How's it going guys? I have a 00 dakota and i love the body style of it, but the motor leaves a little to be desired. I know the 4.8/5.3 of the chevy's have a ton of potential but i don't want to give up the dakota body. Anyways, what kind of modifications does the 4.7 respond to well? I know that everything responds well to a supercharger, but what else can i do to the 4.7 to get her moving. On a side note, is it just me or does it seem like every 98+ dakota ever made has a has a tranny go out between 100 and 125,000 miles.

Thanks for any replies,

trav

 

juice it!!!!!!!!

 

i understand that nitrous is the best bang for the buck but i want a real modification, something that gives me power all the time. Obviously i am not looking for something as fast as my camaro, but i want a spunky daily driver. Is a cams swap an option for the 4.7, or heads or intake. Or should i just skip all the bs and supercharge it.

any thoughts would be greatly appreciated..


trav

 

I see Kennebell in your future.

 

There are a few choices for cams now for the 4.7's and you can do the HO intake. A few people have gone with blowers, I hear tuning is a lil tough. A guy in Arizona did his own turbo setup and has run low 12's at 3500+ft in the heat. The aftermarket just never really picked up for the 4.7's. But some cams, intake, tb and exhaust and you should see some nice gains. KRC has 4.7 cams:

http://www.krcperformance.com/newcontent/cams.html

 

spray, HO cams, and gears

 

Put a 12Valve Cummins in it!!!!!! well depending on the money you are willing to spend, turbo that thing!! i think it would be different, i havent really seen a turboed Dak, (havent really looked lol) but i think it would be awesome, but money wise a kennebell or spray

 

If i were to do anything, i would prolly go with the HO cams, ported intake and throttle body matched with some headers and a custom tune. Now for another very important piece of the puzzle, how well with the tranny and transfer case hold up to the added power? My truck is a one wheel wonder right now and i can guarantee you she wouldn't stand a chance of hooking up even if i put a posi unit in it, so i am probably gonna have to launch in 4 wheel hi. I have a friend with a 00' 4.8 4x4 silverado with a cam and a 2600 stall and 4.10's, and he can launch that thing pretty friggin hard in 4 wheel drive. It's pretty safe to say that nothing will stand a chance 0-30mph against that thing. He smokes my camaro right off the line until i hook up and get moving again. Anways, he has a 4l60e tranny and surprise surprise, it's slipping really badly on him. How well is mine gonna hold up?

I just want a fun daily driver, i only get 17mpg right now anyways, and if after doing all this work i am down to 12-13mpg i am willing to make that sacrifice cuz i will be having alot more fun!

One more question, how good is the rotating assembly of the 4.7? I have 90,000 miles, is that gonna be an issue?

thanks guys!
trav

 

I'd go with the HO cams if you're gonna try and pull all that weight around. To realize the potential of the 4.7 engine will take some re-programming of the PCM... 4.7's NEED ignition timing. Go with a 70mm F&B throttle body, CAI and some free flowing exhaust and you'll be making some decent power. If you don't mind sacrificing some low-end torque you can go with larger cams. No matter what you do - you will need to make it pull both rear tires. If you go with more aggressive cams you should probably go with a set of gears also.

The 4.7s do in fact have some potential....

http://members.***.net/duner/Turbo/DunervsLethal.wmv

 

You might save a little cash on the headers, not a lot of people have been incredibly happy with them... it's not so much that they're bad, it's just the price vs. value doesn't add up, they're a bit overpriced for the little that they do on an N/A 4.7 it seems.

The KRC 206 cams are what I've got in this truck, they've still got a really low powerband, nothing like a big all motor cam where you've got no bottom end.. they're probly a good choice, but again there's the price vs. value, you can do the HO cams for a couple hundred bucks, these 206 cams were 499 dollars when I bought them, they're 750 now, that's a lot for a set of cams..

PCM flash is a MUST like duner said... just simply a MUST... if you try to argue, you are wrong. Say it with me... a MUST