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I have a 2000 Dodge Dakota sport with the 3.9L V6 Magnum. I have had it since I was 16 and I am now 19 almost 20. I bought the truck with 93,000ish miles on it and it now has 131,000ish miles. I’m looking to make it a project truck and lower it some, wrap it, do some performance stuff to it, new wheels and tires, and then maybe some interior work. It’s all stock right now and it’s going to be a long process because I’m short on money but I’d like to do it. So I decided to find a place where I can get some advice and help on what to do, where to find parts, and the best order in how to do the things.
First suggestion and the biggest thing, get rid of those antique 5-spoke 15's and go to the 10-spoke 15" or 16" wheel.
You already have front clear corners, that would have been my second suggestion.
I'm in Fort Worth, curious what part of Okieland you are in. Based on the scenery I'm guessing somewhere between Muskogee, Mcalester, and Broken Bow. We race in OKC and Tulsa.
Best source for parts is the Dakota RT Classifieds Group on Facebook. Alex Blosser just raided 3 junkyards on a labor day sale and brought home several trucks worth of parts. Every now and then I'll spend a saturday combing local yards.
A good brake upgrade is the 2003/2004 Dak/Dur front brakes. But they won't clear the 15" wheels, you have to go to 16". It's pretty much a bolt-in affair, but you'll need the 03/04 spindles. I found a truck at the junkyard and unbolted the 4 balljoints and took the whole assembly. Used one to rebuild the other with new parts so I remembered how it all went. The spindles are the same but the calipers and rotors are different for Dak and Dur. Whole project cost about $400 or so, but I have an O'Reilly's business account so factor an extra $40-50 for retail.
Based on what I see through the bumper, you may be due for an AC Condenser or Radiator replacement soon. Those fins look pretty tore up, lucky nothing has cracked yet.
Best options for dropping it would be to score a set of Hotchkiss coils, or a set of factory R/T coils. Drop spindles don't exist, drop control arms used to but have gone nearly unobtainium.
A good commercial vendor for our trucks is Richard Nash at HiPoTek. He's best to get a hold of by email, most of what he sells is built-to-order. My truck is turning into a rolling shop truck for him from across the country LOL. I have a little bit of everything of his.
First suggestion and the biggest thing, get rid of those antique 5-spoke 15's and go to the 10-spoke 15" or 16" wheel.
You already have front clear corners, that would have been my second suggestion.
I'm in Fort Worth, curious what part of Okieland you are in. Based on the scenery I'm guessing somewhere between Muskogee, Mcalester, and Broken Bow. We race in OKC and Tulsa.
Best source for parts is the Dakota RT Classifieds Group on Facebook. Alex Blosser just raided 3 junkyards on a labor day sale and brought home several trucks worth of parts. Every now and then I'll spend a saturday combing local yards.
A good brake upgrade is the 2003/2004 Dak/Dur front brakes. But they won't clear the 15" wheels, you have to go to 16". It's pretty much a bolt-in affair, but you'll need the 03/04 spindles. I found a truck at the junkyard and unbolted the 4 balljoints and took the whole assembly. Used one to rebuild the other with new parts so I remembered how it all went. The spindles are the same but the calipers and rotors are different for Dak and Dur. Whole project cost about $400 or so, but I have an O'Reilly's business account so factor an extra $40-50 for retail.
Based on what I see through the bumper, you may be due for an AC Condenser or Radiator replacement soon. Those fins look pretty tore up, lucky nothing has cracked yet.
Best options for dropping it would be to score a set of Hotchkiss coils, or a set of factory R/T coils. Drop spindles don't exist, drop control arms used to but have gone nearly unobtainium.
A good commercial vendor for our trucks is Richard Nash at HiPoTek. He's best to get a hold of by email, most of what he sells is built-to-order. My truck is turning into a rolling shop truck for him from across the country LOL. I have a little bit of everything of his.
That is a lot and honestly don’t know about half of what you just said. Lol I did just get the radiator fixed because it was over heating. As for being in okieland I’m actually closer to central then I am north eastern. When you said get rid of these wheels and get 10s do you mean 10 spokes? And also that was something I was trying to do find out earlier. With the wheels what sizes could I use? Cause stock is the 15x7 and a lot of places I read was don’t go more then 1-2 over that. So like 17x9 would be the max I could put on it? Also my clear coat is falling on. On my roof I basically have no clear coat left. It has hail damage and a big dent on the hood.
Your body style is my favorite among Dakotas. The 3.9 is bullet proof and is a reliable first generation magnum. It's heritage goes back to 1964 with the LA 273. My advice would to leave the drivetrain alone. A lot of money went into design to make it reliable. 15 inch wheels are getting difficult to find tires for but 16's are still fairly common. I'm partial to black wheels myself and have been running them for 45+ years. If you had round center caps, I'd paint the wheels black but the irregular shape of the center caps will look a bit odd if you leave them natural. I would advise against lowering the truck. You'll compromise the ride and handling. You'll also lose hauling capacity. After all, what if that cute college coed needs help moving herself and her cheerleader friends to a new apartment. If you want to put another radio in it, there's a lot of choices. Just be sure to use the proper adapter kits to mount and wire it up. I've got a Cadillac Escalade that the previous owner installed and then tore out a "system". A year later, I think I've finally fixed all the problems from that.
