driving round in an 05 Dakota

RememberThisTitan · 12-01-2004, 06:54 PM

so i put the titan in the bodyshop and the rental company gives me an o5 dakota exended cab with 4x4. after driving it i seriously thought for a second that maybe there was a 4 cyl. but thought na i cant be. has to be a 6 cyl. popped the hood just to make sure it was a six. Holy Krap, a 4.7 V8!! you never would have known. a very weak V8. the tranny feels horrible. jerks around. there isnt any restiction plate on rentals either. (i know, i used to work at this rental place). just bad stuff. the rear seat was incredably small. why did they even put seats back there? ride was low. the interior wasnt to bad. had a wood dash, but im not a big fan of it. think i would rather have a tacoma. cant wait to get the titan back

evie_TITAN · 12-01-2004, 07:15 PM

Thanks for the report. I was just sitting on the throne looking at a 4 page advertisment for the 05 Dakota in Rolling Stone magazine, wondering what it was like. They say its "Brand new from bumper to ball hitch", maybe thats the rear bumper. I dont think I'll grab life by the horns.

TitanWannaBe · 12-01-2004, 07:22 PM

I've been driving the Dakota Quad with the 4.7 for the past 4yrs. It was my first american car so I also purchased a 100k extended warranty. Turns out the warranty purchase was a bad decision...the trucks only been in the shop once for a minor repair. It now has 130k on it and other than needing a new set of shock it runs and rides great. I loved it when I got it but now I'm craving a new Titan.

phillipyang · 12-01-2004, 08:01 PM

I love that name TitanWannaBe. lol

How's the gas mileage on the Dakota?

abmobil · 12-01-2004, 09:25 PM

Rememberthistitan, how many miles did the dakota have on it? Many cars usually loosen up quite a bit when there broken in. I had a 04 ram 4x4 rental, and it pulled fine for a full size truck with the small v8.

offerings12 · 12-01-2004, 10:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by phillipyang

I love that name TitanWannaBe. lol

How's the gas mileage on the Dakota?

i hade a 2002 dodge dakota with 3.9 v6 and i got 14 city and 18-19 hwy ... same as the titan sadly.....hince why i didnt mind the big engine.

*Mike Up* · 12-01-2004, 10:11 PM

I test drove a '05 Ram Quad Cab with the 4.7L and the 5.7L. Both had plenty of power, but the 4.7L RAM was several thousand more my Titan, with less options. The RAM just wasn't a good deal compared to the Titan. Also, the Titan was American made and the Ram was foreign made.

Have a good one.

*calgary_redneck* · 12-02-2004, 12:26 AM

Although dodge has some questionable quality issues the 4.7 is a faily potent engine for its size and has proved to be quite reliable

Wi$h · 12-02-2004, 12:37 AM

i have a friend with an 04' Regular cab with 4.7 and it does alright, not enough for the money he spent on it though, and i tried to talk him out of it, he could have got an 04' KC SE for what he paid for that dodge

TitanWannaBe · 12-02-2004, 06:27 AM

Mine gets about 15-16 hwy. I pretty much drive all highway.

*Mike Up* · 12-02-2004, 02:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by offerings12

i hade a 2002 dodge dakota with 3.9 v6 and i got 14 city and 18-19 hwy ... same as the titan sadly.....hince why i didnt mind the big engine.

Tell me about it. People use to choose midsize trucks for better fuel economy but today, there's no difference.

My 2000 SE 4X4 Xterra was 15 mpg in city and 19 on the highway. The Titan I have is 14 mpg in town and 18 on the highway. The Xterra was 800#s lighter and had a 170HP 3.3L. It also was only ~$1000 cheaper in 2000 than my 2004 Titan.

I now see no reason to go with a midsize truck other than it's smaller size being a bit more easier to drive, park, and fit in a garage.

Especially when you can get near muscle car straight line performance out of some of the newer full size trucks. I wouldn't try any cornering though, they're not sport cars.

Have a good one.

Brons2 · 12-02-2004, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by calgary_redneck

Although dodge has some questionable quality issues the 4.7 is a faily potent engine for its size and has proved to be quite reliable

The 4.7 has cam follower issues and unsolvable clicking issues. The pistons also have VERY short skirts with the rings VERY high in the lands, that with the OHC makes it critical you use good oil or the ring packs will get gummed up.

Brons2 · 12-02-2004, 02:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Up

Tell me about it. People use to choose midsize trucks for better fuel economy but today, there's no difference.

My 2000 SE 4X4 Xterra was 15 mpg in city and 19 on the highway. The Titan I have is 14 mpg in town and 18 on the highway. The Xterra was 800#s lighter and had a 170HP 3.3L. It also was only ~$1000 cheaper in 2000 than my 2004 Titan.

I now see no reason to go with a midsize truck other than it's smaller size being a bit more easier to drive, park, and fit in a garage.

Especially when you can get near muscle car straight line performance out of some of the newer full size trucks. I wouldn't try any cornering though, they're not sport cars.

Have a good one.

My old F150 Supercab (extended cab, not crew) with the 4.2 V6 and 5 speed manal got about 16 in town and 18 on the highway. My Titan got 15.25 on the last tank in city driving.. Took about a gallon more gas for similar miles driven. Considering the 100 HP increase over the Ford V6, a very acceptable mileage tradeoff.