I'm looking at a 2000 Dodge Dakota Quad Cab, 4.7 Liter V8, tow package, basic everything with 242,000 miles on it for $5300.

Owner says it has had regular maintenance. Recently replaced
Shocks, Inner Tie rod ends and sockets on rack and pinion, Adjusted thrust angle aliment, Cam sensor, Cold air intake and the transmission has been serviced recently. Paint and interior looks good.

I'm going to get a CarFax report on it and will request records of maintenance on the stuff stated above.

KBB.com says prices it more in the $3200-$3500 range, so I'm going to try to talk him down.

Should I even bother with the mileage being that high? Or is it good as long as the maintenance was done?

I haven't seen it in person yet, but am trying to decide if it's even worth the test drive.

 

Welcome to the forum. I moved your post into a new thread.

2 or 4 wheel drive? Seriously, the price sounds high unless it was in "mint" condition. The mileage hurts the price.

One concern, the timing set calls for an inspection at 250k.

The rest of it depends upon how it looks. Is there a lot of rust? Check the rear shackles, they can rust out, also check the cab mounts.

Don't rely on CarFax. It only helps if an issue was reported. On a 15 year old truck it probably doesn't have everything.

The shocks/tie rod ends are normal wear items, an alignment is to be expected after the tie rod ends were replaced. Cam sensor, OK, it can fail. Define "serviced" on the transmission.

If it has an LSD, when was the last time it was serviced?

Check out oil change records? That's more a concern on the 4.7. There isn't much else to do to it. Ask if it ever overheated - heads can warp.

If the truck looks clean and you can get them down on the price it doesn't sound bad.

 

You sound like me when I was buying mine. Almost same mileage... I paid a fraction of the price above though, and mine is 03'. Wouldn't have bought it if it didn't come cheap.

https://dodgeforum.com/forum/2nd-gen...0k-dakota.html

So far it's been a pretty solid truck. I have no regrets.

Take along a code scanner and scan it for any codes. Also bring along an old blanket or some cardboard. Run one side up on a curb, get under it and check for leaks.

 

No need for the scanner, do the key dance. With the truck NOT running, turn the key to RUN, then OFF, back to RUN, then off again, this time leave it in RUN. Any codes will display in the odometer window. It'll say P DONE when finished.

There was a ball joint recall. Have they ever been changed?

 

Honestly if he doesnt have receipts to show the work that was done dont take his word.. Engine and tranny are gonna be the biggest concerns. Personally at this mileage I would wanna test compression. Passenger side heads are known to warp. For the tranny nothing you can really do except pull the pan... Just have to take it out and get it hot and drive it like you stole it. That price is too high.. I bought my 98 dakota in 07 with 73k on it granted it was a ext cab but was an slt 4wd v8 and I paid 5,700 for it. I wouldnt pay anything over 4k for it.

 

You could say you want to take it in to a shop
for an inspection to be done and see what he says to that.
I did that once and the guy freaked out and said no and told
me F off.

 

$3200-$3500 tops


That thing has lots of miles on it offer $3200

 

Thanks for all of the responses, guys.

It's 4x4. LSD? Only thing that he says needs to be changed is the cooling fan clutch, but that's nothing too hard to fix.

My plan is to check it out this weekend, do a decent test drive then give my wife and I a day or two to talk it over. Then work out the price under the condition they drop it off at the dealer for an inspection first. (Don't wanna waste the money on the inspection if they are too stubborn to budge on the price). If i like it and everything checks out OK I'll start out at $3000 and then work up from there. My wife's only letting me spend $3500, so not much room for negotiations .

I've seen two other Dakotas on Craigslist with about 75k miles less for $6500, so this one is definitely overpriced.

 

LSD, limited slip differential. There should be a tag on the differential cover - if you can read it. There may be a build sheet in the glove box, it should say: DSA. That's differential, anti-spin.

 

Oh, ok. So would it say either LSD or DSA? What exactly am I looking for on the sticker/diagram?

Any idea on a ballpark range how much that would cost if it hasn't been done yet?