Suggestions while I have the dash removed….

[Socalramfan]

I’ve acquired a black leather Laramie dash from a 2500 as some may already know. I have all the goodies to do a complete conversion, though I will be leaving the center a/c controls and radio alone.

I’ll be taking the entire current dash out, and doing the swap over a few days. Not complicated, but it is time consuming.

I figure while I have it out may as well address any good upgrades, mods, and preventative maintenance while it’s all opened up.

Id like to hear from from my fellow Ram brothers/ sisters as to any suggestions or ideas before installing the new Laramie dash.

Side note….. I’ve already done the AC condenser etc.

 

[Jeepwalker]

Can the heater core be replaced w/o removing the dash? That's a job I haven't had to do yet. If not, maybe being a 2011, it's something to replace proactively. Esp while Mopar heater cores are still avail. If there are any difficult-to-replace damper motors, it would be a good idea to replace any that are tucked in a tight spot.

Are there issues with Ram recirc damper doors breaking (like in the Jeeps)? There again, I haven't heard this to be the case, but if it is a weakness, I'd definitely inspect the hinge closely with a flashlight, and if it looks like the door is starting to break off, I'd address it before putting the dash in. Bc if the damper door hinge breaks, it screws a lot of the HVAC logic up. The damper door will 'hunt' looking for a Home (full open/full closed), which is how it does a periodic self-calibration ...but won't be able to find it if the hinge is broken. The world won't come to an end if the recirc (or any) damper door breaks, but it's just obnoxious. If your truck is relatively low miles, you're probably ok, and don't need to worry. But if it's high-miles, then... something to at least 'look' closely at ..esp with the recirc. By the time you get done with this job, removing the dash won't be such a big deal

If you had the hankering to install an integrated trailer brake controller, now would make it easier to wire it in, esp if you had to wire in a non-existant 2nd connector. You can buy the harness off ebay ($40). But then again, you could do that later ...too.

If you were thinking of installing new or better quality dash speakers, obviously now would be a real good time. If you're going to use the stock radio, keep your eye on the impedence and sensitivity of the stock speakers (so replacements aren't quieter).

That's about all I can think of at the moment.

Besides the padded dash, what else are you getting out of replacing all the interior? Different color? I do see some woodgrain on the door panels..

 

[GTyankee]

I would buy all new HVAC Doors

The Mopar Actuators are the very best Actuators, you will not find better

The ORIGINAL Doors are not a good replacement.
Dorman replacement doors are not all that much better.

I don't know which doors they use in the Heater Treater videos

I would spend the money & get the new Aluminum Doors Kit

Blend Door USA

4th Gen Ram (09-19) Complete Repair Kit (Formal instructions coming soon)

4th gen kits are now available! At this time we do not have any installation instructions for the 4th gen kits. In the mean time, you will have to rely on other 3rd party instructions to install these doors. This is a complete kit to repair your 09-19 Ram truck. This kit includes new solid...

www.blenddoorusa.com

This aluminum piece is what Mopar makes out of PLASTIC & it is usually the first thing to break



How dirty was the condenser ?

 

[Socalramfan]

Can the heater core be replaced w/o removing the dash? That's a job I haven't had to do yet. If not, maybe being a 2011, it's something to replace proactively. Esp while Mopar heater cores are still avail. If there are any difficult-to-replace damper motors, it would be a good idea to replace any that are tucked in a tight spot.

Are there issues with Ram recirc damper doors breaking (like in the Jeeps)? There again, I haven't heard this to be the case, but if it is a weakness, I'd definitely inspect the hinge closely with a flashlight, and if it looks like the door is starting to break off, I'd address it before putting the dash in. Bc if the damper door hinge breaks, it screws a lot of the HVAC logic up. The damper door will 'hunt' looking for a Home (full open/full closed), which is how it does a periodic self-calibration ...but won't be able to find it if the hinge is broken. The world won't come to an end if the recirc (or any) damper door breaks, but it's just obnoxious. If your truck is relatively low miles, you're probably ok, and don't need to worry. But if it's high-miles, then... something to at least 'look' closely at ..esp with the recirc. By the time you get done with this job, removing the dash won't be such a big deal

If you had the hankering to install an integrated trailer brake controller, now would make it easier to wire it in, esp if you had to wire in a non-existant 2nd connector. You can buy the harness off ebay ($40). But then again, you could do that later ...too.

