Welcome to adulthood, bitch. 

"19JRC99" (19jrc99) 12/08/2016 at 19:41 • Filed to: Kipper, Dodge Dakota, Dakota

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Took the Dakota to the shop to have the front end looked at, and.... pretty much the entire front end needs to be redone. Tie rod ends, control arms, Dad doesn’t remember the rest..... (I took a nap when we got home, and we told them to call him). The price? $667! The TRUCK WAS $1400!

I still love the truck, and it is a joy to drive. Just, ouch. Especially at 17.

RallyWrench > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 19:44

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Yeah, adulting sucks. No more expendable dollars, it all goes to necessary stuff.

19JRC99 > RallyWrench 12/08/2016 at 19:45

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And I still might need new tires, and I’m going to have to do the shocks (which isn’t too bad, since we’re doing those at home.)

E92M3 > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 19:48

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Or you could do it all yourself for $200. If you need the tools autozone will loan them to you.

RallyWrench > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 19:49

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That’ll happen. I don’t even remember the last time I spent money on a car that I wanted to spend, or on a car that’s not my or my wife’s daily.

19JRC99 > E92M3 12/08/2016 at 19:53

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With me not knowing how to do it, and Dad’s work schedule, that won’t happen. Besides, if we did it, it’d take a week. With the shop, I get it back tomorrow. I think.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:00

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That’s stuff you might consider doing yourself. Also, your title is kind of rude.

shop-teacher > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:02

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Yep. Get used to it! Honestly $667 sounds like a pretty good deal for all that work.

19JRC99 > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 12/08/2016 at 20:02

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Kind of rude? It was directed at me! That’s my way of saying that it was like a real kick to the gut.

Can’t do this stuff for a few reasons: Tools, time, cold, no knowledge.

19JRC99 > shop-teacher 12/08/2016 at 20:05

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It probably is. I just didn’t expect it to need all that. It drove fine for the most part.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:06

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I realize that you were talking about yourself. It’s just that the b-word really is an affront. It’s just a suggestion.

Tools, Time, Cold, No Knowledge: sounds like a perfect storm. That’s the kind of work that I enjoy doing because it’s physical, there’s really nothing you can break, and you get a big ROI in the Driveability Department. There are some DIY shops around.

For all those reasons, this is bread-and-butter work for shops. I’d encourage you to get some additional quotes.

shop-teacher > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:07

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Hopefully you’ll do better than I did on my first car. My dad and I each dumped $2500 into that POS in less than three years!

19JRC99 > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 12/08/2016 at 20:08

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I appreciate the suggestion, but I trust this shop. Family’s done business there for years now.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:10

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There ya’ go. Good luck!

19JRC99 > shop-teacher 12/08/2016 at 20:11

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I’ll probably top it, but by different means. I love this truck. I’ve grown attached to it in the year I’ve had it.

19JRC99 > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 12/08/2016 at 20:11

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Thank you!

yamahog > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:28

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At least you’re learning this at an early age... my dad is in his 50s and still buying cheap junkers that need more money poured into them than they’re worth, lol

19JRC99 > yamahog 12/08/2016 at 20:29

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Hey! This isn’t a junker! Okay, maybe it is, LOL. But I still love it. Stick shift, smaller pickups are amazing fun to drive.

bob and john > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:32

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a cheap truck needs work, and new parts have new parts costs? nooooooooooooo

19JRC99 > bob and john 12/08/2016 at 20:34

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Okay, don’t be an ass. I wasn’t expecting it to need this stuff since it drove pretty well. Truth be told, I’m not all that bothered.

XJDano > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:35

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http://repairpal.com/recall/04V596000

Nevermind. That’s too new.

yamahog > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:36

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Ah sorry, didn’t mean to imply yours was junky too! His definitely are though. The front end work will do wonders.

bob and john > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:38

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it might have driven pretty well, but you’d rather replace that tie-rod before it waltzes out from under you & leaves you stranded on the side of the road or stuffed into a tree, right?

19JRC99 > bob and john 12/08/2016 at 20:40

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Yes. I’m still getting the repairs done. I was just surprised. I’m not saying it doesn’t need it, just that I didn’t expect it.

19JRC99 > XJDano 12/08/2016 at 20:41

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It’s also for 4x4s. Mine’s 2WD. Thanks though.

19JRC99 > yamahog 12/08/2016 at 20:42

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Lol, it’s cool. I hope it does do wonders. Really though, I just wanna keep driving it. It’s gutless enough to where WOT isn’t too frightening.

iSureWilll > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:46

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Love the title! Think about it this way... You’ll have a total of around $2,100 into your truck, A truck you Love . The alternative would be to pay $200/mo to lease a new car with a much higher insurance premium and within 1-1.5 years you will have spent over $2,100 on the new car with costs only continuing to climb. Meanwhile, instead of that, you’re driving around in your truck which has a brand new front end that will last another 100k miles before needing the work again. That $667 is really an investment . :)

crowmolly > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 20:46

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Car’s 20 years old, so if it’s the original stuff it had a great run. These are all parts that degrade slowly in most cases.

19JRC99 > crowmolly 12/08/2016 at 20:48

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Good point. I doubt it’s the original stuff, at least as far as tie rods and ball joints go. 267,000 miles.

19JRC99 > iSureWilll 12/08/2016 at 20:48

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That is a very good way to look at it!

DipodomysDeserti > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 21:44

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An entire front end rebuild for $700 ain’t bad. Now you have a truck you’ve put less than $3k into and it has a brand new front end. If the rest of the truck is solid I’d say you’re gtg.

