DODGE DAKOTA QUAD CAB

tjump · September 2001

I know not how the truck "decides" whether or not to deploy bags, but I will say that the crunch of impact from the accident was exceedingly minimal from my and my wife's point of view - there was almost no loss of velocity on my part. Keep in mind that it was wet Austin roads, and thus very slick. That plus the mass ratios involved (my truck vs the other) and I can only guess that we did not suffer enough deceleration to activate the bags. Personally, I'm glad they didn't as I'm sure my wife would have been hurt by the bags deploying as she had reflexively put out her arms to catch herself. Maybe someone on-board know knows about how these things work better can comment?

bobs5 · September 2001

John,
See my profile for my truck's setup.

For your concerns, I would recommend at least the following:
Get the V8, not the 6 cly.
Get the antislip rear.

I have 4x4 on my truck. Drove the truck all winter here in NJ, and did not really need to engage the 4x4 system. It was engaged a couple of time on some icy snow packed roads. The ABS brakes also kicked in a couple of times during the winter drives and saved me from sliding into a curb or other vehicles. I do like to have the 4x4 system in case of deep snow conditions, or muddy conditions which I encounter on fishing/camping trips. The Quad Cab has a decent weight ratio towards the rear axle so adding additional weight in the back was not necessary for me.

Its up to you what particular options to get will be most useful you your needs. The cost of options will be lower when they are ordered with the truck, as opposed to getting them added later.

Good luck and let us know what you decide,
Bob

biglucy · September 2001

and unfortunately our Little Lucy (House Rabbit) passed away a couple months ago from uterine cancer. To all you House Rabbit Owners out there (and I know there are ALOT that come to Edmunds), please spay your rabbits!!!!

p.s. Little Lucy's MPG was incredible, she could go forever on some carrots and alittle kale

namfflow · September 2001

Sorry to hear about your bun. I also am a house rabbit person and have seen my share go bye-bye. It's amazing how much these little critters can give you. My special girl Rachel was 12 years old and she knew it was time, she looked through the house for me and she died in my arms. She wanted to be with me at the end. Where else can you find that kind of love?

Right now I have 4 rescue rabbits. All are doing fine. Yes I spay and neuter for obvious reason and the uterine cancer problem.

Anyone looking for a great house pet I highly recommend rabbits. Of course sheck out the house rabbit society web pages first. Don't need anymore rabbits in shelters.

biglucy · September 2001

Ray,

An extraordinary story. Those little furry beings can be very special. Most people don't realize that they are as clean and as clever as cats, but rabbits form a much stronger bond with their human counterparts, once you are accepted into their warren. We just adopted Henry from the house rabbit society because our other rabbit, Junior - seemed to be very depressed after Lucy's death. I'm happy to announce that Junior and Henry are getting along fantastically! You haven't lived until you see a rabbit do a "flip" when they are extremely happy, it's almost trancelike, with the rabbit laying on its back, belly to the air, and the nose going a mile a minute from sheer rabbit "bungasm".

And they fit quite nicely in the QuabCab too! Imagine pulling up to a QC and having a rabbit looking over at you from the passenger seat!!!

bookitty · September 2001

Bob, first you tell me that bunnies are as clever as a kitty, and now you tell me that they must ride in the passenger seat. "Boo, pull over at the next corner, I want to jump out and pick up some milk and bread."

Bookitty

drumcircle · September 2001

When will Dodge offer the 100,000 mile tune-up schedule on their Dakotas??? Seems funny as the competition offer it....Improve MPG as well

dskoczylas · September 2001

My clutch pedal on my 2001 Quad is acting up. When I depress it or let it up, it makes a moaning sound that I can feel through my foot. Sometimes it sticks a little when releasing. Everything shifts OK. I thought it was the pedal shaft or hydraulic cylinder needed lubing. Found out the noise comes from within the Bell housing of the tranny. Sounds like something is rubbing in there or not lubricated properly. My guess is something in the fork. Anyone else have any clutch pedal problems. Going to dealer next Wednesday to be told it is normal. They should just make a recording and answer the phone with that response.

mopar67 · September 2001

if its coming from the bell housing area, my guess is the clutch release bearing (throw out bearing to us midwesterners) is going bad. There is also a pilot bushing in there too and it may be the culprit.
Dads old D-200 had a moaning clutch for years until finally the throw out bearing gave up the ghost and then we had a whole new clutch put in.

bpeebles · September 2001

Ill bite.... how does a 100K mile tuneup improve MPG?

