Well, the truck is back and running well (although it did die two-plus times recently...). The vent shades have been installed and the hitch arrived in the mail. The truck should go into the shop Friday to get that put on.

So now that I have the truck to a good spot, I'd love input as to what modifications I can/should do. Again, I have a '00 Dodge Dakota Sport 4WD Quad-Cab with the 4.7L V-8 on a brand new set of General Grabber AT2 tires.

At this point, I'm up for considering whatever you guys/gals suggest: engine, body, interior, etc. Frilly or not, let me have it.

Note that I'll not be off-roading or anything of the sort (well, I'm not planning on it). The 4WD is primarily, if not exclusively, for getting me up and down the steep and gravel-covered drive up to the house, as well as safe navigation through ice/snow and other weather-related road conditions.

So, on what should I be spending my "truck money" (that I don't have, by the way )?

 

Clean the bed out really good and put some kind of liner in it to protect the metal from rust, because inevitably things you put in there will scratch the paint off.

Since cold weather is arriving you should probably check various things in preparation for winter.
- Drain your old antifreeze, flush your radiator with water until clear water comes out, let that drain out, then re-fill it with clean antifreeze. Look for any excessive rust in the water that may indicate corrosion/damage to your water pump, etc. Also take this opportunity to verify that your heater works fine. Replacing a heater core is a time consuming job, so you'll want to do it now before the weather gets really cold.
- Check all of your fluids (oil, transmission, rear differential, front axle/differential, power steering), and change if required.
- Grease all grease plugs
- Check spark plugs/wires and change if necessary, or at least clean and re-gap if they're only a year old. (Book for mine says to change every two years)
- Check brake pads/shoes and replace as necessary.
- Have battery and alternator checked, because your battery will lose amperage in cold weather and you want to make sure your truck will start reliably.
- Check brake lines to make sure there's no excessive rust. I even paint mine to help prevent rust.
- Wash out your under-carriage really well at a car wash, let it dry, and touch up any rust on the frame/under-carriage with some spray paint to stop it from spreading and to keep road salt from causing more.
- Get some good floor mats to keep mud/snow off your carpeting.
- Get a good can of spray paint to touch up rust spots on the body so they don't spread.
- Check muffler pipes and hangers for any rust holes and plug/repair them as necessary. You may even consider painting your exhaust parts with some high temperature paint to help prevent rust from spreading. Holes in your exhaust will absolutely eat your truck alive with corrosion.
- You might consider getting a sexy steering wheel cover so when it wears out or gets dirty you can either take it off and clean it or just get a new one.

 

You can put the hitch on yourself. If it doesn't come with hardware, just get six 5/8 x 2" grade 8 bolts, washers, and nylock nuts. 3 bolts on each side, very simple to do. Hardest part is holding the hitch up and getting the first 2 bolts in. After that it's a cakewalk.

 

So my new neighbor -- a really great guy, by the way -- suggested I take the hitch to "... Custom Welding." I visit this place and the guy tells me to drop it off in the morning and he'll have it done by dinner.

"It'll take that long?" I respond. "2-3 hours, and that's if everything goes well. Should cost $100 to $150" he says.

Now, I'm no wrenchhead (spelling?), but that, to me, seemed a bit much, in terms of both time and money. And besides: I've moved out in the country and, as has been the case with other things on my property, I figured I best get to learnin' how to do more things on my own.

Now, thanks to your encouragement, magnethead, my son and I just mounted our first hitch together. That Reese hitch (Class III, specific to my 00DD) fit like a glove. And, yeah, it was a heavy lift (I'm not a big guy) to get those two first bolts on. But DANG! It sure felt good to get that done.

So thanks again, magnethead, for what was really the boost I needed to do that myself. I know that for so many on this forum, putting on a hitch would've been a "no-brainer." For us, it was easier than I thought it would be, and I'm so glad my son and I were able to do that together.

Now to get it wired....

P.S. By the way, the money I was going to spend on having that guy put on the hitch I put toward a much-needed 1/2" socket set, combination wrenches and an impact wrench.

 

Sometimes you really don't realize how simple something is until you do it. Luckily, (or unluckily), I can pretty much tell you how to strip a dak down from the firewall forward and from the axle backwards.

As far as wiring, Hoppy makes a plug-in kit for $30 or so that most stores should have or be able to order. It plugs into the factory harness along the rear crossmember behind the spare tire, about 6" from the outer frame rail. 1" square connector on each side. Squeeze to release and plug the hoppy piece in. Comes default as a 4 pin, I added yellow trailer taps and made it a 7+4.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by cber

Clean the bed out really good and put some kind of liner in it to protect the metal from rust, because inevitably things you put in there will scratch the paint off.

