Moparts

Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota.....VIDEO added

Posted By: SattyNoCar

Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota.....VIDEO added - 01/24/15 03:55 AM

I pick it up tomorrow.

Here's the CL ad...... Dodge Dakota 93

Pics from ad....(and the ad in case the seller deletes it)





I have a truck for sale. It served as a work truck for me during the weekends and helped out when my main car broke down.

1993 Dodge Dakota 1/2 ton. half cab. smaller seats in the back.
159k miles - engine is still strong. V6- so it doesn't guzzle the gas, but still performs.
Transmission feels like it could be starting to slip, but still runs well.
It has a strong and powerful exhaust system - pretty loud. Magna flow, duel exhaust, brand new catalytic converter.
Nice new radio with remote.
Power doors and windows.
clean and well taken care of interior.

Exterior paint needs work. Chips and dents around the truck.
Also, the back window is shattered, but still in tact. Been driving like that for a couple months, don't want to pay to replace.

It's a great first truck for anyone starting to drive and a great work truck for weekend projects or taking the dogs to the park.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yes, it needs work, but, it drives out fine as it sits. I don't think there is anything wrong with trans. Truck doesn't have the 'snap' of a new car, so, he's taking it as the transmission is slipping. I didn't get above 45 MPH due to Friday traffic, but, it shifted up and down with no pause or lag. Reverse grabbed just fine.

The exhaust is new, but, it sounds too 'ricey' with the muffler they used.

The guy I'm buying it from bought it from the original owner a little over a year and a half ago. The truck comes with a 2 inch stack of receipts going back to day one for all maintenance and work done.

Most pressing issue for me is the AC not working. Everything is there and hooked up, so, hopefully not a big deal to get working again. Tachometer is 'stuck' at 3500 RPMS but speedometer works fine.

Paint is coming off in sheets on the roof. I'll probably end up doing a brush and roller job on it once the weather warms up.

Seller wanted $1750, I offered $1400, he countered at $1600 and I left it at that.

I'm all excited and can't wait to get it home tomorrow.
Posted By: Golden-Arm

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/24/15 04:45 AM

good score. dump a bottle of seafoam trans fluid into it, and see how it does. back window should be cheap. if it's too cold to paint, it's too cold for a/c.
Posted By: stumpy

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/24/15 05:18 AM

No need to add anything to the trans if it's working right. Don't mess with a good thing. I have seen cleaners etc. loosen stuff up and cause problems that weren't there to begin with.
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/24/15 05:40 AM


Funny you mention using seafoam, the truck comes with a bottle of it. Seller claims he never put it in because he wasn't sure if there actually was a problem.

Fluid isn't bright pink, but, it doesn't look like tar and doesn't smell burnt, so I'm thinking it may just need new fluid and filter.
Posted By: Golden-Arm

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/24/15 08:48 PM

if you're going to replace the filter and fluid, use the seafoam. it will clean up the system, and remove varnishes and sediments, before you do the change.
Posted By: NITROUSN

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/24/15 09:57 PM

Quote:

Funny you mention using seafoam, the truck comes with a bottle of it. Seller claims he never put it in because he wasn't sure if there actually was a problem.



Well he sure did not buy it to drink. I suspect there is clutch seal problems. Time will tell but I suspect a rebuild is in your future.
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/24/15 10:49 PM

No new pics yet, but, I got the truck home earlier today.

At this point, I don't think anything is wrong with the trans. It shifts great, and the OD even works as it should.

Speaking of things working, everything BUT the AC works. The power windows, the power door locks, the power mirrors, the cruise control......

I drove it about 10 miles today, it tracks straight, doesn't pull or wander when you hit the brakes. Only issue I need to look into is slight vibration at certain speeds. I think it may be the old kinda chunky truck tires that are on it now, but I'm not sure.

One thing I missed when I looked the truck over yesterday in the dwindling sunlight I had, the blue is not the original color. The truck has been painted once already, it was originally a goldish color. Not a big deal to me, was probably painted to cover up the original crappy paint job.