In reality... there is NO SUCH THING as a 'tune up' on todays engines... There are no points to adjust, No dwell to set, no timing to adjust, No mixture settings, No Idle adjustment, No valve clearances to check, No clutch freeplay to set, No manual brake adjustments,..... virtually NOTHING that needs periodic adjustment.

The only people that "sell" tuneups are the ones that want you to spend money for somting that IS NOT NEEDED.

Heck... even SPARKPLUGS last longer than the tires on todays vehicles.

mopar67 · September 2001

by the garages. Some places hit you up for 60 bucks or more to put in plugs and tell you yup, your engine is still there.
I can only shake my head in amusement at folks who fall for that.
"Check and adjust idle as needed"
(laughing as I type this)
bpeebles you never stated if you would attend bobs5 get together in NJ? CLose 'nuff for you and I thought the idea of me being there would bring you down????????

lee956 · September 2001

I am looking at 2002 QC and would prefer the manual 5 speed over the auto. Unfortunately, the FLA market has no 5 speeds on the lots, so I'll wait. Question: Does the center console get in the way of shifting? I have tested the QC auto and that console seems quite bulky.

tuvtest · September 2001

I have not seen any 02's, but as far as I know they are the same as 01's, so I can say that there is no interference by the console when shifting. At least for me. Rather than waiting for one to show up, which may be a looong wait since 5-spds are not that popular for the general public so aren't often on the lots, why not order one and set it up exactly how you want?

blackdakota318 · September 2001

I have a question I was hoping you guys might be able to help me with. I have a 98 Dakota club cab 4x4 318 auto that I bought used about a year and a half ago with 36,000 miles. It now has 53,000 miles. My question is ever since I bought it, it has had a noise that I am positive is coming from the engine. It is a clicking sound that is most noticeable when the transmission is in third gear and you are going up a hill or just have a load on the engine. Just cruising you can't hear it. And when the engine is turning high rpm's (in any gear) you can't hear it, but that might just be because the engine is louder at higher rpm's. It doesn't seem to have gotten any worse since I've had it, and there is no loss in power, performance, or mileage. Any help or ideas are greatly appreciated.

ayrow · September 2001

Lee,

I don't know about the 2002, but I have a 2001 5 spd.

I had to order it as well since there were none available on the lot here either.

I also have the center counsel and I while the counsel itself does not get in the way, you will be pretty pissed at the poor designing characteristics of the cup holder location.

Put a large or medium cup in there and the stick will crush it when you shift into 2nd or 4th.

Pisses me off that Dodge would let a thing like that go through the assembly line to their customers.

Absolutely ridiculous.

Just thought you'd like to know..

Ayrow

http://www.ayrow.com/truck.html

namfflow · September 2001

Sounds like you are getting a little pinging. First thing to try is fill up your tank with high octane fuel. If the noise goes away it is pinging. Some people have solved the problem by going to a specific Autolite spark plug ( I don't remember which one it is but others here might be able to tell you) and switching the thermostat to a 180 degree unit. Supposed to help keep the engine cooler thus reducing the pinging.

There are other things to do also, check timing, check for TSBs (technical service bullitins) and so on.

And please do not post the same item in multiple topic areas. One area is enough. Most of us read all the topics and we ain't gonna reply to all of them and it waste everyone's time to see the same post over and over and over again!.

zonk · September 2001

I agree that you shouldn't do multiple postings. Perhaps one reason for multiple posting, though, is that the poster doesn't get an answer in a reasonable time on one thread, and so goes to another to try and get the help he needs or his question answered.

txqc2000 · September 2001

The Autolite plugs that Namfflow referred to are the Autolite 3923 copper core plugs. They're 1 stop colder than the recommended plugs. If you do a search on the DML (www.dakota-truck.net), you'll see lots of posts regarding pinging with the 318's and what people have done to remedy same.

