Engine Problems of Dodge Dakota - part 1

My vehicle was recalled but the day I was going to bring it in the transmission stopped working and the motor is no more good. The truck would not shift gears good and it was going on for a while. My father changed the head gaskets but it did not help.

See all problems of the 2001 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

The contact owns a 2000 Dodge Dakota. Immediately after purchasing the vehicle and driving approximately 55 mph, all of the instrument panel indicators illuminated. The vehicle then began to shake and the contact placed oil in the vehicle. He restarted the vehicle and it began shaking even worse. He turned off the vehicle and called the dealer. The dealer retrieved the vehicle and gave the contact his original vehicle back, but did not return his money. The current and failure mileages were 130,100.

See all problems of the 2000 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

I'm a mechanic I change the oil regularly with valvoline and the engine sludges up . This weekend went out of town and the engine lost oil pressure causing it to blow up resulting in my family getting stranded 400 miles from home. It took four days and a 1000. 00 to get it back home and now it sits in my driveway because I don't have the money for a new engine . 2002 Dodge ram 4. 7l .

See all problems of the 2002 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

2001 Dodge Dakota quadcab began running rough approximately 3 weeks ago, from this date, 09/15/06. Brought it into the dealership because the "check engine" light was on. After charging me $500. 00 + for a tune-up, cleaning the injectors, and replacing an oxygen sensor, the dealership still could not make the truck run smoothly. They ended up telling me that if I left it with them for a week or so that they could possibly determine the problem and it was probably going to entail them removing the heads and would be a minimum of $1,000. 00. I was also advised that my front end needed to be aligned. I just put the tires on last summer, had all these problems checked by another mechanic. Front end did not need aligning but they did determine the problem with running rough. Seems that due to a carbon build-up inside the cylinder, some carbon actually got into the #3 cylinder and caused the valve to bend slightly. I am the original owner of this vehicle and it only has 63,000 miles on it. I have never ran it hot, without oil and always make sure I maintain my maintenance on it. Last year, my front brake calipers had to be replaced, at $900. 00 which in turn ruined the front brake pads. The dealership then told me that the boots in the calipers were dry rotted. I like the truck but it seems as if since I paid it off 3 yrs. Ago, I have had some sort of mechanical problems with it every year since then. I would not recommend this vehicle to anyone, unless they were a mechanic. My mechanic says that a lot of it is due to poor workmanship. What a shame, it is no wonder why the u. S. Auto industry is in such bad shape.

Oil gauge dropped to 0 while driving. Stopped to check the oil and it was fine. Drove about 3 miles and the truck died. Every thing locked up and unable to start again. Towed it to the mechanics and he said that we had sludge. We changed the oil as recommended. The warranty said that they will not cover buying a new engine because it was our fault. I have the receipts to prove that we did the oil changes. They had poor customer service. What's the sense of getting the extended warranty if it won't help. Our truck has 50,000 miles.

See all problems of the 2003 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

Oil pressure dropped within seconds, within 8 minutes engine died, couldn't start up again. Oil level was fine, did the oil changes prior to this when it was recommended. Chrysler stated that the warranty did not cover this. Oil sludge. Others have gone through the same thing.

I used my Dodge Dakota quad cab to pull my 5,000 lb travel trailer on vacation at the time. The truck was very unstable and unsafe while pulling the trailer to and from pigeon forge, tennessee. The engine is a 4. 7 v8 rated at 230 hp and 290 lb ft. Torque. I purchased the towing option package with the truck. It is suppose to be rated for 7,000 lbs. Daimler Chrysler falsified the towing ability of this engine / transmission set up by overstating its towing capability. I base my accusation on the fact that Chrysler retooled this 4. 7 v8 engine for 2008. It is now rated at 302 hp and 329 lb ft. Torque yet still its maximum towing capability is still rated at 7,000. Common sense would dictate that improved engine should make it possible to tow more weight since it now has more horsepower and more torque. There are thousands of these trucks on the highway that may be towing an unsafe amount of weight since chrsyler overstated the towing ability of the 2005 trucks with the 4. 7 v8. I have had my truck in the shop four times for repairs and their only solution is to tow less weight. I believe their overstatement of the towing ability of the vehicle warrants a government investigation for safety reasons before someone gets injured or killed. The manufacturer was unable to fix the problem and the truck has been sitting in my yard for the past 2 years.

See all problems of the 2005 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

On Thursday, December 29, 2005, I was returning home from findlay, OH, I was about 37 miles from home when the check gauges light came on and the oil pressure gage dropped to 0. I was able to get off the highway into a parking lot at which time the truck wouldn't start. I had the truck towed to the dealership where I bought it. The service department checked it out and said I needed a new engine due to sludge build up caused by improper maintenance. I change my oil on a regular basis. I have a Dodge neon with over 120,000 miles and my previous car was a 1987 chevy nova with over 199,000 miles.

