One Inebriated Rodents' Daily Driver {under reconstruction}

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Drunken Hamster

Drunken Hamster

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Hey, guys. An update. A kinda confused, heavy update. I just got word from a friend that he's about to repossess a car that he co-signed on since the person he signed for isn't making payments. In order to keep his credit, he'll have to pay it off and own it outright. But he has no use for said car, which, before you ask, is a 2015 chevy spark with 40k miles and the CVT.

He did, however, say that he would have much more use for my truck, and has since offered up a trade of sorts -nothing solid yet- of that car for my truck. Gents, this thing would triple my fuel economy, easily, and that alone, especially since I have to pay insurance starting in January, would be a big help. At this point, I'm still impoverished [officially, based on the national averages and all that BS, but I feel it literally, too, what with hardly being able to save $500-750 a month period...] and I don't really know what I want.

Do I want a 3g? 3.5g? 4g? Single cab? Quad with shorty conversion? Custom cab size? A fricking different truck altogether? Would I even still be a truck guy if I owned and drove and modded something else? What if I got my hands on a ****load of money and could do anything car-wise?

I'm just not totally sure. I'd kinda really like some input, TBH. At this point in my life I need a savings account and a plan more than anything, and all I use my vehicle for is daily driving and -if I had more money[or better MPG]- road trips.

I know for SURE that I'm not going to do all the crazy ******* I thought of or posted in my OP up above to this truck, in fact, I want to edit my OP to reflect this, but can't, for some reason in the site's coding. {{There's no more edit button on the OP, but there is on all my other posts... Can a mod/admin please help?}}

If I continue to do anything to this truck, unless it's maintenance, can be removed/go on the next truck, has to be done for preservation or to increase resale value, 'won't hurt'[IE nitto 420s instead of just any tire] or something beneficial to a DD like tint, I'm not really gonna put anything more expensive than a $100-$200 mod on this...

My new list would look more like:

Wheels
Tires
Rear shackle or 1/2-2/3 drop
Maintenance
Tilt steering fix
DeeZee tailgate assist
Tint
Toolbox
Tonneau {already bought, have to bedline bed after removing plastic liner}
Herculiner
Bed extender
Re-install steps or a set of running boards
06+ facelift [since I already have the fenders and they're out of return date]
Paint and body fixes
Paint matched parts
Tow mirrors

And so on. Mostly all depends on pricing, again.

But, I'm really not wholly sure. Again, on the point of the offer at hand here and the pros/cons coupled with not wholly knowing what I want/want to do/can do in the future, I could use a little guidance. Or at least some respectable opinions...
 

chrisp2493

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It’s all what you are comfortable affording. Doesn’t make sense to put every dime you have into your truck. If you can afford to drive it now, then just work on little things when you can and go from there. It’s hard waiting to go crazy with mods, but when you have the money and can do it right, it makes it all worth it. But figure out what you want first, then set a goal. Don’t waste time and resources on something you want to get rid of in a year. Newer trucks aren’t cheap, that’s why I making what I want on my own time.
 
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Drunken Hamster

Drunken Hamster

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Christmas update:

So, this month I've saved up about $800 usable dollars for myself, and am kinda at a crossroads on what to do with it. Save it? All on the truck? All on a PC? Other projects?

Well, I've decided that I mostly wanna do work on the truck, and at least 1 or 2 projects that I don't have materials for, already, if I can.

And so, I want to ask you guys what products I should get for detailing my dented baby!

Seriously. I wanna do the full gig. Wash, clay, polish, buff, shine {aren't those the same?} then seal and wax!

So, quick Q, is it perfectly okay to order the least expensive pressure washer, foam canon, and DA polisher to do this with? And, after that, what actual products should I get soap, clay, polish, sealant, and wax wise? {{I already got three buckets, a 'bucket head' vaccum cleaner, and am about to order a grit guard and microfiber wash mitt right after I type this.}}

And, for possibly later down the line, what steps can I take to correct deep[er] paint scratches and other imperfections on the truck[like a couple of chipped areas]?
 
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Drunken Hamster

Drunken Hamster

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Washed it today. Wash and dry only. Here's the results and a go-over of my paint and body situation.

 

BTD07

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As said before it's all up to you. If you are comfortable driving that chevy and would rather have a more economic car then that's your call. I'm not sure how old you are but you don't appear very old, and the worse thing you can do is get in over your head with finances that will hurt you down the road. It's really one of two things. Trade the truck to your friend and get that chevy, or keep your truck and put modding on pause. Think of it this way, if you're willing to drive a chevy spark, then you should be willing to drive your truck with no additional money put into it. You never want to spend money just to spend it. When you're younger (and I'm not old by any means but I have a child two car payments rent etc etc etc) money really burns a hole in your pocket because you don't have all the living expenses that will have to be paid for you to survive. Saving is always good. Good luck buddy.

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Drunken Hamster

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Exhaust vid is up.


Forgot to mention that I got my Sonnax Line Booster. It makes the truck feel like it should have come from the factory like this. Much better.
 
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Drunken Hamster

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Not too bad

Especially for only $50. Burnouts work better with cold tires, though, haha. Baby needs some maintenance and new tires, soon. I'll probably save up for a couple months and then do all of that/get all of that done as well as get a tuner.

Gonna post a tuner thread, and look up an oil thread so I know the best to put into it.
 

chrisp2493

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There are 10 million tuner threads already, all with the same answer. If you want custom tuning, get a diablo. If you want some good basic canned tunes get a superchips. Those are the two most popular for good reason. Check the classifieds and pages on Facebook, someone is always selling a used one for a decent proce
 
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Drunken Hamster

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There are 10 million tuner threads already, all with the same answer. If you want custom tuning, get a diablo. If you want some good basic canned tunes get a superchips. Those are the two most popular for good reason. Check the classifieds and pages on Facebook, someone is always selling a used one for a decent proce

Any particular model of either I should get? I want to be able to tune the trans as well as the engine, and possibly have a 2 quick change tunes on it, one for MPG, the other for power, if possible. And, of course, nothing but the best since this will transfer over to the single cab truck.

