General 99 Ram thread

[kevm14]

This is gonna sound weird but I floored it for the first time in the truck today and wound out 2nd gear.

It has a very long pedal travel. Seemed to shift around 4750 or something which I guess sounds right considering the HP peaks around 4,400 and redline is 5,000. The shift felt the same as part throttle, which means it is at least ramping up line pressure properly.

Other comments: the gearing feels tall-ish for a truck. In B-body terms, OD is like a B-body with 3.23 gears which sounds reasonable but it is a truck (aero) and also the 318 maybe doesn't have quite as much grunt at ~2,000 as a 350 would. Third gears are both 1:1, so the 3.23 feel applies here, too. Second gear in the truck is like a B-body with 3.08s and first is like a B-body with 2.93 gears. The steeper 1st and 2nd of the GM 700R4 really do help in low speed situations while still allowing for a decent overall axle ratio for highway.

Aside from the crappy 2-3 feel, the programming is also really weird. At low speeds like going up a hill at 35mph, as you add throttle it will do a 4-3 and almost immediately after that a 3-2, and then almost immediately go back to 3rd. It also does this at higher speed at part throttle. Stupid Dodge. You also feel like you are really deep into the pedal and it'll still do a 2-3 under 3,000 rpm which just feels so wrong. It is really hard to beat Corvette/9C1 700R4 transmission calibration from the 80s and 90s in my opinion.

Fun fact: if you disable OD (button on the end of the shifter), it goes to 3rd and almost immediately locks the torque converter. This is good, like while towing - it won't generate a ridiculous amount of heat. The tall-ish gearing also is good so towing in 3rd is at least semi-usable on the highway. It would cruise at 2,600 rpm @ 65 mph for example which isn't too bad (would be 1,800 in 4th lockup).

Power wise, this truck can get out of its own way if you really bury it, which is good to know. You just need to be liberal with the throttle. In my Caprice, you go to like 1/2 throttle on the highway at 70mph and it kicks down to 3rd and accelerates like you'd want. In this you need to really mash on it if you want similar thrust.

I should probably adjust the rear brake shoes as the brake pedal has really long dead travel, which I hate.

Handling wise, I am getting much more comfortable with it. Basically everything is exaggerated compared to my Caprice. Everything takes way more input - more throttle, more brake travel and pressure, more steering, more bracing yourself with your left leg when turning right. But once you account for that, I don't find it nearly as bad as I did initially.

I cranked up the stereo on my way home from work yesterday (to FM - meh). It really sounds halfway decent with the aftermarket speakers my Uncle put in. The 6x9s in the front have decent bass. I want to try out a cassette adapter. I could try some CDs if it works just to test, assuming that works (used to be a rite of passage for a new vehicle for me).

It looks like there is an aux in adapter but only if this head unit has hardware for a CD changer (DIN plug in the back).

http://www.oemautosound.com/p-42-chry-a ... input.aspx

According to the buttons on the front it does not, though I may still take it out and see if there's a DIN plug on the back because I'd really like real aux in. The sound is good enough that I'm sure I could hear the difference.

The check engine light still hasn't come back so hopefully I am at least good from an emissions standpoint tomorrow morning. In fact I know I am. I am worried about safety. Mainly the driver's side mirror, and I guess potentially other random things (rust?).

What I really need is to find a damn cap and then I think this is ready to replace my Ranger.

[kevm14]

Did a few highway rollons against Bill's 03 Corolla. It was even.

The Ram may have an edge up to 45 or something which we did not try.

I actually did 2-1 which was ok, and a WOT 1-2 and a few more WOT 2-3s. Nothing broke.

[kevm14]

At the shop waiting for the Ram to be inspected. I tried to be efficient and also brought the SRX wheel with the dead TPMS sensor in the bed.

There are a few things I think I may get kicked back on for safety for the truck so fingers crossed. I don't really think anything underneath is bad enough to fail. I don't think the brakes should fail. I guess either the cracked driver's side mirror (just a single, very vertical crack down the center) or possibly the rust spot on the lower passenger side door. And between those, I guess I'd bet on the mirror.

[kevm14]

Good ole' Tire Pros. Passed everything. They also replaced the TPMS sensor in the SRX wheel. Everything was done in an hour and for $65 (plus I bought the sensor). Not too bad eh?

