For our fourth and final two-car Showdown for the week, we’re headed to colorful Colorado to look at a pair of two-wheel-drive Dodge trucks. Yes, before there was Ram (sorry, RAM), there was just Dodge, and before every truck had to have four doors and blind spots big enough to hide a Town Car in, trucks had single cabs and bench seats.
The results from yesterday’s matchup are no surprise, and I think I can guess that the Seville would have lost to the Ford Tempo it was going to go up against, and the pink Honda would have won, so it all worked out all right in the end. I counted at least one hate-vote for the Seville among the eighty-six brave souls who chose it; I don’t know what everyone else’s motivation was, but hey, more power to you.
Like everyone else, I’ll take the pink Accord. That color is obnoxious, but at least you’d be able to find it in a parking lot. The clear lights have got to go, though; I can’t stand those things.
More than any other type of vehicle that has been lost to time, people seem to pine for simple, honest pickup trucks. Modern trucks are marvels, with comfort and convenience that surpasses even luxury cars back in the day, and horsepower that buyers in decades past could only have dreamed of, but they’ve lost something along the way. It’s all posturing and bluster now, like they’re bragging about the awesome jobs they can do instead of just shutting up and getting to work. Old trucks are tools, not status symbols, and there’s a lot to be said for that. Let’s check out a couple of them.
1990 Dodge Dakota – $2,100
Engine/drivetrain: 3.9-liter OHV V6, five-speed manual, RWD
Location: Colorado Springs, CO
Odometer reading: 284,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
In the 1970s, all of the Big Three auto manufacturers imported their small trucks from Japan. In the early ’80s, GM and Ford both started making their own small trucks, but Chrysler stuck with its Mitsubishi-built Dodge Ram 50. It wasn’t until 1987 that Dodge brought out its own smaller truck, the Dakota. But the Dakota wasn’t nearly as small as the S-10 or Ranger, or the imports; Dodge called it a mid-sized truck. It was smaller and more maneuverable than the full-sized trucks, but still available with a full eight-foot bed for carrying sheet goods.
The early Dakota was available with either the K-car’s 2.2 or 2.5 liter four-cylinder, or a new 3.9 liter V6, which was Chrysler’s 318 V8 with two cylinders lopped off. This one has the V6, equipped with throttle-body fuel injection, and a five-speed manual. Four-wheel-drive was available, but this truck is only 2WD. It has a ton of miles on it, but the seller says it still runs and drives just fine. High miles on an old simple truck like this aren’t necessarily a big deal; everything is rebuildable as long as parts are available.
The miles show on the interior; the seat is ripped, and I don’t know what the hell happened to the dashboard top. The glovebox is open, and I bet it doesn’t latch; I’ve seen other Dakotas with that problem. But hey, it’s an old truck, not a Lexus. You don’t buy it for the interior appointments.
It’s a little banged-up outside, but it doesn’t look rusty. I have never been much of a fan of truck toppers, and this one, with no side windows, looks like a real pain in the ass to live with. Unfortunately, long-bed Dakotas aren’t all that common, and this topper won’t fit anything else, so the market, if you tried to sell it, is pretty small. I guess you could stick it behind the garage in case you need it for some reason later?
2001 Dodge Ram 1500 – $2,500
Engine/drivetrain: 3.9-liter OHV V6, four-speed automatic, RWD
Location: Denver, CO
Odometer reading: 230,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
Pickup truck designs used to stay the same for a long time. Dodge’s trucks kept the same basic bodystyle for more than twenty years before this design appeared in 1994. It was a risky move for Dodge, but customers loved it, and it sold like hotcakes. But this design only lasted until 2002. Trucks were moving off the farm and into the city, and city folks expect more frequent new models.
This is a simple, plain-jane Ram 1500, with a short six-and-a-half foot bed and a single cab. Trucks like this often have the smallest engine available, and that is the case here. It’s powered by the same 3.9 liter V6 as the Dakota, backed by a four-speed automatic. It’s probably not what you’d call quick, but you can do a lot with torque and gearing. It runs and drives well, and it just passed an emissions test, which is a good sign.
It’s a good basic truck inside: bench seat, rubber floors, crank windows, the whole nine yards. The seat is worn, but everything else looks all right. It does have a cover on the dash, which is weird for a truck. Why cover the dash, but not the ripped-up seat?
Outside, it’s a great color, but unfortunately, rust has started to set in. It’s not terrible yet, but it’s not going to get any better. There are worse sins for a truck than a little rust, of course. I like the fact that it’s stock, with good, honest, plain steel wheels and normal-sized tires. It’s a friendly, approachable truck, not like the imposing behemoths for sale today.