Since cold weather is arriving you should probably check various things in preparation for winter.
- Drain your old antifreeze, flush your radiator with water until clear water comes out, let that drain out, then re-fill it with clean antifreeze. Look for any excessive rust in the water that may indicate corrosion/damage to your water pump, etc. Also take this opportunity to verify that your heater works fine. Replacing a heater core is a time consuming job, so you'll want to do it now before the weather gets really cold.
- Check all of your fluids (oil, transmission, rear differential, front axle/differential, power steering), and change if required.
- Grease all grease plugs
- Check spark plugs/wires and change if necessary, or at least clean and re-gap if they're only a year old. (Book for mine says to change every two years)
- Check brake pads/shoes and replace as necessary.
- Have battery and alternator checked, because your battery will lose amperage in cold weather and you want to make sure your truck will start reliably.
- Check brake lines to make sure there's no excessive rust. I even paint mine to help prevent rust.
- Wash out your under-carriage really well at a car wash, let it dry, and touch up any rust on the frame/under-carriage with some spray paint to stop it from spreading and to keep road salt from causing more.
- Get some good floor mats to keep mud/snow off your carpeting.
- Get a good can of spray paint to touch up rust spots on the body so they don't spread.
- Check muffler pipes and hangers for any rust holes and plug/repair them as necessary. You may even consider painting your exhaust parts with some high temperature paint to help prevent rust from spreading. Holes in your exhaust will absolutely eat your truck alive with corrosion.
- You might consider getting a sexy steering wheel cover so when it wears out or gets dirty you can either take it off and clean it or just get a new one.

Great suggestions, cber; thanks.
.
The bed already had a liner in it, so that part is good.

The antifreeze looks good, and I do know the heater is working now.

Transmission fluid was just recently changed, as were the two filters.

Power steering fluid looks good, too.

The differential fluids...I have no idea how to check those or even for what I should be seeing. Help!

Grease plugs? I thought those went the way of the dinosaurs. But then again, this is a 2000, 4WD truck. So exactly where are all the grease plugs?

I'll stop at my local Advance Auto store to have both the battery and alternator checked for free.

Plugs were changed very recently. But the wires? Whatever happened to single plug wires? All I see is wrapped wires (very short ones at that) connected to a wiring harness that looks to go on forever! I'll have to ask my mechanic what he says about the plug wires.

Brakes are good.

I'll check the brake lines for rust. (I have to admit I didn't think of that one.)

Have pressure washer and so I'll clean that undercarriage.

Just picked up some decent floormats a few days ago.

Body is in really good shape, but I did notice one, maybe two, small rust spots. Will got those taken care of promptly.

The exhaust looks pretty clean forward of the muffler. The muffler itself looks a bit worn 'n weary, as does the piping behind it. I think it's good through the winter but I'll revisit the issue once we're done with the winter weather. (Besides, I really wanted to give the truck some "rumble" and so that'll be my excuse. )

A "sexy steering wheel cover"? Who knew?!

Ok, well I've rambled on quite enough.

Now that we've gone with all practical stuff, how about some not-so-necessary add-ons? What "must-have" items should I be getting?

Thanks again, cber.

 

It looks like someone monkeyed with the wiring harness, albeit I don't know for sure what it's supposed to look like, even considering how you described it. I think I'll ask my mechanic what he thinks, as I seem to recall that he made mention of it when we were first looking to buy the truck.

It just looks like someone spliced into the harness, sending single wires over to the tail lights.

Thanks.

 

Let me snap a picture of mine and we can go from there. Definitely sounds...wrong.

Also, check your PM's.

"Anyone that is an expert at something, was once a beginner."

 

Not the best pics. The middle T shaped connectors are the Hoppy part. They go to a 4 pin, which I sloppily tapped off for the 7 pin.

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20140925_195015.jpg

20140925_195041.jpg

 

There's a rubber plug on both diffferentials. Just pry it off and you should be able to feel fluid with your finger, near the top of the opening. If you haven't changed it, it would be a good idea to do it. It's easy.

It didn't have any stock, mine didn't anyways. But check your balljoints, tie rods, u-joints, etc. If they've been replaced they may have fittings.

The 4.7 does not have plug wires. It's coil on plug. You don't have to do anything.