'00 Quadcab SLT+ Garnet Red 4x4 (AWD) 5.9L 46RE 3.55 LSD. For list of modifications to my QC, see my profile:

http://www.twistedbits.net/WWWProfile/dakota/Vof5jrNb0pR1M/

For pictures of my QC & Accessories: http://www.geocities.com/txqc2000

tuvtest · September 2001

Thanks for the letter offline, but for some reason when I reply it gives me a delivery failure. Your complete address didn't come through, please send me a E-mail with your address written out.

bobs5 · September 2001

check out the new "EVENTS" discussion.
KarenS "Dodge Dakota Owners: Events" Sep 24, 2001 8:16am

themacguy · October 2001

how time does fly...
but now lo and behold,
a true wonder unfolds.
as it's been a year
since i've been here.
and whose current posts should i FIRST see,
but ol' bpeebles and bookitty! :'-)

not to leave out zonk and the others.
hey, i'da stayed forever if i'da had my druthers.
but i'll be around this here edmund's town,
from this day on with nary a frown!
so g'night to ya'll, while i remain your 'host,'
and try to catch up on a few thousand posts! :-O

hey guys, bet ya'll thought (or hoped) i was dead! hehe

:-))

bookitty · October 2001

Jack, welcome back and it is a pleasure to hear from you after a long wait. Hope all is going well for you. Input from "themacguy" was sorely missed. Was it something I said? Regards,

Bookitty

themacguy · October 2001

nope, not in the least, and i've kept up a bit here and there thru 'henne.' i've sent him a message or two during my absence. he'd've told me of any meltdowns...

just great to be back here - where the Quad(ders) truly rule.

jack b. :-)
in midland, tx

zonk · October 2001

Will wonders never cease! Glad to hear you are still around; hope you'll tell us what you've been doing. Now if Andy checks in....

themacguy · October 2001

that was my very next question. last time a_j took off for a few months on business, and as you might recall, i tried everything to find him. i even tracked down his hometown up in canuck-land and had the editor of the local paper look up the obits to see if he'd gone and died on us. i think he even got a call from the (morbid) guy... anyway, he finally showed up. maybe he's been wondering if the same thing happened to me! :-/

bpeebles · October 2001

Welcome back... nice poem.

How about a "progress report" on your Dak.
Milage?
Problems?
Nits?
Still satisfied with it?

themacguy · October 2001

back a day, and you're still all business. you are one amazing truck guy, peebles. absolutely focused. bet you have a heck of a side business (or two). remind me to bring my old hodakas and can-ams to you for some serious 'tweeking.'

anyway, mileage is about 60k now. never been in the shop (yet). auto tranny purrs like a kitten, and works like a mule. 4.7 still running mobil 1; mpg is about 15 in town and 20-21 on the highway: 3.55 gears, k-n filter, synthetic in / on every moving part on the truck, running chevron techron 88 octane and lots of flat roads out here. black paint is perfect. agate interior is perfect. 3rd set of tires (originals put up for authenticity when it's a collectible) - hey, don't laugh, it will be - running kelly springfields on the 8" wheels. have a set of the 17" x 9's with goodyear rubber. only used them for autocossing about 5-6 times. lots of tread left. have 5 trophies to go with the old vette ones from way back when. never did as well with the porsches though. those guys were too serious with their $$$.

nits: don't drive it as much as i'd like, don't even drive the pors-kees at all anymore. riding my street bikes pretty much all the time these days. stress relief i guess. going to lots of suzuki, yamaha, etc. gatherings nowadays. oh, one thing BUGS me - the windshield washer (like the old full sized gm's) comes on every now and then when i 'whisk' my left hand down to make a left turn. sort of annoying what with all of the dust in west tx. sitting on the windshield all the time... have burned out one circuit breaker on the extended cooling system way back when. fixed it myself for about 9 bux. no runs, no drips, no errors (codes). that's the running update. back-2-u-guys.

