I'm Back, Finally! And I have some good questions/ topics

[Stanley]

Hey all, been quite a while since I been on, had alot going on. Stepped out of the Military-may go back in?, moved into a new house, jobs, kids etc you know. Had the truck LITERALLY completely torn apart: re-sealed engine minus head, completely rebuilt the NV5600 and transfercase, new clutch - which is making some very strange noises, sound deadened the whole cab, re-sealed the hvac box top to bottom, new heater core, evaporator, drier, headliner, wheels and tires; I mean the works! Ill have to maybe make a post with all the pictures? I don't know how to add that many pics though. If youd like to see it all give me a shout and how to do it and ill throw it up. 

 

Any how, down to the good stuff. I have multiple topics id like some discussion over/ questions answered. They are all non-powertrain related so I feel it appropriate to group them here, if not Ill gladly make separate topics to keep everything organized. 

 

I guess Ill start with the dash. I have been looking, reading and researching the DASH. Came across alot of topics here including @Dieselfuture post Time for a new Dash. I think I have decided on going with LMC dash cause I really don't wanna mess with painting it and trying to get it to match  I have spent alot of time already with my dash out fiber glassing  the top and bottom in hopes of making a custom dash top (see pic) and I don't wanna mess with it no more, I'd be cheaper off to just buy one. In that same realm Ill be purchasing a new dash bezel from Geno's  for 87$ - no brainer. 

 

Next on the list is sway bar stuff. I have a 34mm front and a 24mm rear sway bar. They have been off for years, I don't do that much offroading in this rig and I hate the body roll- sometimes. So I'm gonna re-build them and put them back on. With that I am thinking of using Geno's to get the Energy Suspension bushings - still waiting to see if they can get the rear ones, and also front and rear end links from them. Need to see if I can even find the bushing retainers to bolt on from when I took them off...... Thoughts on this? 

 

Lights! These things suck! I have read the article on here for the sport light conversion with projectors. More than likely Ill go that route - with the detailed instructions. Where is the best place to get those lights at now a days? Any further improvements or light availability come about? I found Anzo Lights from CPP Diesel that look pretty decent, but I'm after quality and some bright a$$ lights so I can see. So I need opinions.

Second light topic is cab lights. I have (smoked colored) my original ones long time ago cause that was hip, and had led's in them, now I'd like to get something updated and nicer looking, even if its new OEM style ones. Been looking at Recon cab lights... Any thoughts or users of those? 

 

Mirrors! going to replace my stiff broken tow-mirrors with something like  Spyder X-tune Mirrors from CPP Diesel that are powered and heated. Any other preference? 

 

Lastly I will probably need to replace my steering gear box. I have everything replaced with DOR parts, great stuff, minus the track bar. I have slop left to right while driving straight down the hwy, it gets really bad wander (hard to keep center) when I try to (quickly) change lanes or go over some (whoops) down a back road. Like I have to correct my correction . So after alot of reading I have found that Blue Top is the more gooder way to go. However they are back-ordered now but who isn't... Thoughts on RED vs BLUE? 

 

Ill probably make a separate topic on this one but my wiper delay and power locks dont work anymore. Through my research it leads to the CTM, to which I have no experience with...

 

I think that is all I got for now lol. Quite a bit to swallow in one bite but there it is... Again I have done so much to this puppy and have lots of pics I could show it off or if anyone is curious on something or just nosy I'd be happy to share if I knew how to do it. 

I greatly appreciate any feed back, comments, suggestions you would have for me. Thank you for reading through all that! 

 

[dripley]

Dont know how to touch all of that tonight, but the LMC dash is pricey but mine has about 9 years on it and still looks fine. I also bought the dash bezel about 2 years ago and love them both. 

 

Head lights are a toss up unless you go with some of the more expensive projectors. Me, I bought a cheap set of clear lens for about 60 bucks and put a set of $35 LED's in them and got very lucky. Nice light and they do not light the cab of the vehicle in front of me.

 

Steering box Blue Top gets my vote.

 

Mirrors, your link looks to be good. I have some on mine that were cheaper I think but they need to be replaced. About 5 years old I think. Cant remember. If yours is an SLT the wiring should already be in the door. If the truck did not come with them you will need a different HVAC control switch. The heater button in on the controls. A lot of used ones out there pretty reasonable. Mine were not factory and thats the route  I had to go. You will also need the switch for the mirror adjustment. Also easily found used.

 

I will leave the sway bar stuff to others.

 

The wiper delay is in the wiper motor. Not sure what the CTM has to do with it. Mine went out a few months ago and the motor fixed it. Door locks I do not know about. What the CTM has to do with them both is beyond my paygrade.

 

Good luck.

