*update 2 June 2003*
DaimlerChrysler finally did honor it's word and repurchased the vehicle on the third of August. They would not send separate checks to my lawyer and I, so I had to send him the check to cash, and have him send me my money. Not only this but the local dealer made my wife sit around for several hours while "looking the vehicle over". After telling her that they would be able to give her a ride back to our home on the phone, they told her she would have to find a ride on her own after waiting three hours for them to look it over. Such nice people those DaimlerChrysler folks. I am so happy to have rid myself of this vehicle and everything DaimlerChrysler in my life. BTW, they also failed to report the repurchase to the DMV.
*end update*

*22 July 2002 update*
After driving the truck 150 miles since it was last fixed by the dealer, the drivers side rear cab mount broke...again. This was of no consequence though, as DiamlerChrysler had already made an agreement with my lawyer to repurchase the Dakota. After 6 months of fighting it out with DaimlerChrysler, it took my lawyer less than 3 weeks to get what I wanted. My advice to anyone who has a similar problem is to get a lawyer ASAP. It costs you nothing, and you get back most of everything you put into the vehicle. I can't wait to get rid of this thing!
*end update*

*update 28 June 2002*
The California Arbitration Board denied my request for repurchase, and basically threw the case out. After talking to six lawyers, I returned the Dakota to the service department at a different dealer. After another 8 days out of service (bringing the total to 44) they noted that three out of the four cab mounts were broken. I had only one cab mount holding the cab to the frame. I personally find this a bit scary. I have filed suit against DaimlerChrysler with a lawyer who specializes in Lemon Laws. Hopefully this is resolved in the next 30-60 days.
*end update*


I decided I wanted a pickup in October of 2000. I have owned a Dodge pickup for over ten years, so naturally I went back to the Dodge dealer.

I looked at the fullsize, but decided on the Dakota after careful consideration (mostly gas mileage and maneuverability). Note that I did not look at the 4WD models. All models come with rear antilock, but four wheel anti-lock is a $1000 premium.

The Dakota is available with a dizzying array of engines. There is a 2.5L 4 cylinder, a 3.9L V-6, a 4.7L V-8, a 5.2L V-8, and a 5.9L V-8. The first four are available with 5 speed manuals, but the 5.9 is only available with the 4 speed automatic.

The four cylinder is gutless. If you never get on the freeway and drive around the city alot, this one is adequate. I was unable to get over 45 on an onramp with a slight uphill grade. On the plus side gas mileage is 18/25 city/hwy with the 5 speed.

The 3.9L V-6 is adequate for all but the most demanding drivers. I was able to accelerate to almost 60 on the onramp, without flooring it. The gas mileage is 18/19 city/hwy with the auto, and 18/22 with the 5 speed.

The 4.7L V-8 is my personal choice. It offers plenty of power and decent economy. I was able to hit about 70 by the time I merged, quite easily. The gas mileage is 15/20 city/hwy regardless of transmission.

I was not able to drive the 5.2L V-8, as one was not available. Performance should be similar to the 4.7, considering that the 5.2L was not available in 2001.

I was however, able to drive a 5.9L R/T. Anyone who needs this much power is insane :). I was able to hit over 75 mph on the same onramp, almost without effort. Wheelspin is ever present, even goosing the throttle at 25 (in an automatic!). Unfortunately, gas mileage suffers. It is rated at 13/16 city/hwy.

The interior has some interesting features. Dual airbags are standard, as well as a passenger airbag disable switch. The seats have a fold away center console which folds up to form a center passenger's seatback. Both driver and passenger seats are independantly adjustable thanks to the 40/20/40 split bench. Unfortunately the seats are not exceptionally comfortable. There is very little lower back or lumbar support, and after a few hours the seat feels as though it were made out of brick.

The rear seat is quite ingenious. The bottom folds up to access the underlying storage space, the jack and tool kit. Of course for all of you audiophiles out there, MTX makes a custom speaker enclosure, called a thunderform, that replaces the storage tray with a pair of 10" subwoofers. It even has a space for the jack and tool kit! Of course the rear seat has no illusions of comfort. It is fine for children under four feet tall, but adults will have a very uncomfortable ride. There are three seat belts back there too.

I bought my Dakota in November of 2000. It was great for the first couple of months that I owned it.

Personal Experience
I took my wife on a trip from California to Washington in January of 2001. The truck performed great except that the cruise control kept shutting off. The dealership replaced the "clock spring" and returned it to me. The vehicle still drops out of cruise, though not as often. I also noticed a big ugly bug on the front grill one day at the carwash. When I went and sprayed it off with the high pressure rinse, a one inch chip of paint came off. The dealer repainted the grill at no charge, but made a big deal about doing it.

