The 1993 Dodge Dakota has no open NHTSA recalls. Owners report 8 recurring issue clusters, led by “Paint peeling and flaking on hood and roof.” Dodge uses Stellantis' Oil Change Indicator — it watches engine load and duty cycle and messages when to change oil, capped at 10,000 miles or 12 months. Know your engine: the 3.6L Pentastar V6 goes 100,000 miles on plugs, while HEMI V8s carry sixteen plugs (two per cylinder) on a roughly 30,000-mile interval — that's a real cost difference at the service counter. HEMI models with MDS cylinder deactivation are especially sensitive to overdue oil.
No open recalls on file. NHTSA lists no unrepaired safety recalls for this year, make and model. A recall can be issued at any time, and a specific car can still have one open — check yours by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
What drivers and federal regulators have officially reported about the 1993 Dodge Dakota.
STRUCTURE
12 NHTSA complaints · 1999-03 → 2004-08
“ELECTRIC BLUE PAINT ON EVERY DAKOTA LITERALLY FLAKING OFF THE ENTIRE VEHICLE RIGHT DOWN TO THE PRIMER,HAS TO BE A PAINT DEFECT,CHRYSLER SAYS TOO BAD”
“PAINT HAS BEEN PEELING ON THE ROOF OF THE CAB AND THE HOOD OF THE TRUCK. THE AREA WHERE THE PAINT HAS PEELED HAS NOW RUSTED”
“PAINT ON HOOD AND ROOF BEGAN TO BUBBLE (WHITE CHALKY APPEARANCE) AND PAINT BEGAN PEELING”
SEAT BELTS
8 NHTSA complaints · 1995-03 → 2001-06
“FRONT SEAT BELTS WILL NOT RETRACT ONCE LOCKING INTO PLACE”
“SEAT BELT LATCH IN FRONT DRIVER'S SEAT IN A LATCH POSITON WILL NOT UNLATCH. IT IS STUCK . DEALER SAID IT BROKE, NEEDS TO BE REPLACED”
“SEAT BELT RETRACTORS HAVE FAILED ON THE DRIVER AND PASSENGER SIDE”
STEERING
7 NHTSA complaints · 1995-02 → 1996-08
“STEERING WHEEL SEEMS TO HAVE HARD SPOTS WHEN TURNING. TENDS TO LOCK UP. RACK & PINION NEEDS TO BE REPLACED”
“RACK AND PINION FAILURE, P0WER STEERING FLUID LEAKING”
“STEERING RACK FAILED TWICE”
POWER TRAIN
8 NHTSA complaints · 1995-01 → 2002-01
“INTERMITTENTLY TRANSMISSION WILL NOT ENGAGE IN DRIVE”
“SHIFT LEVER WILL NOT STAY IN PARK. VEHICLE WILL STILL MOVE EVEN WITH GEAR SELECTER IN PARK”
“VEHICLE DOES NOT SHIFT INTO DRIVE GEAR UNTIL SHIFT LEVER IS MOVED INTO ANOTHER GEAR AND THEN INTO DRIVE”
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
11 NHTSA complaints · 1995-01 → 2004-01
“WHILE DRIVING AND APPLYING THE BRAKES, THE ABS LOCKED UP THE FRONT WHEEL, BUT THE REAR WHEEL KEPT TURNING”
“FRONT BRAKES LOCKED UP ON WET ROADS, CAUSING LOSS OF CONTROL/ACCIDENT”
“ABS MALFUCTION IS DUE TO A DEFECTIVE ABS MODULE, CAUSING T PEDAL TO GO TO FLOOR, AND A DELAYED IN STOPPING DISTANCE”
SEATS
7 NHTSA complaints · 1995-06 → 2002-04
“VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN A COLLISION AT 40-45MPH. UPON IMPACT, THE DRIVER'S SEATBACK COLLAPSED, CAUSING THE DRIVER TO GO BACK INTO THE REAR, RESULTING IN MINOR INJURIES”
“THE BOLTS HOLDING THE DRIVERS SIDE SEATBACK AND RACKET ASSY HAVE FAILED TWICE”
“DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BOLT BROKE CAUSING SEAT BACK TO GO INTO THE FULLY RECLINE POSITION”
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
4 NHTSA complaints · 2000-07 → 2014-07
