heyas people once i again i look to you all for advice since noone local can seem to help... heres the laundry list...

03 dodge dakota club cab SLT 2wd 4.7 Magnum V8
96k miles.. automatic

when its cold say 50 degree or less i get the check Gauges light on ...once i shut off truck after its warmed up a bit light never comes on again dealer says they cant reproduce code since no code is showing up in the obd...

when backing out of my driveway roughly about 40 ft.. i hear a whine from the steering... fluid is fine and i dont see anything leaking i did the cardboard test under truck and it was clean... scary clean ...

since i just got laid off .. and my truck only has 1800 left to pay on im def going to keep.. but im trying to sort out what are mandatory needs that should be done for maint.

ie i just replaced plugs with oem champions .040 gap old plugs were fine actually buddy of mine thought i was crazy for changing them since they were clean as hell...nothing wrong with all 8.. but im losing MPG atleast 50-60 only thing ive done major with truck is install K&N air fliter.. and tires i run are Yokohama HTS their a bit taller and skinnier then original short fat wide tires that came on truck.. id give sizes but i honestly forget...

is it worth changing o2 sensors or changing the coil packs since i dont have the trad. plug wires? i havent changed the rear gear oil in atleast 50k miles.. money is tight. nor have i done the tranny fluid.. i recently had a water pump go out so me and buddy replaced that with doing a flush of antifreeze fluid..

just trying to sort out what def. necessary and whats really xtra dealer or midas is trying to sell me on... any suggestions greatly appreciated..

if you need further info drop me a reply and ill reedit to maximize the info to make more sense..

thanks,
Schuey LF new JOb in Ohio!

 

maybe try parking it in the garage for a day. that would tell you if the problem is truly temperature related or just because it sat over night. and it wouldn't cost you anything. i would also check your electrical grounds, the gen 2 dakotas and durangos tend to develop bad grounds over time and it causes weird errors. the one inside the cabin that grounds the dash seems to go bad most often, i have seen it first hand on 3 different trucks and im not even a mechanic. just pull the wire, clean up the contacts and put it back.

 

next time you see a code pop up cycle you accessories 3 times and where your odometer is it should show you a code, thats what my truck did, then look up the code on the sticky on this website