which 4x4 to choose

[huntinhick]

Alright I am looking for a used rig, I have narrowed it down to either a  2002 dodge Dakota quad cab 4x4 with the v8 or a 2001 jeep Cherokee sport.  I know the jeep is a Strong 4x4 with tons of parts on the market and the Dakota as a good rep but I am not sure how the market is for repairs and parts any way what do you guys suggest the truck or the jeep?  I am leaning towards the dakota for the bed but I have a trailer I can tow with the jeep so it works either way.

thanks
carl

[bobcat]

I'd go with the Cherokee. I believe 2001 was the last year they made those. That should be a great rig.

[carpsniperg2]

i can't say one or the other i like both the funny thing is i have looked at the same 2 rigs for the wife. her suburban went tits up the other. so now i need to find her a good rig i like the dakota a little better myself. but the size of the jeep is a little better.

[Woodchuck]

ball joints, ball joints, ball joints. buy the dakota and this will be your motto and they aint cheap. buy the jeep  

[burrheadcountry]

Not a fan of the Dakota. My boss has had three and they all had transmission problems. My vote is for the Jeep. 

[DRobnsn]

Do you think you will want to modify it or are you just worried about parts availability. Also how hard are you going to be on it?

Also on the ball joints what brand were they replaced with. I found some for my 2001 2500 Cummins that are guaranteed for a million miles no matter what you do to them. Just so you know I have 176000 miles on my originals. The brand is XRF I have heard great things about them. I looked they do make them for Dakota's also.

I have heard about transmission troubles from auto dakota trucks to. Seems to be one of there major problems.On the other hand the Jeep's have very week front and rear axles any aggressive tires combined with aggressive driving will break things.

[deerslyr]

my dad bought his quad cab dakota brand new in 03 and he hasnt had any problems with the ball joints or tranny. Its my favorite truck to hunt in, had plenty of room, plenty of power, and a bed to put stuff in.

[bow4elk]

I'd take a good 4x4 blacktail over a 4x4 muley any day 

My only experience with the Dakota was my dad's old boss had one.  We were elk hunting up in the Bumping area during modern rifle years ago.  That dang thing went anywhere, pushing snow with the bumper and seemed to hook up everywhere we went.  This was a 90's year rig but thought it still might be helpful.

[C-Money]

I would go with th ejeep. My brother has had a few jeeps and they are hard to beat. He drove his 1998 out here from Pennsylvania with 260,000 miles on it and never thought twice about it. It had the 318 v8 and that seemed to be a great motor. Jeeps are good rigs.

[fair-chase]

I cannot express in words how much I dislike the Dakota. I owned an '03 and was quite possibly the worst pickup I have ever owned. Forget what they tell you about estimated mileage. You will average 12mpg in the city, add a hay bale for weight in the winter and it will drop to 8mpg. The engine has absolutely no torque, it's all upper end hp with the only power coming between 4000-6000rpm. This was with the 5.7L V8 with a manual trans. Also the transfer case exploded on me going over snoqualmie had an est 60K miles on it. My wife put it into a jersey barrier two years ago and after finding out she was ok I did a happy dance. So glad to not have that thing in my driveway anymore. I'm not really a jeep fan but would take one in a heartbeat over another dakota.

[gasman]

I would go for the Jeep also. The Dakotas are not know for fuel milage and the Jeeps are known for 200,000+ miles.

[shedcrazy]

Spend the dough and get a 4 door Rubicon edition Jeep. Lockers and off road ready from the factory. Plus it has dual dana 44s, and only a 3 inch lift will fit 35 inch tires

[gasman]

Spend the dough and get a 4 door Rubicon edition Jeep. Lockers and off road ready from the factory. Plus it has dual dana 44s, and only a 3 inch lift will fit 35 inch tires

      

[MuleySniper]

Spend the dough and get a 4 door Rubicon edition Jeep. Lockers and off road ready from the factory. Plus it has dual dana 44s, and only a 3 inch lift will fit 35 inch tires

      

Yeah, nothing like a $30,000.00 plastic toy with 44's front and rear.
MS

[D_morg]

I don't know how some people can pay that much for a rig and use it for hunting. I have a 1997 Jeep Cherokee I use for my hunting rig, my truck stays home.

[teanawayslayer]

I would look at toyota.  Most reliable rigs I have ever owned.  Every time I say I won't buy anything but toyota and end up buying something else.  I always have had problems.  The best factory 4 wheel drive.  that's my 

[DRobnsn]

I would look at toyota.  Most reliable rigs I have ever owned.  Every time I say I won't buy anything but toyota and end up buying something else.  I always have had problems.  The best factory 4 wheel drive.  that's my 

I will put in a vote for the Toyota, I use to trash talk them. But then I bought one and after driving it to work and in just about any condition this state has to offer I'll never bash them again. Unbelievably reliable and off road they ride and handle amazing.

