Finally drove my Roush truck - have questions?

[twist-a-grip]

I finally got to drive my new to me MY14 Roush Off-Road Raptor. Never test drove it, just bought it based on the salesman's word and pictures and had it delivered to my home in Steamboat (7000 ft). It has the stock Roush stage II package - God awful graphics and all. I had no preconceived notions that my truck would be Dodge Demon fast, but I thought it would be a little more fun to drive - to me it's just a loud pickup - nothing wrong with that, I just expected more from a 40% increase in power. I'd say my wife's MY17 Duramax is quicker/faster. It's as if you have to floor it to get it going - just rolling down the road at 40, it jumps into 6th as soon as it can and then when you want to hit it, it seems to take some time shuffling back to 2nd or 3rd to get moving. I've read some posts regarding how altitude will certainly affect the power and I've read some posts that the stock Roush system is a little conservative. It seems JDM, or the like, might be the answer. After speaking with JDM this morning, seems a tune would make the truck a little more "playful" and drivable and I'm considering a smaller pulley/belt to get back some power loss from altitude. I'm looking for some opinions on the JDM tune on top of the Roush package and some details (hassle, time, tools needed, etc) on a DIY pulley/belt swap.

Anyone have experience removing the Roush graphics? Any advice on the cleanest, easiest way to do it?

Any reason not to use a Battery Tender on the truck as it will be sitting for a few weeks at a time?

 

[Riddick]

I can chime in on two of the three questions you have:

1. JDM is awesome to work with. I’ve bought just about all my performance upgrades from them. Roush SC with all associated upgrades, 72mm pulley and belt, headers and exhaust. They may not be the cheapest and some will say not the best, but customer service goes along ways with me. They’ve always taken the time to explain, discuss, understand my needs, and answer my questions without cutting me short or treating me like a number. With that said, here’s what I did. Loosen the (6) M6 bolts on pulley. Take half inch breaker bar to idler pulley, loosen belt and remove. Remove pulley and install 72mm pulley. Put a dab of blue thread locker on bolts and hand tighten. Install new belt then tighten (6) M6 bolts to 10Nm using a cross pattern like lug nuts. Less than hour job.

2. I use the Noco Genius G3500 battery charger/ tender. Mine sits for several days as well. I can’t remember exactly why I went with it other than I had good reviews and you can leave it hooked up to your battery forever without damage. I ruined my original battery because apparently there is some draw on it and when it drained completely it wouldn’t charge back up 100%. I’ve never had any issues since using this.

 

[twist-a-grip]

Thanks, Riddick. Pulley swap sounds pretty straight forward with no specialty tools needed.

 

[Riddick]

No sir. Pretty straight forward swap. I told you wrong on the idler pulley. I should have said tensioner pulley, but you probably knew that

Only other thing you might want to check into is a 12% OD harmonic damper. http://www.atiracing.com/products/dampers/charts/damford.htm
I’ve seen some threads on here where guys at higher altitudes are running these along with the smaller SC pulley to get the boost up to 10 psi. Still very safe range. It will require tuning that JDM can handle. Just a thought if you want to do it all at the same time with a one time tune.