By accessing this website, you acknowledge that Edmunds and its third party business partners may use cookies, pixels, and similar technologies to collect information about you and your interactions with the website as described in our
Privacy Statement, and you agree that your use of the website is subject to our
Visitor Agreement.
Comments
If anybody has used one of these I'd appreciate a comment. The online description said they attach with cable ties, and I'm having a hard time imagining how this is done.
If not, I'll be glad to report to the forum how this goes.
Best of holidays to everyone.
Dusty
email me at the address listed in my profile and I'll send you some pics.
Regards,
Dusty
The look from the rear of the truck with the 3.5 inch stainless tips is beyond words.
Regards,
Dusty
But wait, if a person has a senior moment, how would they know how to answer the question? :-) You guys get to be my age, you'll find out!
Besides, it's so darn cold in Western New York again, there are a lot of things that aren't working right...and I'm one of them.
Fangster, thanks for the response. It sounds like overall you feel there's an improvement.
How about traction? Are you in a snowy area?
Bests,
Dusty
The exhaust is really something to see and hear, powerful when accelerating, nice burble at part throttle and no different when just cruising down the road. Gibson did a great job on this one, although it is far from a bolt on installation, unless of course you are bolting it on in a muffler shop and can bend the extra pipes that you need and re bend the pre bent pipes.
Yes, I am very pleased with both the tires and exhaust. It was money very well spent.
I get them quite often, guess thats how I recognized what it was. I suspect I have a few years on you anyway. <grin>
Good to hear you are satisfied with the tires and exhaust. It sounds like your Gibson was not really "bolt-on." What did you have to do that you shouldn't have?
Bests,
Dusty
The young and the restless at work kid me because my top ten favorite movies are all black-and-white and I remember things like Packards, DeSotos, Buster Crab, caster oil and oleo.
Vividly..........
Bests,
Dusty
2. The Gibson head pipe pushed the whole system back 18 inches, hence the first custom bent pipe, which also solved problem #1.
3. The drivers side rear pipe went right into the drivers side shock. All that needed done there was a little bend to the Gibson pipe.
4. Passenger side rear pipe was long by 3 inches, the drivers side was long by 4.5 inches. Imagine if I would have used Gibson's first pipe, I'd have stainless steel curb feelers. A pipe cutter took care of this in seconds.
I'm a little bitter over this cause Gibson says I'm wrong??? and that their pipes fit???? I guess that they were there but I sure didn't remembering see them. Currently they're hoping that I'll just go away.
Actually Monroe Muffler had it done in about 45 min. The tech. that worked on my truck made the whole thing look easy " 12 years of experience ". Bend this, cut here, bend that a little more, cut a little more here, then he called me over to ask how and where I wanted the tips located.
Easy for an exhaust shop, but not happening in your driveway, or garage. So much for the bolt on install. I'm not happy with Gibson, but Monroe did such a great job, the pipes are perfect out the back and the sound is better than the Infinity!
Ahasher here, previous 2000 Dakota Quad owner, now a proud owner of a 2004 Ram 1500 SLT Quad HEMI, Big Horn Configuration. I have the standard radio/CD with changer controls, and want to add an aftermarket CD changer. Does anyone know what options/choices of models I have and how to connect to the OEM unit?? I will be pulling the unit out of the dash this weekend to see what the back/connections look like.
Thanks in advance,
Bill
You had the same thought I did, get the OEM, and upgrade or replace aftermarket with the options I want. In this case, I wanted the OEM look but wanted a good changer hidden. I got the JVC 12 CD changer as well from Best Buy on sale, and it had what I wanted: the RF interface and controller cable combo. I had it in the Dak, changer in the center console. This is what I want to use in the Ram if it will adapt directly to the unit or go with the RF and control unit mounted somewhere - but you mentioned special adapters for the antenna??? Where did you find them? . I would like to know more about how you went about the install. I am debating on buyind a new head unit though.
First impression is the changer fits in the storage space below the console seat quite nicely. That's as far as I have gone.. no wiring yet. My email is in the profile, isn't it??
Bill
Anyway Dodge has a new antenna connector. It is much smaller and fits much better than the old type antenna connector. I discovered it when I upgraded my factory head unit. I bought some adapters after searching Ebay. A total waste of money, they were real JUNK and would not fit tightly. I went to a local installer and bought some good ones from them at $12 each. It seemed like a lot but it is worth it for the quality and fit. I believe they are the same ones Crutchfield will sell you on their web site.
My changer would not work in the space under the front seat and be able to change cartridges. I put mine in the little depression under the folding shelf under the right rear back seat. The whole space is carpeted and I put a fitted piece of 1" firm foam on the bottom. my changer just sits in the depression. It is a fairly tight fit and when I need to change cartridges just lift it up. I have had no problems with skipping even though it is not screwed down. I ran the control cable up the passenger side under the sill molding. I pulled up the carpeting and put the RF control unit way up on the left side of the footwell along the center stack and just put the carpet back down. It is held firmly in place by the carpet and is up high enough the passenger's feet do not press on the box. The control head was my challenge. There is a small pocket under the radio for small items. I disassembled the center console and drilled a hole in the top right corner inside the box. I fed the cable thru this hole and down to the rf controller. I took a small piece of 1" flange aluminum cut to the with of the control head. I bent the bracket so the 90 degree bend was closer to 120 degrees. I put hook velcro on both flanges of the angle and loop velcro on the back of the control head and the top inside of the pocket in the dash. I attached the control head to the angle and then the assembly to the top of the pocket. I left enough slack in the cable so I can detach it from the top of the pocket and store it inside the pocket out of sight. A casual observer will not notice anything is installed if they look in the window so the temptation to break in is reduced. I hope my verbal description lets you form a mind image when you read it and look at your Ram's dash. The plus side of this is you can remove your install and other than the 3 splices you make for power there is no change or damage to the truck that is visible.. And the hole drilled in the pocket is out of sight and small enough to cover with tape. Rick
Thanks, my e-mail is now public and I do have several questions on that procedure. I want to do my install over next weekend, and I’ll e-mail you my specific questions.
