new to me 05 hemi

[repsol83]

Picked up a new to me 2005 1500 quad cab big horn. 99k miles

leveling kit, 35" tires, k&N intake

Going through the vehicle with a fine tooth comb and have a few questions or looking for ideas.

First off is there anything specific I should be looking for with this truck.

Drives great. everything is tight. no knocks.

Looks like the front is actually sitting a little higher than the rear. i think the torsion bars are cranked tight. if I were to loosen that up a bit will the front drop slightly? Would that screw up the alignment?

Truck is straight piped after the cat... which is way to loud. magnaflow , flowmaster? whats the best sounding muffler on this thing.

Transmission seems smooth and tight other than this morning it was a little colder. I backed out of my drive way.. rolling just slightly dropped it into N and then Drive. It seemed to hesitate just a little bit rolling into drive. Is that normal if the truck is cold? Anything I should look out for on these transmissions? what kind of life expectancy are people getting? Is it better than my 99 1500 was?

Looking to do fender flares and protect the quarter panels from rust. Whats my best bang for the buck? DIY rust protection and flares? Also looks like a couple small spots starting on the very bottom edge of the tailgate.

Truck already has the chrome covered with line x ... was thinking about doing that to the inside bottom of the doors also.

Truck is obviously not good on gas. Any recommended tuners / chips to improve both performance and gas mileage?

What else should i take a look at or consider doing ?

Thanks!

 

[NWRQC]

Welcome to the site, nice looking truck. The front does look like it's sitting higher than the rear.

All of your questions have been covered and with a little searching you will find a lot more info on them. I will answer a few of them though..
If you "un-crank" the torsion bars a little it will lower the front end, but you will want to have the alignment checked afterwards. I have a feeling that the previous owner cranked them that far in order to clear the tires....Either way having them cranked that much will wear out the front components fast(er).

A lot of people like the sound and quality of Magnaflow mufflers. I had a 18" Magnaflow on my truck and was very happy. While cruising around it had a little deeper tone and deep growl once you stepped on it. I am more on the conservative side when it comes to mods ( sleeper as some call it) so for me it was perfect.
DSP tuner is your best bet for the 05's, engine and trans tuning.

 

[chedched]

I concur...

Welcome to the site.

Mufflers are a personal flavor kind of thing. You really have to find an exhaust clip you like the sound of and find out what it is.

I like my Superchips Flashpaq (3865) on my 05. I went from 12.6 MPG to 14.4 MPG just running the 87 octane tune. It will also correct you spedometer which is likely off due to the 35s.

 

[cdmckane]

Nice ride.

 

[repsol83]

Speedo is off about 5 or 6 mph...

Right now its straight piped about 2feet behind the cat and dumps right under the cab.... Sound isn't bad but its too loud inside the cab at highway speed for my liking. I also like to be able to keep it under 2 grand and not wake up the neighbors.

Think I'm going to level out the rear needs about an inch.. Maybe airbags. Truck came with some new shocks not installed but they are nothing special.. Going to look into something a little better.

Loving the new found power over my 99 318 ram

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

 

[repsol83]

biggest decision of the day.... dual exhaust out the back, @ 45's behind the wheels, or a downturn and keep it hidden....

think im going to go with the flowmaster 40 as well... or just leave it straight piped....

 

[repsol83]

dbl post

 

[mcamzr]

I have a 05 5.7. Check out the corsa exhaust. It's a cat back system. I put it on and I love it. It has a sweet growl when you start the truck and a nice rumble at idle and really wakes up when you get into it but the best part is at highway speeds even towing it is more quite than the stock set up. Check it out at auto anything.com. Best price I found. And sweet looking truck by the way.

 

[repsol83]

Sounds tough... Just a little raspier than i like. Think I'm going to go with a 14" magnaflow and a turn down tip and just hide the whole ****...

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[Ramunit]

That's a great looking truck, 05 is the best year for Rams ever!

 

[repsol83]

Only potential issue I have noticed is the first shift when the truck is cold it seems to hesitate a split second dropping into reverse or when I go from reverse to drive. Not sure if its something I need to be proactive about or if its just a little quirk

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[repsol83]

couple mod questions

best place to get 1.5" rear lift blocks?

Looking for fender flares... not sure im sold on the pocket flares by bushwacker... also probably won't be painting them and leaving them flat black. any suggestions?

any do it yourself rust protection routes i should look into for around my fenders? theres 1 little bubble on one side.. and a little cut in the paint on the other... I'd like to sand and seal / fix / prevent future rust... any thoughts?

 

[Ramunit]

Only potential issue I have noticed is the first shift when the truck is cold it seems to hesitate a split second dropping into reverse or when I go from reverse to drive. Not sure if its something I need to be proactive about or if its just a little quirk

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

When you get motivated pull the trans pan, and replace with about 8 new ATF plus 4 quarts and change the two filters with updated part number Mopar filters that you get online or at the dealer. The new filters should solve the problem.