1994 Dodge Dakota Club Cab Review, Prices, Photos

1994 Dodge Dakota Club Cab Review, Prices, Photos

1994 Dodge Dakota Club Cab Review, Prices, Photos

1994 Dodge Dakota (continued)

Walkaround

Your first impression is that this 2 looks more like a full-size truck, It’s big. The cab is extended, with a back seat. And behind the extended cab is a 6.5-foot pickup box. All of this is mounted on a chassis with a 130.9-inch wheelbase. While it lacks the pizzazz of the new Chevy S-Series and Ford Ranger pickups, the Dakota possesses a certain solid, serious dignity.

A heavy-duty black composite bodyside molding runs along the flanks between the similarly clad wheel openings. This is serious parking lot protection and adds to the overall “big truck” look. The look is brightened by stylish wraparound headlights and taillights and a bold, chrome grille. A chrome front bumper and rear step bumper also add cheer. Fit-and-finish is quite good-much better than any earlier model pickups famous for their orange-peel paint and ill-fitting body panels. Our truck was finished in Emerald Green Metallic with a Quartz interior and styled steel chrome wheels.

The pickup bed is of the now-standard double-wall construction. Notches in the bed sides provide support for wood spacers in two-tier loading. The tailgate, with a new center-mounted stoplight, is removable.

Interior Features

Open the door and climb in and you really climb. The step up into the cab furthers the impression that this is a big midsize truck. Our Dakota had the Sport SLT trim package with the premium cloth reclining 60/40 split bench seat. It included a fold-down center armrest, adjustable headrests and a driver-side lumbar adjustment. For a bench seat in a pickup truck, it was exceedingly comfortable. Behind this was a mini-bench seat for rear passengers. Dodge says the Dakota offers a six-passenger configuration, but reality told us this was a truck for two, sometimes three, front seat passengers and maybe one or two passengers in the rear.

Controls and gauges are within easy reach with two exceptions. The power window and door lock controls are in a box mounted on the door panel somewhat out of sight. Until you get used to the touch and feel, you tend to grope for the controls and often open a window when you want to lock the doors.

We thought Chrysler designers and engineers had an excellent idea to locate the cruise control on the steering wheel. (Also present in the steering wheel is the standard driver-side air bag.) We found the joystick control for the sideview mirrors, though, wobbly and somewhat fragile.

Our 6-foot test driver had no problem with room, and the fore/aft front seat adjustment accommodated him easily. One note here: Put the front seat all the way back and there is no knee room for rear seat passengers. This appears to be the case in all extended cab configurations.

Dakota “bigness” shows up in the rear seat area. No side-facing jump seats here. This is a bench seat-the bottom of which is split and hinged to provide access to a hidden storage area behind the driver. There is also storage for the tire-changing tools behind the passenger. Storage area in the front seat was on the skimpy side. There were door pockets, but the glove box was very small.

Visibility was excellent. The hinged rear side windows in the cab and a sliding rear window provided a lot of ventilation combinations.

1994 Dodge Dakota Club Cab Review, Prices, Photos