If it were my truck, I'd go with slightly larger tires and wheels. I'd go black with chrome lug nuts and center caps and raised white letter tires. I'd leave the drive train and suspension stock to preserve functionality. (Remember the cheer leaders!) If you can find some REAL fog lamps with yellow lens and a flat top beam, I'd mount them under the grill. The yellow shows up in white out conditions and the flat top beam actually will do some good rather than the crappy "fog lamps" the factories put on now. A red truck with black wheels will really stand out and POP.
For the interior, I'd leave it mostly alone for function but, some seat covers can really liven the interior up. Currently, you can put three or four cheerleaders in there and you don't want to cut down passenger capacity. Stay with cloth so if they have really short shorts, they don't get stuck to the seats. (See a pattern here! It will come to be associated with you, don't annoy the pretty gals.) One custom touch I'd add would be some ambient lighting. I got the Cadillac in a trade for a '97 BMW 528i sedan I had. That car had two little bitty red lamps in the head liner over the center console. When the headlights were on, they gave a very slight red glow on the console. If I reached for something, there was enough light to find my drink or snack and put it back but not so much to destroy my night vision. See if you can find a Beemer in the bone yard. The lights are little red dots in the overhead.
Last edited by ol' grouch; Sep 7, 2019 at 10:59 AM.
Reason: I kant spel wurth a durn.
Your body style is my favorite among Dakotas. The 3.9 is bullet proof and is a reliable first generation magnum. It's heritage goes back to 1964 with the LA 273. My advice would to leave the drivetrain alone. A lot of money went into design to make it reliable. 15 inch wheels are getting difficult to find tires for but 16's are still fairly common. I'm partial to black wheels myself and have been running them for 45+ years. If you had round center caps, I'd paint the wheels black but the irregular shape of the center caps will look a bit odd if you leave them natural. I would advise against lowering the truck. You'll compromise the ride and handling. You'll also lose hauling capacity. After all, what if that cute college coed needs help moving herself and her cheerleader friends to a new apartment. If you want to put another radio in it, there's a lot of choices. Just be sure to use the proper adapter kits to mount and wire it up. I've got a Cadillac Escalade that the previous owner installed and then tore out a "system". A year later, I think I've finally fixed all the problems from that.
If it were my truck, I'd go with slightly larger tires and wheels. I'd go black with chrome lug nuts and center caps and raised white letter tires. I'd leave the drive train and suspension stock to preserve functionality. (Remember the cheer leaders!) If you can find some REAL fog lamps with yellow lens and a flat top beam, I'd mount them under the grill. The yellow shows up in white out conditions and the flat top beam actually will do some good rather than the crappy "fog lamps" the factories put on now. A red truck with black wheels will really stand out and POP.
For the interior, I'd leave it mostly alone for function but, some seat covers can really liven the interior up. Currently, you can put three or four cheerleaders in there and you don't want to cut down passenger capacity. Stay with cloth so if they have really short shorts, they don't get stuck to the seats. (See a pattern here! It will come to be associated with you, don't annoy the pretty gals.) One custom touch I'd add would be some ambient lighting. I got the Cadillac in a trade for a '97 BMW 528i sedan I had. That car had two little bitty red lamps in the head liner over the center console. When the headlights were on, they gave a very slight red glow on the console. If I reached for something, there was enough light to find my drink or snack and put it back but not so much to destroy my night vision. See if you can find a Beemer in the bone yard. The lights are little red dots in the overhead.
The issue with that is I plan on wrapping it. And as for lowering and interior stuff I can’t fit anyone in the backseat anyways because I have my two subs back there. As for the whole college and gals deal I have me a gal that we have been dating for almost a year but have known each other since we were like 2 years old and I’m not in college. 🤪 I went straight to work as a machinist and hopefully soon welder. I never tow anything so towing won’t be an issue. I’d like to get aftermarket rims at some point and not just paint the stock ones. And I’d like it to be alittle faster.
Stock options were the 5-spoke 15x7 you have (base model), 10-spoke 15x8 (base upgrade), 10-spoke 16x8 (SLT), and 10-spoke 17x9 (R/T). The 10-spoke 16x8 would be your most future-proof option. You can also fit viper wheels (18x11 and 19x13 iirc) using 1.5"-2" spacers, but it doesn't sound like you are the type to plunge the $2,000/set plus tires that is the current going rate.
The hotchkis or factory R/T springs will be your best route in the front. The back is lowered using a 1" block.