You don’t need four hundred horsepower or a five-foot-high grille to do truck things. A basic single-cab truck with a V6 engine can accomplish a lot. Sure, 4WD is a nice thing to have, but you don’t really need that either, most of the time. I’ve owned my truck for seven years now, and used 4WD maybe a dozen times. These would do just fine for most people, for most truck tasks. You’ve got two different variations on the same theme to choose from. Which one suits you better?
Stick shift wins this one.
Also: a dash cover is to keep stuff on the dash from sliding. Stuff like your hat, or a small tissue box. I had one on my prior truck despite a flawless dash, and would have put one on my current truck if they made one.
I’ve had plenty of trucks but my favorite by far was my 1996 Ram. I’d by this blue thing in a heartbeat if it wasn’t on the other side of the country.
That Ram is awesome,you got my vote.
I root for the Dakota. The $400 price difference will pay for a custom fit seat cover, hard dash cover and all weather generic floor mats.
The 1500 looks better and would get my vote if it wasn’t for the rust. I prefer a manual but would have taken the auto just for the better looks.
The Dakota is plain but not ugly, so even though it doesn’t look as good its practicality and manual transmission make it a pretty great consolation prize.
Gen 2 ram all the way. My favorite color they came in too. Still drives like a truck and can just anything you ask it to. V6 a little anemic but for an around town beater and hauler hard to beat it.
I really wanted to vote ram, but these bad boys can ROT in the rust belt.
Dakota being way more solid sells it for needing the least ammount of work to make it salt worthy.
Now for a 360 swap
Either one would make a fine beater truck, but the long bed, smaller and simpler Dakota wins the day. I am sure I can find a new dash and seats somewhere.
Ebay has you covered. The hard, color matching dash cover and custom fit seat covers (some really interesting patterns and colors) will run about $400
The Dakota looks less rusty and gets my vote. I like the styling better, but I’d probably ditch the cap.
I am not interest in a truck without a cap, I have a trailer for loads that don’t need to be covered so make mine the Dakota. I really like the manual transmission, and red on red color scheme!
Dakota for me… the manual will mean it has better real world performance and fuel economy. Plus it’s cheaper and comes with a cap!
Ram. I’m a sucker for short cab short bed pickups, and you win the lottery with paint color on this one. The Dakota is 80s Dodge sadness. The Ram is 90s Dodge rebirth. See this Peterbilt face? Back with a vengeance.
Coat everything underneath with Fluid Film, particularly the rockers and wheel arches, and see if it can greatly slow down the rot.
I only need a truck around once a year or so, and don’t have the extra space in the driveway for such a luxury. I’m voting “present”.
Dakota. Neither of those will tow a horse trailer, so I’ll take the 8′ bed with the lower load floor and haul motorcycles and hay.
This was easy… I’ll take that beautiful blue Dodge Ram! The Dakotas really weren’t the greatest trucks, especially this generation. They seem to have problems. That’s still a good deal for a cheap trick, I mean truck. Buy it and play Cheap Trick in it, ha ha. I’ll still stick w/ the Ram and eventually manual swap it
I don’t think there’s a wrong choice today. I went Ram because I love the regular cab/short bed look.
Dakota me, Daddy
I picked the Dakota, but it was a tough call. I’ve owned a couple Chevrolet full-size trucks (’79 and ’02) with a Six, and it’s never enough power. Even if you drive around empty-bedded, you have to beat on it so hard that it rarely matches the mpg of the small V-8. Besides, the Dakota has a stick.
Both are decent, honest trucks. Both are so far from pristine that you won’t mind using them to do “truck things” or even loaning them to friends for their occasional truck needs. (Just bring it back with a full tank of gas and not too many new dents, dings, and scratches.)
I went with the Dakota; the manual gives it a more trucky vibe. I’d take my time deciding what to do with the topper. Looks to be aluminum, so worst case, if I decide I don’t want it and it doesn’t sell, I could just drive down to the scrap metal place and have them take it off my hands for a couple bucks. Inside, I’d just remove that glove box door altogether, slap on one of those molded ABS dash covers, and get the seat fabric patched up. Or maybe just throw on a cheap cover; it’s a truck, for truck’s sake.
Also, the front bumper damage on the Ram gives it an unfortunate, derpy overbite that makes me chuckle every time I look at it. I want a happy truck, not a laughing stock.