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DODGE DAKOTA QUAD CAB
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Comments
Well after a year of reading these posts I still haven't seen my question answered. So here goes.
I bought my QC last August from a dealer, it had everything I wanted (V-8, 4x4, towing package, the works) and is the best truck I've ever owned. It had everything but one item that has been driving me crazy. I thought I could live with the buckets but I still want the option of the 40/20/40 bench because there are more and more occasions that I want to have five passengers.
Anyway, the local dealers have not been any help. Can any of you offer suggestions? I live in the Denver-Boulder Metro.
Thanks
I have not done the swap yet... and I'm not sure when I'm going to get to it... but...
I spent a lot of time looking at the two seats and it sure looks like my proposed swap is feasable. The Bench uses four brackets (two on each side) that tie into the main (40/) seat structure. If those are removed, I should be able to bold the center console to the floor. I would be very supprised it the anchors were not build into the floor plan, as all options should be modular in their design.
You may want to talk to your dealer and see if he knows of this type of swap, and get the cost of the center (20/) section. All of the parts for the console were approx 200, which i made the dealer throw in deal.
Blue
Please post your success when you make the change using the /20 bench components. I called a different dealer after reading your post and just as luck would have it the parts guy at the dealer also owns a quad and knew all about what I have been trying to do. His price for the center bench is appr. $450.
I had talked to three dealers before and they all said both buckets had to be swapped to change the console setup to the 20/bench, I never believed that was the case.
Thanks
Kojak
I had a 92 Dakota that I traded in on my 2001 QC. Never really wanted to give up the 92, but baby came along and I needed a real rear seat. Anywho, the 92 had 140k on it when I traded it. I had CONSTANT rotor problems with that truck. (other than the brakes, never had a problem with that truck) I know I put at least 2 new sets of rotors on that truck, maybe three. I had to have them cut about every 15-20k. I found out some of the reasons why they warped all the time was because of the wheels not be being torqued back on when changed ( I rotated my tires like a good schoolboy). I found this out too late.
I had the 2001 in today at another dealer. They pulled the wheels and adjsuted the rear brakes and did some mojo with the front. Of course after they do it and road test--no problems. Yep, on the way home ole Fred Sandford showed up. At least this dealer said if this doesn't work, he'll find a set of non-metallic pads to put on.
Frankly, after paying over 20k for a new truck and STILL having brake problems, it tells me Dodge engineers were the ones that graduated college with a 2.1 GPA. With only 6k on this truck, I'm already ready to trade it on on a Honda Odessey. I'm NOT dealing with brake problems AGAIN. I do like the truck, but I don't have the patience for this brake BS anymore.
Kojak
I think Chrysler really slipped in recent years on their brakes..once they had some of the most durable brakes going.
NOt anymore.
Thanks to cheap mexican parts, we have to put up with this. But I suppose a VP somewhere in detroit got a bonus for keeping costs down.
Message to the VP>>>>>>how about loaning me some $$$$ to fix my brakes??!?!?!?!
It's a trade off. If you want your brake pads to last a long time, you typically have to go the metallic route and live with the heat generated and the warped rotors. If you don't want warped rotors, you can buy non-metallic rotors and replace them every 8000-10000 miles. Your rotors should last longer though.
I don't think it has anything to do with ABS.
Funny thing, when I check the message boards about Hondas, BMWs (all foreign) I don't see brake problems.
My wife's Saturn is a 93 with 150k on it. We've never been jerked around by Saturn and they've always been great with their work.
I'm getting non-metallic pads for the truck and see what happens. If that doesn't do it, later this year the truck will be traded in for a foreign one. Unions are the promoter of mediocrity in this country--that's why we're forced with this junk.
I'm off my box now:-)
Kojak
How about money managers whose singular goal is to "maximize profits for shareholders?" OR corportate raiders who take a perverse delight in buying up a company with junk bonds and taking on a boatload of debt in the process? ANd shucking off pieces of the company just to stay alive? Or the souless beancounters who, with one phrase, delete an excellent design and tell engineering to go back and "make it cheaper" OR the plant manager that says "get 'em out the back door I've got a bonus to think about" I know for certain on the last statment 'cause I worked in a factory and was right there in the middle of the "hurry up and build it" mentality.
