2016 Big Horn Mod/Build thread...

[78Staff]

Actually I feel a lot better about it now that I've given it some time - For the $ they are a good upgrade, especially compared to the Kickers price. I can run the HU up to about 22 before getting any distortion - although panel rattle, that's another story lol. I still need to track that down.

I think the Pioneers were $35 a pair so for $70 I am happy.

https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-TSA6966R-TS-A6966R-3-Way-Speaker/

 

[78Staff]

So, with lift/level....tires come next. Wasn't planning on buying for a few months as I still had a bit of tread left on the stockers, but a Nitto 20% off sale forced my hand .

So, "Old Dawg" has some new shoes- Nitto Terra Grappler G2's 35x11.50R20. I went with 11.5's over 12.5's due to keeping the stock 20x8" rims. Also keeps the tire tucked in so not throwing mud, dirt, gravel, etc all over the truck.

 

[78Staff]

Ordered a few things - replacement panel with aux buttons from 4th Gen Electronics, Mopar Trailer Brake Controllers, and some Gorilla Lug nuts. Also getting leather seats done in a couple weeks as well!

 

[4eyedconekiller]

So, with lift/level....tires come next. Wasn't planning on buying for a few months as I still had a bit of tread left on the stockers, but a Nitto 20% off sale forced my hand .

So, "Old Dawg" has some new shoes- Nitto Terra Grappler G2's 35x11.50R20. I went with 11.5's over 12.5's due to keeping the stock 20x8" rims. Also keeps the tire tucked in so not throwing mud, dirt, gravel, etc all over the truck.

Lookin good man! I’ve contemplated keeping a stock wheel myself.

Doing Katzkin, or swapping in a different set of seats?

 

[78Staff]

Lookin good man! I’ve contemplated keeping a stock wheel myself.

Doing Katzkin, or swapping in a different set of seats?

Thanks - I was really considering dropping down to 17" wheels, but in the end just stuck with the 20's plus I got a good deal on the Nitto's. For leather, I'm going with Roadwires, ordered them this week, should be here in a week or so. It's replacement leather so the cloth is coming off.

 

[4eyedconekiller]

Thanks - I was really considering dropping down to 17" wheels, but in the end just stuck with the 20's plus I got a good deal on the Nitto's. For leather, I'm going with Roadwires, ordered them this week, should be here in a week or so. It's replacement leather so the cloth is coming off.

Nice! I’m torn between the 17’s and 20’s myself. Currently running some SRAs with good tread(only had the truck a month or so now), and just dropped a good chunk on a Laramie seat (f/r heated, f/cooled)setup, so I’m going to sit tight unless the SRA’s get dangerous.

Thought I’d scored a deal on some XD wheels a while back, but haven’t heard back from the lady.

I never considered the roadwires... looking forward to seeing them installed!

 

[smithj603]

Looks good! Not many other max steel big horns out there, may have inspired me to show off my upgrades with a mid thread like this

 

[78Staff]

Added Blue Led's for the interior - after trying a few bulbs (detailed in This Thread) I wound up with Sylvania for the interior and LASFIT Canbus bulbs for the License/Bakup lights

Bulb Links:
Overheads - Sylvania 194 Blue
Rear Dome - Sylvania ZEVO 578 Blue
Footwell - Sylvania Zevo 194 Blue
LASFIT Canbus 194 White Backup & License

 

[78Staff]

Leather is in! I went with the Roadwires - Two Color option, perforated panel upgrade, contrast stitching, and heat added, done by local shop that does the RAM dealer work. Turned out very nice imo, the two colors really looks good with the Black/Diesel Grey interior. The heated seats aren't factory integrated into the 8.4, but being in Florida as little as I will use them I didn't worry about it.

 

[TatertotScott]

So, I take it the heater switch is the little toggle at the front right plastic trim piece on your passenger seat?

 

[78Staff]

Yeah, I asked if they could put them on the panel with the other controls, ie on the drivers side with the power controls, but there is a pretty large plug/harness behind that panel taking up that area. But, as it turns out they actually work better where they are anyway as they are easier to reach . It's a 3-position switch (High/Low/Off), lighted, and wired to key on power so they can't be accidentally left on.

To be honest I really wasn't going to get heated seats option, I mean I do live in Florida - but there was an ordering delay/snafu so they threw them in to make up for it.

 

[78Staff]

4th Gen Aux Panel came in, so installed it today along with the Mopar Trailer Brake Controller. Install was a bit of a pain, but got it all in finally. For what ever reason, Aux controls don't show in my 8.4 or EVIC, but I was able to config them like I wanted with the AlfaODB tool itself. Trailer Brake Controller works fine and I can assign preset labels via the 8.4 (ie Boat, Utility, Car Hauler, etc). Pretty sweet.

