To swap for a 5.7 Hemi or to build the 5.9 Magnum

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zachl88

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So I have an interesting opportunity presented to me. The short story is I have a buddy looking for a 5.9 and has a 5.7 from a 2014 Ram. I have an "extra" 5.9. I wanna hear what your opinion is on what to do with which motor. I have a 99 Ram that currently has the 5.9. So should I swap get the Hemi and put it in my 99 or... keep my 2001 5.9, build the motor up and hold onto it for further down the road? What would you do and why?

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jsmith

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Well the 5.7 is worth more than the 5.9 so I'd swap and if nothing else sell the 5.7 down the road. If you want to put it in your Ram there's a lot more you need besides just the engine, search/pm 98hemiram on here. Pretty sure he did a build thread
 

dapepper9

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98hemi-ram did a build thread yes.

Mounting the engine and trans is the easy part. The problem comes with the custom engine harness and Dakota cluster to get everything to work. There are companies that can make this harness though. Then you also have to worry about transfer case and front driveshaft if you have a 4x4.
 

dRAMbuie

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I used to have a 5.9 magnum in my Dakota, and have the 5.7 Hemi in my Ram now. That's a really tough choice.

I think I'd go with the 5.9 though.
The 360 has always been a very strong engine. You just can't kill those things.
I'd be willing to bet performance parts are quite a bit cheaper for that engine as well.

Everyone seems to want the Hemi these days (and I'm no exception), but I think in some respects that's all about perception and marketing.
For what you're planning to do, the 360 seems like the wiser choice to me. You'll likely get more bang for your buck at the end of the day.

Just my thoughts.
 

dudeman2009

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I helped a buddy build his 5.9, i've also seen the tags on similarly powered 5.7s. Its a bit cheaper to build a 5.9 and not worry about any of the conversion (only a real hassle if you've got 4x4, otherwise its just money on a custom harness) problems with the 5.7.

Sure if you build them the 5.7s will beat out any 5.9, but it costs a lot more to properly build a Hemi into a gen 2 truck, can be worth it if you are getting the trans with it though.

Personally, i'd build the 5.9, rock solid engines. Since you've got a spare 5.9, trade with your buddy and sell off the 5.7 to help fund your build.
 
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zachl88

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Thanks guys it's interesting to see people's different views on this. If I went for the Hemi it'll be strictly because of the extra horse power and fuel economy. I will say though that both of my 360s have not let me down and they both have been great running motors with plenty of power. I do have a 4x4. I'll have to look up that build to see what I might be getting into if I go with the swap. I have been considering building the 360 in my current driver. Simply because I already have the engine, there isn't any conversions to be made just for install. And I mean everyone and their brother has a Hemi but you don't see many built up 360s around here at least. So other than a new intake manifold (I like the Mopar M1) and an aftermarket ignition what kind of performance mods do you guys recommend for the 360?

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dapepper9

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Decent build list to have a respectable stock displacement 360:
52mm tb
2bbl m1 or Airgap
EQ heads
Cam (call comp or somebody for a suggestion is your best bet)
Shorty headers wuthering single 2.5" free flow exhaust
1.7 Rockers (cam company will need to know this to help determine cam)
Sct tuning to make it all work.

Want something crazier? Do some heavy porting/valve work on the EQs or swap to Edelbrock aluminum heads ($$$) and add a bigger throttle body (53x55mm or 58mm). Crazier yet, stroker kit with any of the above and 53x55mm minimum and 30lb injectors, 4bbl m1 optional. Crazier yet, procharger supercharger with really any combo above (kit or buy just the bracket and head unit from a procharger distributor).

Craziest you'll be able to go is 408 supercharged. Procharger D-1SC, forged 408 stroker kit, 80lb/hr injectors, 58mm tb, any supporting additions you need such as fuel pump transmission etc.

All depends how much power you wanna make. Remember that 245hp/335tq is the factory numbers at the crank. My truck is currently making about 250whp estimated and it's fairly fun but it does have dead spots with factory cam and heads though it has plenty of power. I've beaten 2 08 chevy 5.3s and the older 5.7 chevys as well as an 03/04 5.4. Gearing plays a big part in drivability as well.
 
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zachl88

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I'd like to push around 300 HP. I don't think going into the supercharger set up. I would like to drop in a new cam, lifters, intake manifold, my shorty headers are sitting in the garage already until I get to pulling out the motor. As far as a transmission that could handle the heavy loads I tend to pull around the farm I've been reading reviews on Monster Transmissions and I'm pretty set on that company. I will have the 4.10 axles in the truck very soon. (I have 2 Rams a 99 and a 01, the 01 is my parts truck and had the off road package on it) so far the 360s have treated me very well and haven't let me down. I like the amount of power they have bone stock. I'd just like to see hp up around 300 to 360. Because why not match your horsepower to your cubic inch lol

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zachl88

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What would it take to remove the cat and not set off my 02 sensors? I appreciate the info guys. I'm a carpenter by trade and knuckle buster by hobby with a lot to learn. A lot to learn lol

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dapepper9

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300wheel hp or simply 300crank hp? Quite a decent difference between the 2 though neither is hard to make it all takes money.

