EXHAUST AND STEERING
For exhaust, we installed BD Diesel Performance's X-Hale stainless steel dual exhaust system. This turbo-back system is a high quality system that rivals anything we've ever installed on a truck to date. The 4-inch diameter tubing is mandrel bent 409 stainless steel with a polished 304 stainless steel muffler (straight-through design) and 5-inch exhaust tips.
The fit of the exhaust needed some modification because BD doesn't offer a kit for the Long Bed Mega Cab, but the install was pretty straightforward once we acquired a 20-inch length of the same stainless to bridge the gap. The finish of the exhaust has held up well on the higher grade stainless tips and muffler. The stainless tubing shows some uniform rust on the finish, but no significant deterioration, which is to be expected after surviving a winter of nationwide travel on salt-covered roads. All hangers and brackets remain firmly in place as they should be. The exhaust allows the engine to breathe well and gives it a deep, soft bellow. We would choose this exhaust kit again for our next project truck.
Our steering was fairly sloppy after we added a set of steel hub adapters and 22.5-inch, 10-lug Alcoa rims with 255/75 R22.5 H-load rated tires. The added wheel weight and tire height (36.5 inches) proved to be a little much for the stock steering design. We added a BD SBS (Steering Box Stabilizer) to eliminate the road wander and wheel wobble we were experiencing. The SBS is basically a cross-brace that runs between the two main frame rails where the steering gear is located. The brace has an integrated heavy bearing in it that surrounds the steering gear and holds it firmly between the frame rails. We also felt the need to dampen the steering by replacing the steering dampener with a dual steering dampener kit, which used the Skyjacker dual steering stabilizer bracket, but with two upgraded Bilstein steering shocks. After these upgrades, the steering feels nice and solid.
While we're talking about our heavy wheels and tires, we should mention that due to the higher un-sprung wheel weight, we experienced additional wheel hop. We remedied this problem with a Bilstein heavy-duty shock on each corner.