1992 Dodge Dakota LE club cab 3.9 magnum from North America

Summary:

This is one pretty good Dodge truck

Faults:

Replace radiator, lower joints, clutch, repaint cab of truck due to paint peel, had the fuse connector in the fire wall replaced due to corrosion, misc exhausts, rotors, brake pads & brake lines.

General Comments:

This has been a very good vehicle, never owned a truck for as long as this one. It is a very good mid-size vehicle for towing the toys around. Also very good vehicle for the winters here in NH.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 10th October, 2007

1992 Dodge Dakota 1992 Dodge Ext. Cab Sport 4x4 3.9L (239 cubic inch) V6 Magnum from North America

Summary:

A Mopar Legend, Dakota's Rule the Truck Market

Faults:

Bought it recently with a used transmission in it.

Exhaust has slipped off three times from the header, now has three self tapping screws holding it in place.

Transmission sometimes (rarely) stalls truck in reverse.

Rust on the rear bedside after wheel-well, will need patching before next inspection, other than that completely rust free.

Surprisingly has no paint peel and its still the original paint.

General Comments:

Great, Strong, and Smooth Ride.

3.9L Magnum V6 has a lot of power, several websites say close to 180 hp.

I have installed a Cherry Bomb exhaust on it to make it have the V8 rumble, as I could not find a V8 I could afford. I have high performance wires on it as well.

Cab is spacious enough for me as I am a student in high school, a lot more room than a ranger or s10.

Seats are very comfortable.

4x4 works without a flaw and hasn't let me get stuck yet (there were sometimes where you'd think I would get stuck, but It just kept hammering through.

Has great towing capacity and can hold a lot of weight. Rated as a Half-Ton pickup and can haul almost as much as my dad's 2003 Ram 1500.

Starts right up and runs and drives strong.

Averaging about 16-17 mpg which is really good considering it's size,4x4, and power.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 30th May, 2007

1992 Dodge Dakota LE Extended cab 4x4 5.2 Liter 318 CI V8 from North America

Summary:

A great deal for $1750

Faults:

April 2006- Water pump started to leak, replaced at pepboys for 300 dollars.

Paint is peeling poorly, not all that bad after fourteen years.

Air conditioner blows a little warm.

Water temperature gauge broke and was replaced with an after-market gauge.

General Comments:

This truck accelerates fast for a pickup, able to to zero to sixty in less than eight seconds. This is a much faster car than the 1988 Bronco 2 that I owned.

Speed comes at a price, this truck only gets 14 mpg.

This truck handles and rides like a truck, yet is still capable of being driven daily.

This truck does not sound very mean for a v8, it needs a flow-master. The stock exhaust only has a two inch pipe.

The interior is durable, but it looks boring. The front seat is plenty roomy, the rear seat is small, but the seat is average for a small truck.

This truck has should have power windows and locks, but this one does not have power windows or door locks installed.

The truck was bought for only $1750 including the inspection.

If this truck needs a paint job, this truck has significant peeling.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 7th July, 2006

1992 Dodge Dakota sport 2.5 from North America

Summary:

If you buy one make sure it has been taken care of it's entire life or youll regret it!

Faults:

Radiator was replaced shortly before I bought it at 75000 miles.

Head gasket twice, 85000 and 100000.

Odd noise in transmission when making left turns under acceleration.

Valve going bad causing extreme power loss on highway.

Problems with front brakes and rotors almost constantly.

Rear differential replaced, gears stripped.

General Comments:

I bought this car from a friend which was my first mistake, never ever do that. There was a clunking noise when I bought it, he said the dealer said it was nothing, turned out to be a bad rear differential. Shortly after that the car began overheating, turned out to be a bad head gasket. Shortly after that a strange noise developed in the transmission and I still havent found the cause of that. I have had to replace rotors a few times in the 3 years I have owned it. Just in the past month it has began overheating again and so far a radiator flush, and thermostat havn't worked so I'm afraid its the head gasket again.

So over all I have had a ton of problems with it. Luckily I am able to do a lot of the work myself, but the amount of money I have put into the thing is ridiculous. I understand that it is an old truck, but I take care of it and I still get these reoccurring problems. It has been my experience that Dodge trucks just aren't made with the most reliable technology, I have seen about 6 or 7 of them in my group of friends and average repair costs of about $5000 each. Sure they are great looking and require little work when new, but after they approach 80/90k it seems like everything starts to fail at the same time.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 31st January, 2006

16th Oct 2008, 00:01

The old 2.2 & 2.5L engines were known for having problems with air getting trapped behind the thermostat, causing the thermostat to not open properly and/or soon enough. Drilling a very small hole in the thermostat in the area that the coolant contacts will permit the air to pass by into the radiator, which will then expel the air via the overflow bottle. Give it a try, it has helped me out a number of times.

18th Feb 2009, 15:12

I have a 1992 Sport with a 3.9L. It has been super reliable. I am at 246,000 miles and it still runs great, gets 22-25 mpg, and the only repairs have been the usual- brakes, tune- ups, hoses etc. It is rusting but I live in Michigan and road salt is part of the food pyramid!!!! Really sorry to hear you had all that hassle!

18th May 2010, 01:27

320,000 MILES, original engine & transmission, never had any major repairs just maintenance, except for changing the fuel pump. Who could ask for ask for more.

17th Jun 2010, 14:11

I have a 92 Dakota LE with 5.2, 230,000 miles, and there are no check anything lights on, no major problems. These things run forever.