Rear Backing Plates
 

I know that there is an article about this already, but I cannot for the life of me find it. I was wondering if there is anywhere that still makes these backing plates for the first gen, but I've looked on a bunch of different places and nowhere seems to have them. If no one still makes them, is there another truck that has the same fitment?

Thanks in advance.

What are you driving? What size brakes? I *think* the 10" backing plates are still available from various sources......

I've got an 88 with the V6 and 4 wheel drive. The back brakes are the 9" ones currently.

Apparently, dorman still makes 'em...... not sure what their quality is like, but, its a stamped piece of steel, with a lug bolted to it, how hard can those be to make?

How come other people can find this sorta thing so quickly. I looked on autozone, o'rilies, summit, ebay even. Nowhere could I find any. I thank you very much for your help.

My Google-Fu is working well today. :D

Here's another one for your Google-Fu: would you know where I could find 195/75R15 tires that aren't whitewall?? :icon_biggrin: If ya don't want to that's fine. I'd just have to go to something bigger

Them are some tiny tires....... Is that what came stock on your truck? If you want to stick to the same diameter, I would still be tempted to go wider..... Being it's a 4x4, slightly taller wouldn't hurt either. :D

Have them turn whitewalls in.

Or ... locate something like https://www.spellurase.com/products/...tire-paint-pen . Note: Never have used, kind of like the white side walls; but that's a personal taste thing.

Or - as HeyYou suggests, upsize to 205/75R15s or 215/75R15s. For that skinny, they need to be LTs and Load range D (LT205/75R15D or LT215/75R15D).

You can fit a 225/75R15 without any problem; a 235/75R15 might rub at times (and if the shocks aren't great, a severe enough impact may make them bottom out against the inside of the front fenders. Which is one reason why I still plan on putting my KYBs back on, the Rancho ES5000s don't control well enough for highways in Louisiana and Oklahoma.) The 235/75R15 in a XL range (like the Nexen N'Priz tires I'm running now) will support the max weight the Dakota can; but if your factory was 195/75R15, it's not able to support max weight even with a LT/D tire on it.

RwP

Why would you even WANT something that small? I have seen many Dakotas with that as the listed size on the door sticker but have only ever seen 2 tires of that size in my life. On a shelf back when I worked for Sears. and they were heavily dusty. some of the old D 150s had that as the listed size...
I worked at a Dodge dealer back when these trucks were new and even on the cheapest of the bare bones trucks I don't ever remember seeing anything smaller on a Dakota smaller than a 205/75-R15.

I have one for you to think about (and I have seen this often in my years of fixing cars) I had a 1997 Wrangler. I got the original window sticker with it in the glove box when I had that Jeep. The door said "Minimum tire size".... 205/75R15 and even that window sticker said it came new from the factory with 215/75R15s....
I have changed out too many sets of "original" as in the tires the vehicle came with from the assembly line to even try and recount.... and it is quite common for that to be the case where what teh door says is NOT what the vehicle came with. especially it seems most common with Dodge and Jeep......