Good morning and Happy New Year.
I have returned from my Holiday ramblings. I left on December 21st and
returned January 9th. During that time I put 5,500 miles on my Dakota.
My travels included Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas.
Driving conditions consisted of clear and dry, rain, major ice storm, snow
storms,
black ice (Indiana) and of course, sub zero temps to 65 degrees. I had about
1,000 pounds in the bed from Michigan to Houston. Lighter going back to
Oklahoma and about 900 pounds on the return to Michigan. Fuel milage
averaged about 16 MPG. Speed was widely varied. From 15 MPH in very
bad conditions to above 115 MPH on certain road segments that I know.
Hauled 350 gallons of water in 1 gallon bottles to my place on Oklahoma.
(not all at once). The Dakota performance was outstanding. The only problem
that cropped up was a loose glovebox door latch (which I fixed). The mileage
on the Dakota is now 86,750. I have always believed in preventative
maintenance
and upgrade when ever possible. It is really starting to pay off now.
To borrow a phrase from Chevy, my Dakota is solid as a rock. My plan is to
drive it at least another 90,000 miles. It still looks almost new and runs
even
better.
As a side note, my wife put 3,350 miles on her Jeep Cherokee during the same
time frame which brings the total milage to just under 70,000. The only
problem
was a dead battery in the Key-less entry thingy.
David R.
Sterling Heights
Michigan
drd892@aol.com
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