PerfectCreature
Senior Member
Hey guys, it occurred to me that I have not created a build thread yet. Well start off with some background information and how I came to obtain the Ram.
I had been shopping around for quite a few months and had wanted a Rebel initially. After realizing that the Rebel is essentially the same as a Ram in many regards, I decided to get a base model Ram and modify it as I chose and liked to save some up front costs.
The truck is a 2017 Ram 1500 Express 5.7 HEMI with some basic options selected. My plan is to make it look similar to a Raptor / Rebel as far as looks and performance.
The plans:
1) Exhaust DONE
2) Rims DONE
3) Tires DONE
4) Headlights DONE
5) Lift Kit POSTPONED
6) Front bumper replaced with offroad one POSTPONED
7) Fender Flares DONE
8) Intake
9) Diablosport Tune (Debating, due to aftermarket AllSTate warranty....)
Plan 1-3 and 7 has been completed, and pictures will be uploaded this afternoon when I can get around to taking some. Plan 4 is in the works and will be a quad light retrofit.
Initially I put on a Flowmaster Outlaw muffler, but removed it do to being obnoxiously loud with a mind numbing drone at 1500rpm. This exhaust is for someone who simply wants to lose their hearing every time they drive.
I replaced the Flowmaster with a Magnaflow 16868 exhaust system that I got a steller deal on Amazon for. The kit was simple to install and the larger tips look fantastic. After looking the truck with this exhaust on and another truck with the factory tips, they look anemic. I had really wanted the Corsa, but the price difference seemed unreasonable for performance and sound. This has a louder than stock, but mellow, low growl. Minimal drone and tame when driving around.
I put rims on next. I found some Method NV rims in 17x8.5 with 0 offset. These look very sharp and weight a mere 25lbs. I got a MacGuard wheel lock kit to ensure that these stay on the truck. I wrapped them in some Cooper Discoverer AT3 LT tires that I got a smoking deal on. They ended up not doing well in the winter and so they were replaced under the 45 day customer satisfaction guarantee that Cooper has. I have to say that they have top notch customer service and worked with the dealer to get me into tires that worked better, even if it was another brand.
They are now wrapped in some BF Goodrich KO2 285/70/17 with OWL, because I like the old school look.
After driving around with the tires sticking out, I loved the look but did not like how much dirt and rocks were being flung across the side of the truck and put some Bushwacker Pocket Flares on to complete plan 7. This was the biggest pain in the butt to do. It took over an hour to install all the nuts and almost 3 hours to get the rubber seal on correctly. Install was not terrible, but having to remove the HEMI badge was frustrating. I would gladly pay the dealership to put the OEM ones on and install it the next time around. For the price, it should come ready to install.
After seeing a post of the rear back up lights, I bought some FlashWolves LED for the 3rd brake light and back up lights. A huge difference. Well worth the $20 for this. Highly recommended.
This brings us up to current.
I have ordered a retrofit kit from TRS with the RAM logo in the lenses, should look sharp. I am debating color matching the housings vs black, I have not decided. I have done a few retrofits before and decided to go easy with the H1 7.0 kit.
I had been shopping around for quite a few months and had wanted a Rebel initially. After realizing that the Rebel is essentially the same as a Ram in many regards, I decided to get a base model Ram and modify it as I chose and liked to save some up front costs.
The truck is a 2017 Ram 1500 Express 5.7 HEMI with some basic options selected. My plan is to make it look similar to a Raptor / Rebel as far as looks and performance.
The plans:
1) Exhaust DONE
2) Rims DONE
3) Tires DONE
4) Headlights DONE
5) Lift Kit POSTPONED
6) Front bumper replaced with offroad one POSTPONED
7) Fender Flares DONE
8) Intake
9) Diablosport Tune (Debating, due to aftermarket AllSTate warranty....)
Plan 1-3 and 7 has been completed, and pictures will be uploaded this afternoon when I can get around to taking some. Plan 4 is in the works and will be a quad light retrofit.
Initially I put on a Flowmaster Outlaw muffler, but removed it do to being obnoxiously loud with a mind numbing drone at 1500rpm. This exhaust is for someone who simply wants to lose their hearing every time they drive.
I replaced the Flowmaster with a Magnaflow 16868 exhaust system that I got a steller deal on Amazon for. The kit was simple to install and the larger tips look fantastic. After looking the truck with this exhaust on and another truck with the factory tips, they look anemic. I had really wanted the Corsa, but the price difference seemed unreasonable for performance and sound. This has a louder than stock, but mellow, low growl. Minimal drone and tame when driving around.
I put rims on next. I found some Method NV rims in 17x8.5 with 0 offset. These look very sharp and weight a mere 25lbs. I got a MacGuard wheel lock kit to ensure that these stay on the truck. I wrapped them in some Cooper Discoverer AT3 LT tires that I got a smoking deal on. They ended up not doing well in the winter and so they were replaced under the 45 day customer satisfaction guarantee that Cooper has. I have to say that they have top notch customer service and worked with the dealer to get me into tires that worked better, even if it was another brand.
They are now wrapped in some BF Goodrich KO2 285/70/17 with OWL, because I like the old school look.
After driving around with the tires sticking out, I loved the look but did not like how much dirt and rocks were being flung across the side of the truck and put some Bushwacker Pocket Flares on to complete plan 7. This was the biggest pain in the butt to do. It took over an hour to install all the nuts and almost 3 hours to get the rubber seal on correctly. Install was not terrible, but having to remove the HEMI badge was frustrating. I would gladly pay the dealership to put the OEM ones on and install it the next time around. For the price, it should come ready to install.
After seeing a post of the rear back up lights, I bought some FlashWolves LED for the 3rd brake light and back up lights. A huge difference. Well worth the $20 for this. Highly recommended.
This brings us up to current.
I have ordered a retrofit kit from TRS with the RAM logo in the lenses, should look sharp. I am debating color matching the housings vs black, I have not decided. I have done a few retrofits before and decided to go easy with the H1 7.0 kit.
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