did dodge make a 4x4 5.9l dakota 97-04?

I am looking for a midsize tow vehical and the only truck that i know of that has a v8 in a midsize truck is the dakota. I know some came w/ 5.2 318's but i wanted to know if any 4x4 came w/ the 5.9l 360...? Does anyone know of any websites where i canfind info on the dakotas so i can figure out what it can tow? What yrs had what engine? thanx

No. 360's only came in the R/T trucks, and all of them are 2wd.

I ordered my 03 Dakota with a 5.9 but it's a 2 wheels drive.

yes, there are Dakota's with 5.9 360. I have a 2000 Dakota quad cab 4x4 with a 5.9 360 (for sale). Great power, much better than 318.

Are you sure it's a 360?

One of my friends bought a truck because the salesman told him it had a 360, but it was just a normal truck with sport decals on it. I checked the label under the hood, and the VIN and it's just a 318 truck, not even a sport.

See my other post for more details: http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=343190

But here's the short story: Supposedly only the R/T's (2wd's) came with 5.9L (360ci) motors. But I have a non-R/T 5.9L Dakota 2wd Sport, Regular Cab, Regular bed that came from the factory like that. The 5.9L was never available in the Sport, only in the R/T, but my Sport came from the factory with a 5.9L motor. The vin says 5.2L and the badges say 5.2L, but the motor is definitly the original 5.9L factory motor. I'm still trying to figure out how this happened.

If mine came like this, I'm sure there may be other non-R/T's out there with 360's.

Maybe it could be ordered that way? Hopefully someone that knows what they're talking about will reply to both our postsl

Cyrus

The 5.9 was available in the quadcabs also, but I thought only in 2wd. I could be wrong tho. The sure way is to check the VIN, if the 8th digit is a Z, then it's a 5.9.

I got a 98 dakota with the 2.5L (worst engine you can put in a truck) and I was wondering if the 360s will fit in them. I mean i'm pretty sure the bodys of the dakotas are all the same but I just wanna be sure before I invest. Also what to do about the electrical? Especially if I put in a crate motor.

Yup, the 360 will fit, but you're also going to need the pcm and wiring harness to go with it. Also, not sure what transmission came with the 2.5, but you may need to upgrade that as well to handle the 360. I know it's been done before, but I couldn't give you any details on the actual swap.

actually, the canadian version of the R/T came available with the 5.9 4x4 with a 5speed (same nv3500 as the 5.2)

the only thing is, the r/t suspension is not too great for towing