Ok... I bought the truck used last month. I have known for years that the older Chrysler products had transmission issues... I figured they were better by 2004. Driving around town at speeds below 40mph, you really don't notice the lack of power. Highway speeds are another thing though. Set cruise control at 65mph, and it will slow to 55 before dropping 2 gears, reving the engine to get back to 65mph... but it goes up to about 75 instead before letting off. Then the vicious cycle starts all over again. The double down-shift is very abrupt and the up-shift when coming out of the 75mph is very hard too.
It seems like the engine does not have enough power to move the truck. I tried to back up a slight incline the other day and had the pedal to the floor and it was barely moving backwards. The engine wasn't reving and nothing was slipping, it just had absolutely no power. I pulled a 12' U-Haul trailer... empty... up a hill on the highway. It got through 1st gear fine but when I went into 2nd gear, the truck would NOT go any faster than 40mph. Did I mention the trailer was EMPTY??? With 210 horsepower and 236 torque, there is no reason I shouldn't be able to pull a trailer... empty or full... or for that matter, smoke the tires when I get pissed and want to burn some rubber. The only way the back wheels will spin is if I park the back wheels on Ice and have 4 buddies at the back of the truck lifting up on the bumper.
I am very disappointed in this Dakota and am currently trying to trade it in for something else.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
Ok... I bought the truck used last month. I have known for years that the older Chrysler products had transmission issues... I figured they were better by 2004. Driving around town at speeds below 40mph, you really don't notice the lack of power. Highway speeds are another thing though. Set cruise control at 65mph, and it will slow to 55 before dropping 2 gears, reving the engine to get back to 65mph... but it goes up to about 75 instead before letting off. Then the vicious cycle starts all over again. The double down-shift is very abrupt and the up-shift when coming out of the 75mph is very hard too.
It seems like the engine does not have enough power to move the truck. I tried to back up a slight incline the other day and had the pedal to the floor and it was barely moving backwards. The engine wasn't reving and nothing was slipping, it just had absolutely no power. I pulled a 12' U-Haul trailer... empty... up a hill on the highway. It got through 1st gear fine but when I went into 2nd gear, the truck would NOT go any faster than 40mph. Did I mention the trailer was EMPTY??? With 210 horsepower and 236 torque, there is no reason I shouldn't be able to pull a trailer... empty or full... or for that matter, smoke the tires when I get pissed and want to burn some rubber. The only way the back wheels will spin is if I park the back wheels on Ice and have 4 buddies at the back of the truck lifting up on the bumper.
I am very disappointed in this Dakota and am currently trying to trade it in for something else.
- Don C., Houston, PA, US