2002 Dodge Dakota Reviews - Page 4 of 5

The right front brake was staying on causing it to smoke as we drove down the road.

The starter neede to be replaced at 34000 miles.

The front brake rotors and calipers were replaced. We have not had any other problems. It was covered under warranty.

So far it was some kind of low idle motor or something. It would go lower than idle after inching up at toll booths and such. Brought it to the dealer and it was fixed. Heater blower motor resistor board under dash went, but I replaced it myself for ten bucks and its fine now. I complained about road wander, but they told me everything was fine, I didn't complain about warped rotors at the time and now its too late. That trip to the dealer was at 35.000 miles before warranty was up. It still wanders and the front end is tight after many mechanics looked at it, so I'm thinking of changing tires. Surprisingly, no other problems yet after reading so many horror stories. This one is not as good as the other four that I had in the past.

Here is my unbiased opinion. I have had four other Dakotas in the past, and enjoyed all of them, but this one comes from a company that lacks quality control, and has many recalls on many of their vehicles. I don't feel as strong about this one as the others, and only time will tell if I keep it that long. It's a base model, with the only option being limited slip rear, so there is not as much to go wrong with it. I can improve all the things that are weak in the inherent design, but I feel that for what I paid, (this being the first new one I've bought) that I shouldn't have to do that. Why should I have to upgrade the braking system, and the fuel system, for better performance, etc.? I know I won't buy another Dodge again, the only question is how long I hold on to this one. My past Dakotas were an '87, '94, '96, and a '99. I loved all of them, but Dodge is now skimping on quality, and service.

The truck stalled out a lot when I first got it.

Rear view mirror came loose.

Leather seats ripped on seem.

Wiper blades hit the hood.

The truck is showing signs of paint defects.

Door panel came loose.

The front end squeaks when going over bumps. This has been to the dealer twice for this already. They changed out the front sway bar bushings both times. The truck is going back again for the same problem.

This truck has very good acceleration and lots of power.

The seats are uncomfortable for long trips and the truck has some bad blind spots with the pillars.

The truck has never let me down yet.

The truck performs great, and handles good.

It is the hardest on fuel than anything I have ever owned.

Besides the obvious cost of fuel for a V-8, this truck has had no faults that I have encountered.

I enjoy driving this truck both for pleasure and for work. I am in construction and this truck can handle the load that I put on it.

I would definitely buy another Dakota, hopefully with the new HEMI.

We have had many problems with our Dakota since buying it a year and a half ago.

Water leak when it rains. The truck has been into the dealer four times for this problem and has yet to be fixed. There is a puddle on the passenger side floor- the manager at the dealer told us to use a shop vac and vacuum it up!!!

Calipers locked up. We had to get the truck towed when the calipers locked up on the highway. This was after we had the truck in the shop three times complaining about a squeaky noise from the front end as well as the steering wheel and front tire jerking. They had told us that nothing was wrong- that this was common for Dakotas.

The service at the dealership is lousy and we are now dealing with someone from the Dodge headquarters.

I will never own another Dodge and advise others not to as well!!!