What about the dozens of VPs making six and seven figure salaries? Imagine how much more money could be devoted to R&D if you could get rid of say 20-30 Vps and use that money to build a better mousetrap.
SOrry to rant but when you rail against unions, you are railing against my father, a proud 31 year veteran of the UAW and a man I am proud of.
Kojak
Kojak
I agree that hand torquing is best but don't think that air rachets are the problem. In fact I believe most are set for around 65 lb/ft of torque which is actually less than some manufacturers specify.
installation/removal, and the torque values are adjustable up to the maximum torque provided by the the individual wrench. Usually they are rated for consumption (4-5 CFM @ 90 PSI). I personally own 1/2" impacts that deliver from 220 to a whopping 400 foot pounds. For heavier trucks, 3/4 or 1" drive impact wrenches are recommended.
Bookitty
It may not be the correct or perfect value but at least it will usually prevent torquinbg anywhere near as much as if the tool wasn't "pre-set". That's all I was trying to get at.
Of course, especially if alloy wheels are involved, can't beat doing it by hand which is what the more knowledgable shops will do.
I was interested in my hitch I installed on my Dakota QC. Specifically when you add the receiver hitch bar, ( the part that holds the ball) they come in various drop lengths. Ex. 2 in, 4in. etc. My question is what height should your ball be in relation to the ground. This obviously would dictate what length drop bar to get. Any and all help appreciated.
Thanks,
Tom.
I don't know of anyone that doesn't have a tire horror story. I can still remember going to a tire shop and the guy forgetting to properly set the impact setting. I had only two lugs per tire and was doing 65 mph when it started to shimmy. I lucked out. Even the best shops make mistakes, but the good ones make less.
The Dodge Dakota 4WD 4.7 V8 Quad Cab SLT Plus:
High points: Full-time 4WD, acceleration,comfortable cabin,large cargo bed.
Low points: Brakes,fuel economy(13mpg),reliability;no brake interlock.
"Subpar brakes, poor fuel economy, and below-average reliability count strongly against it".
"NEW CERAMIC-ENHANCED AFTERMARKET BRAKE LININGS
By Larry Carley, Copyright 2000 CarleySoftware.com
Most motorists today won’t settle for anything less than the best when buying
replacement brake pads for their vehicles. They want quality pads that restore
like-new brake performance, are quiet, long lasting, low dusting and provide
safe sure stops. A new generation of ceramic-enhanced brake linings are now
available that are engineered to not only meet the expectations of today’s most
demanding motorists, but to exceed the performance of all earlier nonasbestos
organic and semi-metallic friction materials.
The pads are made of a radically new brake material that uses break-through
technology and a unique blend of ingredients to deliver extremely quiet, long
lasting, low dusting brake performance.
In the early 90’s, some vehicle manufacturers began using ceramic-based disc
brake pads in place of conventional semi-metallic pads to address customer
complaints regarding brake noise, dust and wear. Following the OEM lead,
Raybestos Brakes, a major supplier of aftermarket brake linings, spent three
years developing their own ceramic-based friction material for the aftermarket.
Their new ceramic-enhanced linings are now available in the Raybestos " Quiet
Stop" product line as well as NAPA’s "Ceramix" product line. The new
ceramic-enhanced pads are designed to replace OEM carbon/ceramic disc brake
pads and to upgrade brake performance on vehicles that were not originally
equipped with ceramic-based pads.
HOW CERAMIC-ENHANCED PADS DIFFER FROM ORDINARY PADS
One of the main differences between ceramic-enhanced linings and semi-metallic
linings is that the new pads contain no steel wool or fibers. Steel provides
strength and conducts heat away from rotors, but it also makes pads noisy.
Steel also acts like an abrasive and causes rotor wear. Substituting ceramic
materials and copper fibers for steel allows ceramic-enhanced pads to handle
the high brake temperatures with less heat fade, to recovery quickly, to
experience less wear on both the pads and rotors, and to virtually eliminate
noise. Annoying brake squeal is eliminated because the ceramic-enhanced
compound dampens noise and moves vibrations to a frequency beyond our range of
hearing.
