Any body have any Experience with Dodge Dakota's ? (1 Viewer)

[toynut]

My big bad ford (1995 F350 Crew Cab 4X4) blew the transmission or clutch or who knows what but I decided to part with her, for what I considered a fair price for an underivable beast ! I was quite in love with it but when I was actually using it it was less love and more work ! plus the thing was wholly useless in the city and my travel trailer is 2200 lbs loaded !

I started looking for a 1988-1996 F150 ext cab 2wd inline 6 - I just need the truck for a few dump runs , some yard work, occasionally picking up something the wife "needs" ! , and pulling the trailer on 50-250 km trips in the summer.

Came across a Dakota 1999 club cab V6 sport 4x4, test drove nicely , now I've looked at a 2007 crew cab with the 4.7 V8 buttery smooth and wicked acceleration !

they seam to be "soccer mom" oriented but reasonably capable (think second gen 4runner)

any thoughts or experience thanks , Kevin .

 

[Enigma]

Toyota....

 

[toynut]

Toyota....

not that i disagree with you at all i am daily driving a Corolla ! they are wonderful but the equivalent Toyota to what I'm looking at would be at least twice as much in upfront costs and they are usually high millage - I have a car salesman i know looking for a decent Tacoma 4 door and the only one so far is $35,000 ! a lot of money for a truck that is used 2-4 months of the year !

 

[Glenn-BJ74]

I would strongly avoid Dodge.

 

[toynut]

I would strongly avoid Dodge.

is this anecdotal or ? just a personal bias, I know a few guy's with 3500 dodge diesels and apart from a few transmission issues from I've not heard anything negative about any dodges for a few decades - i personally wouldn't be "looking" at them except I've found a few what upfront seam like practice useable trucks in the Dakota - they have a cult like following among owners , every manufacture has it's issues is it just the Dakota you would avoid or is it all dodges ? thanks I'm looking for objective feedback - Thanks Kevin.

 

[Scalp]

If you want information on Dodge trucks, just google search on Dodge Ram recalls.
I guarantee you will be shocked...

 

[Glenn-BJ74]

Check "Lemondaid",and Edmunds vehicle assessments. Go to Bolen books or whoever is closest to you and check the latest publications with data on repairs and see what it says about any vehicle you are considering, their independent ratings and frequency of repair.

Phil Edmonston's Lemonaidcars.com

 

[toynut]

Well i started looking at 2-4 year old trucks, and decided $25,000 for a low millage truck was something I don't want to deal with -
Ended up with a 1998 Dakota sport 4x4 with the V6 and 7 years of maintenance history from a couple of independent shops , has almost every item that tends to fail replaced with new components, (single mom owned ) I personally think she was sold a lot of items she didn't need but maybe she was just big on preventative maintenance - (she likes to mountain bike and travelled to whistler all the time .
I paid $850 - and sod the canopy for $100

within last 2 years :

transmission/ transfer case pulled transmission rebuilt and new seal into transfer case (Berts)
rear diff inspection , new plug and fluids changed
new shocks, and front end components
new windshield
new water pump ,belt and idler pulley
new wiper motor and switch
new front & rear brakes
all fluids flushed within last 5000 kms
new battery
alpine deck and speakers
oil changed every 4000-5000 kms have every receipt .

she bought another Dakota newer crew cab V8 - i put myself on the waitlist for it !