Hi Mark,
> I'm new here (HI!) and I've got a quick question for the collective wisdom
> on the digest.
Welcome to the list.
> What weight can a Dakota tow? I'm looking at a 95 V6 ext cab and will use it
> to tow a car on a flatbed trailer about twice a year, total weight about
> 4000-4500lbs. Am I crazy or what? I would like to get rid of my 81 GMC full
> size truck but if the Dakota isn't up to the task.....
You didn't specify what transmission, drivetrain, or axle ratio, so I'll try to
cover all the possibilities.
This is the factory towing specifications taken from the 1995 Service Manual,
for a V6 club cab:
4x2:
Manual transmission
3.21 axle: 4000 lbs trailer, 7500 max GCWR
3.55 axle: 4500 lbs trailer, 8000 max GCWR
3.90 axle: 5300 lbs trailer, 8800 max GCWR
Automatic transmission
3.55 axle: 4500 lbs trailer, 8000 max GCWR
3.90 axle: 5600 lbs trailer, 9200 max GCWR
4x4:
Manual transmission
3.55 axle: 4100 lbs trailer, 8000 max GCWR
3.90 axle: 4900 lbs trailer, 8800 max GCWR
Automatic transmission
3.55 axle: 4000 lbs trailer, 8000 max GCWR
3.90 axle: 5200 lbs trailer, 9200 max GCWR
Looks like if you have the 3.90 axles, you should be fine. Or if you have the
3.55 axles in a 2wd, you should be okay with that as well. You can find your
axle ratio stamped on a metal tag attached to the differential. Others have
reported that there's some kind of sticker in the glove box that lists it, but
there's nothing like that on my '95 (previous owner might have removed it).
If the factory rating isn't quite high enough, don't despair. I think there are
things you can do to improve the towing capacity. Changing the gears is the
most obvious, but that isn't cheap, and it will affect your fuel economy as well.
Other people on the list can probably offer more information on techniques
that worked for them (I've never worried about it, since the biggest trailer I've
ever tried to pull was a single-axle U-Haul).
Hope that helps.
------------------------------------------------
Jason Bleazard http://www.bleazard.net Toronto, Ontario
his: '95 Dakota Sport 4x4, 3.9 V6, 5spd, Reg. Cab, white
hers: '01 Dakota Sport 4x4, 4.7 V8, Auto, Quad Cab, black
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