If you were thinking of installing new or better quality dash speakers, obviously now would be a real good time. If you're going to use the stock radio, keep your eye on the impedence and sensitivity of the stock speakers (so replacements aren't quieter).

That's about all I can think of at the moment.

Besides the padded dash, what else are you getting out of replacing all the interior? Different color? I do see some woodgrain on the door panels..

Great things to consider. Reason for dash replacement was primarily that I’m changing out the diesel gray interior and going black. The fact that I found a leather dash was a bonus

At first I was thinking about wrapping the wood grain accents, but I’m actually liking it now.

 

[Socalramfan]

I would buy all new HVAC Doors

The Mopar Actuators are the very best Actuators, you will not find better

The ORIGINAL Doors are not a good replacement.
Dorman replacement doors are not all that much better.

I don't know which doors they use in the Heater Treater videos

I would spend the money & get the new Aluminum Doors Kit

Blend Door USA

4th Gen Ram (09-19) Complete Repair Kit (Formal instructions coming soon)

4th gen kits are now available! At this time we do not have any installation instructions for the 4th gen kits. In the mean time, you will have to rely on other 3rd party instructions to install these doors. This is a complete kit to repair your 09-19 Ram truck. This kit includes new solid...

www.blenddoorusa.com

View attachment 502235

This aluminum piece is what Mopar makes out of PLASTIC & it is usually the first thing to break

View attachment 502236

How dirty was the condenser ?

I never have heard of the retrofit for the doors, but I do like the idea. Will be digging into that a bit more.

Thanks for the link

 

[GTyankee]

This is more on what happens to the doors to break them

grab a beverage & sit back & watch

Dodge Ram 2500 Blend Door Replacement (DETAILED)

Check out Blend Door USA at http://www.blenddoorusa.comThis is a very detailed video explaining and installing replacement blend doors from Blend Door USA in...

www.youtube.com

 

[Jeepwalker]

Ha ha!! I figured the indoor/outdoor damper door would be the one that would crap out. I have a Jeep like that (I have it propped closed, permanently). I haven't heard much on this forum about Ram blend doors breaking, or being a major issue. But the main one I'd replace is the indoor/outdoor damper. If you plan to be a 4th gen lifer, might as well replace them all.

Modern hvac systems, incl the Rams' are really sophisticated. It's like a complex commercial HVAC heat/cooling system with direct digital controls all shrunk down into a mineature box. Air goes through the AC coil, drops the temp and strips the incoming air of moisture, then reheats it (if selected) and provides nicely conditioned (lower humidity) air.

 

[Jeepwalker]

What the guy in the video neglected to say is, when a blend door is broken, the controls (i.e. damper motor) will cause a damper door actuator to 'hunt' for minutes going back/fourth ...struggling to find either full open or full closed. That's how it calibrates it's position under normal conditions. Once it's calibrated it then knows where 20% open is, or 60% open, so it can be at the position the control logic says it should be, for optimal operation.

However, when a door hinge is broken it may not be able to find either end of open/closed (because the door shaft is broken) ..the damper motor may continue to 'hunt', even after you shut the vehicle off ...for a proscribed amount of time until it just 'gives up' as determined by the number of attempts the programmers put in the logic. At least for a few minutes if not several minutes. When yer driving the car, a person may sometimes hear a bunch of 'creaking' where the controller is trying to determine full open or full closed and it can't (again, if a damper door hinge or shaft is damaged). It may go on and on, maybe stop ...and after a while it may try again. Like I say, it can be annoying as all get-out if it squeaks a little and things like that bug ya. That's reason enough to replace the doors if you plan to keep that ole girl!!

And the other thing is, if an indoor/outdoor damper is broken, or becomes broken/damaged, you could get full outdoor air in the winter time, meaning if a guy lives in northern climates, it can allow sub-zero air to stream in all over your little lady's bare legs. The HVAC system cannot even compete with that, so it'll be a very cold ride under those conditions. Been there. Just sayin'. And if a mode door is broken (different door than the inside/outside door), the defrost may not work in the winter and it could lead to all sorts of wonky HVAC behavior. This kind of stuff is similar to what also sometimes occurs on other various makes of vehicles with sophisticated HVAC systems. Blend door breakage is somewhat fairly common across the industry when cars get some age on them. They ought to make those damper doors 100% bullet-proof so they don't break! It would only take probably 50 cents more effort to make more durable hinges, even if they were made out of plastic.

