Ode to the Dodge Dakota

"winterlegacy, here 'till the end" (winterlegacy)
11/01/2018 at 12:33 • Filed to: Dodge

Pictured is pretty much the exact same truck my family had.

Ah, the Dodge Dakota. I think this truck singlehandedly brought about the “big small truck” market we’re dealing with nowadays.

But I love this truck, even if it’s irrational.

My mother came into ownership of a 1998 Dodge Dakota Sport, with the V6 and 4-speed auto. It was 2WD, and came with a truck cap. It was the first thing I ever drove. Late at night, in a grassy field, I learned how to work pedals, switch gears, and understand some very basic spatial reasoning. I never did get to drive it often, as the Legacy came into my family years later. However, I had so many memories with the truck. I was in the back bench seat for a trip to Washington D.C. I got to sit in the passenger seat for a trip to Cape Cod. It would have gone all the way to Tennessee had we not encountered an issue that scuttled that trip .

The few times I was able to drive it, I enjoyed it. Even with the V6 it never felt like it was a slouch. The brakes were surprisingly good for being a pickup, and the transmission felt reasonably competent about down/up-shifting. With careful driving, 23mpg was not out of the question, and even in the dead of winter, she’d only fall to 18mpg.

That truck was eventually killed because the oil pump crapped out at 65mph on the interstate while passing someone. A bearing spun, and that was all she wrote. She was capable of limping home and around the yard, but that V6 was dead, and the Maine winters were starting to show.

For 18 years, that truck was all but bulletproof.

I want to get one.

DISCUSSION (10)

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > winterlegacy, here 'till the end
11/01/2018 at 12:44

Its hard to think about them as big now, but back in the day it was WAY bigger than the Ranger. Heck you could get a V8 in them, while the Ranger still offered a 2.3l four banger. sure you could get the 4.0V6 but that still no 318, or 4.7. And there was a few years with the R/T 5.9.

winterlegacy, here 'till the end > HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles
11/01/2018 at 12:52

It was simply ahead of its time.

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > winterlegacy, here 'till the end
11/01/2018 at 12:53

this sent me on a CL search... this is tempting https://wausau.craigslist.org/cto/d/91-dodge-dakota-52l/6723574472.html

winterlegacy, here 'till the end > HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles
11/01/2018 at 12:54

It’s so pristine. I love it.

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > winterlegacy, here 'till the end
11/01/2018 at 13:00

Yeah that two tone is my favorite

TheRealBicycleBuck > winterlegacy, here 'till the end
11/01/2018 at 13:04

I caught part of a show that claimed the Ranger was the first mid-sized truck. It certainly was bigger than most of the mini trucks of the day.

I think it’s all a matter of scope-creep or one-upping each other. Minitruck is smaller than the Ranger which is smaller than the Dakota which is smaller than a Fullsize.

Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street. > winterlegacy, here 'till the end
11/01/2018 at 13:46

I had an 02 with a 4.7+5 speed. Best vehicle I ever owned. Wrecked it while moving cross country after owning it for 13 years. I still miss it.

winterlegacy, here 'till the end > Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street.
11/01/2018 at 14:46

I’d love to find one with the 5 speed.

ranwhenparked > winterlegacy, here 'till the end
11/01/2018 at 18:52

I remember the commercials with Edward Herrmann, they made the idea of a midsize truck seem so novel, and, I guess it really was.

19JRC99 > winterlegacy, here 'till the end
11/05/2018 at 18:32

I love my ‘96. 269,000 miles, and it starts every time. It just looks like hell. But I wanna change that. They handle surprisingly well. The 2WD trucks had rack and pinion steering, and I’ve *heard* the Vipers based some of the suspension on these. Mine’s the V6 with the 5 speed, and it’s pretty gutless, but it’s bulletproof. If it can stand up to me shifting it at 5,000rpm at least once a day, it can probably stand up to a lot more.

Kinja'd!!!