Dodge joined the mid-size pickup truck market in 1987 with the Dakota. The company fielded the product until 2011 and then withdrew from the market segment, though Dodge is still big in the full-size truck space. The seller has a nice first-year Dakota that has a brand-new engine and is in good shape overall. Located in Newport, Oregon, this two-tone mini-RAM is available here on craigslist for $4,500. Hats off to “Curvette” for sending this tip our way.
The Dakota competed with the Chevrolet S-10 (later Colorado) and the Ford Ranger. Three generations were offered for 24 years, and the Dakota was typically third in the sales race in this arena. It differed from the Chevy and Ford as it was the first mid-size to offer a V8 engine (optional and not yet available when the seller’s truck was produced). The Dakota was built in the same plant as the full-size D/W Series trucks. Standard and extended bed editions were offered.
As this truck is being listed for sale on behalf of a friend, details of the Dakota are sparse. The indicated mileage is not high (78,000), which begs the question, why was a new engine needed that only has 1,000 miles on it? The truck looks to have been well-kept for the past 39 years. The brakes are also new, and the truck uses an automatic transmission.
No mention is made of which engine was replaced. The standard 4-cylinder or the optional V6. No photo is provided, and that would be an important point to go into detail on. The body and paint on this Dodge look good, as does the interior, which appears to have been an upgraded version. If you need a smaller truck, the price could be quite right for this ride.
What’s that badge on the front fender. 🤔 is it the V6 Magnum ? Nice plain jane model Dixon.
Was before they were Magnums, the first year of Dakota was 1987 and they were still carbureted. In 1988 they went TBI, then in 1992 they went to the Magnum engines.
Thought 1981 was the first year of the Dodge Dakota…..
I had one of these with the V-6, auto. trans. and 4 wheel drive. Mine was the same as this with the regular cab and long box. It was the perfect size truck. Full size truck cabs have gotten insanely huge, and now with some of the 4 door cabs they come with a six foot box, hardly big enough to haul anything.
A friend of mine was a used car dealer bought one of these at an auction. He didn’t check the mileage close enough. He thought it was 5 place odometer and said 48,000.0 on it. After he bought it he looked again it was 480,000. It took a while to sell that one.
I want one of these with a 5.9 Magnum (doesn’t have to be a hemi demon blah blah blah). Just a nice get around ooomph, oh and manual trans.
I own a 1996 Dakota SLT Club Cab with the 318 V8. Two tone white with “driftwood” down the middle and red accent stripe. I ordered the truck set up like I wanted – V8, tow package, two tone, A/C, SLT package, Mopar bedliner, etc. Felt like I got a good deal with a recent graduate discount and friendly pricing from the dealership owner. The salesman goofed on the codes and the first one came in with the wrong two tone mix. It was white on top with the driftwood only on the bottom. I didn’t like that look, so I talked to the dealership owner and he made the salesman reorder. Truck has near 300K miles on it. Both engine and trans have been rebuilt in the 225 – 250,000 range. Had it repainted a few years ago, replaced headliner and carpet and had oem wheels refinished. Dash layout looks identical to the advertised vehicle. Only issues with my 96 are glitchy sensors (camshaft and throttle position) and I wished I had bought a 4X4. When I didn’t drive it for a few weeks one year, rodents made a nest out of the wiring harness. I was fortunate to find a shop that could find a donor harness and rewire it, so glitches are not that surprising. I tried to sell mine about 15 years ago. Got a couple of lowball offers I rejected. Now I am glad I kept it.
I also have 1994 V/8 Sport and after towing mucho stuff with it rebuilt the trannie at 225,000 and then the motor at 245,000….that was kinda my fault for not replacing those injectors…..that is kinda bragging rights for a Dodge….haha…would buy his little truck if it wasn’t so far away….
The badge on the fender looks like a V6 and the upgrade in the interior would be another indicator
Yup, V-6 badge on the front fender.
I enlarged my computer screen,and it says LE
Hauled that tandem trailer many a time….
I had a 92 with the 3.9 V6 but a 5spd. A little over 300k and it was strong as an ox. Funny thing is that the body was loaded with rust but everything underneath was rock solid. Kind of a mystery to me how the body was so rusted but frames etc was solid. I actually miss that rusty little mule. Never once left me stranded or let me down. Perfect size for many people’s needs. Given prices on trucks these days the asking price isn’t unrealistic.