[moore_716]

I haven't done much yet. I did a k&n fipk first, didn't notice much. Next my clutch fan started going out so I removed it. This made a huge difference. This mod works well with the k&n and good on the v6. I'm doing the exhaust within the next couple of weeks and then a v8 tb.
Mike

 

[tenacious0311]

Superchips was the best, the exhaust in close second, and the worst is.......hmmmm.........painting the dash, cuz' now I have to do it again. :cussing:

 

[WeezyRT]

i love everything iv done so far...from headers/exhaust to my visors darren did :mullet: but id have to say hotchkis is my fav, its like 10x fun'er to drive :biggthump

 

[360Magnum]

1. Sending the rango to the 4x4 shop for a SAS, Magnaflow perfornmance exuast number 2, the that glass pack rumble, add a magnaflow performace cat and get a ass massage every day, 4:56 gears will liven the old 360 too.
cant wait too get her back 35 more days :mullet:

 

[mayo]

Mine would have to be changing out the rear shackles and leveling off the kota. Much better stance and only cost $60. :drive:

 

[87 GN]

Get Hotchkis performance from a modified R/T sway bar.

Get Hotchkis performance from a modified R/T sway bar.

This thread is for anyone who wants 90% of the feel & handling of a Hotchkis rear sway bar for under $100.

I recently installed an R/T sway bar on my truck 02 reg cab 2wd. I was impressed with the difference in the handling but felt it could be better.
I started off by ditching the factory plastic R/T end links & hardware. I ordered Hotchkis end links & end link mounts and tried them to see if they would fit. Everything lined up so I installed the frame mounts with the existing bolts & nuts from the old mounts. I then installed the dog bone links and was done in about 20 minutes but when I went to attach the swaybar to the endlinks I ran into an issue. Turns out the factory bar is made or 3/8" bolts and the hotchkis arms take a 1/2" bolt. After I thought about it for a few minutes, I removed the swaybar from the rear axle brought it into the garage and put it in a bench wise. I proceeded to drill it out the bar with a Irwin uni-bit, I drilled very slowly with cutting oil till I got the hole to 1/2" and repeated on the other end of the bar. I then reinstalled the bar & went for a ride. The Hotchkis end links made one hell of a difference for a fraction of the price.

I am in no means trying to say this is better then the hotchkis bars but its a cheap boost in handling and is worth every penny.

Hotchkis Part #'s
T2221 - Dakota frame bracket kit $16.34
25210037 - dog bone kit 6" end links $41.22
T1712 Dog Bone hardware kit $11.78

 

[Unorthodoxneon]

Hmm. My best mod (well it was done together) was the home made CAI and borla muffler (also truck was bought with no cat). The next mod was the home ported TB (woke the truck up alittle, more responsive).

Worst mod was doing a tune up cause i lost 3 mpg :huh:

 

[blk03cc_r/t]

best mod

My favorite mod is the hotchkis tvs system. :drive:

 

[M1Koter]

best mod- swaping the 360 in
most worth time/money mod- Removing air flap/removing cat(badly clogged)

 

[eharri3]

Good mod: Took off the magnaflow muffler out of my SI/DO system. It was a VERY nice deep sounding muffler but it had drone that was really irritating under some half-throttle light-load conditions. Replaced it with a 13 inch dynomax superturbo and re routed the pipes from straight back to go out behind the rear tires to save them from getting mangled in every rear end collision. The system is louder and deeper when I step on it but with absolutely zero drone.

Bad mod: CArriage works bolt-on lower valance grill to match the upper. Next time around I'll need to put extra washers behind it when I install it, as the edges of the slats have knicked the paint on the lower bumper.

Good mod: 3 inch drop ballmount and 1.5 inch ball. Wish I woulda done it before I get rearended at speed 3 times in 1 year.

Bad mod: Polished Aluminum AR Baja 2s. Look awsome when clean but takes TONS and I mean TONS of work to keep them from getting to the point where they are discolored beyond repair.

Good and Bad Mod: K&N FIPK. Made my intake noise sound AWSOME. Only problem and I picked up high RPM horsepower. But I traded away a little low end torque. HAve since replaced the K&N filter with an AEM dryflow after hearing all the horror stories about poor filtration and oil contamination.