Other features that help make these pads extra quiet include chamfers, slots and
insulator shims. These features are also found on other types of pads, but may
not be used on all applications.
Chamfers are angled or beveled edges on the leading and trailing ends of the pad
that reduce "tip-in" noise when the brakes are first applied. Chamfers also
reduce the surface area of the brakes slightly, which increases the clamping
force applied by the pads against the rotors. This further helps to dampen
sound-producing vibrations.
Slots are grooves cut vertically, diagonally, or horizontally in the pads to
reduce noise by changing the frequency of vibration from an audible level to a
higher, inaudible frequency beyond the range of the human ear. Slots also help
reduce brake fade by providing a passage for gasses and dust to escape at high
brake temperatures.
Insulator shims provide a dampening layer to absorb and dissipate vibrations
before they can cause noise.
DUSTLESS
One of the best features of the new ceramic-enhanced pads is the absence of
dust. All brake pads produce a certain amount of dust as they wear. But the
advanced ingredients in the ceramic-enhanced formula produce a light colored
dust that is much less noticeable—and it doesn’t stick to wheels. Consequently,
alloy wheels stay clean.
LONGER LIFE
The ceramic-enhanced formula also extends brake life compared to conventional
lining materials. Raybestos says their durability testing has shown their pads
outlast competitive pads by a significant margin—with no sacrifice in noise
control, pad life or braking performance. This is quite an improvement over
previous brake materials that have typically sacrificed pad life to reduce
noise, or vice versa. Better yet, the price is only a little higher than most
other premium quality pads......"
wfbarto - I can answer this one since I just looked it up. Page 22-11 of the Big Teal Book states proper wheel lug nut torque range is 85-115 Ft. Lbs.
bpeebles may ask, "Why did biglucy look something up?" Well, because I just turned 6K and decided to go out and rotate my tires. I had wheel locks installed by the dealer when the truck rolled off the lot and it was the first time to give my wheels a different view of the underside of the truck. So I'm pushing, I'm pulling, I'm using my 240+ lbs of leverage to get the lugs off! I used the standard bar and then switched to my breaker bar and I can't get a single lug to budge!!!
bookitty - you've never seen an air wrench used in a tire shop?
In a fit of rage I eventually broke the lug lock key because it wasn't pushed in square as I was yanking on the breaker bar... had to be like 300+ ft. lbs.!!!!
I took the truck to my dealer and they had such a time getting off one of the lug locks that they damaged one of the wheels!! So I have now acquired from my favorite 5 star dealer, new lug locks with new key, new wheel, and 5 tire rotation (no charge, of course)!
I think an important lesson here besides the obvious problem of overtorquing your nuts is that those keys for the lug locks are CHEESEY and should probably be torqued d-e-l-i-c-a-t-e-l-y by hand, so that If you have a flat you don't run into a similar problem.
Bookitty
A. Did emergency test of Dodge Omni back in the 70's that involves letting go of the steering wheel in an emergency maneuver and then wonders why the vehicle was "difficult" to control.
B. WIll give two entirely different reliability ratings to two mechanically identical vehicles (Geo Prizm and Toyota Corolla) and (DOdge Spirit 4 and DOdge Spirit v-6, the 4 cyl. rates "better than average" in paint category and the v-6 rates "worse than average" in paint category)
C. Had never really said anything good about Detroit anyway.
D. Said Strohs beer tasted best of all the lagers in a recent issue.
E. Has had, of all people, Ralph Nader on its board.
F. Would have us all driving around in faceless, souless, gun metal gray econoboxes if they had their way.
G. Thinks the government is the answer to what ails us.
H. Said the Toyota Tundra "sets the new standard in pickup trucks" because it sounds, feels, and drives like a Camry. And in its first year on the market, grandly predicted it would have "much better than average reliability".
Which is why I take whatever they say about anything with a grain of salt.
On second thought, make that several grains of salt.
Good luck in your choice, and we hope to have you join us in the Owners Groups.
Mine's a 01 QC 4x4, 4.7L, 5-sp, and 3.92 LSD rear.
