New Truck Guy

[TheFredRider]

Hi everyone! I recently bought a 2018 Ram 1500 Tradesman 2WD with 50,000 miles. After needing to buy a new vehicle my first car was a 1997 Eagle Talon Tsi. Im 21 and i have some questions on the stuff I want to do to my truck.

First off here’s a picture of it. Everything you see on the picture it already had from the previous owner.
I primarily use it as my daily driver and I was thinking of putting a couple of mods:
1. LED HEADLIGHTS
2. Cold air intake
3. Headers
4 Exhaust System
5. Tune

That’s it really because I want to rebuild my other car’s engine. My only question is with the exhaust I have it’s a single exhaust instead of the dual exhaust how could I change that? I want it loud but not obnoxiously loud I don’t want a drone machine

Thanks!!!

 

[Harley Harrold]

 

[Tom Davis]

Welcome. Nice looking truck.

If doing headers you can just have a dual exhaust put in then, will require 2 Cats though which can get expensive. Another option is to do a Cat Back, while not a true dual exhaust it will appear and sound so.

If increasing horsepower and torque in the engine make sure the transmission is good for it, otherwise could get quite expensive.

 

[NCRaineman]

The "cold air" intake won't do you a bit of good in the performance department. The stock airbox flows more air than the engine can use. If you want the eye candy under the hood and a little more engine noise at WOT then go for it, just be aware you're not gaining any power.

We're not in the 90's or 00's anymore. Cheap bolt-ons won't get you big gains like they did with your DSM. These trucks perform just about as good as they possibly can right out of the box, so to get more out of them you are going to be spending bigger bucks.

Headers and true dual exhaust is a good choice. I'm sure you're aware you'll need a tune for that and I would not recommend going the emissions delete route at this point, as the feds are starting to crack down on that stuff big time. Even if your state doesn't test for emissions you will be in violation of the Clean Air Act and subject to a fine if they decide to come after you.

If you want major gains you're going to have to go with a cam swap, forced induction or put it on the bottle. A good exhaust setup will support all of that, just depends on how much you want to spend.

Finally, yes the transmission will be an obstacle if you add too much power. The 8HP70 is rated for about 500lb/ft and you are getting close to that stock. Sure you can push it, but be aware it may go down on you. Again, depends on your budget.

 

[Papa Red]

Welcome to the forum.

Red

 

[TheFredRider]

The "cold air" intake won't do you a bit of good in the performance department. The stock airbox flows more air than the engine can use. If you want the eye candy under the hood and a little more engine noise at WOT then go for it, just be aware you're not gaining any power.

We're not in the 90's or 00's anymore. Cheap bolt-ons won't get you big gains like they did with your DSM. These trucks perform just about as good as they possibly can right out of the box, so to get more out of them you are going to be spending bigger bucks.

Headers and true dual exhaust is a good choice. I'm sure you're aware you'll need a tune for that and I would not recommend going the emissions delete route at this point, as the feds are starting to crack down on that stuff big time. Even if your state doesn't test for emissions you will be in violation of the Clean Air Act and subject to a fine if they decide to come after you.

If you want major gains you're going to have to go with a cam swap, forced induction or put it on the bottle. A good exhaust setup will support all of that, just depends on how much you want to spend.

Finally, yes the transmission will be an obstacle if you add too much power. The 8HP70 is rated for about 500lb/ft and you are getting close to that stock. Sure you can push it, but be aware it may go down on you. Again, depends on your budget.

So it would be better to just leave stock as it is then? If that’s the case I’m totally fine with I just wanted it to sound just a bit more loud without it being a drone machine.

 

[TheFredRider]

Welcome. Nice looking truck.

If doing headers you can just have a dual exhaust put in then, will require 2 Cats though which can get expensive. Another option is to do a Cat Back, while not a true dual exhaust it will appear and sound so.

If increasing horsepower and torque in the engine make sure the transmission is good for it, otherwise could get quite expensive.

Ok yeah sounds good! I’ve been watching some videos on YouTube and many just go the untrue dual exhaust route but based on what the replies are telling me it probably be best to leave it stock.

 

[NCRaineman]

So it would be better to just leave stock as it is then? If that’s the case I’m totally fine with I just wanted it to sound just a bit more loud without it being a drone machine.

If you want better sound go to a decent muffler shop and have them do you up a dual exit system with a Flowmaster or Magnaflow or whatever muffler you want. There are sound clips of all kinds of different setups on YT.

 

[Southern Ram]

 

[Nick@GotExhaust]

Welcome to the forum. We can help with your mod list! My comments will be in BOLD

1. LED HEADLIGHTS I recommend full headlight replacement instead of drop in plug and play leds. Check out Morimoto or AlphaRex. If you really want the drop in led bulbs we do have some options there as well
2. Cold air intake Wont add much performance but does help a little with throttle response and induction noise always sounds great
3. Headers Long tubes or shorties? Long tubes best brands for fitment, quality, and performance are American Racing Headers and Stainless Works. Shorties the best option is AFE
4 Exhaust System There are a few options here that will allow you to go to duals. There is catback options that include brackets and all to convert to duals. Best option here varies on what you do for headers. Long tubes and high flow cats are louder so your will want an option a little more tame. Shorties arent going to make the exhaust much louder so you dont need something as tame.
5. Tune Get a custom tune. Research and find who you feel most comfortable with. Do your research here. This is something that can make the most of your mods if tuned correctly.

We offer everything mentioned except custom tuning. We can offer the tuning device though. Message me with any questions and if you would like a quote on anything.

 

[ramsare4real]

Welcome. I would just leave as it is and enjoy the ride.

 

[TheFredRider]

Welcome. I would just leave as it is and enjoy the ride.

I think I will do that for right now and wait a year and just try to focus on little cosmetic things and focus my money on rebuilding my little car.