1991 Dodge Dakota

Summary:

The truck SUCKS, I'll never buy a Dodge again!!!

Faults:

July 1998 - transmission blew $1,400 to fix.

September 1998 - whole rear end went out, $2,000 to fix and still paying on it.

October 1999 - bearing on the rear end went out, covered by warranty.

January 2001 - whole rear end went out again. Don't know the cost yet this time.

Meanwhile numerous small things broke down (to many to mention). Above all, to make things worse, when we had to find the parts to fix it with they were hard to find plus they cost more than any other vehicle brand in comparision.

General Comments:

Comfort is the only good feature.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 18th January, 2001

13th Mar 2001, 10:42

You don't know a thing about your Dodge, You failed to mention if you took proper care of the dodge or not. Don't go knockin on Dodges when you don't know what you are talking about. I have a 1999 Dakota and it is the best truck I have ever owned, because I take care of it.

1991 Dodge Dakota 3.9 Liter V6

Summary:

A fun, moderate-expense truck to drive

Faults:

Trans has gone twice while pulling a boat within the towing limit, air conditioner keeps dying, not good at towing heavy things, like a truck should.

General Comments:

If you are not gonna tow anything pretty close to the limit, it is a great truck. It accelerates pretty quickly for a truck, and it is a comfortable ride. You can easily add new things to the 1991 Dodge also. Just about everything is interchangable. With tinted windows, and big tires, I can go anywhere in style.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 27th July, 2000

1991 Dodge Dakota LE 4x4 5.2 Gas

Summary:

After nine years I still look back at my truck when I leave it, it still gets the looks

Faults:

My Dakota is used hard because I am in a wheelchair. I like to hunt and fish in the Alberta outdoors. My major compaint is that from day one of owning my 5.2 litre automatic 4x4, I have had problems with my transmission. If I back my truck into the driveway I always have to put the truck into reverse when I go to leave in a forward direction again. That is, if after backing my truck up, when I want to use the truck again I cannot do so without either giving a lot of gas whereby a loud clank is heard followed by a lunge forward, or quickly putting the gear shift in reverse. The problem was never existed during the warranty coverage and I have since replaced the transfer case as well as numerous U-joints.

Other than replacing seven different outer and inner drive axles in the front end and replacing both the front and rear differentials, I have not experienced any engine problems. I fully expect the 5.2 liter to outlast the whole truck as it is my opinion that the engine is way too heavy for the rest of the truck.

General Comments:

I first bought a 1990 Dakota Sport and wanted the 318 when it came out. The major downfall despite going well below the speed limit is the fuel economy.

The truck is well maintained but has been equipped with custom bumpers, winch and also has a headache rack.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 7th July, 2000

7th Oct 2010, 02:44

I own a 1991 Dodge Dakota 4x4. It's the only truck I ever put 300,000 miles on and still goes wherever I want it to.

I put Dodge Durango rims with bigger tires and it's a mudder, yeah I had my ups and downs with it, tranny problems, computer, distributor problems. But I'll always keep the old truck, my son will get it in 2011, and he will drive the wheels off it.

Boy I'm going to miss that old truck, LOL.

1991 Dodge Dakota 3.9L V6

Faults:

Bought the truck brand new. Spark knocking started at 9K miles. Now has 112K miles and still knocking. Can't recall all the visits to the dealer and parts replaced. Should have considered lemon law.

Transmission was replaced at 23K miles. $100 deductible.

General Comments:

Kick myself for not getting the V8. V6 has been a real dog. Gas mileage is 16-17 mpg. I get better gas mileage in my wife's Impala SS. Wish I could swap engines :) May consider lowering rear end ratio.

On the plus side, I do love the size of the truck. Long bed has been used several times. Trucks with smaller beds never would have fit.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 7th February, 1999

10th Oct 2005, 13:09

I'm a big Dodge fan and I'll have to agree with the purchase of the 3.9 V-6. I did some research up front and knew I wanted to get the 318. From what I read the 3.9 V-6 does not get much better mileage and it lacks in power. I haven't owned one, just read into it. I think if you have one of the lighter short-box Dakota's you'd be OK. I just attained a LE 4x4 with a V-8. Now the fun begins!!

1st Jun 2007, 07:33

I don't know about you, but I own a 1992 Dakota 4x4 with the V6 and it gets the 16-17 mpg as stated in this review, and frankly, I'm tickled with that. I had a 1990 Jeep Cherokee 4.0L that got 11 mpg in town. 16-17 mpg is excellent for a 4x4 truck. And the V6 does get better than the V8, which normally, all depending on how its driven, gets around 13-14 mpg.

1991 Dodge Dakota LE 5.6l

Faults:

Only routine maintenance has needed done on major systems. Currently the gas gauge and trip meter are touchy, but are still working if you know the combination. The truck bed rattles some which could probably be easily repaired if I would invest the money. I just recently turned 70,000 miles.

General Comments:

I bought this truck with 9,000 miles on it, as a factory buyback. It is the closest thing I have ever had to a "New" vehicle. It has all the goodies a gentlewoman farmer could want. It was purchased to pull a horse trailer and it has performed beyond my expectations although it has not been used hard.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 16th June, 1998

19th Jan 2003, 00:00

Know what you got! 5.6 is not an engine ever offered by anyone that I know of. My 5.9 runs awesome.