1972 Dodge D100 Custom 225 Slant 6

Summary:

A good, solid truck

Faults:

I just rebuilt the engine for the second time (read general comments).

The frame rail cracked because I installed stupidly large tires.

General Comments:

I bought this truck in high school and drove the odometer up to 140,000 miles. The rings were worn so I rebuilt the motor, then sold it a year later when I got married because my wife hated it.

A year ago (25 years later) I found it for sale on a corner with 230,000 miles on it. It had been through 4 owners since I owned it the first time. The engine was tired so I just finished the second rebuilt on the old slant six.

I'm tickled to have my first truck back, and even more tickled to be without my first wife.

It's a big, old, rattly truck. It gets decent gas mileage, and has always been a dependable workhorse.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 2nd April, 2004

1972 Dodge D100 Long Bed Stepside 360 2-bbl

Summary:

This truck will eat you alive at the gas pump!

Faults:

- Starter solenoid

- "Park" on transmission

- Oil sending unit

- Rusted floorboards

- Carburettor

- Radio

- Wooden bed slats rotted

- Myriad electrical gremlins

- Speedo/odo never worked

General Comments:

I had this truck when I turned 16. I bought it for $600 and drove it until the gas prices ate me alive. It got a whopping 6-8 miles/US gallon, and gas prices in my area were $1.50/gallon at the time. My girlfriend was embarrassed to be seen in it, it was a particularly putrid shade of green.

I traded it for an '80 Datsun 310GX (Sunny) that got 35mpg.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 14th June, 2000

9th May 2001, 22:40

D100s run forever if you don't neglect them. Sheesh.

11th Oct 2001, 18:40

There are many things you can do to an engine to improve gas mileage. And there are many body shops where looks can be improved. A 28 yr. old truck can't be expected to look and act like a new one. I would say for $600, that truck was a steal. I'm sure there are a lot of Mopar people who would pay that for the engine.

21st Jan 2003, 01:18

$600 is a very good price for that truck. 6-8 mpg? Did you ever do a tune-up on the thing? It should've gotten better mileage than that.

28th Oct 2005, 15:53

Even with a 360 in a big 4x4, it should have been possible to get 12-15 mpg. However, it does require a committed maintenance program to achieve this, staying current on tune-ups, filters, and oil changes. Given a choice between the MoPar and the girlfriend...well, sorry Baby!

17th Jun 2019, 19:38

To keep the gas mileage up, you should try to get a catalytic converter on there. Maybe check to see if there is a crack in the engine. Also a lot of the problems you listed are easy to prevent if you take care of the truck.

18th Jun 2019, 17:25

Put a catalytic converter on a 1972 vehicle? Yeah --- sounds like a great idea! Too bad --- the reviewer traded it for a Datsun 28 years ago!

18th Jun 2019, 19:56

Installing a catalytic converter on an engine or fuel system that wasn't designed to have one in the first place is only going to make things worse.