 

 

[LorenS]

3 hours ago, Stanley said:

it gets really bad wander (hard to keep center) when I try to (quickly) change lanes or go over some (whoops) down a back road.

Is your toe set correctly, and the caster?

 

Also, as I'm sure you know slop can be caused by many things. I have way to much in my steering and I know a good amount of it is the steering shaft. I also have not ever adjusted the steering box (nut and Allen screw, I believe) and it's one of the many things on the to-do list I forget to consult on days I'm already under the truck.

[Stanley]

5 hours ago, LorenS said:

Is your toe set correctly, and the caster?

 

Also, as I'm sure you know slop can be caused by many things. I have way to much in my steering and I know a good amount of it is the steering shaft. I also have not ever adjusted the steering box (nut and Allen screw, I believe) and it's one of the many things on the to-do list I forget to consult on days I'm already under the truck.

 

Yea it's been aligned a couple times, might not hurt to do it again though. I've also got a new borgeson steering shift, thought that would take up most of it but it only helped narrow it down to the source mostly. I never have done any adjusting on the box myself, honestly didn't know it was a thing. I'll have to research how to do that.

 

@dripley Both LMC and Genos have their dashes around $260 which isn't bad, the more I read LMC seems to be preferred and I think I won't regret not having to paint it lol. And again $87 ish for a complete replacement bezel- vents, is a steal.

 

I agree on the toss up on lights, theirs not a ton of options but what we have available is a great improvement than original. I really don't have much experience with projectors, fairly new to me honestly.

 

I do have the wiring for the mirrors, heat and power. I have a parts truck that has the adjustment knob I'll just have to source a new thermostat control switch as you mentioned. 

 

I've read that the CTM controls quite a bit, has alot to do with a security system too. I'd really like to add a remote unlock/lock, maybe nows the time? 

I'll really need some help on this issue I'm afraid, I'd be simple if it was just the switch on the column and door switches... I have tried lock switches from my donor truck, and all fuses and swapped relays- no change. Don't hear any clicking- but that don't mean much, I'm half deaf from all the boom booms haha. 

[dripley]

1 hour ago, Stanley said:

And again $87 ish for a complete replacement bezel- vents, is a steal.

 

You better double check that one. Make sure it is not just a cover. IIRC I paid good bit more than that for mine from LMC.

 

More on the wipers. I misstated my solution. Mine was the multi function switch and not the motor. I still would not know what the CTM has to do with wipers. Not that it does not control them, I just dont know..

[Stanley]

@dripley check this out - Bezel. Ill email Genos just to verify, but it states its a direct replacement with clips. If it is correct Im sure alot of people will jump to go buy one! 

Edited June 9, 2021 by Stanley

[Silverwolf2691]

17 hours ago, Stanley said:

I guess Ill start with the dash. I have been looking, reading and researching the DASH. Came across alot of topics here including @Dieselfuture post Time for a new Dash. I think I have decided on going with LMC dash cause I really don't wanna mess with painting it and trying to get it to match  I have spent alot of time already with my dash out fiber glassing  the top and bottom in hopes of making a custom dash top (see pic) and I don't wanna mess with it no more, I'd be cheaper off to just buy one. In that same realm Ill be purchasing a new dash bezel from Geno's  for 87$ - no brainer. 

 

My brothers truck received an LMC dash and bezel. Felt good coming out of the box, Pattern was an almost match. The color was like 1 shade off if I had to nitpick it, but tbh, its not really noticeable. The bezel looked damn near identical to the factory original one. Fun fact, when you drop some pieces of the cracked original dash they can shatter like glass, and sound similar too. 

 

17 hours ago, Stanley said:

Lights! These things suck! I have read the article on here for the sport light conversion with projectors. More than likely Ill go that route - with the detailed instructions. Where is the best place to get those lights at now a days? Any further improvements or light availability come about? I found Anzo Lights from CPP Diesel that look pretty decent, but I'm after quality and some bright a$$ lights so I can see. So I need opinions.

 

I have pretty much the same headlights MoparMan does, projectors from Retroshop. By the time I priced out a sport upgrade/relay kit for my brothers truck recently, it was within range of the projectors. Don't get me wrong I love them, but I feel like their long range punch just isnt there. Could be a product of my surroundings, lots of tight, winding, no shoulder, car-and-a-half wide middle of the woods type roads that could be bouncing so much light back that it visually drowns out the long range light. 

 

17 hours ago, Stanley said:

Second light topic is cab lights. I have (smoked colored) my original ones long time ago cause that was hip, and had led's in them, now I'd like to get something updated and nicer looking, even if its new OEM style ones. Been looking at Recon cab lights... Any thoughts or users of those? 

 

Depends on what you are looking for, they have the clear and smoked versions not sure about the amber ones. I like my OEM amber ones and I just put leds from lasfit in them. They light up speed limit signs at night because they are so bright.

