Ilikeoldfords

With that many miles on the stock injectors, I wonder if some of them are hanging open? That might explain the smoke.

I agree with you. Sometimes it drives the wife nuts when we pull back and follow the trucks. I do also enjoy watching the fuel gauge move slower and also it is a nice peace of mind to not worry about things flying across the cab from taking a corner to fast.

Well you did put new injectors in recently didnt you? Like in the last year or so? Maybe that is why you are just now seeing it. New injectors for this spring might run differently than your last ones last spring. Just putting ideas out there.

I think another big thing is when people cant see in front of them. Even if you are going the speed limit or faster, if they cant see because you are in front of them they will pass you. Not saying its alright for people to do that, just saying that is one of the problems that causes this. Most of them may not even realize it.

In my old camper, I had a big problem with the fridge running batteries dead too. I figured out the the heating element was shorted out. It was shorted after it went through the fridge so some how it still worked but it drained my truck batteries in a few hours. Then again, that fridge was almost over 30 years old too and I am sure the technology for how RV appliances have changed a bit. Just a thought though. On a side note, even if your fridge was working 100% correctly like said before it shouldnt drain the batteries that fast. Either the batteries were weak, under charged, or maybe a bad connection to them somewhere. That could make it look like the batteries were dead.

I just carry a basic set of hand tools, spare lift pump, serpentine belt, ratchet straps, and jumper cables. I do usually have a few quarts of motor oil, P/S fluid, and a gallon of water too. I do also have a few odds and ends of hose and wire and some wiring accessories. I figure all this stuff is easy to repair/use while on the side of the highway. Otherwise I would probably end up needing a tow anyway.

As far as I know, you want to keep the TC locked up as much as possible. That will create the least amount of heat because it wont be slipping. Whenever I tow heavy, I just make sure to keep the EGT's under 1k. I know I can run up to 1200 safely but this way I know for sure that I am not over working the truck. I also keep my boost under 20 psi. Thats another way that I know I am not overworking the truck. These are just my ways of running my truck. Every truck will run a little differently so you will have to adjust I am sure. This is also with my comp on 4x4 all the time.

I would probably fab some steps into the pipe guards. I think it might look a little goofy to have nerf bars and exhaust pipes running down the sides. Just my opinion though. I am really excited to see how this turns out. Never seen a dodge ram with side pipes. I have seen a cummins that had dual 3 in pipes that came out under the rear bumper like and old school pick up truck. That looked really nice actually.

I used to sell some butt connectors that had heat shrink tubing around the outside and a small tube of solder inside. Put your wires together, use your torch and heat them up, it shrinks down and melts a little solder into it all at the same time. They were made by Standard Motor Products. Very nice easy splice and seals up good.

I just saw your other post showing the new tires you bought. I didnt realize you had already got them

Ever since brand new mine has always dropped from 21 at idle to about 17 just cruising. If I do a WOT pull it will easily drop to 14 psi. That was brand new out of the box with brand new 3/8's fuel line from the top of the tank to the VP and new filters to boot. I have a fuel tank sump to install at some point and I am hoping that will cure my fuel pressure drops. It just recently started doing this drop-over-the-bumps thing about 5k miles ago.

My raptor started doing this too. Not so much on corners but if I hit a big bump on the road it will drop for a second.

I do believe that insurance pricing varies by state. Like I just moved to Montana from North Dakota and my premiums dropped by like $10 per month. I am running full coverage on the 01 Ram and it is costing me about $110 per month. BUT, I am still under 26 years old, or whatever the cut off is for being a young/dumb driver. I do also pay a little extra for roadside assistance though too.

Guess you just need to stop burning the rubber at every light!!!!

I actually really enjoy my Hankook A/T's. Nice tread, hardly ever needed four wheel drive in the miserable ND winter. My cousin manages the tire shop that I got them from and he said they have seen trucks come back in with well over 75k on them and still resell them as good used tires to cheap customers. Even though I have 35's, they are completely silent and track great. I just make sure to rotate them every 5k and keep them up to pressure. Great tires as far as I am concerned.

I know that AD had a lot of issues with the built in pressure regulators on their pumps. Maybe this is an issue with the regulator? Whenever you stop the pump completely and start it again is might allow itself to reset itself so to speak internally.

Most people run their trucks just fine with the stock HX35 up until about 100hp injectors. I am wondering if you dont have a boost leak or something else going on. 1500 degrees is a bit toasty I think on a stock engine. 1400 for a couple seconds is supposed to be the max. If I were you I might look into getting a turbo off of a 3rd gen. They are a nice upgrade from the HX35 and usually run well with 75-100hp injectors. Not to mention, they are a ton cheaper too.

Im confused... LED's dont draw near enough power to require relays to run. Regular halogen headlights run what, about 20-30 amps? LED's wont even take 1 amp to run. Dont think you need a relay to run 1 amp....

Since they are LED they wont draw more than probably .5 amps per light. The bar might draw up to an amp but not much more. HID's draw a ton of power dont they? Even aftermarket halogens draw about 8 amps per 55 watt bulb. LED's wont put hardly any load on the system.

Both the main and the water separator will screw off as far as I know. No internal elements to change.

Believe it or not I took that right off the stock receiver hitch on my 01.

I have my opinions about this but I dont know how true they are. I have always thought the W/D was more for turning control of the trailer. The RV (in most cases) is probably more top heavy so to speak. It has more body roll than say a flatbed or utility trailer. I have always thought that the W/D helps with that bod roll. Maybe the RV manufacturers think that the W/D will help for people who arent used to pulling trailers. They usually dont slow down enough for the corners and take their trailers into places that they shouldn't. I think they are just using the W/D as an extra precaution to keep that trailer on the road and right side up. I am also not sure why they call it "weight distribution" because all that weight is still on the the hitch and components. It is not really distributing the weight from anything except being directly on the hitch ball. Again, these are just my opinions on the matter and I am open to other opinions as well.

I still have the sticker on my stock receiver hitch. I will post up a pic here in a sec. Joe is correct too. Double check to make sure your ball mount is rated for the correct capacity for whatever you are towing.

That is the other problem with reman starters and alternators. I sell plenty of both and have noticed a few things with them. Most of the time, when they are being "rebuilt", they are only replacing what actually went bad in that particular unit. There are a couple of things that get replaced in all of them like bearings but for the most part unless it is truly bad, everything else just gets left alone in there.