T-Units 2012 Ram crew super shorty "build"

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

Sampuppy1

Diesel nut
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Messages
10,856
Reaction score
1,223
Location
West MI
Don't grill me too hard just yet about not having it built to the hilt. I've only had the truck for 4 days[emoji1787]

Basics: 2012 1500 Laramie Crew 5.5 4x4. 135k on the odometer. 5.7. the rest I'm not sure of. I'd like to get a build sheet for it so I know what all it has for gears/trans etc.

I have been looking for a new daily for years on and off. I wanted a 3/4 diesel but the budget just wasn't there and I really didn't "need" one. Which modern diesels are more needy than ever and really aren't practical unless you actually need one. So I started hunting for a gasser. As it stands I really didn't need a 3/4. My budget was kinda in a goofy range where I could get a nice half or a half decent 3/4. I wanted something clean. And a moderate list of options including tow/haul, backup cam, full crew, locking rear diff and I was open to more than that if possible. I loved the aluminum f150s with the 3.5 and I was good with a 5.0 as well. But I still couldn't keep a Ram off my list either. I've always loved the 4th gen bodies and interior.

My previous daily was an 08 magnum sxt. It had 200k miles and was due for a timing belt, water pump, thermostat, brakes and tires. I was not about to put another grand plus into a $3,000 car that wasn't even worth a darn in the snow. My weekend toy was a tired 97 k1500. Most of you probably already know that thread.

I traded the magnum in and got this bad boy.

Items requiring immediate addressing:
First items on the to do list are getting all my fire lights and siren on it. This will be a clean and hopefully no drill installation. I take a lot of time when it comes to these things. I'll also be putting my back rack and toolbox on it, as well as a few other little things from my old truck. After that will be a brake controller. This truck will be hauling my 30ft TT. ITBM or my prodigy p3 are my options. I'm leaning towards the OEM controller but I already have the p3. Also need to track down why my driver's fog light is intermittently in/op and replace my cracked third brake light.

Future plans:
First off will probably be tint. Match the front sides and at the very least a 5% brow. Tossing around the idea of 50% all the way down the shield, but tint is illegal here and it would be dead obvious with a rainbow on my shield. The fire lights make me considerably less likely to get effed with for it, which is why I'm considering it, but I'm still up in the air about it. I'll make a decision after I sell some stuff off and get some funds built back up.

After that will be a leveling kit. The front rake bothers me and I'd like it to sit a little higher. Coil spacers are cheap so it's on my short list. I wanna be able to get a set of 305/55/20 Nitto Dune Grapplers and clear them problem free. It'll be due for tires by the end of next summer.

LEDs inside and out, I love white interior lights, the tails on this thing right now are fugly. I will likely just trade for clean stocks for now, toss my led reverses in and look into the 13+ LEDs or maybe go aftermarket down the road. The quad lights aren't bad. I like them. Might just go HID. I have good ballasts on the old truck. Just need the right bulbs. I'll probably end up with LED fogs no matter what though.

Farther out I may get a tune, intake, and exhaust. Will definitely be upgrading to MSD coils, will do research on some other light bolt ons and a little dress up. The engine Bay is super clean and I would like to make it pop a little when the hood opens. Killer glass might even get an order from me. :naughty:

Pretty much sums this one up for the intro.
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach


Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk
 

Sampuppy1

Diesel nut
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Messages
10,856
Reaction score
1,223
Location
West MI
I got the truck at close on a Wednesday night. Thursday I worked a 16 hour day. Friday was decently short and I wasted no time digging into this truck. I yanked the folding bed cover off, plulled all the lights and siren out of my green truck, mounted the back rack and toolbox, and got to work ripping into the interior. I pulled the back seat and all lower trim panels and rolled the carpet back to tuck the wires away. I ran them through the rear cab vent (god those things are a blessing to have for this kinda stuff). Sadly I had to drill two holes to mount my controller.

For anyone who likes this kinda stuff here's my list of equipment.
Feniex 4200 mini
Feniex Storm Pro 100
Feniex Triton 100
Sho-Me red LED/ white Strobe mini bar
Star signal mini phantoms (2 r/w, 1 r/r)
Code 3 t4 surface mounts (2 r/w not yet mounted, not sure where to go with them just yet, have a couple ideas)
The pods are Type S Bluetooth controlled (I know, I know, AutoZone yikes.) They actually perform very well. They were a impulse buy that truly impressed me and have turned out much better than I was expecting them to. The quality exceeded my expectations, and they are functional and very reliable. I was hoping to be let down so I could return them but they've actually been a very good purchase. They're extremely effective as warning lights and as a work light, and they are built very well. It'll be a couple years with them and no lens fade or moisture intrusion.