All in all, I'm happy with it.

Now, I need to educate myself on all that is Dakota. Any good sites out there?

Posted By: 85_Ram_4speed

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/25/15 01:41 AM

Decent truck for the money. I miss my '96 I just sent to the yard. I have a nice set of Lund taillight trim if your interested, PM me.
Posted By: 79powerwagon

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/25/15 02:26 AM

Just drive it! mine got better after a week of daily driving, as it had been for sale for months, and unused a couple of years before that (I bought it thru a charity).

I gotta say, I am putting WAY more miles on my Dak than I thought I would! I REALLY like driving this thing! It rides decent, it's comfy enough, and I remain a truck guy at heart anyway!

The most sad part about it is when it finally does die, there really isn't anything to replace it but another one, and I'm already at the older side of truck life already!

Attached picture 8406947-dakflat001.JPG
Posted By: HotRodDave

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/25/15 03:26 AM

Service the trans... replace filter, add a couple turns to the line pressure screw, set the front band with about 1/8th inch play at the apply end, set the rear band for about 1/4 inch and refill with type f fluid NOT any of the high detergent super slipery synthetic modern fluids.

The trans will thank you
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/25/15 05:25 AM


I'm taking notes people. Any helpful tips or tricks are greatly appreciated!

Found this pic thru google. I think this is how the truck was originally painted, (but with dark blue).



Didn't get to really mess with it today. Most of the receipts that came with it are a bust because the ink has faded away. The oldest receipt I could read was from 2000 for an oil filter.

In the pile I did find a partial window sticker, I think it said it sold for almost $14K new? It was a pretty loaded out truck. It sold new in Waco. I haven't run a carfax, but, based on the receipts I can read, the truck has always been in this part of TX.
Posted By: redraptor

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/25/15 02:00 PM

Quote:

Any good sites out there?




Congrats on your purchase.
There's a ton of info on Dakota-durango.com if you wade thru the bullcrap there.
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/25/15 05:09 PM


Went out this morning and fired it up to see how it starts dead cold. No issues, fired right up.

BUT....two thing became readily apparent,

1) the exhaust/muffler have GOT to be changed back to stock (or at least something quieter)

2) the heater controls do nothing. The fan works, the heater hoses underhood get hot, but, nothing happens in the cab. No matter which button you push, air comes out of the defrost and floor vents. No matter where you slide the temp control, no heat comes out. Hmmm...


One nice surprise this morning regarding the truck, NO puddles underneath it. Yay! My ol' Caravan was always marking its territory (not a lot, but, enough). I HATE leaks!

I'm gonna have to find me a shop manual or at least a Haynes manual.
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/25/15 10:59 PM


Here's a quick video of the Dakota. Be sure to have your speakers turned DOWN because I do start it.

No driving shots yet as I still need to register it.


Dakota walk around

Posted By: Grizzly

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 12:20 AM

Oil pressure looks good, but I would say your idle is a little high.

Attached picture 8407763-idle.jpg
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 12:29 AM

Quote:

Oil pressure looks good, but I would say your idle is a little high.



lol....driving it home, I smacked the dash once and the tach needle went from 3500 to where it is now, and stayed there.
Posted By: 79powerwagon

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 12:49 AM

You did just fine! A good deal on the truck, John!

I see it's blue even low on the firewall. Your earlier comment about it being repainted from gold I don't think is correct.
Posted By: stumpy

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 12:51 AM

Have you checked for a vacuum line leak to fix the heater problem? And the idle does sound a little high(not going by the tach) which again may be a vacuum leak.
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 02:22 AM


Haven't checked anything yet. Was taking advantage of the weather and getting caught up on a few things around the house.....

Might have found a new issue. Turned the truck around and the passenger side floor mat moved. It was floating, there's standing water on the pass side. Doesn't smell like anti-freezw though......
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 02:24 AM

Quote:

You did just fine! A good deal on the truck, John!