Food and math for thought:
300crank hp is how much wheel hp? Well, we can assume anywhere from 20-30% drivetrain loss through the trans and differentials. So:
300 x 0.8 = 240 so roughly 240 wheel hp.
I estimate mine sits around 250 (look through my signature) as it made 223whp with just the m1, superchips pretend tuning, cotton air filter and a muffler swap. That's before I added a larger throttle body (52mm), real tuning (FlyinRyan) and headers. I'll post some pics shortly of what kind of difference Ryan's tuning does. So, with those changes I'm fairly confident that I'm around 250whp. That comes out to 312.5 roughly. Quite a bit of fun, however, if you're happy with that kind of output there's a much easier cheaper route.
Port the kegger
52mm tb
Shorties
SCT canned tune by Ryan
1.7s
and you'll probably make more than that and using the factory kegger will give you better drivability than I have now and it'll be much quicker until about 70mph.

Now if you wanna make 300 wheel hp, you'll want the M1 or airgap and definitely heads. I would do heads before cam simply because you'll get better drivability matching the cam to the head/intake combo than you would heads to intake/cam combo unless you know what you're doing with cam specs. EQs are a cheap aftermarket head that is basically a stock casting that flows about 40cfm more and is thicker so it won't crack along the valve seats. Jegs sells em bare (if you want port work done) or assembled. Airgap will be easier to acquire than an m1 simply because it's actually still produced and can be ordered like most any normal aftermarket part and they perform so similarly until things get crazy that it's simply preference until then.
m1/airgap with EQs, 1.7s, shorty headers, sct tuning, 52mm tb will put you in that range, even with factory cam but will cost more for obvious reasons.
 

dapepper9

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Cutting out the cat usually will only throw rear sensor code if it throws one at all. Often times it throws nothing but it will run richer. The front 02 is the one that controls air/fuel ratio and will be seeing more air and to make up for it will push slightly more fuel. Not a huge problem but one to expect. The rear simply monitors cat efficiency so it might throw a code indicating a failing cat but nothing to worry about. Whichever throws a code if any can usually be cleared by using spark plug non-foulers to space it out of the pipe a little bit.
 

dapepper9

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These are all recent.

Muffler swap Dakota 5.9
Screenshot_20160706-185127.jpg

5.9 ram procharged, Eddie heads, 10psi intercooled (found the boost number later on in another post) big cam,58mm tb
Screenshot_20160709-164935.jpg

408 history with other tuners
Screenshot_20160711-064847.jpg
Screenshot_20160711-064855.jpg
 
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zachl88

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Well that's alot of info to swallow lol I'll say 300 at the crank. I think I'm gonna be doing some parts research here soon lol thanks for all the help man it makes a huge difference and gives me an idea of where to start

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dudeman2009

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It looks like you're going for the 360 build, nice choice ;)

You may consider beefing up your transmission. You can get some nice upgrade kits that will greatly reduce the common problems with the 46RE transmissions for about $400.

Most commonly, the bands burn up and the solenoids go bad. Just getting a $200 band and solenoid kit goes a long way, especially if you plan on driving it hard or are going to tow with it a lot.

For towing, a tranny cooler is a must, you will fry it otherwise.
 

dapepper9

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Shift kit, check valve delete, Hayden 405 cooler and you should be more than good for what you're doing.
 
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zachl88

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I've been looking into trannys to just replace the 46re. I'm the 3rd owner of my 01 and the trans blew at 170,000 but it was not taken care of by previous owners. I can either upgrade my trans cooler or install a second stock cooler (from my parts truck). See this is where I get stuck because I'm very indecisive at times lol I have a whole other truck I could parts from and rebuild the trans to make it what I want, or buy an aftermarket HD trans. I've just never seen these 46re trans take a beating very well, then again I've only ever seen them stock.

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zachl88

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Heres a quick question, something I ran into yesterday. How hard should it be to separate the transfer case from the transmission? I feel like I shouldn't have to pound and pry in all directions with hardly any results lol its still in the truck and its time for it to come out.

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joepizuro

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You got all the bolts out? Even ontop? Nvm. I just remembered. It slides over the trans shaft. I had to split it like u would a wheel bearing hub assembly lol
 
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zachl88

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Yeah I removed all the bolts around the housing. So just slow and steady smacking and pulling

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