Good mod: 55 watt backup lights on hitch. The stock bulbs are indicators, they aren't meant to illuminate anything. Before I got the reverse lights I was pretty much staring at blackness when I tried to back up with my stock rear and aftermarket front tint. Now I can see everything.

 

[RTGUY01]

best mod- air suspension. cause it's the greatest thing in the world to shower sparks at 120 miles an hour!

worst mod- air suspension. cause until i get to 20 miles an hour i can't stand in it or it crow hops so bad it kills the engine. and no more burnouts, hard launches or driving in the rain.:huh:

 

[DrPepper]

Auburn HP LSD.....

it's only a V6, but I got really tired of spinning one wheel all the time.

 

[SuperTrux]

Ummm... worst mod? I havent had one. I guess it would be dickin with nitrous instead of just buying my Kenne Bell, which comes in at my #1 spot with no difficulty at all.

 

[01Motorsport]

Best mod would have to be Superchips 3715 on 91 program. My truck used to struggle to get over 20 MPG, now it gets 23.5 occasionally :banana2: I'm sure the Superchips compounded the previous engine mods...
Next best would be:
* Homebrew air intake (alloy connector/drop-in/Fernco)
* Jeep HO cams
* Post-manifolds exhaust (2 1/2" pipes/Magnaflow:y-pipe, 3"cat, muffler/2 1/2" duals/4"tips
* SSBC rear disc brake conversion
* Edelbrock IAS shocks
WORST mod would have to be 2" rear spring drop hangers. Those led to such a crappy pinion angle that the driveline vibrated like a SOB! I put the stock hangers back on, and went with 2" drop blocks with pinion angle correction slant built in.

 

[ramayer]

best mod would be the heated seat kit...(why would they make a truck with leather and no heat? (i guess since truck was orig. from RI it was not ment to be in such a cold climate as Canada..) does it not get cold in RI as well?
like the magnaflow cat back but need to complete the exhaust to move it up the list.
Infinity refrence,and 10" sub speaker upgrade was worth it but need to change head unit also.
love the paint but biased as i did it myself!
can't wait to get headliner back(getting covered in dark grey microfibre to match the suede insers in the seats then paint all that light grey crap on the roof.
kids favorite is the DVD player(wifes is the headphones for the DVD player)and the sirius sat radio.
worst mod to date although it looks cool and works good and sounds awesome under load...is the keystone "goodhood" ram air hood and kit... did not fit worth a damn 25hrs in fitting hood and still don't know what i'll have to do to kit to make ot fit....and after seeing some of the hoods others on here have i wish i hadda looked a little longer.

 

[ramayer]

oh! and i forgot the dynamat!... keeps the good sounds in and the ugly's out

 

[Ghillie_55]

My best and only mod is my Dynomax exhaust system.

The super turbro kit. 2.5-3 in pipe.

I love it

 

[Jackedak03]

Best mod would have to be Superchips 3715 on 91 program. My truck used to struggle to get over 20 MPG, now it gets 23.5 occasionally :banana2: I'm sure the Superchips compounded the previous engine mods...
Next best would be:
* Homebrew air intake (alloy connector/drop-in/Fernco)
* Jeep HO cams
* Post-manifolds exhaust (2 1/2" pipes/Magnaflow:y-pipe, 3"cat, muffler/2 1/2" duals/4"tips
* SSBC rear disc brake conversion
* Edelbrock IAS shocks
WORST mod would have to be 2" rear spring drop hangers. Those led to such a crappy pinion angle that the driveline vibrated like a SOB! I put the stock hangers back on, and went with 2" drop blocks with pinion angle correction slant built in.

Your truck must be fun as hell to drive!

 

[01Motorsport]

Your truck must be fun as hell to drive!

You got that right :woot:
So much so, it's already at 210K miles :funny:
My favorite new mod is the Hurst shifter: constant fun

 

[Jackedak03]

I am keeping an eye out for a cheap 4.7 RC/SB 5 speed 2wd truck that I want to build just for handling and high revving track use. Granted it'll probably never see a track but my mountain roads are a bunch of fun:

I'd toss 4.56's in it, Xbrace, P&P heads, HO or other Cams, SCT, Underdrive pulleys, TB, suspension stuff, exhaust, Air Ram aluminum intake, shifter, etc