I just want to know, How does a dodge compare to chevy or ford.
I am looking to get a newer truckie, But have never owned a dodge
product. I have been a first on race day (ford) owner. I have a 77 chevy
now. It's a very nice truck. But a chitty gas aholic at the same time.
Yes I have sent it to gas aholics anon, But no results. 2 MPG around
town AIN'T gonna cut it! Any how, I am looking at a dodge Dakota
it's a 99 model, 4x4 extra cab silly tonnau cover and all. The price ain't
an issue. I would like to know how dependable they are. Also considering
a dodge full size 1/2 ton with 64,000 on it. It's a 2001. Also wanna know
how dependable this truck would be. Thank you for reading!

 

Welcome to DF John. I am gonna move this to the 2nd Gen Dakota Section and make a copy to the 2nd Gen Ram Section to get some feedback for ya!

 

Dodge's are great trucks! They have good points and bad just like any truck. I'll try to summarize what I know.

Good points:
-tough as nails truck. Loves to be beat on.
-solid front axle in a 1/2 ton. Just a must. IFS? Only in a baha.
-magnum engines are torque monsters and produce most of their power down low.
-best looking body style (in my opinion)
-manual tranfer case
-V8 in a small pickup (Dakota)

Bad points:
-gas mileage aint great (10MPG low side to about 17 high side if your lucky)
-engines are underpowered in any gear except 1st and maybe 2nd
-craptastic auto trannies
-manual tranny not offered with the 5.9L magnum in the 1/2 ton
-plenum gasket blows (there's a perm-a-fix kit though)
-unless every steering component is in perfect working order, you'll be hearding the truck down the road instead of driving it
-crack-prone dashboard

I think that's about it. I like my Dodge. I've fixed a lot of things on it, but still like it.

 

1-3. I have the 5.2 5 speed and love it, decent power and I don't have to deal with the stock automatic, plus I love driving standard. A 5.9 with a standard would be nice though.
4. My truck had 3 bad balljoints and a few bad tie rod ends when I got it, but it still drove great.
5. Pre 98 (i think) without a passenger airbag do not seem to have this problem.

Gord

 

Well a dodge is neither a chevy nor a ford, but speaking for myself I only know of two types of cars: American, and foreign.
The dodge is an American car.

 

YOU CAN'T KILL A DODGE THAT'S FOR SURE!!!!!!

 

Thats funny. Mine was made in Sallito, Mexico.

But those ******** can make a damn good truck!!

 

1-3: I hate my auto. Want a stick so badly. I'm planinning a NV4500 swap in.......in due time.
4: I've replaced my uppers, replaced the driver's side tie rod end, lukes linked the rest (including track bar) and my truck STILL wanders. I have a bad steering gear that's casuing the slop and wandering.
5: They had the problem too.

 

Just got my 2000 not too long ago. Im in love with the truck now. Gas mileage insnt really bad IMO. I did calculate my gas mileage one time and i was getting 19MPG!

There's a MPG thread here in these forums. Go check it out to see what other people are getting if your worried about it. I did notice one thing about my truck. Its in need of a new TPS (Throttle position sensor) No big deal. Just two screws to replace. (peice of cake to replace) Thats the only thing ive had problems with. And its got 158,000 miles on it. Damn good truck!

 

my trucks a 99 with 224,000 miles on it. my buddy in his 02 f-150 kept talkin sh*t about my truck sayin it was gonna blow up going down the road...then his motor blew....at 124k. it was oh so gratifying. I'm not big on the ford trucks but i do like the expeditions. i had a 99 with 207k miles on it and drove like a champ but i traded it in for a newer one. I think you should consider ford and dodge...chevy blows, i hear nothing but bad things