thinkin of getting a shop truck....opinions please

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redfastback

Don't ask me... my garage is empty
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I am looking at getting a 2000 dakota 5.9l r/t extra cab or a 2001 chevy s-10 4.3l v-6 extra cab. I know 1 truck might not be a "mopar", but I need a reliable truck for work and I don't care if I stick to mopar or chevy. Bottom line it has to be reliable and hopefully not need much more than regular maintainance.
I can get either one for about 4k, but just wanted to see of any members might have experience with either model.
 
I have a 2003 Dak quad cab 4X4 with over 130 big on the odometer. Basic replacement parts.. AKA wearables and a fan motor. Big Whooooop!

OH, 20 hwy. - 13ish around town. Right foot/pedal dependent, I have gotten 15 around town.
 
Neither of those engines get very good mpg. Both trucks mentioned are spoons. A full size truck bed will serve you better with the same mpg.
 
I am not too concerned with brand loyalty, but the lil s10 with a gas sipping v-6 does catch my eye. I do want a 98-up toyota v-6 xtra cab, but boy do they hold their value! They are all 7k+. My buddy has one for his tow company and loves it. The dakota is 4k, and so is the s10.
 
I've had both a Dakota and an S-10. The dakota had electrical problems, the s-10 had a fuel pump give out in rush hour traffic on a friday night ! drivability wise I found the s-10 to be way more comfortable.Also the short bed dakota is really squirelly in the rain . I loved driving it on dirt roads though, good clearance and a shure grip made it drive like a tractor it went anywhere I wanted to go.If your gonna go with a chevy I'd go with a silverado I've had three silverados that were company pickups and they were all bullit proof IMO .I drove them hard all while carrying A few hundred pounds worth of tools and parts .Never a single problem with any of them.The silverado with the small 4.9 V8 and conservative gears also gets better gas mileage than either the dak.or s-10 in my experience. Best one I ever had was My 04' silverado,they changed the ecm on the later models and the throttle response sucked.
 
Dakota R/T is good for towing or massive burn-outs..... oh wait, are you the only person that will drive it??
 
I have also owned both. My S-10 was a 93 and had a 2.8 v-6 and a 5 speed.
Almost 20 in town and 28 on the highway. GM soon dropped that engine and put either used a 4 banger or the 4.3 which is powerful but a gas hog. The 3.9 in my 2000 Dakota gets mid teens in town and 20 hwy. (hwy mileage should be better but I was driving 65-75 + ) toolman
 
I have always liked the Dakotas but they do seem to have a few problem spots like the electrical, and the auto. transmissions. I had to work on my bosses a few times but his (4.7) had plenty of power and decent mpg.

The S10's seem to have a pretty good rep. My friends '99 has about 180k and no major work. We also had a few as delivery trucks and no real complaints. They use the same 4l60e trans. as in the 1500 series trucks and in the lighter s10 have better reliability.
 
S10= very small truck but seem solid, downside its a chevy.
toyta = make sure its been checked for the head gasket recall, I know, a toyota with a recall. bad fuel milage, #1 complaint whwn I was in service. It seems if it says toyota, everybody thinks it gets 40MPG. Engines underpowered.
Dakota = plenty of power, roomey cab, comfortable to drive, r/t rides a little stiff, reg models have a great ride. concerns, lower ball joints. the only model offered with a v8, you could tow somethimg if you had to.
 
Well, the blue one is OUT! THe guy had the bed off doing the fuel pump and said his guy had to get a specific year since a 92 pump didn't work.....that meant he was getting a used fuel pump.....ggrrrrreeeat.. a few things were disconnected in the engine bay...and he still wanted 4985, the higher of the 2 prices in his 2 listings for the same vehicle.

THe burgundy one had signs of problems....but still. Not worth what they wanted.
 
Well, I ended up getting a truck. Sorry, but EVERY dakota I looked at was junk..too much money and too any problems. I got a 99 GMC Sonoma, stepside, V6, fully loaded for 5k. I feel I got a great deal. It runs smooth as hell. And it happens to match the cuda....8) I didn' expect custom grille, bumper, rims, etc, but even stock trucks were higher priced...:dontknow:

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I had a 4-cyl, 5 spd. 96 Ford Ranger for years.

The most reliable work truck I ever had, sold it last year to a young soldier fresh out of Fort Bragg.

It became too small as my business demanded more room so I now drive an E-250 cargo van.
I like it too, been pretty good to me so far and has tons of room inside even with shelves on both sides.
 
That thing is beautiful, and the 2WD Sonoma / S10's ride nice. But that cargo box is tapered. It's less than 48" wide at the tailgate end, which is borderline criminal. Even though it has those 2"x4" pockets to hold cargo above the wheelhouses, you won't be putting 4'x8' sheet in there. Freaking IDIOTS who designed that spec. The sales brocure assures you it's wide enough, but they are giving you the measurements for the cab end of the box. Can you tell I'm irate? Chevy definately makes a nice truck, but the sportside S10 box was a real fubar, in my estimation. It will get you a lot of compliments, though.
 
one of the best trucks i've ever owned was a 97 tacoma single cab 5 spd. had 195xxx mi and never had a problem. 2.4l and got 27+mpg. perfect for a shop
 
Thanks guys. I did a tuneup on it and found out that the plugs looked like they had 60-80k on them and the fuel filter was original and I could barely blow thru it!! I wonder how it even ran!

It will soon get some coys grey 5 spoke wheels too.....but these will do for now. These are what came on it new since it was a "california concepts" truck and already lowered too. If I need plywood, my buddy has a 00' silverado....

FYI, the toyota v6's were better after 98-99 when they fixed the head gasket issue. My buddy's 01' runs fast as hell and still gets pretty good mileage.
 
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