Glad to hear it hauls ***.......A 5 speed should haul even more ***

 

i have the same truck but a year newer...its been good to me so far but i have only had it for about 3 months. havent done anything to itexcept an oil change and atune up (autolite 3923 plugs, a good brass dist cap, and an air filter). i did re-route the pipe from the airbox and made it go out the grill, sort of a ram air thing, that added alot for me. still want to do the exhaust and get a tonneau and maybe a TB...thats about it. the bottom end is pretty quick, i dont alot of acceleration at medium rpm's tho. overall, i get around 17 mpg and drive about 60/40 hwy/city. i am hoping i get better after a tonneau is installed.

 

I have a 98 club cab 4x4 sport that I bought off a friend who bought it brand new and it has been a great truck. With it's age and mileage the brake system has needed a complete overhaul which is normal for a 10 year old truck. I have replaced all the lines, calipers, rotors, drums, etc... I have also had to replace the fuel filler neck because the original rotted out. (Ohio winters suck lol) Watch out for play in the U-joints in the intermediate steering shaft (between gearbox and the steering wheel)...they tend to get a bit loose with age. Other than that everything has been normal wear and tear items. Mine has about 153,000 miles and it still runs with the best of them and it's very quick for a small V8. The engine has never been opened up for any repairs and the trans(auto) has never given any problems either. The truck was used like a truck should be too...towing, hauling, etc...even a little light off-roading during hunting season. Other than the issues listed above there aren't many common problems with these trucks. I honestly think this is the best truck I've owned. I've always been impressed with the handling compared to other 4x4 trucks I've driven/owned. I would say I get around 17-19mpg average but I don't check it that often. I drive mainly on country roads and highways with only about 20% city driving. I haven't had any experience with the 5 speed manual but from what I understand it is more durable than the automatics.

 

This is all sounding really good..........I may enter the Dakota world pretty soon