I mounted the 4200 mini controller to the center console top. The storm pro behind the panel under the steering wheel, I have a distribution block under the column mounted to the big aluminum bracket that conveniently had two deep holes I was able to tap threads into and use a bolt to secure my distribution block and the relay for it. The wiring under the column is kind of a mess at the moment but I ran out of time this weekend and had everything in the right area so I hooked it all up. I'll clean it all up in the next week or two and get things tidy like I want. This took until 3am Saturday morning and most of Saturday afternoon/night. Everything went smoothly, I just am very picky about how I orient things. The Triton is mounted to the a/c condenser bracket on the right side. I had to drill new holes in the Feniex bracket to move the speaker back so it would clear the grille but not too far or it would hit the condenser. I moved it twice. My first try cleared the grille completely but hit the condenser so I had to give it another go. 2nd try got it perfect.


While I was waiting for some stuff to dry after painting, I also LED swapped the dome lights up front and the one in back. I also tracked the intermittent fog light in/op down to a yellow heat shrink butt connector that was never heat shrunk, and the doofus used the wrong crimpers and punctured the insulation. I'll fix that after work Monday.

I have videos of some of the adventures but for the most part anyone who has this stuff, already knows how to do it and anyone who doesn't have it, probably doesn't care. So here's a couple pics
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach


Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk
 

Sampuppy1

Diesel nut
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Messages
10,856
Reaction score
1,223
Location
West MI
Got my brake controller today. Gonna have to call the dealer back Monday and get a PIN. Directions call for a PIN to activate the controller during install and to update the VIN on the truck. Shouldn't be too much of an issue. Looks like a 5 minute install. Swap a cubby hole for a brake controller. Two screws and a trim panel.

Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk
 

Sampuppy1

Diesel nut
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Messages
10,856
Reaction score
1,223
Location
West MI
I like how clean that brake controller looks in there.

congrats on the purchase
Thanks! I wanted the factory controller for that reason. Also like that it has sway control built in too.

Got the truck to the dealer. Wheel locks removed, recall handled, ITBM active, DRL is still active sadly and the radio couldn't be updated. Oh well. It'll haul the camper without a problem now. Picking that up today.

Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk
 

Sampuppy1

Diesel nut
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Messages
10,856
Reaction score
1,223
Location
West MI
Got the light bar mounted to the headache rack. Home brew mounts. I got tube mounts from tractor supply and trimmed the rubber bushings so they were flush with the aluminum. Clamped them to the flat bar of the rack and bought some 1/4" 1x aluminum and made the brackets for the bar out of that. Primed and duplicolor bedlined. Surprisingly sturdy. For aluminum I was expecting it to be a little flimsy but the 1/4" is pretty stout.

Also mounted my surface mounts. Gotta wire them up but that's simple. That's 1/8"x 1 1/2. Also bedlined. I'll get pics later. I'll eventually change to different lights there but these were cheap and bright. They'll do until they fail.

After this I'll have my fire Dept stuff right where I want it.
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach


Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk
 

Sampuppy1

Diesel nut
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Messages
10,856
Reaction score
1,223
Location
West MI
Tried for a couple days to get my coil spacer leveling kit installed. Lower shock bolts are seized in the bushing sleeves. I bought new lower bolts and bushings, cut one side off and pulled the strut. Only to find the strut was junk and the top nut wouldn't break loose. So now I have to get all new struts. Which I was planning to do down the road. Bilstein 5100s. Also going to get lower control arm bolts and bushings so I can avoid the possibility of not being able to get a proper alignment due to these needing to be freed for camber adjustment and the lift struts will adversely affect the camber after install. What a pain in the ass, but at least I know how I have to do them. Cutoff wheel to the old bolts, burn the center bushing and drive that out and then hammer the outer bushing sleeve until it is deformed enough to be driven out. Drive in new bushings, slob the fawk out of em with anti-sieze and reassemble.
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach


Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk
 

95C1500

┌П┐(◣_◢)┌П┐
Joined
Jun 28, 2012
Messages
37,516
Reaction score
1,968
Location
Texas
Fawk the hell out of that. I replaced my shocks and rotated my tires today in about 45 minutes with the help of my dad. It's crazy to see a 7 year old vehicle with 10x as much rust as my 24 year old truck. Glad you got it done though!
 

Supercharged111

Truly Awesome
Joined
Aug 20, 2015
Messages
12,613
Reaction score
15,236
I've seen 2010ish trucks back home in upper MI with holes in the fenders. This thing should live a few more years before it goes down the road his old truck did. The rust makes everything a nightmare to fix and sometimes to diagnose when grounds start failing.
 
Top