“IGNITION SWITCH BECAME VERY HOT AND MELTED THE STEERING COLUMN PLASTIC, SMOKE EXITED KEY HOLE ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS, AIR CONDITIONING AND BLOWER MOTOR STOPPED WORKING”
“WHILE DRIVING BETWEEN 30-60 MPH IGNITION SWITCH GOT SO HOT THAT IT MELTED A HOLE IN THE STEERING COLUMN'S BOTTOM COVER”
“THE DEALER STATED THAT THE IGNITION SWITCH WAS FAULTY”
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
6 NHTSA complaints · 1996-03 → 2003-04
“VEHICLE STALLS AT ANY SPEED WITHOUT WARNING, CONSUMER HAS TAKEN VEHICLE TO DEALER 5 TIMES, BUT THEY ARE NOT ABLE TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE”
“WHILE SLOWING DOWN AND TURNING OR WHEN IN NEUTRAL POSITION THE VEHICLE'S ENGINE SHUTS OFF”
“THE VEHICLE WAS HARD TO START AND STALLED WHILE DRIVING”
Issues on other model years
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI). Complaint data refreshed Sep 20, 2026. Investigation data refreshed Sep 20, 2026.
We display NHTSA's record with attribution; we don't editorialize on what these complaints mean for any specific vehicle.
Critical for safety and preventing major damage
Change when the indicator says so — never beyond 10,000 miles or 12 months. Pentastar 3.6L: 0W-20. HEMI 5.7L: 5W-20 (0W-40 for 6.4L SRT). MDS-equipped HEMIs punish stretched oil intervals with lifter and cam wear.
Estimated cost — typical U.S. ranges
Dealer
~$120–$160
Shop
~$85–$115
DIY
~$25–$55
Full synthetic costs more than conventional. 5-quart 0W-20 + filter is the typical bill.
Rotate every 8,000 miles. Charger/Challenger R/T and Scat Pack: staggered-width setups can't rotate front-to-rear — budget rear tires accordingly.
Estimated cost — typical U.S. ranges
Dealer
~$85
Shop
~$60
DIY
Free
Often free at the shop where you bought the tires — worth asking before paying.
Inspect pads and rotors at every oil change. Heavy Durangos used for towing and hard-driven Chargers both run through rear pads faster than the front-pad-first rule of thumb suggests.
Estimated cost — typical U.S. ranges
Dealer
~$85
Shop
~$60
DIY
Free
Most shops do this free as a courtesy with any service. Don't pay separately if you can avoid it.
Keeps your vehicle running smoothly and efficiently
HEMI 5.7L: sixteen plugs roughly every 30,000 miles — check your year's manual. Pentastar 3.6L (Charger/Challenger V6, Durango V6, Journey, Grand Caravan): 100,000 miles.
Estimated cost — typical U.S. ranges
Dealer
~$285–$390
Shop
~$200–$275
DIY
~$25–$100
Iridium plugs cost more but last 100k+ miles. V6/V8 access varies wildly — some are tough.
Grand Caravan/Journey (62TE): ATF+4 service every 60,000 miles in family duty. Charger/Challenger/Durango with the TorqueFlite 8-speed: no published normal interval, but specialists recommend service around 60,000-100,000 miles — sooner with towing.
Estimated cost — typical U.S. ranges
Dealer
~$330–$500
Shop
~$235–$355
DIY
~$60–$180
Some sealed transmissions have no dipstick — fill is precise and best left to a shop. Many drivers can still DIY drain-and-fill.
RWD Charger/Challenger and AWD Durango: replace rear diff fluid around 60,000 miles, sooner with towing or drag-strip duty. Limited-slip units need the friction-modifier additive.
