i have 1998 dodge dakota sport 4x4. its a v8 with AC. i cannot figutre out why my temperature will not exceed 190 degrees. ive replaced the thermostat, filled the antifreeze the water levels are full, ive flushed the system, checked the fans to be sure they are working properly. i also made sure the control/floor/and defrost settings are all working. its getting colder outside and i need any ideas you may be able to offer on why my heat isnt working properly!! thanks in advance

 

dont know if it will help much but you could try blockin half of your radiator with a piece of card board.

 

You probably have a clogged heater core, it is a pretty common problem on Dakota's. You need to flush the heater core out, they get clogged up with gelled coolant and other nasty gunk over time. It is a pretty simple procedure, all you do is disconnect the heater hoses from the water pump and thermostat housing and direct one of the hoses into a 5-gallon bucket, use a water hose in the other hose and flush out the heater core. You should see a bunch of nasty crap flushed out into the bucket. Flush in one direction for a few minutes and then reverse the hoses to flush in the opposite direction for a few minutes to clean out the heater core. Don't turn on the water hose with too much force, use just enough water pressure to force all the crap out of the heater core. Then just refill the radiator and cooling system with the right mix of antifreeze and distilled water. There are probably more detailed posts here on how to flush out the heater core, but a lot of guys here have had this exact same problem.

Jimmy