 

17 hours ago, Stanley said:

Mirrors! going to replace my stiff broken tow-mirrors with something like  Spyder X-tune Mirrors from CPP Diesel that are powered and heated. Any other preference?

 

I've used 1AAuto. The actual 1AAuto brand mirrors are good, I'm not the happiest with the other brand that they had. Got a set with turn signals and first rain we had one of them was filled with water. Didnt return then because I was out of the warrantee period, I waited to put them on..

 

17 hours ago, Stanley said:

Lastly I will probably need to replace my steering gear box. I have everything replaced with DOR parts, great stuff, minus the track bar. I have slop left to right while driving straight down the hwy, it gets really bad wander (hard to keep center) when I try to (quickly) change lanes or go over some (whoops) down a back road. Like I have to correct my correction . So after alot of reading I have found that Blue Top is the more gooder way to go. However they are back-ordered now but who isn't... Thoughts on RED vs BLUE?

 

Have a BlueTop box, no issues with it. Never had a RedTop. Supposedly the guy who owns BlueTop used to work with RedTop, bit foggy on that so take with a grain of salt.

 

17 hours ago, Stanley said:

Ill probably make a separate topic on this one but my wiper delay and power locks dont work anymore. Through my research it leads to the CTM, to which I have no experience with...

 

Not sure on the power locks, but depending on what the wipers are doing depends on what it is.. are they parking in the middle of the windshield when on delay? My previous ram 1500 and my current 2500 both had and have that issue, CTM took care of it on the 1500, havent fixed it on the 2500 yet.

 

How was dealing with DOR? I have their track bar. Didnt have the issues most were complaining about back almost 4-5 years ago.

 

Not sure about the sway bar mounts..

[dripley]

7 hours ago, Stanley said:

@dripley check this out - Bezel. Ill email Genos just to verify, but it states its a direct replacement with clips. If it is correct Im sure alot of people will jump to go buy one! 

The Dorman part scares me a bit. But I have some things made by them with succes. Who knows. Let us know how it works out.

[Stanley]

4 hours ago, Silverwolf2691 said:

My brothers truck received an LMC dash and bezel. Felt good coming out of the box, Pattern was an almost match. The color was like 1 shade off if I had to nitpick it, but tbh, its not really noticeable. The bezel looked damn near identical to the factory original one. Fun fact, when you drop some pieces of the cracked original dash they can shatter like glass, and sound similar too. 

 

I can't wait to see it all there again. Hopefully Genos bezel is a complete one, it's half the price of LMC's. 

4 hours ago, Silverwolf2691 said:

My brothers truck received an LMC dash and bezel. Felt good coming out of the box, Pattern was an almost match. The color was like 1 shade off if I had to nitpick it, but tbh, its not really noticeable. The bezel looked damn near identical to the factory original one. Fun fact, when you drop some pieces of the cracked original dash they can shatter like glass, and sound similar too.

Guess I'll need more input on which way to go, see what anyone else has to say. Looks like it's a toss up...

4 hours ago, Silverwolf2691 said:

Not sure on the power locks, but depending on what the wipers are doing depends on what it is.. are they parking in the middle of the windshield when on delay? My previous ram 1500 and my current 2500 both had and have that issue, CTM took care of it on the 1500, havent fixed it on the 2500 yet.

Sometimes they will stop mid stroke but most of the time it's just stuck on one (higher intermittent) setting then low speed or high speed. If I shut it off before it's down all the way it will stay where ever it's at. Door locks just don't work at all either side, even tried different switches.

 

DOR has some nice stuff! I love the whole steering setup. It was hard to find an alignment shop that knew how to align it coincidently lol... Won't have to worry about it again after installing it. I'd highly suggest it. 

[Silverwolf2691]

15 minutes ago, Stanley said:

I can't wait to see it all there again. Hopefully Genos bezel is a complete one, it's half the price of LMC's

 

From the link you posted, it doesnt come with the vents so you would have to reuse your old ones.

 

17 minutes ago, Stanley said:

Sometimes they will stop mid stroke but most of the time it's just stuck on one (higher intermittent) setting then low speed or high speed. If I shut it off before it's down all the way it will stay where ever it's at.

 

This sounds like a bad CTM. Its a bit of a pain to change due to its location but if you have the dash out, you might get to it a bit easier

[Stanley]

1 hour ago, Silverwolf2691 said:

This sounds like a bad CTM. Its a bit of a pain to change due to its location but if you have the dash out, you might get to it a bit easier

If it is  CTM issue, is it a simple swap or is it more involved? I think I read somewhere their might be some reprogramming? 

I do have a donor truck, it's a 98 ish- 1500, maybe it's possible to use that one?