I also installed a FlashLogic Remote start about a week ago - I really wanted the Mopar kit but the cost and install was prohibitive, really compared to the popular Flashlogic 3x setup. I really don't use it often, but figured it would be nice to have on occasion.

 

[LabRatt]

Awesome upgrades!!

Got my AUX panel the other day from 4th Gen Ram and can't wait to install it. How did you route the cord with those 2 wide connectors through the firewall?

 

[78Staff]

Awesome upgrades!!

Got my AUX panel the other day from 4th Gen Ram and can't wait to install it. How did you route the cord with those 2 wide connectors through the firewall?

I used the clutch delete plate and a universal Firewall boot, similar to this thread. You'll have to slice the boot on the narrower sections to allow the connectors to pass through, but it will pass through the larger sections fine. Once you route the cable through just zip time the split sections and seal with silicone adhesive. I also covered the wire with some split loom (https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XGZHZWN), for some reason 4th Gen didn't cover the wiring going through the firewall, which I though was odd.

The 4th Gen provided instructions stated to use the rubber boot that already has the main harness running through it, but my dealer had already run some wiring through it when adding my backup camera, so it was getting tight there .

 

[LabRatt]

I was about to disassemble the pins from the connectors in order to slide those wires through the existing boot. That clutch plate mod is an awesome idea for any wiring needs through the firewall. Thank you for pointing that out.

 

[78Staff]

I was about to disassemble the pins from the connectors in order to slide those wires through the existing boot. That clutch plate mod is an awesome idea for any wiring needs through the firewall. Thank you for pointing that out.

Yeah it works great for any "normal" wiring - but since the 4th Gen wire has those two harness plugs you have to split the boot to pass them through the smaller sections. You could just cut the smaller sections off, but then you would have a 1" grommet hole with a 1/4"wire .

 

[78Staff]

Added the Icon springs and Hellwig rear sway bar finally. Stance is much more "truck like" now with 2.8's Bills up front and 1.5" Icons in rear. 2.8" alone up front gave it too much of a nose high feeling even after settling a bit. And it drives like a truck should drive now, will sounds kind of silly, but it was an easily noticeable difference in handling and feel after adding the rear springs and sway bar.

And also have changed tires and rims - The Nitto's were only about 6 months old, and get generally great reviews, but I just didn't care for them. For one they threw gravel like crazy, they had an annoying (to me anyway) road noise/hum/drone thing going on. Not Mud tire drone, but a different sound alltogether. Hard to describe, but when I mentioned it to the tire folks, they knew what I was referring to right away. And this is subjective, but I wasn't wild about the appearance either.

Enter Discount Tire's Old Lady Bring it back warranty. I was able to return the tires for essentially what I paid originally, and swap over to the BFGoodrich A/T KO2's, which TBH is what I should have bought in the first place. And since I was swapping tires, I went ahead and moved to an aftermarket rim to pick up some rim width as well so was able to move from 11.5's to 12.5's. American Outlaw Lonestars, nothing super fancy or expensive but a nice looking basic aluminum wheel. And no fake beadlocks, which is a pet peeve of mine lol

Overall I am very pleased. At first I was unsure of black rims due to how much chrome trim I have, but we test fit these and I thought they looked great so decided to go with them. They are quieter than the Nittos's, and ride better as well.

 

[78Staff]

Zone UCA's added, thanks to @JB1 for the nice deal. Didn't have any pics since I had a shop do the install, but glad to be rid of the wimpy oem-style uca's.

Amp Powersteps going on tomorrow!

 

[JB1]

Zone UCA's added, thanks to @JB1 for the nice deal. Didn't have any pics since I had a shop do the install, but glad to be rid of the wimpy oem-style uca's.

Amp Powersteps going on tomorrow!

Thanks I'm glad you got em, they are heavy duty. Your gonna like those Amp steps, I had mine installed when it was 3 days old lol

 

[78Staff]

Amp PowerSteps installed. Also the Bed Step. What a difference. The Truck looks better without big chrome planks hanging off the side for sure. Step's are a touch lower when deployed than normal steps also. I like how they tuck up and under - at first I wasn't sure but now that I seen them in person I'm glad they do it that way. Apparently only Ram and Tundra fold up and under - All the others kinda fold up against the sill, and it doesn't look as nice.

The Bed Stop is going to take some getting used to. It just doesn't look like it goes there. It works fantastic, and I'm glad I got it, but it just seems out of place. I believe the non-dual exhaust models mount up a bit cleaner.