Estimated cost — typical U.S. ranges
Dealer
~$150–$195
Shop
~$105–$135
DIY
~$20–$50
Drain plug + fill plug — straightforward DIY. AWD vehicles have two; budget for both.
Replace every 30,000 miles. HEMIs pull serious airflow — a clogged filter costs measurable power before it throws a code.
Estimated cost — typical U.S. ranges
Dealer
~$60–$95
Shop
~$45–$70
DIY
~$15–$40
5-minute job on most cars; the airbox lid usually has clips, no tools needed.
Inspect from 60,000 miles, replace on cracking or glazing. On the HEMI, a shredded belt can take the cooling drive with it mid-drive.
Estimated cost — typical U.S. ranges
Dealer
~$195–$235
Shop
~$135–$165
DIY
~$20–$50
DIY-friendly if you can reach the tensioner. Inspect for cracks rather than swap on a strict mileage interval.
Extends the life of your vehicle and improves comfort
Replace every 20,000 miles where equipped (behind the glovebox on most models). Some earlier Journeys and Avengers shipped without one — check before buying a filter.
Estimated cost — typical U.S. ranges
Dealer
~$60–$95
Shop
~$45–$70
DIY
~$15–$40
Usually behind the glovebox. Shops charge labor for a 10-minute job — easy DIY win.
Stellantis OAT coolant is scheduled for 10 years / 150,000 miles; shops commonly refresh by 100,000. OAT-compatible coolant only — mixing chemistries gels the system.
Estimated cost — typical U.S. ranges
Dealer
~$285–$330
Shop
~$200–$235
DIY
~$25–$60
Use the manufacturer-specified coolant — wrong color/chemistry can damage the cooling system.
Test annually after year 3. Big-audio Chargers and tow-package Durangos lean on the battery hard; weak batteries surface as gremlins in the electronics before they fail to crank.
Estimated cost — typical U.S. ranges
Dealer
~$225–$390
Shop
~$160–$280
DIY
~$130–$250
Most auto-parts stores test and install batteries free with purchase. Skip the dealer markup.
Occupant deaths in fatal crashes (FARS)
392 crashes 1990–2024
How the 392 occupant deaths break down
326
driver deaths
65
passenger deaths
1
not recorded by seat
392
occupant deaths
Crash years covered: 1990–2024 This model year first appears in 1992 crashes. Older models have had more years on the road to appear in these crashes, so a higher count here does not by itself mean a vehicle is less safe.
FARS counts every occupant death in a fatal crash, whatever the cause — it does not mean the vehicle was at fault or defective. Counts are not adjusted for how many of each vehicle are on the road. How to read this number
FARS 2024 data is an annual report file. NHTSA revises these records when the final file is published, so this count can change.
Every vehicle has exactly one driver seat, so driver deaths line up fairly when you compare one model to another. Occupant deaths include passengers, so a three row SUV can show a higher number than a two seat car simply because it carries more people.
Both figures are plain counts, not rates. A rate would need to know how many of each vehicle are on the road, and that registration data is not public, so we do not publish rates or scores of any kind.
IIHS publishes driver death rates using this same driver only idea, paired with a registered vehicle years denominator we do not have. Their rates and these counts answer different questions, so do not read either number here as a safety rating.
Owner-reported problem signals
Separate from the federal fatality data above: complaints owners filed with NHTSA about this year and model. These are reports of problems, unverified, and are counted here only as signals.
15
complaints mentioning a crash
7
complaints mentioning a fire
Typical U.S. ranges. Actual quotes vary by shop, parts choice, and vehicle condition.
How we estimate: Dealer = OEM parts × 1.4 + labor × $165/hr. Shop = parts + labor × $115/hr. DIY = parts only.
This maintenance schedule for the 1993 Dodge Dakota reflects Dodge's published service intervals and the Oil Change Indicator System system. Your actual service needs may vary based on driving conditions, climate, and vehicle usage. Always consult your owner's manual for model-specific recommendations.