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Dodge Dakota Overview

July 8th, 2007 by shenron

The Dodge Dakota was the first mid-sized pickup truck made to be as nimble and economically fuel conservative as a compact pickup truck while at the same time being strong and able enough to handle heavy loads and provide for being a workhorse. The Dakota was brought to life in a Frankenstein style assembly project with many parts coming from different vehicles, until they produced the Dodge Dakota series.  These first series Dakota models were in the styles of either a two door pickup or two door convertible and it had its very own platform.  Many engines were used throughout the first-gen’s lifespan (as it was active between 1987 and 1996) starting with the 2.2L and ranging up to a 5.2L Magnum V8.  The features it had in 1988 were considered to be pretty good, but that year they released the Dodge Dakota Sports Package.  It was available in either two wheel or four wheel drive and it came with AM/FM stereo with a cassette player, along with remote outside mirrors, and a Gauge package.  In 1990 a club cab was added, and a year later the final Dakota Convertibles were manufactured after Dodge decided to do away with the Dakota Convertible.

 Dodge Dakota

The next era lasted from 1997 until 2004, and it had the semi-truck look of its predecessor, while in 1998 the R/T model made its debut - the reason this is significant is the addition of the Magnum V8 as an option, which bolstered the horses this vehicle used by shoving it up to 250. Finally in the year 2000 the additions included a four seater that had a shorter bed but higher human capacity than the regular.  Again in 2001 they redesigned the Dakota on its lovely innards, and gave it a new dashboard along with door and seats, then about a year after this they got rid of the 4 stroke and stuck with the V6.  At the end of this era’s lifespan the Dodge Dakota saw the introduction of a 210 horsepower V6 engine, while also an update was made to the Mag V8 - a total of 250 horses on that.

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Dodge Ram Overview

July 8th, 2007 by shenron

Few trucks have been able to compete with Ford like the Dodge Ram in recent times, and the Dodge Ram does so comfortably.   The Dodge Ram is a solid truck that has been around since the eighties, and actually much earlier since it is essentially the Dodge D series, but with a new name.  The Ram today comes in several special makes and models along with the workhorse 1500, and also there is a 2500 and 3500 model similar to Chevrolet’s numbering system.  The Dodge Ram has a new engine this year in the 5.7L Hemi V8 replacement, the 5.7 MDS Hemi V8.  This packs in 345 horses under the hood with a good amount of torque - however gas mileage was also increased to around 15 miles to the gallon in city driving and 19 miles to the gallon on the highways (if you’re looking for fuel economy in a Dodge Ram… look elsewhere, however if you are looking for a truck that can haul, the Dodge Ram is perfect).

Dodge Ram Picture

 Soon there will be a new Ram on the market with the redesigned 2009 models expected to be released with better payload capacities, gas mileage, and towing power.  Hopefully the engine will be updated to something with a bit more roar too - however details about the 2009 are still somewhat sketchy and many seem unfounded as of yet.  The current Dodge Ram is expected to be in production until then with minor updated and tweak along the way, considering it will be the final years of production on this current design and model.  It is rumored that the V10 Viper may be an option in the higher end Dodge Ram 2009’s, which would give it one of the most powerful engines in the Ram line, as the SRT-10 had at one point.  However plans for the Dodge Ram having this additional engine option could be scrapped with rising fuel costs and more focus on efficiency over power as of late.

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Dodge Rampage

July 7th, 2007 by shenron

A special model of the Dodge Ram came out in 1982, it was a subcompact pickup truck with the name of Rampage, smaller than a compact pickup this little thing was only able to carry a 1,145 pound load.  Add in two people and that decreases. The Dodge Rampage was based on the Dodge Omni and borrowed from it several things, including its platform.  The vehicle was also called the Plymouth Scamp since they were both made by the Chrysler Corporation.  The body style was that of a regular two door truck with a front mounted engine and two wheel drive with the rear wheels being powered.  The Dodge Rampage boasted a tiny 2.2L four stroke engine that was capable of ninety six horses.  The first trucks had a four speed manual, which was later replaced by a five speed manual transmission and was often looked at as a good rival to the El Camino - however its only true competitor was a vehicle made by Volkswagen. 

