My '81 Dodge Ram Custom SE aka "Son of Thunder"

[Darkrider]

I know this isnt a Chevy or GMC but this is my current project vehicle till its brakes are done then i can back off on it slightly to at least get a start on my GMC. I bought this 1981 Dodge Ram Custom SE in june. Now this truck is my third Dodge full size truck but its my first Ram. The previous two trucks were a 1973 Dodge D100 Adventurer Sport and a 64 Dodge D200 Stepside. The D100 is the truck im going to try to build this Ram into a tribute truck to. The D100 was a project that my dad and i built when i was in high school for me to drive to school with rather then taking the bus. Along the way the truck was dubbed Thunder. The main reason for this was mostly due to what it had under the hood.

Here were the original specs of this truck as it came from the factory:
Slant 6
4 speed trans
unknown rear diff
8 ft long box
bare bones interior.

Here were the specs when it was completed:
318 V8 from a Dodge Aspen stock car
original 4 speed from the slant 6 originally
'Cuda 4 speed transmission with pistol grip shifter after slant 6 transmission fragged
bucket seats from a 'cuda
American Racing torque thrust D rims
Dodge 8 3/4 axle
Autometer tach mounted under the dash in place of ash tray.
Dual exhaust including Headers, exhaust dumps and Flowmaster 40 mufflers with turn down tips.

Now as for the engine specs im not clear on what was all done to the motor since it was built for dads Stock car originally and i wasnt around for that particular engine build. What i do recall is that it made around 450 Hp at the rear wheels in the truck. The specs of the engine that i do know from looking at it were:

Edelbrock Performer RPM intake
Edelbrock Performer heads
unknown size Holley Dominator carb

Thats about all i knew of it, more then likely it was bored out and had all sorts of hidden speed tricks done to it. I cannot ask my father since he passed away in 2001 shortly after Thunder was completed. The only reason i no longer have this truck was because a now former friend stole it one night and totaled it off.

Now on to the planned build for the '81 Ram aka Son of Thunder

Current specs

318 LA V8
Torqueflite 727 transmission
Stock dodge rear end (not sure which model yet)
bare bones interior
truck was originally silver and blue and i believe it was a fleet truck for a local propane vendor.


Mods done to truck so far:

Dual exhaust with Cherry bomb turbo mufflers (done by previous owner)
Dodge CD/Cassette deck from '93 Plymouth Grand voyager
stereo wiring harness created using original radio harness plugs from voyager and using after market wires
Spare tire carrier removed to allow use of Delta cross box
Delta cross box
Seat cover (previous owner)
truck painted flat black
new steering column from 1983 Dodge Ram 150 "Prospector"
Factory sport wheel from 83 Prospector
Princess auto SRB 5" off road lights mounted behind the grille

Planned mods:

340 LA V8
Lunati Voodoo Cam i
'308 casting heads with 360 Valves
Edelbrock Performer RPM Air intake
700 CFM EFI or carb as recommended by Lunati
2400 RPM stall converter
rebuilt Torqueflite 727 with shift kit
regear and add locker to stock rear end
Suspension lift (3.5" in front and 2" in rear)
Custom armor bumpers to add to the Pre Runner setup
Headache rack/box rails
Fuel cell in bed just behind tool box for extra fuel capacity
Jerry can mounted in bed for emergency top ups
Dual Optima batteries, One in bed and one under hood
Relocate the factory spare tire mount to right rear corner of bed.
Change bed for one off of the same 83 Prospector that donated its column
Wheels from 83 Prospector with 30X9.5 R 15 tires
Dash mounted tach
Redo exhaust system from butchered up duals to a dual inlet/dual outlet muffler with outlets exiting out right side before rear wheel

Now onto the pics









Hood popped open so i can take pics of the current engine bay.



Dirty old 318






The new column and factory sport wheel from the donor Prospector



Pics of the switch for the lights and the wire looming that i used to clean up the wires.





Lights off and on

[63 & 64 Bowties]

I like the ole Dodges too. My brother and I are in the process of restoring a 90 Dodge diesel now....

[383Chevy]

How bright are those lights at night? whats the price tag?

[Darkrider]

Originally Posted by 63 & 64 Bowties

I like the ole Dodges too. My brother and I are in the process of restoring a 90 Dodge diesel now....

Looks like you are making some great progress on that old Power Ram!

Originally Posted by 383Chevy

How bright are those lights at night? whats the price tag?

Havent really had a chance to test them out on the road yet due to the trucks brakes being shot. From what i could see when i tried them out where the truck is parked they seem to be nice and bright and project a yellow beam which makes them perfect for fog use. I paid $60 at Princess auto for them.

[culp7]

Anyone have any clues / ideas on how to mount the KC light behind the grill like he did? I have a 87 ram..

[Darkrider]

Originally Posted by culp7

Anyone have any clues / ideas on how to mount the KC light behind the grill like he did? I have a 87 ram..

Not that it may help much now but all i did was simply pull the grille off and found some existing holes in the rad support to bolt them to. There is a lot of space inside that area once you have the grille out. May actually look at doing something similar on my Chevy now that i know there is enough space in there for it.