Also I had a question on something I hear from somewhere below near where the tranny is mated to the engine, posted in problems and solutions.. since you have the same configuration, any thoughts??
Thanks,
Bill
I can't help you on your question about the noise however. I have a 2003 and all I hear at idle is exhaust rumble. I don't have that resonator that is installed after the muffler on the 2004 that quiets them down.
I also came from a Dakota that had a 5 speed manual trans so I don't have a comparison and lastly I worked around jet engines a number or years and don't have much high frequency response left in my ears. Rick
Thanks,
Blll
Neochanger installed.. worked ok at first, static/hissing(white noise) heard when cd's changing, in-between tracks. Not a good first impression. It failed twice, just not acknowledging head unit controls. Pulling the changer plug from the back of the head unit and reinstalling and it worked after that. Final symptom and 3rd failure was the kicker. This morning I got intermittent check engine light, air bag warning light, "ding" from dash as in check gauges warning, oil and temp gauges went to zero then returned and overhead display went full bright several times. the temp display even went to almost 90 degrees (it was actually around 80). I was ready to make an appt for my problems, since it happened twice before but lasted only a few seconds, and I didn’t associate it with the changer. This time it was constant. I turned off the stereo trying to eliminate anything "aftermarket" that might be a culprit before my service visit. Low and behold, all symptoms went away when it was off, and even the temp display returned to the expected 80. I went about 20 min, no problems, then turned it back on.. changer still not functioning, and within one minute, the symptoms started to return. Off again and they stopped. The rest of the commute was uneventful.
Summary: NeoChanger going back TODAY. I have a good JVC unit on standby. My experience with neochanger is a total fail. I hope I didn’t damage anything based on those symptoms
One of the pins on the accessory plug on the back of your factory radio has the computer bus line on it.
With a Dodge engineered product hooked to this port the attached device talks to the trucks computer.
For example if a factory changer jams loading a CD it tells the computer and the computer displays an error message on the factory radios display.
I suspect that you probably didn't hurt anything as I'm sure the bus line has protection to prevent outside devices from taking the bus line out.
Back to the JVC??? Or maybe it is time to consider the Sirius option from Dodge. Rick
You solved the mystery.. I was unaware the computer had a line monitoring the CD changer.. that explains it all. The folks at NeoChanger were stumped.
I have the JVC, but keep yelding at having a wired display hanging from a home-brew bracket, not to mention the RF mode to connect to the headunit. I have heard of the USA SPEC SCD-C130i 6-CD, but what is the Sirius? I did not look into it as I was expecting to add my own hardware.
Thanks Rick..
And on a similar note, until I get my own service manual, how do you get to the dash speaker positions? I want to add my own (3 ½ inch speakers I believe), might as well make use of the existing mounts, which I hope are already wired even though you don’t have the Infinity option.
Thanks,
Bill
Anyway, I've been looking at them for a while, and i really could not find anything that SAID i would get better mileage, but it seems like you'd have to if you are getting more power at the same RPM, right? So if anyone has any experience with these, tips on what to look for or expect, I'd appreciate you passing them along.
The only thing I'm currently aware of that i need to watch out for comes from my brother in law. He has one of the kits on a caprice classic, and he says when its wet outside, his engine is real sluggish and sucks gas. But he does not think that will be a problem in my truck, because where the filter will go is better protected than it is in his car.
thanks
-jeff
Last year I had swapped out the factory am-fm-cass on my 03 1500 for a new/take-out am-fm-cd from a 2003 Dakota. Today, I added a new, factory leather steering wheel w/radio controls. Plugged the additional wire for the radio buttons in the new wheel into the existing, previously unused female plug in the column and it won't adjust the radio. Is there a way to flash/reprog. the computer to allow the steering wheel controls to work? Or do I need to get a computer from another truck that had this option plus all the other exact same stuff my truck has$$?!
Yes I had a direct replacement filter in my 96 1500 along with a replaced exhaust system. You will notice better response and a little better mileage. At least I did.
I now have a K&N on my 96 2500 diesel and wouldn't go back to paper.
Here is the primary company that runs diesels on veggie related oil - http://www.greasecar.com/
I assume they have done so with a Cummins.
Best regards,
Dusty
Also, I am now thinking about upgrading to a cold air intake system (such as K&N). What other brands are recommended? Does this void the manufacturers warranty? Does this actually improve performance and most importantly gas mileage over the orginal equipment?
Thanks for your suggestions and comments.
Thanks,
Anthony
As far as a cold air intake some report positive gains in power and fuel consumption, others do not. Theoretically, reducing intake restriction will result in a top-end power increase, but it is usually marginal on today's more modern and efficient induction systems. Negative consequences include possible marginal loss of torque at lower RPMs and flattening out of throttle response in certain RPM ranges. In extremely cold weather you could have some hesitation problems.
As to fuel consumption, I have a hard time believing any of the less restrictive air intake systems will have an effect, especially on today's systems where the air/fuel ratios are closely and much more precisely monitored and controlled.
What I don't like about the less restrictive aftermarket air filter systems is the reduction in filtering efficiencies, especially at lower temperatures.
Best regards,
Dusty
Thanks!
Best regards,
Dusty