slr9589 · October 2001

Hi Guys,
the truck is a Sierra 1500HD,2wd,4 spd auto trans,300 horse V8,leather,Onstar,XM sat radio,electric seats and mirrors,regular on road tires,3.73 rear end, locking rear dif,6 disc ,bose stereo am/fm,...anyway lots of bell and whistles..compared to my sparten quad cab.
By the way,if any of you guys want the Fit Kit made by Thule for the 00 Quadcab let me know and I will let it go for $10.00 plus shipping.
Tire talk, I replaced my factory rubber with the Dayton timberline highway series and when i sold the truck they had 31,000 miles on them and had plenty of tread left.
all for now,
stephen

henne · October 2001

did you also go synth in your tranny? if so how is it, did you notice a difference and what brand?
kinda scared to go synth in the tranny becasue of the renowned dodge tranny issues and atf+ requirments. the only synth fluid i have seen is amsoil.

welcome back!

Robert

themacguy · October 2001

yeah, the tranny's got synthetic in it. i thought everyone ran it... runs very smooth. interval changes are the same for me, about 20k or so. to date, this is easily the best auto tranny i've ever run. i'd buy another in a heartbeat. in fact, it's on my list late next year. i hear a 230hp / 400 lb. ft. torque v-6 detroit diesel is headed our way by then. ;-)

bpeebles · October 2001

How did you know I was weaned on motorcycle engines? (did my profile give you a hint?)

Which Hodaka? the Dirt-Squirt or the Combat-Wombat? (If my memory serves me, these were the two models of Hodaka that were available)

BTW I always liked the rotary valves on the can-am bikes. When properly set up, they beat a reed-valve or piston valve machine any day.

I recently sold my 1970's vintage Benelli.... The smooth lines of the engine case always reminded me of its Italian heritage. A far cry from my V4 Honda.

My favorite bike... my Kawasaki S3 tripple 2-stroke. I have 3 expansion chambers on this beast. It is like having 3 highly-tuned motorcross engines on one crankshaft! It is a 400cc engine that will put most 650cc 4-strokes to shame. (If I can keep the front wheel on the ground while accellerating!)

NOW BACK TO DAKOTAS...

jhorl · October 2001

Are you talking about a diesel for the dakota. I used to own a 96 Ram 2500 with the Cummins Turbo Diesel and boy did I love that truck. Have been considering another one but at about 35000 dollars I just cant justify it for a pickup truck with no back seats ....yet..I understand that in 2003 they will be producing the 2500 and 3500 Rams in true Quad Cab Configuration. It would be interesting to see a Diesel in the Dakota.
John

steady73 · October 2001

Did the dealer put the synthetic tranny fluid in? I asked the dealer about synthetic for my QC 3.55 full time four wheel drive and he said that Dodge said no way and that it might possibly damage my tranny. Are they blowing smoke up my tailpipe or what?
Thanks.

amend1 · October 2001

Hi everyone. Haven't posted in quite some time-been out drivin' my QC hard and lovin'it! Whats the scoop on the best dual rear cat-back exhaust and intake kit to go with? Will be doing that soon. Also looking for suggestions as I want to switch my rear to limited slip (foolishly neglected to order it) and was going to go with an Auburn unit. It's good to see the site with all the good people sharing their rides and information.

bpeebles · October 2001

(amend1)
Assuming that you have the 4.7L V8 hemi....
Many companies (ie K&N) have been finding it hard to produce any intake/exhaust system that produces any REAL results with this engine. Apparently, the stock systems are pretty good.
Most folks speak of losing low-end TORQUE when attempting to improve upon the stock systems.

Here is a synopsis of my (ongoing) research;

INTAKE:
The selections are becoming more 'mature' Voliant has a nice unit and the "Z-tube" looks awesome but neither is a "cold air" intake. I am still following one outfit that is designing a TRUE "cold air" intake for this engine. (draws air from OUTSIDE the engine bay)
I have also been in contact with this outfit and suggested a "convertible" system for folks such as myself that do not want to suck in the salt-spray during the wintertime. They seem to open to suggestions.