[mulehunter]

Toyota 4wheeler is my one top choice. I have always had toyota since i was high school. Love it.

Mulehunter

[addicted]

jeep, toyotas are usually out of my price range and they have IFS.

what engine is in the jeep? 4.0 is one of the best engines out there for reliability.

i guess it depends on what you'll use if for. spilling gasoline in the back of an SUV sucks, but having the extra warm room is awesome. I camp in the back of my Cherokee and i camped in the back of my Pathfinder.

If your going to lift it and mod it i would go with the jeep hands down.

www.ironrockoffroad.com
www.kevinsoffroad.com
www.quadratec.com

[Wanttohuntmore]

In my family, we've had 3 cherokee's, 1 with a 2.5 ltr 4 cyl, that sucked, and 2 with 4 ltr sixes.  All jeeps put over 200k on the odometer, and could probably go to 300k.  Only probs, were brakes were weak, and waterpumps would go bad (usually from someone overtightening the serpentine belt).  I've had Toy's since then, and can't say they are much better, but for a hunting rig I'd stick with a jeep with a straight axle front.  However, I'll never not have a truck!

[jeepasaurusrex]

I am partial to Jeeps. 

I currently own a 1942 GPW (WW2 Flat Fender), 1982 CJ7, and a 1994 Grand Cherokee. I've owned a 57 CJ5, 1986 Cherokee, 2000 Cherokee, and a 2001 Cherokee. The 4.0 is hands down the best Jeep motor on the market. They run forever. The axles are OK for tires up to 32". Any bigger and you may want to upgrade. The front Dana 30 is OK, but the rear 8¼ or Dana 35 is the weak link. A ford Exploder 8.8 is a easy swap. Some Dana 44 rear axles can be found under Cherokees with towing packages. Slap a set of 30x9.5 mud terrain tires on it and you will basically go anywhere you want. Bolt a winch to the front, they have tons of uses besides getting yourself unstuck (game recovery.) The aftermarket support is awesome for Jeeps. You can get just about anything you want for them. 

[Bean Counter]

I would look at toyota.  Most reliable rigs I have ever owned.  Every time I say I won't buy anything but toyota and end up buying something else.  I always have had problems.  The best factory 4 wheel drive.  that's my 

 

[Alchase]

Buy the Jeep, i had an 87 Comanche that I put 208,000 on. I had a 89 Cherokee LTD, all leather, electric start, the works, added a 5 in lift, rockrails, ARB lockers and a few other mods. We use to drive to Moab Utah, do some serious 4x4ing then drive home all in comfort. Yes they have their problems, but most are very well documented and easy to fix. For those that think the Toyota's are the best 4x4 stock, we ran stock XJ's all over Moab and the "stock" Toyota's would have a very hard time keeping up.
Why? One word that most 4x4 manufacturers including Toyota forget "articulation" you can't have traction when your wheels are off the ground. The Cherokee has some of the best articulation of any 4x4 ever made, stock.
This is not meant to bad mouth Toyota's, like Jeeps they are very good off road with the right modifications and you can't argue with the Toyota dependability either.

[DRobnsn]

Buy the Jeep, i had an 87 Comanche that I put 208,000 on. I had a 89 Cherokee LTD, all leather, electric start, the works, added a 5 in lift, rockrails, ARB lockers and a few other mods. We use to drive to Moab Utah, do some serious 4x4ing then drive home all in comfort. Yes they have their problems, but most are very well documented and easy to fix. For those that think the Toyota's are the best 4x4 stock, we ran stock XJ's all over Moab and the "stock" Toyota's would have a very hard time keeping up.
Why? One word that most 4x4 manufacturers including Toyota forget "articulation" you can't have traction when your wheels are off the ground. The Cherokee has some of the best articulation of any 4x4 ever made, stock.
This is not meant to bad mouth Toyota's, like Jeeps they are very good off road with the right modifications and you can't argue with the Toyota dependability either.

I see where you are coming from with articulation and the lack of straight axle in the front of the Yota. That is easy to fix if your gonna be modding something anyway which I'm not sure he want's to do but I know it can be done in a cost effective manner and flex with the best of them. People do Straight axle swaps in them all the time and there are tons of vendors with kits for sale.

Here is my question what about stock ride and handle in gravel/potholed and paved roads. I have ridden/driven quite a few xj's on and off road same with Toyota's and I think the Toyota's ride is waaay better than the jeep. Not to mention every jeep I have rode in had 200k plus on them everything in it squeaked and rattled. My 200k Toyota doesn't rattle or squeak, neither did my 240k Toyota. 