I see it's blue even low on the firewall. Your earlier comment about it being repainted from gold I don't think is correct.



On the sides of the truck, down low, and up high, where the paint has peeled, I see gold. In the middle, like on the above truck, I see just blue.

Posted By: mopwrd340

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 02:53 AM

Pull the wipers off and the cowl cover and look down both sides you will probably see debris down there and that is what usually causes the water leaks .
Posted By: 85_Ram_4speed

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 03:41 AM

Also make sure the drain on the heater box is clear. It comes out near the trans dipstick, low on the firewall.

Smack the top of the dash again, maybe the tach will fix itself. On mine the dash lights sometime would not light up. I took it apart several times, traced the wires, checked the pins and could not find any issues. I just dealt with it and for the once in awhile just smacked the top of the dash.
Posted By: J_BODY

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 05:02 AM

I see it was mentioned earlier to service the trans and use "type F" fluid.... I'll counter and say stick with the proper ATF +4.

Mode controls are vacuum operated. Go on the right side of the intake and check the vac lines. Defrost and floor are default.
Posted By: Grizzly

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 05:26 AM

Shoot, I thought everyone knew how to fix the heater in a Dakota?

Easy: Twin Turbo. And you already have the exhaust tips to match.

You're welcome.




I hope this truck serves you well.
Posted By: MuuMuu101

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 05:50 AM

Quote:

Shoot, I thought everyone knew how to fix the heater in a Dakota?

Easy: Twin Turbo. And you already have the exhaust tips to match.

You're welcome.




I hope this truck serves you well.



If you stuff a 318 in there, these may work...

http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=301731
Posted By: indcontrols

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 07:57 PM

That's how it starts, "this thing needs a V8"... then things start to get outta hand...

Attached picture 8408565-Small.jpg
Posted By: HotRodDave

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 08:10 PM

Quote:

I see it was mentioned earlier to service the trans and use "type F" fluid.... I'll counter and say stick with the proper ATF +4.

Mode controls are vacuum operated. Go on the right side of the intake and check the vac lines. Defrost and floor are default.



Plus 4 will wash all the crap from where it is safely parked right now to clogging the filter and VB, then he will be numbered with all the guys who say changing there trans fluid ruined there trans. Type F will also allow the clutches and bands to hold better as it is not as slippery thereby prolonging there life. I work on tons of these trannys and have seen many "bad trannys" go on for years with this simple recipe.
Posted By: stumpy

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/26/15 08:31 PM

The same reason I advised against using the seafoam.
Posted By: poorboy

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/27/15 06:55 AM

The cowl/vent box drains to both sides of the cab, behind the fenders. If you remove the top cover, I'm betting you will see a bunch of crap and a small lake, on the vent box floor. open the drain slots at the rear edges on the sides to drain the water and then completely open up the slots. The water sits in the box and runs into the cab through the vent housing.

Might also want to check the drains on the bottom of the doors. The window sweeps are usually junk and water enters the doors along the windows. if enough water builds up, it will also empty onto the floor boards. The water filled vent boxes and water filled doors are 3 for 3 on my early 90s (90,91 & 93) Dakotas. The 93 was so bad, I drilled a hole in the floor pan so the water could run out. Gene
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/29/15 01:22 AM


Well, I couldn't take the noise and drone at speed, had a shop fix the exhaust.

I didn't take a pic of it, but what they had on there was the original Y pipe and original catalytic convertor, then a length of pipe to a new catalytic convertor and a mini 'race' muffler that split the exhaust into duals.

The shop removed the old cat and put the new one in its place, ran new pipe back to a stock full size muffler and bent a stock looking single tailpipe.

All for $260.00

MUCH better now, but, now I can hear all the rattles and squeaks.
Posted By: 79powerwagon

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/29/15 02:25 AM

That was fast!