EXHAUST:
Dual out is NOT the way to go for this engine if your goal is to produce POWER. The velocity of the exhaust gasses MUST be kept high to produce a good scavangening effect. It has been said to NOT go over a single 2.5inch pipe for this engine or you will suffer from 'lazy' velocity.
Dual pipes just add to the friction-causing surface-area that reduces the velocity. Dual pipes also add more WEIGHT to your rig....going directly against the power/weight ratio ( Basic physics also tells us that a single pipe flows better than 2 )

I prefer the BORLA system because of the thicker material they use, 100% stainless and "million mile warantee". The thicker metal keeps the sound AT THE TIP of the exhaust where it belongs and NOT in the cab (Here in Vermont, anything but stainless would desintigrate in 2-years due to the road-chloride in the winter.)

spike50 · October 2001

Glad to see that you're back to tell us how far you've pushed the QC. I'm buying 3 BCF/yr are you still in the business?

themacguy · October 2001

you guys are already all over me! well, here goes:

peebles - i have a dirt squirt (100), several wombats, 2 combat wombats (125's), but NO super combats (darn-it), a road toad 100, a 250 thunderdog and (my favorite) a 73 super rat 100. and i LOVE the power of the can-ams, still ride a 250 or 370 every chance i get... have seen one of your triples with the 3 exp. chambers. never heard one run thought. must sound fantastic! sort of like an RZ-500 maybe. oh, your comments on the intake and exhaust are, as usual, spot on. liked the borla comment too. my choice exactly...

jhorl - (detroit) diesel 6 is being tested near ft. stockton, tx even as we speak. s'posed to be ready for 03 launch, though emissions are much lower than regular diesels, as this one's a 'rail' diesel, it may be mid 03 for a realistic date. i'll have one of the 1st. u-can-bet-your-derriere.

henne / steady73 - synthetic is what my dealer said was REQUIRED for my auto tranny?!? go figger.

amend1 - what about the 'locker' thingies? might be a bit noisy around corners, but they bolt up pretty quick - cheap too.

spike - yep, still in the biz... hey, u-want to buy a few more b's? ;-)

tuvtest · October 2001

INTAKE: Any chance of shareing this company name with us? Maybe if they see the number of us who are interested things cna move quicker and may have suggestions as we.

Exhaust: I'm not sure I agree with you on this. I admit I'm no physicist, but what you are saying seems to go against 50 years of car crafting practice. So, if you are saying that adding duals from the cat-back, I agree. As any system will not flow more that the most restrictive point, which is probably either the cat or the stock muffler. But a TRUE dual system will outflow a single any day. I remember one of the magazines, a few years ago, doing a comparison between exhaust pipe diameter on a dyno mounted engine. Now, it was a big block, but the idea is the same. I belive they tested dual 2.25, 2.5 and 3" with and without an "H-pipe" and as the pipe diameter increased so did the horsepower. They didn't test a single exhaust, but the trend is pretty clear. Since any engine is basically just an air pump, lowering the pressure it has to pump against will improve the effiency. I do agree that a single pipe will outflow 2, providing the single is larger. For example, a single 3.625 pipe will outflow two 2.5 pipes, but two 2.5's will outflow a single 2.5.

I'm not trying to cause trouble, just promoting healthy exchange of ideas, and maybe I can learn something too.

txyank1 · October 2001

by Flowmaster, you can make it flow too freely. They didn't recommend true duals on my GM either.

themacguy · October 2001

from racing two strokes most of my life, both two wheeled bikes and four wheeled karts, i can attest to peebles' (& txyank - IS there such an animal?!?) assertion that efficiency can be achieved through several factors other than just 'size.' thermal effect is maximized by using a special ceramic heat wrap tape or even a coating to insulate an exhaust thus making it hotter. this causes the expanding, and very hot exhaust gases to scavenge, or exit, much more freely and @ much higher velocities. also, and equally important, an exhaust system has a 'resonancy' that must be balanced as well. a harmonic frequency, if you will, that is critical to exhaust efficiency. most of us have heard of two stroke expansion chamber 'tuning' - of which peebles is an expert - in which the exhaust waves, reaching some resistance towards the end of the power cycle, actually rebound and are then 'synced' in order to catch the next wave coming out of the next power cycle. several methods are used by those guys to help build more power into exhausts. extremely tedious work, i assure you. also, the mandrel bending (very smooth pipe bends) of aftermarket exhaust systems vs. the oem jig bent ones (accordian-type bends) can help reduce backpressure in exhaust systems. as can muffler and header designs. exhaust valves and fittings too. more 'flow' doesn't necessarily mean better 'scavenging.' so there really is much more in play than just sheer size in order to build more 'power' back there. hope this helps some, sure has been expensive for me to learn over the years. :-)

txyank1 · October 2001

Been here in Austin for 20 yrs. and love the area but still a Yankee at heart. BTW, my first bike was a 90cc Hodaka. Many, many yrs. ago.

