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new truck owner, way to go dodge!


xfeejayx
03-15-2008, 03:10 PM
I just bought an 04 1500 QC 4x4 slt about 6 weeks ago. Though I had planned on buying a truck, getting this one was really an impulse buy (first purchase after college), so I never really took too good a look at her before i got her. Now thats its warmer in chicago, and i'm not sick anymore, I finally got a chance to get on my back and see what I bought, and what i'll need to do before i take her off the beaten path.

To sum up everything I saw, I'm pretty impressed. Some of this stuff may be trivial to you guys, but I'm from a family that hasn't owned anything but toyota/lexus for over 10 years, dating back to when i was 10-12, and the biggest thing prior to my truck was a crossover (city living), so please excuse my naivety.

Things that caught my attention:
Skid plates under the oil pan and transfer case. what a $$ saver, can't wait to get those scratched up.
Longitudinal engine. No surprise, but finally, easy belt changes. The ease of changing alternator, a/c compressor (if necessary) surprised me.
Ground clearance. I was worried a little after seeing the front air dam, but there's nothing behind it, so the worse i'll do is lose a little plastic (and mpg).
Dual cats (I think, might have been resonators)=easy full dual exhaust.

One thing that perplexed me: Mechanical drive steel fan, wtf?! :rofl: I'm an engineer, but i avoid advanced electronics whenever possible (hence pre MDS hemi). But I guess it's an all or nothing deal huh. I'm sure there's a bolt on electric plastic fan somewhere. Can't really blame dodge, a mechanical steel fan is pretty much bulletproof. This thing takes forever to warm up, is the fan even clutched?

Just wanted to post a thread giving some credit to our boys makin these machines for us. It seems all too often we (myself included) forget to see what they've done right, and we need to see it now more than ever.

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