You have weights on the shaft looking at the pictures. You wont notice a shaft balance at the low speeds so I highly doubt it is in the balance.

"I'm wondering why you would say this. How long can the Dakota be?"

You question a guy that can't even interpret a drawing correctly? It just seems long to me being a Club Cab.


"You have weights on the shaft looking at the pictures. You wont notice a shaft balance at the low speeds so I highly doubt it is in the balance."

It shakes at all speeds really, but its no where near as pronounced as it is at 35MPH. If not the drive shaft, then what? Tires are balanced. Trans and motor mounts are good. Carrier bearing is good. I would think if something were wrong with the rear end it would show up as noise and not a vibration.

Either way, I took the drive shaft to a shop to have the balance checked.

When you get it back together if it still shakes put the rear up on jack stands and have someone run it through the shakey speeds while you look at the wheels and driveshaft turning to see if you can see the problem. No need to throw money and parts at it without doing the basic diagnosis. If it doesn't shake then you have elimated the rear as the trouble area. Is the vibration in the seat of your pants or is it in the steering wheel? Why did you say it can't be the wheels and tires? Just because they are balanced doesn't mean they can't have a tread separation or a hard spot. Another thing you can do is jack the front up and try to move the wheels in and out top and bottom as well as side to side. That can show loose front end parts even wheel bearings.

I bought my Dak new in 04,,had that vibration 1 st day..brought it back 11 times the rep and dealer did everything including taking the complete unit out of another truck..Then the rep spoke to another old timer dealer and he said he could fix it and he did!!!..He put 2 hose clamps on the front of the rear shaft and for 150K miles it was perfect.. It just came back !!I at one time a few years ago while I was under the truck marked the clamps ,,and they have not moved.. I tried moving them around on the shaft, and it got worse..they are back to where they were...and vibration is getting worse every time I drive it..I am about to take it all apart..A local drive shaft shop said for $450.00 they will replace all the joints and center bearing and balance the whole set up.....I don't need them to change the u-joints but I'm at the end of my rope with this truck..

SUCCESS!! Its S-M-O-O-T-H now.

The back shaft was ever so slightly bent. The shop straightened it, rebalanced it, and went ahead and put a new carrier bearing in (preventive maintenance while it was down).

Cost me just over $260.00. More than what I wanted to spend, BUT, it cured the problem.

Thanks for the replies everyone!

Now onto the next problem......headlights.

To be honest I had to look long and hard at those pictures too.
Well at least it's done. $260.oo isn't bad.
Headlights... Oh Oh hope it's nothing serious.
I noticed the headlights on our minivan started dimming slightly on their own. It also stumbled a little at a stop light. I was thinking it was just salt corrosion on the wiring causing excessive resistance.
I cleaned everything I could see.
Battery is fully-charged so it isn't a charging issue.
I will watch your headlight post, and see what's up.
That's assuming you post it here.

I will watch your headlight post, and see what's up.
That's assuming you post it here.

Hmmm....not quite ready to make another post yet, but, here's an update.....

one of the previous owners was an idiot.

The amber parking lights were throwing more light than my headlights. Last night, I went out to see if I could somehow make the headlights 'work' until I spring for new lenses. With the headlights on, I opened the hood, and the engine compartment was BRIGHT, as in all lit up.....

At first I thought I was having a spiritual moment or something, but, then got to looking and realized the light was coming from the headlights.

The last idiot that replaced the bulb put the lock ring on backwards, so, rather than unplug the light and flip the ring, they tried to tape the bulb in place. Tried.

The bulb was still lined up with the hole in the housing but, the bulb was completely outside the housing! BOTH sides were like that.

While the light pattern and general output still sucks, I can actually see the road now that I put the bulbs back IN the housing.

As I mentioned, eventually I'll buy new lenses. Over on the www.dakota-durango.com website, a couple of guys recommended TYC brand for replacements.

If the lenses are plastic you can use toothpaste a rag and some elbow grease to make them clearer. Hit Ebay for reasonably priced replacements.

I've got a Meguires kit I had bought for my Wife's Pontiac. Made a HUGE difference with that car. With the Dakota....mmmmmm...not so much.

The passenger side is yellowed/hazed to the point the plastic looks crazed. The drivers side housing is a replacement of unknown origin from when a previous owner smacked the left front corner.

The right lens throws out a weird, stick figure kinda pattern.... The drivers side has no pattern at all. When I shine the lights onto a wall, the drivers side appears as nothing more than a blob of light.