Overall, I love the idea you're changing the interior to a nice upgraded level. It's going to look nice. Did you buy it all removed, or get it from a salvage yard? How much did you pay, if I can ask? Show us the before/after shots if you have them.

 

[GTyankee]

when he wrote that he had the HVAC box out & his truck is at least 11 years old.
It is time for preventive maintenance

One other to consider doing:
While you have the dash off, it would be so easy to cut the hole to install a Cabin Air Filter.
There are several very good YouTube of how to install the CAF

2010-2016 Ram truck cabin air filter kit from genosgarage.com

Please use the following link when ever using Amazon.com. Any purchases you make on Amazon will help support this channel.http://amzn.to/2mALgqSFeel the need...

www.youtube.com

 

[Socalramfan]

when he wrote that he had the HVAC box out & his truck is at least 11 years old.
It is time for preventive maintenance

One other to consider doing:
While you have the dash off, it would be so easy to cut the hole to install a Cabin Air Filter.
There are several very good YouTube of how to install the CAF

2010-2016 Ram truck cabin air filter kit from genosgarage.com

Please use the following link when ever using Amazon.com. Any purchases you make on Amazon will help support this channel.http://amzn.to/2mALgqSFeel the need...

www.youtube.com

I agree, did mine a few years ago. For those wondering, it really does make a difference.

One of the easiest, and cheapest mods to do

 

[Socalramfan]

What the guy in the video neglected to say is, when a blend door is broken, the controls (i.e. damper motor) will cause a damper door actuator to 'hunt' for minutes going back/fourth ...struggling to find either full open or full closed. That's how it calibrates it's position under normal conditions. Once it's calibrated it then knows where 20% open is, or 60% open, so it can be at the position the control logic says it should be, for optimal operation.

However, when a door hinge is broken it may not be able to find either end of open/closed (because the door shaft is broken) ..the damper motor may continue to 'hunt', even after you shut the vehicle off ...for a proscribed amount of time until it just 'gives up' as determined by the number of attempts the programmers put in the logic. At least for a few minutes if not several minutes. When yer driving the car, a person may sometimes hear a bunch of 'creaking' where the controller is trying to determine full open or full closed and it can't (again, if a damper door hinge or shaft is damaged). It may go on and on, maybe stop ...and after a while it may try again. Like I say, it can be annoying as all get-out if it squeaks a little and things like that bug ya. That's reason enough to replace the doors if you plan to keep that ole girl!!

And the other thing is, if an indoor/outdoor damper is broken, or becomes broken/damaged, you could get full outdoor air in the winter time, meaning if a guy lives in northern climates, it can allow sub-zero air to stream in all over your little lady's bare legs. The HVAC system cannot even compete with that, so it'll be a very cold ride under those conditions. Been there. Just sayin'. And if a mode door is broken (different door than the inside/outside door), the defrost may not work in the winter and it could lead to all sorts of wonky HVAC behavior. This kind of stuff is similar to what also sometimes occurs on other various makes of vehicles with sophisticated HVAC systems. Blend door breakage is somewhat fairly common across the industry when cars get some age on them. They ought to make those damper doors 100% bullet-proof so they don't break! It would only take probably 50 cents more effort to make more durable hinges, even if they were made out of plastic.

Overall, I love the idea you're changing the interior to a nice upgraded level. It's going to look nice. Did you buy it all removed, or get it from a salvage yard? How much did you pay, if I can ask? Show us the before/after shots if you have them.

Absolutely….. bring in So. Calf, not too worried about cold air leaking in, but I do run the AC all year round. If anything for constant temp.

I hadn’t heard of any of these issues regarding the doors till now. Thanks GTyankee for bringing it up. Watched the video and definately will be planning on do ‘all’ the doors as mentioned. Why not…… everything is right there anyways, and it’ll be under a controlled environment ‘ on my time’.

Murphys law usually has stuff like that crap out at the worst time. Super big on Preventative Maintenance

I found a 2017 2500 w/ 50k miles that had some left front frame damage that someone decided to part out. Front seats were already Sold, otherwise I’d grabbed them too. But I did get everything that I needed or didn’t have. I did have to remove all parts myself, which was actually a great tutorial along with YouTube University.

Was planning on doing the upgrade / conversion at a later date…. but I knew if I didn’t jump on it,….. it’d be gone.

$600 for everything. Think I scored

2 days later he sold the entire Ram, what was left for the engine and tranny……

I do have Before and Afters posted under the thread ‘what did you do to your Ram this week’….

When I get to the dash I’ll post here as well