[Silverwolf2691]

38 minutes ago, Stanley said:

If it is  CTM issue, is it a simple swap or is it more involved? I think I read somewhere their might be some reprogramming? 

I do have a donor truck, it's a 98 ish- 1500, maybe it's possible to use that one?

 

If i remember correctly, as long as the part numbers matched you should be able to swap them without issue. There is the base and highline ctm. Pretty much if you have a non power anything truck its a base ctm. Anything more and you get the highline one. The swap is just a connector or two and two screws (i think). But its behind the right hand side of the knee bolster, behind the plastic.. its not hard to get, but it was just one of those position is so awkward it makes it hard to do.

 

If you can get to it, base ctm is small,  highline is much, much larger.

 

In attached photo, highline (approx, pictured is a dakota) is the "60 day warranty" photo. Base is below it.

 

This is what i remember from 6-7+ years ago. 

Edited June 10, 2021 by Silverwolf2691

[Silverwolf2691]

I goofed on the photo.. those are bcms I believe for newer trucks.

 

 

this is the high line module for a 2001.

 

 

This should be a base ctm. previous post's photo I believe is also correct for the base ctm only.

[dripley]

It is my understanding the park feature for the wipers is in the motor. No expert for sure on the subject. When mine failed the barely moved. I took one wiper off the truck so the lone one would still work, until the parts arrived. I also had to turn it off when the blade was down or it would stop where ever it was. I tested at the motor connector and was not getting the proper voltages. The multi function switch was my issue. Again I am no expert, this was just the experience I had.

[Stanley]

I forgot I took a picture of what I believed to be the CTM. Best picture I could get of it. Looks like it matches the baseline model one @Silverwolf2691 posted. 

 

12 hours ago, Silverwolf2691 said:

There is the base and highline ctm. Pretty much if you have a non power anything truck its a base ctm.

I do have power windows/ locks.

When I get mirrors, I'll swap in the power adjust knob from my donor truck - harness is already in my current truck for power and heat - only those 2 connectors at that location? 

 

If I added keyless entry would that matter, or would an upgrade be needed?

[Silverwolf2691]

@dripley, I had both issues with my ram 1500 I had before I had my 2500. From what I remember when I researched it then, the CTM controls the timing of the wiper motor based on the signal from the multifunction switch. My 1500 would have them start in the normal park at the bottom of the wipe path, set to intermittent and would make one full pass then stop after starting back up the windshield. Also only had one of the 5 intermittent settings, didn't matter the position on multifunction switch. The other symptom I was having was the wipers wouldn't park at the bottom of the windshield. If you turned them off in the middle of a wipe that was where they stayed, similar to turning off the ignition mid wipe. only way for it to park was to put it to constant low or high then all the way off, no stops.

 

@Stanley, I don't remember what extra was controlled by the highline CTM, but I seem to remember the overhead trip computer and possibly keyless was with it. You shouldn't have to swap any wiring in the doors if you have power mirrors already. Also you might have the plugs already if you had an SLT with no power mirrors. Unless you had one of the base base ST trim levels with no power anything. My 2500 was nearly an SLT+: overhead computer, power seats, keyless entry, power locks/windows, but no leather/heated seats/power & heated mirrors. All the plugs were there so just a matter of getting required items to plug in and I was set. 

 

Also, yes, that is your base CTM.

 

Seems I over (under?) stated what was controlled by the base CTM.. http://starparts.chrysler.com/tsb/en_us/dto/pbd2/08/00/22/080022dc80c84c7a.pdf 

 

According to a quick look with professor Google, you cant swap base and highline. Apparently, dodge got picky with the wiring harnesses. if you had a base you cant upgrade because unlike the doors and some other areas, the highline wiring is just not there. https://www.cumminsforum.com/threads/central-timing-module.556384/

 

this guy did a cab swap, didnt end the best because of the CTM https://www.cumminsforum.com/threads/1999-st-with-no-security-ctm-issue.2056105/

 

 

Edited June 10, 2021 by Silverwolf2691

[Stanley]

I read in the last link that the 2001+ CTM modules and instrument clusters are different than previous years... Something to think about I guess, my donor truck is older so idk... Still trying to wrap my head around all this = confused. 

 

The other stuff is easy, more less opinions, experience, etc. 

Hope to get some of those answers so I can start spending money and ordering stuff lol. 

[Great work!]

I had a hard time finding correct rear sway bar bushings by application but 24 mm is about the same as 1 inch. So I found some on amazon by dimensions I think they were for Corvette  but they were close enough to work.

[Stanley]

Anyone else have any pointers on CTM's? Or any other opinions/suggestions on these few items to purchase? 

[Mopar1973Man]

At any rate the CTM you choice from where ever... You going to need to have them flashed and proper VIN number flash to it. Being the PCM and CTM both handle security features.