hey guys/gals. i've recently decided that i need a truck for the winter, after my car slid into a curb and broke the rim, and possibly damaged suspension and transmission components, and i'm currently thinking of a 1992 dakota 4x4 club cab with a standard transmission, so V6?


and i was wondering what things i should watch for when buying a 1st gen dakota in terms of quality and driveability, as well as possible risk factors in terms of parts that tend to go bad on these trucks, i've read reviews and heard basically nothing but good things, but i'd like to know what i could be getting myself into if i don't know what to watch out for, thanks in advance for the help,

Tim, from Canada

 

Clicking from cv axles in the front end. tranny; Make sure the overdrive works. Delayed shifting/ hard shifting. burnt tranny fluid. make sure the 4x4 works. listen for engine ticks and rattles.

 

See if there is a shop by you that does a " buyers inspection." It doesnt / should'nt cost that much, and you have a good idea of what you will need to put into the truck, and can haggle the price. Also, if the seller say's no to the idea, you probably don't want it anyway. We have saved a lot of people from wasting a lot of money doing this at work.

 

well i did talk the guy down to $700 CDN from $1000 CDN, so im hoping for basically, that it's a bit of a beater, but runs good, and if it lasts me long enough, perhaps i'll debate about playin around with it a bit, maybe a v8 swap and a few other things, grab a few battle scars, know what i mean? LOL

though my worry is, as far as i know, it's approaching 400k i think, so any heads up on high mileage issues as well?

 

400, wow! Is there any burning oil or piston noise? Hows the balljoints?

 

i have yet to see, i'm going to look at the truck tomorrow morning, and if it turns out to be in decent enough shape, there shall be a few more pictures in the roll call section, but for now, i'll satisfy that thread with a picture of my current car when i got stuck on the way to work, LOL



and if anyone thinks of anything else i should look for as well as what's already been listed, please enlighten me