[GooNiEs]

JEEP!!!!!!.... i been thinking about picking up an older xj... 2 door cherokee.....  i have a yj wrangler and love it..... 

[danceswitharrows]

I would look at toyota.  Most reliable rigs I have ever owned.  Every time I say I won't buy anything but toyota and end up buying something else.  I always have had problems.  The best factory 4 wheel drive.  that's my 

x2

[NWTFhunter]

Jeep ! My cherokee sport has 236k and you can't beat the 4.0 !

[alecvg]

Not a huge fan of either, but out of those, I would go with the cherekee. 

[cohoho]

Jeep ! My cherokee sport has 236k and you can't beat the 4.0 !

Worst thing I did was sell my Cherokee..  4.0 in a with 249k..  Bought it new in 1994 and only did the brakes and a iginition control in 8 years of owning it..  Had a 3.5 lift with 33" went anywhere I wanted to go...

[addicted]

i believe huntwa has spoken. a landslide vote for the jeep.

another idea for the jeep is to put a Golen 4.6liter engine in it 

[Wanttohuntmore]

The 4.0 straight six has got to be one of the best engines ever made (behind Ford's 300 six  ).  For a cheap wheeler, the cherokee wins hands down.  The toy's will need some more expensive front end work to make them comparable to a straight axle cherokee.  What I don't get, is why everyone thinks the Toy's are so dependable?  I've had 3 now, and from what I've read, and experienced, yes, they can last a LONG time, but they require some expensive maintenance.  For example, the 2.4 (22 re) motor lasts forever, but you better change that oil pump in it or you'll likely break the timing chain adjuster that is oil actuated.  Their 3.0 v6, prone to head gasket leaks....  3.4 v6, told by the toy dealer that my new Tacoma (back in 2002) had a small coolant leak, that they can only fix about 50% of the time, something to do with how the hose would clamp unsuccessfully.  They said just watch the coolant level.  I kept that truck for 6 yrs and it wasn't a problem, but still....  I ended up selling it and bought a Tundra, no probs so far.

But truly, all of them are just machines, that will break over time.  I must admit though, that 2002 Tacoma TRD had the most awesome ride on pothole covered roads!  The cherokee's suck compared to IFS on bumpy roads!

[Thenewguy]

I read this post and was hoping for Antlers!

[huntinhick]

well the wife hooked me up,  we decied since this is to be my Daily driver also we wanted something a little newer.  So she tracked me down a 2005 jeep liberty CRD with the 2.8 liter deisel.  Its nice sized and tows 5000 lbs and gets good milage.  So when I get home from deployment in a month I will have new"er" jeep sitting in the drive way.  I might have to keep her (the wife too)

[bobcat]

That's cool that it's a diesel and will get decent mileage, just so long as you know it's not a REAL Jeep.   

[addicted]

man getting a deisel is awesome. That will be great for daily driver and hunting rig. There are lift kits out there if you ever feel  like going that way but the best thing to do in that reguardis take out the front suspension and drivetrain and slap in a D44 or something.

but sweet ride. I wish mine came in diesel in US spec. thats the way to go.

[huntinhick]

I am stoked that she found the Diesel version.  I have already found a lift for the CRD it has heavier springs and stuff for the front.  I plan on a 2" lift, rock rails, bumper, armor cause I break things and good tires.  and I think it will go anywhere I point it. Rockyroad outfitters has alot of good stuff for the liberty I have a feeling they are going to be getting alot of my cash over the next few years.

[Curly]

Do you realize that the Jeep Liberty is the preferred vehicle by gay men?  Not that it should matter to you, just thought it was interesting when I read an article a while back that listed "gay" vehicles.  It even ranked higher on the list than Subaru's. 

Anyway, congrats on the new rig.  I always thought about getting a diesel Liberty.......and no, I'm not gay and I didn't let the article on gay vehicles persuade me out of getting the rig either....

[addicted]

sign up at www.jeepforum.com for all your tech questions. i think yours is called a KJ?

[Alchase]

Cherokee is the XJ, 

[addicted]

he said he got a libby

[jackelope]

Liberty is a KJ.

The diesel is awesome as long as you don't ever have to replace the EGR valve which is their biggest problem area. Really their only problem area. We replace glow plugs every now and then but the EGR valve replacement sucks.  It's expensive and it's not an easy repair on the CRD.
Good luck with it, they are cool little diesel engines for sure.

[addicted]

you should build it like this one. 

[Special T]

Jackalope they must have fixed their problem with the variable pitch vanes in the turbo... What was the story on that? I passe on one of the early ones because of the problems... Something like the bearings went out prematurely? 

[gasman]

you should build it like this one. 

I'd wheel it 

I would even put "Barbie Jeep" on it