My stock system is plenty throaty sounding, and reasonably quiet. But now my steering rack is noisy (just started). It sounds like tires going over frozen snow (I know you remember that sound).
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/29/15 02:55 AM

(I know you still have nightmares about that sound)

Fixed.

Now I need to figure out what the shudder/shake is at lower speeds. At first I thought it was the tires, but, now its pronounced when decelerating at lower speeds. U-joints all seem tight.

After the muffler was put on, I drove around running errands etc, just to put some miles on it. Put about 40 miles on it with no issues aside from that shake.
Posted By: buildanother

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/29/15 03:28 AM

A u-joint can also bind when failing without extra play in it. But that would cause issues on accel too usually.
Posted By: poorboy

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/29/15 04:18 AM

Good thing you didn't need the Y pipe, they are right proud of that one! The last one I priced out was $500, IF they could even get one! My 93 Still needs it. Gene
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/29/15 05:31 AM

Quote:

Good thing you didn't need the Y pipe, they are right proud of that one! The last one I priced out was $500, IF they could even get one! My 93 Still needs it. Gene



Is this it?

Y pipe

Posted By: poorboy

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/29/15 06:15 AM

Quote:

Quote:

Good thing you didn't need the Y pipe, they are right proud of that one! The last one I priced out was $500, IF they could even get one! My 93 Still needs it. Gene



Is this it?



Y pipe






The Y pipe in your link was for a V8 truck. They don't show a Y pipe for a V6. I don't know if, or what the difference is, but when I located a V6 Y pipe it was a different # and was very expensive. I don't know if the V8 pipe will fit the V6. I suppose, at that price, I could buy it and find out. Gene
Posted By: rhad

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 01/29/15 07:16 AM

when i changed engines in my 92 dak 3.9 i used the manifolds from the newer engine,while the flange on my pipe bolted up the actual opening in my pipe was bigger and leaked,92 was rated 180 horse,93 to? was rated 175,exhaust might be the difference
Posted By: Mopar1970440

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 02/03/15 07:43 AM

Very cool. Love these Dakotas they are fun. Just picked a 95 model last month. Faded paint V8 auto.
Posted By: SattyNoCar

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 02/15/15 11:14 PM


Not quite a month has passed since purchase, still happy with my purchase.

The more I drive it, the more its loosening up (in a good way). The tachometer works a majority of the time now (have no idea how accurate it is though), and the heater controls work now too.

I've been slowly fixing problems I knew about, nearing the end of the list, so, hopefully it will be 'just' maintenance items for awhile.

Most recent repair was getting a new rear window installed. Didn't want/need a slider, so, went with a solid window. New window and gasket, plus install, ran me $180.

Next on my 'to do' list is replace the headlights and get the AC working. Oh! On the AC, I didn't realize it was still set up for R12. My old Caravan was a '93 and it was setup for R134 so, I never thought to look more closely on this when I first bought it.

Provided nothing major needs to be replaced, I've been quoted $150 to convert the system. The shop that quoted me put a vacuum on the system, no leaks were found, and the compressor isn't locked up, so, I'm hoping there's no surprises.

Posted By: 318 Stroker

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 03/10/15 10:59 PM

You still wanting a Haynes manual? I've got one you can have for the price of the postage. The truck is gone, so the manual needs to go too.
Posted By: volaredon

Re: Back in a truck again! Bought a Dakota..... - 03/11/15 12:41 AM

Quote:

Quote:

Quote:

Good thing you didn't need the Y pipe, they are right proud of that one! The last one I priced out was $500, IF they could even get one! My 93 Still needs it. Gene



Is this it?
Y pipe





The Y pipe in your link was for a V8 truck. They don't show a Y pipe for a V6. I don't know if, or what the difference is, but when I located a V6 Y pipe it was a different # and was very expensive. I don't know if the V8 pipe will fit the V6. I suppose, at that price, I could buy it and find out. Gene



Screw that/ just have someone run true duals.
© 2024 Moparts Forums