Sept. 2004 bought 2003 Dodge quad cab w/hemi. Had approximately 34,000 miles on it. Truck was in great shape,ran good,drove good. Then in oct,2005,had a valve spring break on left side of motor,causing motor to lock-up. At this time the truck had 84,400 miles on it. We live 30 miles from our jobs,so we put a lot of miles on our vehicles. I called daimler-Chrysler to see if they would either fix the truck,or at least help with the repairs(after all,you would think that a hemi motor should be good for a lot longer than 80,000 miles). Daimler-Chrysler said that they would need "a certified Dodge dealership"to check out the truck to see what exactly happened and why it happened. I had the truck towed to the local dealership(savannah Dodge,savannah,GA). They confirmed the broken valve spring and broken valve. The mechanic at the dealership said that he has seen a few of these same problems,and the fix is to replace the head(it was damaged)use new valves and valve springs(with new"heavy-duty" valve springs). He also suggested that I replace the valve springs on the other head with these new"heavy-duty"valve springs. I called daimler-Chrysler again and told them what their five-star dealership said. After calling daimler-Chrysler several more times,they said that they(daimler-Chrysler)would call the dealership and then decide if they would or could help with the repairs. Needless to say,I had to call daimler-Chrysler back(they do not return phone calls)they said that they would not help with the repairs because(1)I did not buy this truck new(2)it was out of the 70,000 mile warranty(3)because I did not have receipts of my oil changes(I am a mechanic of 25+ years,I do my own oil changes,buy my oil(castrol 5w30)by the case at wal-mart every 3000 miles.

The contact heard a rod knocking in the engine. The knocking j started where it could be heard. There was a diagnostic test performed by the dealer ,and it confirmed it was a rod. The truck is in the shop for repairs at this time.

When cold my 2001 Dakota stutters from 2300 to 2500 rpm. When I talk to other Dakota owners they all have the same problem. This could be dangerous for someone not informed of the problem.

I've had my oil changed at the dealer the day I got it. . And for the next few times, I changed mine twice and have one of the reciepts. . . But it still covers the duration of the two according to the owners manual. My 4. 7l equipped Dakota blew up. . . . I purchased a warranty for over $1k at purchase, but they will not honor it now because they say its lack of maintenance. . . How I dont know!!! now they expect me to pay for a new motor. . . . What a load of crap!!.

While driving down the road my engine lost oil pressure and I had it towed from the spot. Now I need to have Dodge dealer look at it.

When the gas pedal was released, the engine idled high. Please provide further details. When moving slowly or accelerating from a stop the vehicle continued to idle high a while before it would idle down. The vehicle's throttle sensor and air sensor were replaced.

While driving at 45 mph an alarm sounded warning the consumer to check the instrument panel. Oil pressure gauge registered very low oil pressure. Consumer checked the oil level with the dip stick and found it to be up to par. Dealer examined the vehicle, and found a sludge build up in the engine. A new engine was needed.

2001 Dodge Dakota equipped with a 4. 7 liter eight cylinder engine with 46024 miles began to have a light knock. I had the vehicle towed to metrolina Dodge where I was informed that the vehicle had spun a rod, due to excessive oil sludge build up. The vehicle was purchased with a extended warranty, but I was informed that the damage would not be covered under the warranty because the oil had not been changed by Dodge certified mechanics. My husband and father have changed the oil every 3500 miles, but according to the people at metrolina if Dodge did not perform all the maintenance on the vehicle then the warranty is voided. My husband went to metrolina Dodge to have the service writer show him the sludge build up that they were telling me about. While he was there the service writer kevin st. Clair told my husband that they have had several 4. 7 and 2. 7-liter engines with the same problem. Kevin said that it would cost $6500. 00 to replace the crankshaft, one rod, and the bearings.

When the consumer tries to accelerate into traffic, the engine revsup but the vehicle does not move. There have been several occasions that the consumer would try to pass a slow moving vehicle, only to have the rpm's to increase but the vehicle would not accelerate. This problem has happened three times in the past. The dealer tried to find the problem, but was unable to. The manufacturers is not aware of the problem.

See all problems of the 2004 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

I have had my Dodge ram quad cab in for service over 15 times for rust, wiring, two recalls, engine lights, bad gas cap, bad steering wheel, and list continues. . . .

While driving the vehicle hesitated then lost total power. There was poor idling, hesitation and sudden stops at intersection's, loss of power and the cruise control would shut off.

Brakes squeal and engine idle problem.

The vehicle back fired while driving 35 mph.

Excessive engine knock. Pper ball joint failure. Nadequate headlight projection on low beam.

See all problems of the 1999 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

The engine block cracked, which caused the vehicle to be inoperative.

See all problems of the 1998 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

While highway driving , the "check engine" light came on and my acceleration dropped 20 mph while still pressing on the pedal. Hesitation also while climbing hills.

At certain times the engine omits a high pitch whistle when driving. The noise comes and goes periodically and at different speeds.

Power steering assist failed during cold weather. Was sluggish during slow idle. Mopar mechanic said that complete replacement would cost over $1000 and may still not solve problem.

See all problems of the 1997 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

While at dealer for transmission problem, mechanic determined engine head was cracked. Please add further information.

When starting vehicle engine lifters would tap. Had lifters replaced twice . Problem still exists. Dealer contacted.

Engine block had to be replaced due to defective cylinder heads. Manufacturer declines any responsibility because no extended warrenty was purchased.

Loose timing chain.

Crank broke and broke block of the engine.

See all problems of the 1996 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

A timing chain broke while driving, causing vehicle to be inoperative; believed this condition was due to manufacturer's defect. Vehicle only has 69,000 miles of wear and should be fixed at manufacturer's expense, not consumer's. Asking NHTSA to look into this matter .

Don't know if any particular speed involved. See Chrysler's technical service bulletin number 9/7/97 issued June 97 entitled timing chain noise.

While traveling at various speeds vehicle would shut down for no reason. Would have no warning. Had been to dealer numerous times for problem, but mechanic was unable to find the problem or duplicate it.

Headlights are unstable, causing poor visibility, consumer also having problem with engine valves knocking. Consumer has contacted the dealer. Please provide any further details.