amend1 · October 2001

Thank you bpeebles for the info. Will absolutely take your advise into consideration. Keep us posted. I have ordered the factory posi-rear unit from Randy's and will change that over soon. It's a pretty straightforward swap-pull the axles, pull the ring and change the diff over and replace. Did not get a "locker", just a posi. Joe at Randy's, ext 5537, was awesome. Parts, fluids and gaskets all in stock and on their way. I highly recommend them.

yank2 · October 2001

As many of you knew I had a rear end whine like henne and way back themacuy told me not to drive the truck with the off set rear end. My Quad was a 2000 SLT. When the replacement 2002 came in I was sick. I tried to like it compared to the 2000 but had to say no thanks. I ended up getting a Next Generation Ram Slt for about $675 less the the SLT Dakota. Sorry guy's but I had to go with the bigger truck. I loved the 2000 except for the rear end. Just came back from North Carolina again and got 21 miles to the gallon. I hope the Ram is a better truck I like it so far.

bpeebles · October 2001

To see if anyone actually reads my appends.

The outfit that is developing the TRUE cold-air intake for the 4.7L is at the following URL.

This is the ONLY intake I know of that actually sucks from OUTSIDE the engine bay.

http://members.home.net/blhamm/coldair.htm

tuvtest · October 2001

I for one can't blame you for jumping to the Ram. I was able to preview it at the "Truckville" shows that Dodge put on, What a Rig!!! As much as I love my Dak, if the Ram fit in my Garage, I'd be ordering one right away.

Bpeebles- Thanks for the info, I just E-mailed them and eagerly await the tube going on sale.

bobs5 · October 2001

If the 4 door ram was available at the time I got the Quad Dakota, I would have bought the ram.
Good luck with the new truck.
Bob

What are the specs of the new truck?
engine, tranny, 4x4, etc.

yank2 · October 2001

Red 4dr Stl 4.7 Auto Keyless Tow Package 17 wheels Bug & vent When avalible Tonneau cover and wheel flares and Starboard running boards. But 200 miles on an so far love the truck and the 4 wheel disk brakes.

bobs5 · October 2001

Sounds sweet.
Good luck with it,
Bob

themacguy · October 2001

my future mother-in-law bought a brand-new soon to be out-of-business top-of-the-line, big olds. i think a ninety eight or something. had bizarre problems since the day she drove it home. 'scuse, drove 1/2 and towed 1/2... anyway, after three weeks and new dash electronics (shop - 2 days), a clanging sound on the highway (shop - 1 week), a return of the elec. gremlins (shop - 2 days / no cure) and two false alarms with the on-star 'p.o.s.', she started it up (finally in her own garage) and something flew out of the engine compartment and hit the wall! it was several of the pieces of the (ext.) belt tensioner mechanism self-destructing when the engine 'sort of' 'momentarily' seized. :-O

i told her to take it back - lemon law deal - BEFORE the end of the first month. she didn't, as she was worried about her credit rating. more trips to the shop, and the dealer just about threatened her with bodily harm if she tried to go over his head. now, three months later, with about 1.5k on the odo. she brought it back and left it on the dealer's doorstep. right in front of the showroom. right before their biggest sale of the year. locked. with no keys. with lemons stuck all over it. :'-)) she's turned 70 in aug. and 'now' doesn't give a hoot about her perfect credit. and is threatening to sue the dealer and olds (better hurry) and whoever's EVER touched it over the thing. and the sheriff in her remote part of the world (big bend area of texas) is her cousin. ;-)

rjay · October 2001

Can anyone give me an idea what kind of gas mileage they're getting with 4.7L w/ 3.92 gear ratio. Particularly a quad cab?? Thanks

DODGE DAKOTA QUAD CAB

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