The Dodge Rampage’s clone for Plymouth only lasted a year, while the Dodge Rampage was manufacture for just three years.  Shelby introduced its own modified model in the 1984 year (the final year the Dodge Rampage was ever produced) and it is extremely rare, as only 318 were manufactured and released.  In the end the final Shelby’s were capable of 99 horses, and that was the end of the story.

..Or was it?  in 2006 the Dodge corporation released a Dodge Rampage Concept vehicle, which is in no way a subcompact, it is the same size as a Dodge Ram and uses a 5.7 Hemi engine with a lovely horsepower capacity of around 330-350.  It also uses some unusual features for a truck, such as the ‘Stow’n Go’ feature that is usually found in Dodge Minivans, not trucks, along with being a front wheel powered vehicle rather than rear wheel. 

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Dodge Power Wagon

July 7th, 2007 by shenron

The old classic Power Wagon, before the D series this was Dodge’s premier truck, [produced between 45 and 69.  The original designs for the Power Wagon were from the military vehicles they had manufactured during the war, and were 3/4 ton.  The truck had a four speed transmission and was able to haul a massive 8,700 pounds, along with carrying a payload of 3k pounds.  The Dodge Power Wagon was the predecessor to all the future Dodge trucks, and it even had four wheel drive.   The Dodge Power Wagon had several models, with the light duty Power Wagon being the W100, and the W200.  The WD100 was a light 1/2 ton truck that had two wheel drive while the W200 had four wheel drive.  Then a one ton vehicle was created, and it was the W300 Power Wagon (sans light duty, this was the real deal) which was their largest - based on the W300M, a U.S. military truck in service during Korea.

Soon, a W500 two ton Dodge Power Wagon was built, and it lasted until 1969, replaced by the W600 which stopped production in 1977.  To make up for the loss of the W600 when many Dodge vehicles were discontinued a W400 was released.  Finally the Power Wagon name was dropped in 1981 when the Dodge Ram came into production, with the four wheel drive power models being sold under the name “Power Ram” until 1993.  The truck served in World War II, the Korean War, and may have been used in some locations during Vietnam.  The Dodge Power Wagon sold for under 2k in 1946, with the price going up to 2,045 dollars between 1948 and 1950 - and consistently going up afterwards until 1968 when the last domestic versions were released - you could get one for just 4,600 dollars U.S.D. in 1968 and boasted a 125 horsepower engine.

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Dodge Ram 50

July 7th, 2007 by shenron

The Dodge Ram 50 and D 50 was a compact pickup truck that was offered in the market (This was Dodge’s only compact pickup truck, as today they make the full size Dodge Ram, and mid-size Dodge Dakota) in 1979 until 1993.  What is interesting is that the first generation of the truck was produced from 1979 until 1986, with it being called two other names.  Originally it began production when the D series was still the dominant name and truck that Dodge produced, later when they changed to Dodge Ram the D 50 became the Dodge Ram 50 - but it was also known as the Plymouth Arrow Truck (between 1979 and 1982).  The engines on this old model were four strokes, one being a 2.0L that only had 93 horses, and the other having 2.6L with a hundred horses or so.  The truck came in two layouts, a two door or a four door, along with it having the usual front engine rear wheel drive, and a four wheel drive model too.

In 1986 the Dodge Ram 50 was redesigned and marked the beginning of the second generation, this was also the same year the Dodge Dakota was released - and the Dakota would replace the Ram 50 just a short six years later.  However, because the Dakota was (the first) mid-sized truck, the Dodge Ram 50 continued to sell reasonably well, and when it was discontinued it was more of a company political move than anything else - with them trying to show that they were independent from other manufacturing firms or other car companies.  The final generation saw the same two door or four door layout with the same front engine mount, and either two or four wheel drive. The transmission was a four speed auto or five speed manual, and the engines were

Either four strokes at 116 horses or the V6 which gave it a much nicer 142 horses and probably helped to extend its life in the nineties.

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