[kevm14]

Just got back from the transfer station with the Ranger. I was curious how it would feel after driving the Ram all week.

Basically, it feels comically small to me. It seems akin to like a small Nissan truck or Toyota of the same time period, in terms of being small, light, narrow, low to the ground and also unrefined in the suspension. It bounces more and actually rides noticeably more harsh than the Ram.

It also felt very familiar and I will miss it a little bit when I finally sell it.

[kevm14]

The code came back. I got my sticker yesterday so I don't really have to bother with this because the post cat O2 has no bearing on engine operation. I drove with the scan tool and it seems to respond so my guess is I will drive and it will eventually reset (and retrigger occasionally as my Uncle reported). Or I could throw a sensor at it...

[kevm14]

I got the new sensor from RockAuto. I ordered an NTK for $35 which is the OEM sensor.

I used a lot of heat while removing and I still stripped almost all the threads on the old O2 sensor. Which meant the new one would not go in because the threads in the exhaust were also screwed up. I have taps, but I don't have an M18x1.5. I ended up making a special trip to Harbor Freight to buy a really nice set. I bought this:
http://www.harborfreight.com/45-pc-tita ... 60676.html

Lifetime warranty even.

I used some oil to lubricate the threads and a 1/2" 12 point socket directly on the end of the tap and carefully threaded it in. Took a little effort, back and forth, cleaning the tap threads out, blowing the exhaust threads out, but it cleaned them up perfectly. The new sensor hand threaded in just like brand new. This is the second time a Harbor Freight tap set has saved my ass, so that's something.

I road tested and everything looks good. I still have a funny feeling there is something else going on, from when I disconnected the sensor and still saw 1V. I don't think that's typical. 0.45V is the normal bias voltage. EDIT to clarify: I saw the 1V when unplugged at the time when I was also seeing it stuck on 1V while plugged in (after it set the code). I was saying I think this issue is not the fault of the O2 sensor, but time will tell.

Bonus exhaust issue:
I heard a rattling and while I was doing the O2 it became very obvious what it was. There is a short mid-pipe between the cat and the giant muffler. The pipe section is probably there to handle all the wheelbase variations. Both ends of that pipe are supposed to be U-clamped. Both U-clamps rusted away. I will have to get some new ones.
The pipe actually looks fine, like typical 409 stainless.

[kevm14]

Speaking of motivation, I really should replace the passenger side mirror that I bought. There were two styles and I am running out of return time with Rockauto if I got the wrong one. Probably should do the driver's side as it has a vertical crack in the glass that is annoying. And who knows, they could fail me for that on Saturday.

Did the passenger side mirror. The style was correct. Steps:
- Remove door panel. 1 screw in the upper part behind the mirror, two screws in the grab handle pocket and one screw holding the latch handle on. Pop plastic retainers free with appropriate trim tool. Pull panel up and out of the door lock post.
- Disconnect power window/lock plug as there is not much wire to move around at all
- Disconnect mirror harness
- Remove insulating/wind blocking foam
- Remove 3 10mm nuts and pull mirror out of door

Installation is the reverse of removal. This was like a 30 minute job, maybe stretching to 45 as I was just taking my time.

Kind of hard to believe an entire replacement power heated mirror is $36 (Dorman) but there it is.

Works fine, though I did not test the heat. The mirror vibrates more than the old mirror did while driving but it gets the job done.

Now I can order the driver's side and get rid of the crack.

[kevm14]

I discovered there are buttons behind the steering wheel, up and down, on both sides. It does like radio seek and probably stuff like preset changes, CD/tape transport controls, etc. That seems fancy for a 99 pickup truck.

[kevm14]

CEL still not back after replacing the rear O2 sensor.

After helping Adam move today I am even more firm in my demand for a cap. Before I could help do anything, I had to shovel all of the snow/ice out of the bed. Did it take 5 hours? No, but it was an annoying step that I know I would spend zero minutes doing if I had a cap.

I put a few things in the bed. But I realized I couldn't stack anything any higher than the bed body height, or else it could fall out. With a cap, you put things in and that's it. Stack it up to the cap roof if you want. I need to get a cap.