I have a 2002 Dakota, love my Dakota, has been a bullet proofed truck but started overheating recently. Very good video on thermostat removal and replacement, other videos show taking off a whole bunch of parts to get at thermostat. Excellent, and clear video.
I have 2003 Dakota SLT V6 auto extra cab2 wheel drive. 200,000 miles on it. Running great just needs regular maintenance Bullet proof for sure!!! Does not let me down or break down, fires up 365 times a year. I'm in California bought it used 2 years ago with 169000 miles needed some TLC and synthetic Mobil 1it came alive
Thanks for your help, friend.... I watched a few other videos before yours, I was stressing thinking I was going to need everything just short of a lawyer..... I'm digging your short cuts.But I'm gonna clean up my surfaces better. Thanks for sharing your adventures brother....
Thanks for this video! Been trying to track down a leak for a little bit now. Finally found some coolant coming from the mating surface where the thermostat is. Looks like a $10 repair for me, since I already have coolant on hand from replacing the radiator in my van.
Thank you. I’m leaking antifreeze at the thermostat housing. I watched a video like you did where the guy took a lot more stuff off. I thought I don’t think all that needs to come off and you proved that for me. It’s no longer a hypothesis, it’s a fact!
I did this job today on my 2003 Dakota V6. Took about an hour to complete. I did not drain the system I removed the radiator cap make sure it's cool or barly warm not HOT ! I then I pulled the top radiator hose at radiator and let it drain make sure its cool. Your video explained everything well. A few suggestions. Use blue tape on the removal and installation of the 2 bolts also I taped extension to the socket or if you use 2 extensions tape those together as well sometimes the bolts fall or the socket falls during the job and it's hard to find where they went or pull back up with long needle nose pliers. So it's easier and faster for me to use tape during installation and removal use a 6 point socket, I went to Vato Zone aka the dude zone (Auto Zone) The thermostat is a 195 degree. That's a stock replacement for the V6. I'm doing this because my mechanic/smog repair guy recommended it to get the truck to pass smog and emissions test here In California the old stat was a 180 and it ran to cool the 195 will bring back to normal operating temperature and I hope it will pass smog now. I used the Fail /safe brand it does not come with a gasket so I bought a Felpro gasket and I used permatex gasket maker antifreeze glycol resistant I used it on all 4 mating surfaces on the engine block both sides of the gasket and also on the housing nice even bead so it makes good contact do not over use it will all squeeze out at assembly. I bolted both bolts evenly and snug waited about 30 min then I torqued the 2 bolts down tight put my hose back on at radiator added coolant replaced cap and I was good to go!!!!!
Nice. Just-say-no to added form-a-gasket, though. Buy a good quality gasket and leave that goopy stuff off the block. If a high quality fiber gasket is properly installed you'll get more wear out of it without the sealant than with. Agreed with you on the 195 degree thermostat. If I were to do it all over again I'd do the same. Lower temp thermostats are too cool and impact the engine's ability to run efficiently. I saw a performance degradation with the lower temp thermostat I put in.
@@ronblouch178 Thank you Ron for the tip. I will try that next time with no form a gasket. The job went well put 100 miles on the Truck yesterday after the job no leaks. Dakotas are bullet proof just need some TLC and maintenance. I think the Dakotas were built well with pride, to compete and run with Toyota's the Ranger and S10, I've had mine for 2 years bought it when it had 169000 miles it's still going strong does not burn oil or any leaks at all. Thank you for your video it was very helpful.
@@joecarreon4824 I'm glad your Dakota is working well for you. Mine died a painful death a few months after I made the video. The thermostat replacement did not fix the problem. We got down to it being either a head gasket or cracked block. The symptoms were not clear. Since a repair would have cost far more than the vehicle was worth I used a bottle of K&W gasket repair in a last ditch attempt to get a fix. It trashed engine - causing immediate overheating when before I could go for about 50 miles before it would overheat. I scrapped the truck. A sad story. Yet I'm glad the video of the thermostat replacement is still helping other people.
@@ronblouch178 Ron that's to bad those are usually good trucks but things happen, overheating is a killer for most motors especially for aluminum blocks heads and parts, The truck probably had bad maintenance or a bad leak and a previous owner kept driving with no antifreeze or water in it or it was not flowing due to that thermostat problem you never know, at least you tried to save its life. That's what I'm doing just keeping my truck alive maintenance more maintenance. Thanks again for making the video.
I would recommend taking off that brace, the one that starts near the throttle cable and goes to the top of the alternator, it makes more clearence pretty quickly.
I got an 03 with a bad thermostat, stuck open. Funny thing is, I've noticed that the dakota's can be slow or temperamental about engine codes appearing. A year ago, I had a misfire in number 6 due to rotting wires, and it took over a month of continuous misfiring to throw a code. I've noticed my coolant temperature has always been low, and takes a long time for the engine to warm up, within the past 3 years of ownership. The code just showed up today stating an inactive thermostat, and nothing has changed with my trucks cooling system performance.