19JRC99 > DipodomysDeserti 12/08/2016 at 21:51

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Mechanically, it’s very solid. Needs a lotta body work though.

Jonathan Harper > iSureWilll 12/08/2016 at 22:04

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lol...until the next investment pops up in a month and costs another $600.

Tazio, Count Fouroff > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 22:15

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If you like how it drives now here’s betting you will *love* it after the front end work

iSureWilll > Jonathan Harper 12/08/2016 at 22:34

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And then he’s in for a total cost of $2700, which is what a 2 year lease on a new Corolla would cost, not including the higher insurance premium and sadness of losing the car you love.

19JRC99 > Tazio, Count Fouroff 12/08/2016 at 22:35

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I probably will.

Tazio, Count Fouroff > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 22:45

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PS meant to add, condolences for the huge unplanned expense.

one you’re right on target, adulthood runs this play pretty often, At least, it sure feels like it

Tazio, Count Fouroff > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 22:46

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“ime,” not “one.” Thanks, autocorrect

19JRC99 > Tazio, Count Fouroff 12/08/2016 at 22:56

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I think that’s why I complained- it was unplanned. And yes, nearly $700 may be a decent deal, but to a 17 year old- ouch.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 23:36

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That seems pricey for work you could attempt yourself. Rock auto is your friend. I’ve been through the entire front end on mine, including inner tie rods and swapped over to poly bushings (that sucked). Did moog ball joints too, those weren’t too bad, but if you are just swapping Oem parts, you should be able to get it all for close to half that amount. Might be a good excuse to wrench on it yourself?

Autofixation > 19JRC99 12/08/2016 at 23:37

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Time to buy a repair manual and some tools.

19JRC99 > Autofixation 12/08/2016 at 23:54

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Tools aren’t a problem. What is a problem is if I fuck it up, I’m out of a vehicle for a while. And given my poor luck....

19JRC99 > merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc 12/08/2016 at 23:55

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I’ll start wrenching on it at some point, but I’d rather work my way up with small steps. A whole front end rebuild is a rather big undertaking, IMO. I’m still doing the front and rear shocks myself.

sdwarf36 > 19JRC99 12/09/2016 at 00:00

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Remember the first truck you looked at @ $1800 that you didn’t buy cuz it was more expensive? It had a good front end.

Like the saying goes-”you can pay me now or pay me later”...

#freelifelesson

19JRC99 > sdwarf36 12/09/2016 at 00:01

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Except that’s not the case. At all. My grandfather bought this for me. It seemed mechanically sound at the time, needing little more than an alignment. Other than the front end, it still is

MyJeepGetsStuckInTheSnow > 19JRC99 12/09/2016 at 00:57

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Yeah I definitely wouldn’t start there.

Sidwndr > 19JRC99 12/09/2016 at 01:58

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All in all it’s a pretty easy job. Grab your chilton/haynes book and follow it.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > 19JRC99 12/09/2016 at 07:18

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That’s understandable. The front shocks can be a real pain, have a sawzall ready, or a cutoff wheel to get the top nuts off. Those gave me problems. And maybe grab a cheapy tap and die set to clean out the lower bolt holes once you get those out. Also to clean the bolt threads. I learned that lesson the hard way after trying to reinstall gummed up bolts in a hole that wasn’t nice and clean and snapped off a bolt head. So now I clean out all threads like that before reassembly.

The outer tie rod ends are an easy job too, as long as you have the right open end wrenches and a mapp gas torch to heat things up. I’ve done enough of those now that it’s to the point it takes longer to pull off the tire than it does to get the tie rod end swapped out. But then it needs an alignment. So I guess that’s simple enough to keep with the shop that doing the other front end stuff.

One other thing to check. The intermediate steering shaft. There is a universal joint on there that wears out and gets sloppy. Then the steering will be really sloppy. So if you get the truck back and you have issues with sloppy feeling steering, look there. I had to replace mine around the 120k mark. Made a huge difference.

Nibbles > merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc 12/09/2016 at 13:20

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Is that u-joint on the 1G daks?

If so that would make a lot of sense as to why my steering wheel is somewhere between “numb” and “drunk AF”

19JRC99 > Nibbles 12/09/2016 at 17:56

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My truck steers quite well, actually.

Thanks for the tips, Tsuter.

Autofixation > 19JRC99 12/09/2016 at 19:58

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My project car is my daily driver and vice versa. It is not a good way to live.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > Nibbles 12/09/2016 at 23:24

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I would imagine the intermediate shaft is similar on the 1g daks too, but mine is a 2nd gen. They didn’t seem to make too many fundamental changes between the 1 and 2 gen trucks.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > 19JRC99 12/09/2016 at 23:29

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Mine does too, now ;). Poly bushings and new ball joints, tie rod ends, inner and outer, hotchkis springs, and the intermediate shaft sure help.

19JRC99 > merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc 12/09/2016 at 23:59

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Ugh, I wish I had the money for Hotchkis springs. Actually, first they’d need to make them for Gen 1s.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > 19JRC99 12/10/2016 at 07:11

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Yeah, that was by far the best mod I did to my truck, that and headers. I would imagine there’s a good alternative out there for first gens though. Problem with the hotchkis stuff, is the suspension isn’t nearly as good without the tuned bilstiens, but now they don’t make them anymore. After 130k miles I had to replace a few of the bilstiens and had to go with something different. Not as good, but still better than Oem ride height and hardware.

There may be a old owners forum out there for specific support. I know the old dak rt forums are still kicking around the internet with a wealth of info for the gen2.