Three problems related to radiator have been reported for the 2002 Dodge Dakota. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
I have a 2002 Dodge ram 1500 4. 7l 2wd quad cab. On October 30th, my vehicle decided it was ganna let go of three sensors all at once. An ignition, timing, and ??hyac?? , cost me almost 750$ in parts and labor at my local dealership. One (1) week later my truck began to overheat. Upon inspection, I found a hairline fracture in the radiator fill reservoir stem. I came to the conclusion that the overheating was due to a pressurization problem. After that was fixed and the truck was running my radiator exploded under normal operating temperatures. After the radiator and the water pump and thermostat were replaced and I had the truck running again I drove down the road to provide sufficient circulation of the fluids and out of the sudden string of events it started to emit white smoke and I was running out of radiator fluid all due to a ruptured head gasket. After replacing all of the top end engine gaskets and the cylinder head bolts, I started up my truck again and it ran great for about two (2) minutes and grinded, choked, tinged, panged, banged and finally sputtered to a stop. I started from the top of the engine,. . . Again. . . . And found that my cam shaft gear had spun on the camshaft and sheared the cam lobe that is suppose to lock it into place. I havent touched it since and all together my family has payed 1700$ just to have a broken vehicle in our driveway.
2002 Dodge ram 1500 4. 7 engine. I have 3 complaints. The first is the engine oil pressure dropping to 0. I understand from looking at complaint sites a lot of people are having this problem. Many have had to replace the engines. My other problem is cosmetic. The dash in my truck is cracked in about 8 places. I have talked to others and they are having the same issues. The third complaint is the radiator failed and had to be replaced. It had plastic tanks which cracked. I think Chrysler should make these problems right.
The contact owns a 2002 Dodge ram quad cab. The contact stated that the radiator was leaking on the side or underneath the vehicle. The failure occurs everytime the vehicle is driven. The contact has not taken the vehicle to the dealer. The current and failure mileages were 146,000.