----------
> From: Tim May <cutem@enteract.com>
> To: slepyhed@netway.com
> Subject: Dakota R/T
> Date: Sunday, July 19, 1998 6:41 PM
>
> Mike,
>
> Just read your post about Drag Racing your new R/T Dakota. I am thinking
> about ordering a new 99 Dakota R/T. I was wonder what your impressions
are
> with the R/T. Pro's, con;s, etc...
>
> Looking forward to your comments.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Tim May
>
I decided to route this to the list in case there might be some lurkers out
there considering the R/T.
First up, R/T pro's. This truck (especailly the regular cab) looks "meaner
than a junkyard dog." The handeling is awesome! I also have, essentially, a
1987 GLHS, and they both handle about the same. The only perceptible
difference is that the Dakota is much larger than the Charger. The leather
wrapped steering wheel is really nice. You don't want to let go of it. Even
so, the ride quality is certainly acceptable. My shelby is a bit punishing,
but not the R/T. My truck came with the infinity 600 watt cd/tape stereo. I
love it. The reception for the radio is awesome, too. I can pull in
stations all the way through the Sumner tunnel in Boston. The exhaust
really sounds mean. There's no doubt that this is an R/T when you hear it.
The seats have some lumbar support built in (non adjustable). The
instruments are laid out in a pretty standard format and are easy to read.
There's plenty of room in the cab, even though this thing is listed as a
compact truck. With the automatic, the cupholders are really quite nice.
The R/T comes with 3.91 gears ( a big plus at the dragstrip) and something
like a 9-1/4 rear end. I have the sliding rear window, and I heartilly
recommend it. When I open the side windows, I get a breeze flowing around
my head from the BACK. Then I open the rear window and the breeze goes
away, leaving my hair pretty much in place. The only work I've done on this
truck is the oil filter, the air filter and some traction bars. So far, I
can't fault the truck for ease-of-maintenance. The exhaust pipes lead into
a two inlet cat with a single outlet. This is a pretty good exhaust system.
R/T con's: Looking at this truck, with the big tires and the huge engine,
you'd expect it to do mid 14s in the quarter mile. It doesn't. There's
something in the engine that's bottleing it up. I'm still searching for
that bottle neck. Looking at the regular cab driveshaft, I feel a little
nervous. I'm thinking of upgrading this to something stronger. But I can
report that after 2000 miles and one trip to the drag strip, it hasn't
busted (oh, yeah, big deal.). I hear that the CC version comes with the
hot-ticket driveshaft. The tires are kinda wierd. When you're driving
around on the street, the tires hook up really good and won't spin too
much. But when you get on the dragstrip, they totally suck eggs. I count
this as a "con" because I'm really only interrested in dragstrip
performance. From the cat back, the exhaust sytem rocks! The cat itself is
a two inlet, one outlet peice that I think is pretty good. The week point,
IMHO, is the pipes going from the cat to the exhaust manifolds. These pipes
are pretty small diameter and the bends neck down quite a bit. The paint
quality is pretty poor. My dad just bought a Chrysler Sebring convertible,
and we compared the paint. It appears that the paint quality of Dodge
trucks is significantly lower than that of Chrysler cars. Still, he showed
me how to properly buff and wax it, so its looking pretty good now. (I must
mention that buffing and waxing is my dad's specialty. He loves show cars,
and the paint on his 1970 Hemi Cuda is unbelievable! I just keep wondering
if he'll ever get that car completed.)
Summation: The R/T will make you the coolest dude in town. When I drive
around, all those "rice-boys" (those guys with the Hondas that are all
lowered with the coffee can exhaust tips and the crooked HONDA stickers)
run for cover. But, the stock truck is no match for a good Mustang Cobra.
There's a modification laying around there some where that will wake this
truck up, but I don't know what it is yet.
My advice: Buy one!
-Mike Miller, 98 RC R/T
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