medwaste

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Dec 1, 2006
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Almost ready to buy a used Dakota 4x4 with a 5 ft. bed to haul my bikes around in but can I fit a full size bike and a Honda 150r at the same time in it? Has anyone had any trouble with the 4.7 L. V-8?
 

RM_guy

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I have a 2005 Dakota with a V8 and love it. Plenty of power too. I was concerned about the 5' box but like Chilli says, with the tailgate down it's fine. I also bought a Ready Ramp for mine too. It's a folding ramp that doubles as a bed extender so nothing falls out the back. You don't have to worry about storing a ramp in the cramped box.

I’m on my 3rd Dakota and this last one is the first one that has needed new sway bar links on both sides and a new lower ball joint on the left side. I’ve put $600 into it this past year with 54,000 miles on it. Otherwise I love it.
 

_JOE_

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I have a short bed Ranger and it'll fit my CRF250 and the wifey's ttr 125 no problem and I can still get the gate closed. It'll do 3 bike with the gate down.

Keep an eye on the front end, I've seen several blown P/S hoses and a few steering shaft joint issues as well as the usual ball joints and end links as RM_guy said. There's a small foam piece on the one P/S hose that is supposed to protect the two lines from rubbing, unfortunately it seems to hold the water/salt causing the line to rot out and leak underneath the foam. The 4wd selector motors like to give up the ship as well. The do seem to be one of the more reliable Dodges around though and they run quite strong. Watch the temperature guage, there is a cooling fan relay that is prone to failure which can lead to overheating and blown head gaskets. This seems more common in the Durango for some reason?
 

medwaste

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Dec 1, 2006
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It just so happens that the truck I'm looking at leaks out all the PS fluid within 10 min. Thanks for the input. And that Ready Ramp's clever.
 

_JOE_

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The line that's prone to leakage isn't terribly expensive and can be done in the driveway with a bit of inginuity.
 

_JOE_

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Sure. If I had one I'd cut the foam off the line for sure. It's near the steering gear down on the frame behind the LF wheel well.
 

robwbright

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Apr 8, 2005
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My father-in-law is a transmission mechanic and doesn't like the trans in the dakotas because he sees a lot of them in the shop.

In smaller trucks, he prefers the Toyotas as far as trannys, but I suspect a similar year and mileage will cost 50% more.
 

_JOE_

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They're a Chrysler product, if you change the oil and filter in the tranny every 30k there is a chance it will last 100k miles. If you ignore it 70k? Towing alot doesn't help.

A Tacoma is a very hard truck to beat, unless we're talking purchase price. In the long run, if you tend to keep them a long time, the Tacoma will probly be the least costly.
 

RM_guy

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Damn Yankees
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Joe, I checked the PS hoses and they all have a plastic sleeve on them--no foam. They must have been seeing the same problems that you did and fixed it.
 

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