I've put on about 2700 miles in the 6 wks I've had it, with the following mpg results:
18.3 (1st fillup)
16.7 (2nd fillup)
17.2 (etc)
18.2
18.0
17.3
18.5
17.3
13.6
16.7
The low one (13.6) was during a week that we never left our community, which has a speed limit of 15 mph everywhere (never got out of second gear).
I for one am very happy with this truck; good luck on your choice.
Worst mileage was 14 mpg. Truck was new, some 4x4 use and just had to feel that v8 power, arh arh arh.
Best was 18.5 mpg. Easy on the gas pedal, with mixed driving.
Usually average about 16.5 mpg.
Have not had an all highway run yet.
Only 5000 miles on the truck so far.
Had a bad window regulator (manual windows) from day one which was fixed under warranty.
2 flat tires, a piece of metal and a stone, but thats how it goes I guess.
On one occassion had a slight problem with the engine which has never returned since. Still scratching my head about that one. Either a computer glitch or perhaps moisture got into an electrical connection as it had rained hard the entire weekend while the truck sat in the driveway. This problem did not leave me stranded though.
Overall, I am extremely pleased with the truck.
Good luck with your choice and purchase.
Bob
Some points to consider...
1) The 4.7 L V8 Hemi has very tight tolerances and the MPG will improve over the first 10K miles. (It will run smoother too!)
2) I have over 20K miles on mine and is one of the 1st available in 1999 so it is pretty well broken in.
3) I run Castrol Syntec oil.
4) The "flash" to the PCM to "fix" idle problems changes the ignition timing and has been shown to REDUCE performance and MPG. (I DO NOT have this fix and never plan on it!!) (assume that ALL 2001 models will have this "fix" from the factory)
I can hit around 19 mpg on the hiway (3.92 axle and auto trans). IN town I run 13.8 to 15.1 mpg
ANd this is AFTER the fix; in fact when the truck was still under 10K, the mileage was not all that good (around 12-13 in town, 15 hiway).
So your point is?
As a result, I have a very smooth idle now (still waiting on the winter weather to confirm) I have noticed , where mopar67, you say you haven’t.. it acted exactly like it went thru the learning curve again, and I had a VERY noticeable change in "getting to highway speed acceleration" performance. Once at speed it was fine, but the previous "punch" was less. It has settled down now but as we all know, we can tell when our trucks 'change” and it definitely changed.
However, my mileage seems to have remained almost exactly the same.. but I plan on an accurate monitor shortly to update my records.
Overall, I'm happy I did it.. to me, the 4.7 still has enough power to keep me very happy..
Just my .02 worth
So... those of you under 10K miles.... keep on drivin!
I still see occasional "hunting" whenever the outside temperture makes a sudden change until the PCM can "relearn" how to idle again.
Using my 'patented' method on quick retraining of my PCM... hunting has not been a big problem.
I wonder....how many miles were on your rig before you broke down and had the idle hunting problem "flashed"?
I have every gas receipt from day one for gas I purchased (cash, check credit) and I check mileage EACH fillup. So, yes, bpeebles my experience has proven your theorem, the more mileage the better the MPG.
However, before and after the PCM flash (recall mine was flashed not once, or twice, but THREE times)has not negatively impacted my MPG....like I said, its only gotten better as time marched on.
Do you use one of the available tracking porgrams for automobiles that graphs the MPG, FUEL COST, MAINTENANCE COST? I also like my computer reminding me when a maintenance item is coming due.... who remembers to lube the door hinges every 6 months?
The auto tracking software is so accruate it actually estimates my usage patterns and is within 50 miles of the proper odemoter reading most of the time.
If so... which program do you use?
Sooooo. all things considered, I am right about where I was after the initial break-in. Still happy tho :-) and looking to this weekend (gulf weather patterns permitting) to FINALLY get a new coat of wax on her and rotate the contents of my beer cooler at the same time.
Tell me more about the program you use. I am keenly interested.
Ahahser>>>>rotating your beer stock is a good idea. I make it a point to rotate mine at least every three days. Method: in with new beverage, drink the old, discard empty. Repeat as necessary.