Quote:
Originally Posted by ctmaybury@yahoo.com
Both of my dodges 98 and 99 have 355 gears. 411 was offered. Changing ring and pinion gears will cost you in the neighbourhood of 4000 bucks. Many vehicles benifit from lowering the final drive ratio, but your truck won't unless you have the 411 gearing. Check the sticker under the hood. Taller tires are a cheaper route. Think about a tunner like edge or equivalent. I think the 03 to 07 came with a cat. Remove that for less restriction. Getting into the 20 plus mpg range isn't hard. Look up dieseldave on this forum and prepare to be impressed.
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The cat first came on the 04.5 I have started to learn how to tell an 03 form an 03.5 or an 04 from an 04.5. Some are some pretty big upgrades like the 47RE automatic on the 03 vs the 48RE on the 03.5. The 04.5 added the cat and the 3rd injector event but also added 20 hp and 45ft-lbs to the HO motor. The easiest way to tell an HO from ads is either by the 6 speed manual or by the "C" in the 8th place on the VIN rather than a "6". In person the valve cover has a sticker that shows the HP rating. 325 means 04.5, 305 is an 03.5 HO or 04. 235 is an 03 or a California 03.5 or 04. From Jan 1 build date 04 every Cummins, Cali or not, was the 325hp motor with the cat.
I have heard of other ways to tell and 04 from an 04.5 by things like where the washer bottle is located or by the fan shroud but the truck I found breaks those rules. According to the sticker on the valve cover it is a 325 but it has the early fan shroud. The Dodge VIN decoders are no help as every one comes up as a 305 version even if it is the 04.5 325 version.
That is the problem I really want an 03.5 or 04 HO with the 48RE automatic and they seem hard to find.