> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jason Bleazard
<snip>
>
> So, are we doing to accept owners of Ridgeline-style Dakotas on the list?
> I guess we'll have to, since we even put up with the damned Subaru people
> :-).
>
> I get why they have to do something with the Dakota. The current model is
> so big and expensive that there's not much reason to get one instead of a
> Ram 1500. What they should do is take it back down in size to the sweet
> spot it used to occupy between compact and full-size trucks. It's grown
> out of that and now they wonder why it isn't doing as well.
Agree...it should be made smaller but still have a V8 option.
> If they want a light-duty personal use truck, IMHO they'd do better to
> make a Scrambler based off the Wrangler. A new model would look like a
> step forward, instead of dragging an existing model down and moving it
> backwards. Of course, they probably think that John Q. Public will view a
> wimpy unibody Dakota as an improvement as long as it gets good gas
> mileage. They sad thing is they're probably right.
As an owner of both a '92 Dak (body on frame) and a 2000 Grand Cherokee
(unibody) I can tell you first hand that a unibody doesn't necessarily mean
wimpy. Properly optioned, Grand Cherokees can pretty much go anywhere and
after having towed 6000 lbs plus (my Dak & trailer) over more than 6000
miles with mine I can also vouch for its durability and performance....even
with the lowly 4.7L.
> It's a good thing for me that I had already decided our next truck will
> probably be a full-size, or I'd be pretty upset. If I had the money, I'd
> head out and get a new Dakota, just for the historical significance of
> having one of the last real Daks ever made. I guess I can wait 5 years
> and get a used one.
FWIW, if I had a need for a new truck, it too would be a Ram simply because
of the relative size of the Dak vs the Ram and I personally don't like the
styling of the current Dak.
<snip>
Ray
http://www.dragtruk.com/ENTRIES/20KM1FD2KWBP.html
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