96 is the last year the 6 bolt wheels can easily be change back to a 5 bolt. After 97, The front hubs and suspension was changed, and none of the 96 and older stuff works.
All the Dakotas have the raised rear frame. It kicks up to cover the fuel tank, which is inside the frame rail, then just does not drop back down. If you have a high side box from 50 or so, or newer, you can get a 13" deep box. Its the nature of the beast.
Whichever frame you use, expect to have to modify it to match the wheel base of whatever body your going to use. Its easier to shorten a frame then it is to make one longer, and between the front fuel tank cross member and the back of the cab is the easiest place to shorten one.
You also probably should expect to move the firewall back into the cab at least an inch or two, other wise things like firewall clearance, radiator clearance, and front axle position in relation to the wheels in the front fenders gets really close.
I'm currently putting a 49 Dodge on a 93 4x4 chassis, and I'm using the 318 drive train out of a 95 Dakota. The 48-53 cab and front clip are about the shortest front end Dodge made. I have the entire drive train bolted to the factory Dakota stuff, and I used a Dakota firewall spliced into the recessed area of the 49 firewall. I wish I would have moved the firewall back another inch, or two. The motor to firewall is very close, and I had to cut the top 8" off the Dakota radiator support. I also had to notch both corners of the nose to clear the radiator. There is about 2" of clearance between the radiator core and the front nose piece sheet metal. There won't be an AC condenser in there. I also have to fabricate all the metal to attach the nose to the radiator support. The truck is nearly to fire up and move under its own power.
When I get to the point it moves, I suspect I'm going to have to cut the front fenders and move the wheel arches 2" towards the rear, and probably raise them up an inch or two to clear the 235/ 75/15 tires. Had I moved the firewall back into the cab 2". I would have moved the cab forward those 2" and I would have had more room in front of the radiator, and the tires may have better cleared the fenders, maybe.
Both the Dakota donor, and the 49 have 6 1/2' beds. I'm going to use the box floor and front panel and cut the sides off to mount the 49 box sides. The Dakota rear axle (96 6 bolt) is a couple inches narrower then the 49 was, so I will have to cut the 49 box sides around the tires and wheels for clearance. When I cut the Dakota floor, I will also cut the wheel tubs to match up to the cuts in the bed sides.
Pictures:
1) shortened frame. Notice how high the cross member is just in front of the rear axle? That cross member is one of the two the Dakota fuel tank is strapped to. One of the bed cross channels actually sits down inside of that cross member. That little nub thing ahead of the raised fuel tank cross member is the front box mount. This frame was cut between that front box mount and the raised cross member. The standard fuel tank still bolts into place without modification.
2) this is my cab with the firewall and the trans tunnel cut out. I should have trimmed back to the flat pieces, and recessed the entire firewall back 2".
3) Dakota firewall welded in place. This cab had a pretty heavy gauge floor pan installed that I didn't remove. Modification was required to get the lower Dakota's firewall to match up with the cab floor pan.
4) The process of setting the cab on the chassis takes time. You have to trim, and cut stuff to get it to fit at all, then you get to cut it some more to get clearance as you slide it around to get it into position. This is a good picture of how the fuel tank fits on the frame. You can also see I had to cut a chunk out of the back of the cab, and a section of the cab rear floor to clear the fuel tank. Inside the cab, you can see the firewall is still intact, and the hole for the trans is pretty small. This may have been only the 2nd or 3rd test fit. All the cut holes ended up being about 3x larger then what they were on the 1st cut, but you go at it slow, so you keep everything as close as you can. The motor was bolted to the frame, so you measure, and cut small holes, then see how it fits. Mark how much more you need to cut, lift the cab and roll it back away from the frame and cut to your marks, then test fit again. i lifted the cab off the frame at least 5 times that day. At the end of the day, the cab was sitting on the blocks to get the firewall cut out (picture 2).
Don't be mislead, this is not a simple slam it together in a few hours project. This is the 5th one I've done. I'm retired now, I started this project July 8th, and have probably put in a good 25-30 hours a week on it. I started with an already shortened frame and a cab (and all the sheet metal) that sat on top of the frame, with the front cab mounts welded to the frame. I had a running, driving Dakota donor, and i have experience doing this. Realisticly, I'm probably 50 -60 hours away from driving it up and down my driveway. Then all I have to do is install glass, install wipers, fix the cowl vent, install a dash, do the interior, and do body work and paint. The goal is to have it a daily driver by spring, with or without paint.
I'll try to get pictures of the front end tomorrow. Gene