What are the advantages of custom tuning as opposed to a canned tune? And who should I go with for getting a custom tune to program my ram with? {{I've heard Hemifever was the best, but then this other guy was brought up and the person posting him said he was 5x the tuner HF was. Made me really doubt HF and wanna go with this other tuner -Ryan? I believe?- but IDK if the info is accurate as I read it in a 2nd gen thread, on a different forum, I think.}}
 

chrisp2493

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Asking what tuner is best is a sure fire way to start a war on here. Charged392 from HTC does my tuning. He was a big help to me building my engine and computer swap, and he has had some decent success with tuning 03’s when no one else would touch them. Everyone has their own opinion. With not many engine mods a custom tune on these older trucks isn’t THAT big of a deal. A canned tune works ok. I have had a diablo Trinity and it’s a good tuner. I’ve heard the intune works great as well, but it’s alittle harder to do tuning logs and stuff then the Trinity. The new Trinity T2 is coming out in a few weeks. I kinda want that one, but don’t need to switch from my older one yet. I think the superchips has trans tuning for 04’s, but based on the build date it can be spotty whether your truck will have the capability. That’s why 05 is the best all around year. If you really want to get into it, you can buy a used 05 pcm and plug it right in I believe
 
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Drunken Hamster

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Asking what tuner is best is a sure fire way to start a war on here. Charged392 from HTC does my tuning. He was a big help to me building my engine and computer swap, and he has had some decent success with tuning 03’s when no one else would touch them. Everyone has their own opinion. With not many engine mods a custom tune on these older trucks isn’t THAT big of a deal. A canned tune works ok. I have had a diablo Trinity and it’s a good tuner. I’ve heard the intune works great as well, but it’s alittle harder to do tuning logs and stuff then the Trinity. The new Trinity T2 is coming out in a few weeks. I kinda want that one, but don’t need to switch from my older one yet. I think the superchips has trans tuning for 04’s, but based on the build date it can be spotty whether your truck will have the capability. That’s why 05 is the best all around year. If you really want to get into it, you can buy a used 05 pcm and plug it right in I believe

No, my truck is an 05. I'm good. Hmm, so I should go Diablo Trinity T2 then, as a measure of future proofing for when I get my Singlecab? Can you put a canned tune through the truck via a Diablo Trinity? Will these tuners work for 4th gens?
 

chrisp2493

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No, my truck is an 05. I'm good. Hmm, so I should go Diablo Trinity T2 then, as a measure of future proofing for when I get my Singlecab? Can you put a canned tune through the truck via a Diablo Trinity? Will these tuners work for 4th gens?
Diablo will cover hundreds of vehicles. The T2 isn’t even out for shipping yet, it’s worth considering waiting till other people try it out first. And they also come with canned tunes, 89, 91, 93 and mpg.
 
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Diablo will cover hundreds of vehicles. The T2 isn’t even out for shipping yet, it’s worth considering waiting till other people try it out first. And they also come with canned tunes, 89, 91, 93 and mpg.

Okay, so the current Diablo Trinity{{unless there's a better model?}}. That'll work. And cool that it has canned tunes. I wonder how good said tunes are, though.

Oh, and, I'm sure it's like this, but, canned tunes are BY MODEL/MOTOR, right? Not just a universal tune?
 

chrisp2493

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Correct when you load up the tuner it goes through a vehicle selection. Every vehicle has its own specific tunes. You’ll notice a good difference, nothing that’s gonna blow off your socks. The Performance trans tune really helps with the different shift schedule.
 
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Correct when you load up the tuner it goes through a vehicle selection. Every vehicle has its own specific tunes. You’ll notice a good difference, nothing that’s gonna blow off your socks. The Performance trans tune really helps with the different shift schedule.

Okay, I just saw a video of a "Diablo unlocked PCM and Trinity install" and I have to ask what this is. IS this the "Diablosport Trinity" tuner? Like, does said PCM come with it, or is that a separate part? Granted, this was for a 2017 ram in the video, but what about my/an 05-08?
 

chrisp2493

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Completely different thing with the 14 and up rams. They need an unlocked pcm. The Trinity works right with the normal pcm no problem. You are just buying the diablo Trinity tuner 70abed9e99a8747197dfea4821e2c5be.jpg
 
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Drunken Hamster

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Completely different thing with the 14 and up rams. They need an unlocked pcm. The Trinity works right with the normal pcm no problem. You are just buying the diablo Trinity tuner 70abed9e99a8747197dfea4821e2c5be.jpg

Wow, 2010 really was the best model year of the 4th gens. Okay, so, new question. Can I stack the tuner, a pedal commander, and, of course, the sonnax line booster[and maybe a shift kit?] to get a really dialed in performance setup on the auto until if/when I go stick shift? Is there a way to get 'paddle shift' put in? Maybe some click buttons on the back of the wheel that send shift up/shift down signals to the trans?
 
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Drunken Hamster

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Guess I never got an answer for the above post, haha.

Anywhere here's an update video and two traffic rants. Tonneau tomorrow, write up on the speakers [finally] next week perhaps. Planning on Shackles next week or tomorrow if there's time, and the full detail somtime within the next month.

If I could re-do it, I'd do better masking, do it all in one day in order to leave the masking on, and I either wouldn't do the bed rails and top of the tailgate, or I'd MEASURE a line rather than picking a general height and eyeballing the straightness. {{Anyone know how to REMOVE bedliner, by any chance?}}

 
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