Is Dakota gas mileage as bad as some say

Yes, and no. My truck gets 12 in town, and 16 on the freeway (80mph+).

18-19 on the backroads, with speeds around 60mph. But, it can tow 6,000#+, it's a 4x4, it's quick, stable, and comfortable. If capability is your major concern, buy the Dakota. If fuel mileage is your primary concer, buy a Ranger. Life's full of trade offs.

yes, compared to a car...

no, compared to a full sized truck...

We have a 99 ram QQ 2wd with the 360... tows well if you like 8 mpg and is comfortable on trips if you can handle 15 mpg...

I wouldn't do any serious towing with our 01 club cab dakota with 4.7L auto &

2wd, but compared to the ram, it's a blast to drive... the 4.7 is a great engine with a lots of power for a mid-size truck...much crisper acceleration, (I think what the ram does is accelerate), handles like a car on winding roads, stops very well, etc... Averages about 12 mpg in town and 18 - 20 on trips, on crappy Calif. gas...

My brother gets 30 to 50 mpg in his Lexas hybrid SUV, so if you want to spend $60,000 you can save some money on gas.. *g*

mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

'02 Dakota Quad Cab, 4x4, 5.9L, Auto -- 15mpg combined. A friend has an extended cab Dakota 4.7L 4x4 5-speed and gets around 20mpg. Mileage went up noticeably after installing a Flowmaster "Truck and SUV style"

50 series muffler and it sounds really good.

So, not bad but not good either. You have to do the math before buying based on gas mileage and include the non-tangible benefits as well. For me, I wouldn't trade my truck for any other.

Just traded up my 00 Dak QC 4.7. Loved the truck. A true trooper in snow and mud. I got 13-14 city and 15-16 highway. It towed well and handled quite nicly. Well worth the investment.

My 2004 4.7 QuadCab 4x2 gets about 15 commuting on a short 5 mile one way trip. Worst mileage was 12 towing 4700 pounds across the mountains in TN, coming back without the trailer I got my best at 20.5, going 70 average speed. Just took a 1000 mile trip this weekend pulling a pop-up camper, got 15 heading into a 20 knot headwind at 70 MPH, coming back got 17.5 with a

10 knot tailwind going 65. Hope this helps.

John

RQ wrote:

Wow, after reading the responses you've received to date, I am surprised at how bad the Dakota mileage really is. My full-size 2003 Ram with V8 Hemi is getting better mileage, both in-town and highway, than these Dakotas. It doesn't make sense, particularly on the highway, where profile of the smaller truck should be a big advantage.

Martin

Wow, after reading the responses you've received to date, I am surprised at how bad the Dakota mileage really is. My full-size 2003 Ram with V8 Hemi is getting better mileage, both in-town and highway, than these Dakotas. It doesn't make sense, particularly on the highway, where profile of the smaller truck should be a big advantage.

Martin