched the vid a few times! I'd do it again. I don't think it made any HP differences but I changed out the BullHauler stacks that came on the truck. (3" to 4" to 5") If I went from a factory 3" I would probably notice the diference more.The Diamond Eye is factory quiet using the muffler. While driving inside the cab w the windows closed, the engine is louder. If you stand by the tail pipe its sounds very healthy. The 4" pipe looks awesome too! Great value! Dave (this is on a 2000 4x4 2500)

My 98 starts this time of year w/o WTS. But w my 2000, it can be fully warmed up if I shut it off, I have to treat it like it's a cold start. Other than that it's ok!

They went w the 48RE in 2003, but the trucks are also bigger!

For me my 1st improvement will be my Radiator, have it at least pressure checked. 2nd, what's the word on an Air Dog Raptor. That's what I put in my other truck 6 years, no issues. Thought I read on here that the new ones are not as good maybe. Looking to upgrade the pump. Someone had a kit that fixed all the pressure points, or was that how a Raptor kit came? Can't recall! Also a FP gauge, 3rd, along w a Trans temp gauge. Or is there a better way to go that's made by Banks or some other kind of a monitoring system? What are you all using? Thanks, Dave

Agreed!

CSM, Drive line, got it & thanks for the explanation! ARP head studs were added when the head gasket was changed! Hawkez, that's easy. Think I'm going to order a Specter (SP) replacement. At My NAPA store we saw no difference for auto or manual, that doesn't seem right. What's up w that? Dave

What is a drive nice? Will the valve body help keep the auto alive longer or just help the truck have more usable power?

Hi Guys, Yes it's leaking from the drivers side end cap. I'm going away for two weeks to teach a Summer jazz camp. I did change my other rad on my 98, I think it was just a matter of removing the fan blade, clutch & shroud & it was out. Does that seem correct? Michael, can you post a link to your order of improvements for a VP44 truck? I haven't seen that list for awhile, you were very specific about it. I'm sure other newer owners of these trucks would benefit from it as well. Thanks, Dave

So does this seem logical? So today it leaked intermittently, On my last stop at TSC it left a puddle so I went to a shop that I do business w and they put it on the lift, it started to drip some after I shut it off. They seem to thing that it's leaking out the driverside plastic tank where it joins the aluminum. They said that would explain why sometines it leaked & sometimes it didn't. So when adering one I would need it for an auto trans or does that cooler out front take care of the trans? Thanks, Dave

Hi CSM, I did not have the A/C on & it came on to cool the engine down, at least it seemed that way. So a good professional motor coolant flush would be a good place to start? Thanks, Dave

Hi all, There used to be an order for doing the step by step improvements on a VP44 truck, does that still exist? Bought a clean 2000, 2500 4x4 club cab & need that list for a reference. I will get an Air Dog Raptor & a Fuel Gauge. Also need a temp gauge for the Auto. Is that still the way to go? So my 1st sort of concern. I was coming back from Canada pulling a 24' pontoon boat on a 28' trailer no worries until I got to the border, as we sat for an hour, wasn't that hot, drove about 200 miles w/o the A/C, my engine temp gauge started rising till about the 3/4 mark. So waiting in line I quickly raised the hood up to give a quick check & noticed that the A/C kicked on by itself & started cooling the engine, I noticed the condensation puddle under the truck along w a green antifreeze puddle in front under the radiator on the driverside. Don't think it was from the upper hose but maybe the bottom. I had to quickly close the hood & move the truck. As I moved there were no more green puddles, also the engine temp gauge was getting back to normal running temp. So I have no leak at the moment. How did it heal itself? I'm keeping an eye on it. Anyone with a similiar situation. My 98 would idle all day at any outside temp & not change from the reg running temp. What to do? The PO replaced the head gasket w better head studs only to find out it was one of the 22 soft plugs that had a leak. Thanks, Dave

Well the truck is back now w a 5-speed. The main shaft cracked, nothing is reusable, not even for a core. So they think that as I was driving along, it jumped out of 6th gear into another gear. I thought maybe I may have lost my oil, but it had fluid in it, how much I don't know because I lost my driveshaft. I did feel it slow down, downshift, but I took my foot off the throttle because I was having a WTF moment. Maybe the kid that had the tranny before beat the crap out of it w his torque monster motor. Dave

Yep, that's why we call him 2-cycle Michael!

I'm sure that running 2cycle oil extended the life of my IP, when I first bought my truck in 08 I had the dreaded death code that would pop up. I had 168K on her, but I followed the recommendations here, Air Dog Raptor 100, FP gauge, kept my fuel pressure above 15psi. The truck now has 207K, so following the advice here has kept my VP44 alive. She starts as soon as I touch the key, wants to run. If it ain't broke don't fix it. A pound of maintenance is better than a pound of cure! Use the Lube or smoke a Dube, Dave

So for right now I have the seat in a position that's going to work for the moment. I'm going to try & switch seat bottoms just so they should wear better!

Hi Michael, so where the screw shaft goes into the gear housing, those screws, two of them. So quite a few gen 2's are getting parted out around here, whats the chance of finding a good used unit? Thanks, Dave

Hi all, Just picked up a rust free 2000 from Florida. It's a 2500 Laramie SLT. Any good links on power seats? I got the forward-back working but could use the rest of the switches. I have power to the motors but appear to be jammed. This is my 1st power seat vehicle, so I'm ready to learn! Thanks, Dave

Looks like this truck is going after I get the transmission swapped. We came to the conclusion that my truck must have been in an accident hit hard RF. At the moment cant afford another diesel, so were looking at 1/2 tons! Dave

Thanks Michael, for picking up the phone & answering all my questions, much appreciated!

You Too?

Agreed! Sad but true!

Total agreement here Buzzin, like your name, that's creative!

Well the guys a Warren Diesel Performance are going to help me out & pick up my truck this weekend. They are swapping me the 6-speed for a reman lifetime warranty 5-speed. I know it's a downgrade, but maybe it will get rid of my transmission woes for good. Hopefully the $900 4" custom made drive shaft will still be usable after it snapped off at the rear bolts. Just need for her to get safely back to Ohio thru the crazy hills of Virginia & West Virginia. Think good thoughts here guys, Dave

It's been over a week, and truck is still sitting in Virginia in in a UHaul lot. One starts to see who your friends are when One really needs help, tried to do the UShip thing but...... Will keep you posted, Dave!

My problem right now is my truck is 400 miles away from home. The friend that has the truck & trailer is backing out, so still trying to figure out how to haul a 6,000+ truck home! Dave