Hey everybody.

I just purchased a 94 SLT V6 RWD today, and so far I'm pretty happy with it. It's extremely clean; other than the front fenders near the bumper there is minimal rot anywhere. Interior is also spotless, other than a small tear on the vinyl side/edge of the seat. I've been looking for a very cheap truck for a while to do general truck things, but this is my first truck and to be honest I'm pretty clueless about trucks; I've been into cars my whole life, not trucks. Is this a crew cab? Or extended cab? What is the difference?

Here are some photos:









So far I have noticed it has a couple issues:

- Fuel gauge seems to be inop. It reads 1/8 tank, I filled it up and it still reads 1/8 tank.

- Battery voltage gauge is also not working, the needle is far, far to the left and doesn't move.

- I noticed one of the bands on the rear leaf springs has corroded enough to have broken.

Apart from these issues, I'm feeling fairly good about this thing so far. It looks like it was garaged most of it's life, the paint is very nice, the interior is fantastic, even the A/C works. As far as plans, I am going to polish it and apply some sealant (Klasse), as unfortunately, it will now be residing outside. I will not, however, be driving it in salt if I decide to keep it that long.

Everything under the hood is clean in general. I found the original owners manual and all related literature down to the inspection sheet in the glovebox. The jack looks like it has never been used at all. So far most of my friends have been busting my ***** that the transmission is going to blow up, but when I checked out the vehicle the oil and ATF both looked very very clean.

Is there something I can do to help the transmission stay alive? Other than changing the fluid? I'm not going to be towing so I doubt I need a cooler.

Also, are there any super common pitfalls that can be avoided easily? I read the FAQ already, but didn't see anything about preventative issues.

Cheers!

 

Extended cab; a Crew Cab has four doors.

Fuel Gauge is a common failure; the sending unit fails on these, and for a 1994, I THINK you can buy just that, although since you get to pull the fuel pump assembly, I'd consider just replacing the whole thing with a Mopar pump assembly.

The gauge is a single unit; any voltmeter from 1987 to 1996 should drop right in, although the entire cluster might not swap.

I'd get a spring shop to check those bands; also have them check the rear springs.

Keep the transmission fluid and filter changed, and if it has adjustable bands, get them taken care of. I just had mine rebuilt at 355,000+ miles; that gives you a hint how long they CAN last *grins*

I'd also go ahead and put on a cooler; within reason, cooler is better on an automatic. If "too cool" is a problem, run the fluid through the external cooler, then through the radiator's cooler.

Let's see - keep the front suspension in good repair; the ball joints can fail on these, but they will typically let you know by getting loose first.

The engines have a ongoing problem with the plenum gasket; there's a repair kit that replaces the steel plenum plate with an aluminum one, so the gasket will last longer (the intake is mostly aluminum, the lower plate being steel, it expands and contracts differently and literally rips the gasket apart. Maybe in 10,000 miles, maybe in 250,000, but it's a poor material choice in any case.)

Anything else is basic what you'd do to ANY vehicle this old.

RwP

 

Update: Loving this truck so far. It's slow as ****, but it's been reliable, comfortable, and gets about 21mpg. The leaf spring bands have sort of disintegrated and I called around but nobody knows where to get new leaf spring clamps for it.

Regarding the gauges, the FUEL gauge, oil pressure, and voltmeter gauges are all dead. My coolant gauge works.

Would this mean there's a problem with the cluster?

 

So what did you pay? I wouldn't say it has minimal rot if a leaf spring shackle has broken from corrosion. You probably just cannot see the rot that is hiding.

Check the wires connection to the oil pressure sending unit, if that doesn't work replace it. You may need a special socket for it. The sensor is under $20 I think the socket is about the same. IDK about volt meter but checking the wiring is where I would start. And the FAQ page has some solutions for the gas gauge problem. Once you know there is no problem with those things then you can suspect the cluster.

 

he didn't say a SHACKLE was bad... just the bands that hold the leaves together. those never did last very long. I had issues with the oil pressure gauge on my 96 and my gas gauge and in both cases the sending units were bad, I did swap out a cluster for test purposes when I got it... same gauges were dead in test cluster and I knew they worked in truck that the cluster came from...
Dakotas and gas gauge issues go together like pizza and beer..... very typical. Thats why they all came with trip odometers that can be reset..... I put 3 sending units in my 93, just for the inop gas gauge, all worked "for a while" after install. My 92's gas gauge never did work, fuel pump died on me so I replaced it, gas gauge is dead with replacement too so I just use the trip meter as my gas gauge.

 

Great looking truck! Another guy with a bad fuel gauge here. Mine reads full when I fill it but after driving for a while it bounces all over the place. Unfortunately I don't really have advice for you about the multiple gauges not working.

 

my 96 did that, new gauge/fuel pump assy solved that one.
my 92 "kinda" worked, now says empty all the time, that one I had to put black tape over the "low fuel" lite, it now stays on constant, lined up the mark on pump with mark on tank like I do all of them, I think I might have to twist pump, I think float might be somehow bound up... got that one from Useless Zone, if I gotta go in tank again I might take advantage of lifetime warranty... put 3 pumps in my old 93 solely for gas gauge, when 3rd one died I said "screw it".... but one thing with that truck was that even though the gauge showed nothing the low fuel lite was dead nuts reliable, when it came on I knew that if I filled it up "right then", it would take 15-1/2 to 16 gallons, on a 22 gallon tank. (so I then knew how far I could go before the level was "critical" with that lite on...

 

I ordered a fuel pump to fix the gauge. $68 on rock auto.

I feel a bit lost though. I like the SIZE of this truck. Rangers and S10s are too small, and Rams and F150s are way too large.

However, being in the midwest, I would prefer 4x4 for winter use. I've actually never had RWD in the winter before; I'm sure it'd be fine just to drive around, but if I wanted to tow a snowmobile trailer or something, 4x4 would most likely be required.

It's also literally the slowest car I've ever owned, I think. I'm pretty sure my classic mini with 38hp was faster than this dakota. It's so slow I'm actually not even sure how it is that slow, since it weighs 3500lbs and has 200hp. I've driven other cars with worse power/weight ratios, and they all seemed to be faster. So I kind of want a V8.

So now I'm looking at 4x4 V8 Dakotas, but none of them are remotely as clean as this one. I can pick up rotten 4x4 dakotas for under $1000, but swapping everything seems fairly obnoxious, as you need to find a similar year (magnum to magnum swap).

Bleh. Then I think about selling it and just getting something else, but I don't really like any of the newer dakotas, and I don't really like any of the other trucks to be honest.

 

175 horsepower. They're not fast at all, no, but I think there is something wrong with yours if it is really THAT slow. With the Magnum engine (+50 hp over the LA V6 motor 3 years prior) you should have enough get-up even with an auto.

The V6 to V8 engine swaps are perhaps the easiest and least obnoxious swaps ever. Magnums are not that hard to find. I have a 318 sitting in my garage waiting for me to have some spare money for a rebuild, but you can find running 318s in Daks, Rams, vans, ambulances, boats (okay the marine motors won't work but the point is 318s are everywhere and cheap).

 

When I am in snow country I usually add a bale of hay or two to the bed for weight. Neutral is your friend when stopping in rwd.