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14:52:51 - 04/25/2024
Dakota Performance
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Mike1823
Dodge Dakota
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3/22/2004
23:56:53
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 Subject: Upgrade Issues
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I have a 2000 RC R/T which I have now had for 4 years. When I first bought the truck, I was running 0-60 times (G-Tech) at 6.54. And I took it to the track once and ran a best of 15.04 @89.?? mph. (Really Hot Day) Since then I have slowly added a few things. The first minor upgrade was a Flowmaster Cat-back which didn't seem to add any hp, but made a good note, and a K&N replacement filter, just because the stock one was dirty. Then a couple years later, I added a Mopar PCM. That really seemed to wake it up. But that led to a big problem, Traction issues. My best G-Tech 0-60 went from 6.54 to a best of 6.84 and that was by giving it light throttle to about 20mph then flooring it. (7.04 flooring it from start) Just recently I bought Edlebrock shorties, MSD Super Conductor wires and ACCEL U-Groove plugs. (Tune Up Time 38,000) And for the hell of it I got the Lakewood Traction bars. After spending 8 hours unbolting the flange bolts (Pain in the ars) I installed the plugs, wires, headers, and traction bars. I found that the stock Champion plugs were gapped at 1.05, which I thought was strange. After reading about 1000 different gap ratings on this forum I decided to leave the new plugs at .60. Well after the bolts were retightend on the headers I really let it have it, and all I did was spin the tires even more. So much for the Lakewood tracion bars. I could have gotten the same effect by leaving them in the box and putting it in the bed for added weight. Maybe they just need better adjustment. I felt like I gained more lower end and lost higher end power, possible? My question is, what am I doing wrong? I don't want to tear apart the engine and have parts scattered all over the garage floor for 6 months, and headers is about as difficult as I want to get. (This is not a daily driver) So did I screw something up? Such as buying crappy plugs/wires? I want more mid and high end. Any adjustments? No Blower and no cheater gas. (Wife won't let me get the blower yet) And no slicks. I still use it to pick things up at Home Depot, and God for bid if it snows or rains. Tires still have planty on meat on them. And actually I don't want to buy anything else until I get this stuff tuned right. Any suggestions?
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.boB
Dodge Dakota
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3/23/2004
00:12:34
|  RE: Upgrade Issues
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First off, traction bars need to be adjusted correctly to work correctly. The snubber needs to be directly under the eye bolt. At rest it should be only 1-2" away. Put a little grease on the snubber. Give it the gas, and then look at the spring eye. If there's grease on it, then the snubber is working correctly.
Secondly, traction bars work primarily by preventing spring wrap up and wheel hop. If you didn't have that to begin with, the taction bars will make little differance - if any.
Thirdly, if you are now spinning the tires where you were not before, that usually means you now have more torque than traction. Your only recourse is to improve traction. You might try dropping 3-5 psi. But you really need better tires. That's the cheapest and easiest improvement for a street truck.
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Mike1823
Dodge Dakota
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3/27/2004
14:24:11
|  RE: Upgrade Issues
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The snubber won't reach that far forward to the eye bolt. Lakewood recomends centering them with the axle. Is this the best location? I had them further back because it was hitting more of the leaf springs, and I figured it would be better with leverage.
What type of tires do you recommend? I know of only a couple out there since I believe this size is only for this truck. The stock RSAs and I believe BF Goodwrench has a set. Any others?
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.boB
Dodge Dakota
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3/27/2004
15:35:46
| RE: Upgrade Issues
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The snubber MUST be under the eye bolt or further foreward to prevent axle wrap and hop. If it hits the spring any further back, it can make wheel hop worse.
As for what tire, be carefull about what you choose. If you do any kind of hauling, be sure and get a light truck tire. The BFG radial TA is a pretty good comprimise while still using the stock 15" wheel. If you never haul more than a few hundred pounds, then there are some good street drag tires that will give you excellent traction at a reasonable price. Check out the Summit or Jegs catalog.
If you step up to a 17" wheel, then there is an excellent selection of performance tires. Nitto has an excellent performance reputation for a reasonable price.
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Michael
DakotaEnthusiast
4/03/2004
15:46:01
| RE: Upgrade Issues
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On the tires I just went to the Kuhmo 255/55/17 tires, supposed to be a new tire on the market. I have been pleasantly surprised with definitely a lot better than those crappy RSA's Goodyear has. Only thing is I don't think they are recommended for winter climates I guess for snow traction and such. But, here in Louisiana they are perfect and have excellent wet traction.
Later,
Michael
Z-Tube, R/T Rims, SSB Rear Disc Conversion, Alpine Head-Unit, Infinity Kappa Speakers, SilverStar Headlights, HO Cams & Intake installed.
Got H.O. ?
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Pittdawg
Dodge Dakota
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4/03/2004
17:06:49
| RE: Upgrade Issues
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just get an m-1 intake manifold, takes away low end but significantly increases mid to upper power
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Bowtie-ZL1
Dodge Dakota
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4/03/2004
20:34:01
| RE: Upgrade Issues
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Along with the slapper bars you could buy leaf spring wedges to change the pinion angle. Should probably aim for 2-5 degrees down at the pinion. that way when you hammer it, the bars will contact the spring eye and stop the axle rotation at the same time the pinion angle returns to stock location.
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