A couple of notes I’d like to add 1) A wire brush works great with cleaning the crud off where the connections would be made 2) A 1/2” socket fits the bolts as well if you don’t have a 13mm 3) I also applied gasket maker to where the connections would be made as to add an extra layer of leak protection 4) I don’t think that much fluid has to be pumped out, just enough to not make a mess when you take the hose off 5) I got away with just disconnecting the tstat end of the radiator hose. 6) Make sure your system is cold before you open your radiator cap.
All fine except for gasket maker. Just Say No. Use the proper gasket and don't gum up the seal - gasket maker products fail more quickly than a proper gasket will.
Hello. I am not mechanic savy but do you think this will unscrew the bolt? www.ebay.ca/itm/Square-Inch-250mm-10-inch-Long-Chrome-Ball-Joint-Socket-Ratchet-Extension-Bar/391742730266?hash=item5b35afb01a:g:q78AAOSwCU1Y3rw- Thank you
A LEE I’d say that will get it done. If you don’t want to wait for it to ship I’d just pick up a half inch socket from your local parts store. A 10” extension should do the trick nicely
@@joeleal7250 Thank you for your reply.. May I ask three more questions?? My vehicle takes forever to warm up.... like 20 minutes of driving before it reaches operating temp and get hot air.. Other wise no overheating problem. Is this thermostat issue??? what torque should I use to tighten those bolts??? If I take the vehicle to the mechanic, how much will they charge me?? Thank you very much!
A LEE since it’s just a radiator hose, torque isn’t really a huge factor. As long as it’s as tight as you can get it that should be plenty. A mechanic will cost you around $100-$150 depending on where you go. I don’t recommend doing that because you can buy the thermostat (and gasket maker if you’re feeling ambitious, although you don’t need it) for around 15-25 bucks. The whole process should only take 30 minutes to an hour.
Would have been one point better if he would have told us clearly what size socket he is using. Also he would have use a pair of hospitals putting the paper towels in the hole. Never use a wood chisel to clean gaskets off unless u are careful not to scratch the aluminum surface. I would have used my dream tools with a rotary brush or scouring pad to clean the surface. Also I would have used some gasket sealant like morosely or permanent black in the gasket. Using a lower temp thermostat is OK in summer but the higher one in winter best.
Thank you. I think about three hours from start to cleanup. I went slowly because I'd never done it before then I took time to explain myself along the way.
Ron Blouch: I’m all done! Took me about 2 hours to complete due to me having to get some tools and more antifreeze but it went smoothly for the most part. Thanks again for the video man you’re a lifesaver!!
Hey great vid. I used permetex thermostat housing gasket maker .. How long do I have to wait before its safe to start vehicle ... Instructions say 24 hours but surely 20 houra in 40 degree weather shoukd be ok ?
Hi I don't know if you're able to message me back on this or not but I have a 98 Dodge Dakota and I just bought a new thermostat for it and was about to install it I was just wondering my truck's not overheating or nothing but I don't have very good heat coming out of the dash will changing the thermostat help me at all or is it just an overheating issue that it can fix
No or low heat in a Dakota of that era is a common problem. I never resolved mine, nor did I resolve the overheating issue. After trying nearly everything I finally used a head gasket sealant solution that made the vehicle undrivable. It fully clogged the heater core - leaving me with zero heat not just low heat - and the engine began to red line the temp gauge after five miles of driving. I scrapped it. You have most likely got a clogged heater core. You can try a back-flush and hope for the best. If that doesn't work your best bet is to live with it. Replacing a heater core in a Dakota is a mammoth task involving the removal of the entire dashboard. IIRC there is a guy who modified the coolant flow to the heater core by re-routing the tubing. He did a RU-vid video if you can find it. Good luck.
@@bricehale6593 Could be a wide range of issues. Coolant level, thermostat could be stuck open, could have an air pocket in your cooling system also could be waterpump.
If I figure it out I will let everybody know I just put a brand new water pump and thermostat in it still hasn't solved the problem i belive its under heating not getting to half tem lil under then when im driveing it gets even cooler
Brice Hale If your temperature gauge in the bottom left hand corner of the dash display doesn’t register, then your tstat is messed up and needs to be replaced. I had the same problem and it fixed my heat.
The thermostat bolt heads are 1/2” socket... not 13mm... I tried 13 and it was spinning with no grab. Switched to 1/2 and it fit way better. I wonder how many people listened to what you said and ended up drilling their bolts out.
Ron Blouch 13mm is .511811 inches to be exact. I literally replaced my thermostat on a 2002 Dakota with 3.9... the referenced 13mm is too big. My 13mmsocket was just spinning. . .512” is bigger than .500 which is 1/2” so idk how .512” is smaller than 1/2” which is what you said... anyway the bolts are 1/2” socket end of discussion.
Changed my response above because I was incorrect. The socket should have been loose, not tight. The bolts on my truck were 13mm. If you pause video in the right spot you can see it on the socket. I can't imagine you've got a half inch bolt but perhaps you do. Viewers can see both claims and figure out which one applies to their truck.
@@ronblouch178 hey, not sure why he was so upset about this. I believe him,they probably we're different . Auto makers will sometimes change small (non important) things like that for whatever reason. The only difference be the head size. Ive ran into it. Few times. Same model cars having different bolt or clips. It happens.