Stock options were the 5-spoke 15x7 you have (base model), 10-spoke 15x8 (base upgrade), 10-spoke 16x8 (SLT), and 10-spoke 17x9 (R/T). The 10-spoke 16x8 would be your most future-proof option. You can also fit viper wheels (18x11 and 19x13 iirc) using 1.5"-2" spacers, but it doesn't sound like you are the type to plunge the $2,000/set plus tires that is the current going rate.
The hotchkis or factory R/T springs will be your best route in the front. The back is lowered using a 1" block.
So what would be the best place to start for this project? Would it be performance? Wheels and tires? Suspension? Wrap?
Your body style is my favorite among Dakotas. The 3.9 is bullet proof and is a reliable first generation magnum. It's heritage goes back to 1964 with the LA 273. My advice would to leave the drivetrain alone. A lot of money went into design to make it reliable. 15 inch wheels are getting difficult to find tires for but 16's are still fairly common. I'm partial to black wheels myself and have been running them for 45+ years. If you had round center caps, I'd paint the wheels black but the irregular shape of the center caps will look a bit odd if you leave them natural. I would advise against lowering the truck. You'll compromise the ride and handling. You'll also lose hauling capacity. After all, what if that cute college coed needs help moving herself and her cheerleader friends to a new apartment. If you want to put another radio in it, there's a lot of choices. Just be sure to use the proper adapter kits to mount and wire it up. I've got a Cadillac Escalade that the previous owner installed and then tore out a "system". A year later, I think I've finally fixed all the problems from that.
If it were my truck, I'd go with slightly larger tires and wheels. I'd go black with chrome lug nuts and center caps and raised white letter tires. I'd leave the drive train and suspension stock to preserve functionality. (Remember the cheer leaders!) If you can find some REAL fog lamps with yellow lens and a flat top beam, I'd mount them under the grill. The yellow shows up in white out conditions and the flat top beam actually will do some good rather than the crappy "fog lamps" the factories put on now. A red truck with black wheels will really stand out and POP.
For the interior, I'd leave it mostly alone for function but, some seat covers can really liven the interior up. Currently, you can put three or four cheerleaders in there and you don't want to cut down passenger capacity. Stay with cloth so if they have really short shorts, they don't get stuck to the seats. (See a pattern here! It will come to be associated with you, don't annoy the pretty gals.) One custom touch I'd add would be some ambient lighting. I got the Cadillac in a trade for a '97 BMW 528i sedan I had. That car had two little bitty red lamps in the head liner over the center console. When the headlights were on, they gave a very slight red glow on the console. If I reached for something, there was enough light to find my drink or snack and put it back but not so much to destroy my night vision. See if you can find a Beemer in the bone yard. The lights are little red dots in the overhead.
For my sound system I have had this head unit in the truck since I got it. The stock one was just a tape and am/fm radio.
All the door speakers are stock as far as I know unless the guy before had upgraded them. I have two 10 inch subs in the back seat. One is a kicker comp s and the other is a digital design. They are powered by a dual 1200 watt amp.
As for lighting in the truck I have four led light strips. I have two in the front and two in the back. Here is the picture of the one on my driver side.
Unfortunately, you only have 6 cylinders to play with. You might be able to squeeze a little more out, but the 3.9 was a bread and butter engine. Reliable, but not a major powerhouse. I'm always leery of modifying the stock suspension. The manufacturers hire people with lots of letters after their names and pay them a LOT of money to design suspensions. For every one that's been improved by a modification, I've seen 6 or 7 that ruined the vehicles ride and handling. I've seen guys take a saw and cut one coil off springs to lower a vehicle. The most extreme I've ever seen the guy really slammed it. Then his front sub frame caught the lip of a man hole cover. Two black eyes, a broken arm, a broken nose and totaled car. As for the subs, be careful or you'll end up like me with an 80% hearing loss in one ear.
Unfortunately, you only have 6 cylinders to play with. You might be able to squeeze a little more out, but the 3.9 was a bread and butter engine. Reliable, but not a major powerhouse. I'm always leery of modifying the stock suspension. The manufacturers hire people with lots of letters after their names and pay them a LOT of money to design suspensions. For every one that's been improved by a modification, I've seen 6 or 7 that ruined the vehicles ride and handling. I've seen guys take a saw and cut one coil off springs to lower a vehicle. The most extreme I've ever seen the guy really slammed it. Then his front sub frame caught the lip of a man hole cover. Two black eyes, a broken arm, a broken nose and totaled car. As for the subs, be careful or you'll end up like me with an 80% hearing loss in one ear.
Yeah I know there are risks to lowering it but I wouldn’t lower it a bunch. I would just lower it maybe 2-3 inches. As for the subs yeah I know I just wanted a set before I get married and start having kids cause my girlfriend already said that once we are married and have kids they are gone. Lol
New to forums and looking for advice.
If you want to put another radio in it, there's a lot of choices. Just be sure to use the proper adapter kits to mount and wire it up. I've got a Cadillac Escalade that the previous owner installed and then tore out a "system". A year later, I think I've finally fixed all the problems from that.