I brought the Dakota back to the dealer on the 13th of August 2001 for an oil change, warm air conditioning and a popping sound from the vehicle. It was returned to me on the 17th of August, but the popping sound was still there. I took the vehicle back on the 27th of August to be repaired again. They gave the Dakota back to me on the 30th of August, but the popping noise had not been fixed.

Once again I returned the Dakota to the dealer on the 4th of September. This time they found that the rear end carrier bearings had come apart and damaged the gears. They repaired the rear end and returned the vehicle to me on the 11th of September, but still had not fixed the popping noise.

I returned the vehicle to Liberty once again on the 21st of September, but they did not work on it until the 24th of September. I was informed that they had fixed the popping sound on the 10th of October. I drove the Dakota, and it did not exhibit any kind of popping noise anymore. Unfortunately the gas filler door had come out of alignment at some point prior to this. They had not fixed it yet, so I left it with the dealership.

My squadron left on detachment to Fallon Nevada, so I was unable to pick up the truck until the 29th of October. Shortly after driving the truck again, several other noises began to surface. I returned to the dealership on one more occasions to have a popping from the bed checked out, but since they never wrote up the maintenance performed, I do not have an exact date. Since that trip to the service department I have noticed that the bed now sits ½ to ¾ of an inch higher than the cab, another indication of serious problems.

According to my calculations this adds up to 38 total days out of service, not including time to fix the fuel fill door and the unaccounted for maintenance.

I began trying to get Chrysler to replace or buy back this vehicle towards the end of October. I was told by Daimler-Chrysler via email to follow the instructions in my warranty manual. They didn’t tell my what I needed to do, just to look in my warranty booklet. I did that, and it instructed me to contact the General Manager of the purchasing or servicing dealer first. When I finally got a chance to speak with him, he did not know the procedures for lemon law and contacted someone who did. I was told to fill out the arbitration request in my booklet and send it in to Daimler-Chrysler. From there they would take it and hopefully resolve it in a timely manner. Obviously this turned out to not be the case.

I received a call from the Sacramento California Customer Service office while I was at work last November, some time after sending in the arbitration request. He instructed me to take my vehicle to another dealer that was 40 miles away to have it repaired. After I stated that it was a long way away and that I did not have another vehicle to drive he offered me a loaner vehicle. I then stated that I had begun arbitration paperwork to have Daimler-Chrysler buy back or replace the vehicle. The service representative told me that they had indeed received the request, but would not act on it because I had not followed it up. He would not tell me what I needed to do either, but I felt I should talk to a lawyer about my options.

The service representative had also stated that it had been difficult to reach me, but he never asked me to update my telephone number, nor did he give me a number that I could reach him at.

On the 14th of December I sent a certified letter to Daimler-Chrysler containing a copy of all of my records and a letter requesting a written response within 10 days of it’s receipt. The letter was received and signed for by Dale Stern on December 21, 2001. As of March 4, 2002 have not received a response from anyone at Daimler-Chrysler. I find this not only upsetting, but also completely unacceptable. The California state lemon laws were passed to protect consumers, and it should not be this time consuming and difficult to get a large corporation like Daimler-Chrysler to cooperate with one of their customers. Twenty-three thousand dollars may not be a large amount of money to a large corporation, but to me it represents a sizeable investment. Quality customer service is something that should have gone with the purchase of this vehicle.

Serious Problems
I was told by the service manager that Dodge pickups have a history of problems similar to mine, though they are usually easy to correct. As a matter of fact, there was a fullsize 1999 Ram 1500 with the same exact problem as mine.

I have also found that the carrier bearing problem I experienced is widespread and effects every limited slip rear end. According to the service manager it is not a matter of if, but when they will fail. He said that the average service life is between 10,000 and 30,000 miles (mine failed at 10K). This has happened on Jeep Cherokees, Grand Cherokees, Dodge Dakotas, Dodge Ram 1500 and up, Dodge Durangos and Dodge Vans.

The paint is not durable at all. I tried to have the hood and grill repainted at around 12000 miles because of "bug chips". It seems that every time I would hit a bug in those areas, a small chip of paint would come off with it. The dealership called it "normal wear" and refused, though the paint has more chips than my Escort does at 65000 miles.

In Conclusion
I could excuse DiamlerChrysler for selling me a lemon, but I cannot excuse their total lack of concern and consideration for an investor of theirs.
I will never again purchase a Dodge, Jeep, Chrysler or Plymouth, if only because I know that if I have serious problems, the company will never help me without a judgement in my favor.