dodge dakota

[joeonthecape]

Hello everyone,,I have a question about towing my dodge dakota V6 and auto trans.,I must tow it on a tow dolly,,I know,,my question is do I put trans in park or netural,,its a 2004 and have no owners manual.DW and I are looking at a 2004 fleetwood 35 ft with a ford V10 for our MH choice,,thank you I advance for your advise,

[dodge_guy]

Do they still make a drive shaft disconnect?

[mowermech]

joeonthecape wrote:
Im sorry,,the dakota is 2 WD and I am thinking tow it with rear wheels on the dolly,,is this doable?

It is not recommended by the manufacturer of any dolly that I know of.
However, it has been done.
Do NOT rely on the built in steering lock to keep the front wheels straight. First off, it is not strong enough. Secondly, it rarely locks the wheels perfectly straight. You must tie the steering wheel firmly and strongly with the front wheels straight ahead.
You CAN tow it on a dolly with the front wheels IF you remove the drive shaft at the rear differential yoke. Wrap the U-joint with tape to keep the bearing caps in place, tie the shaft firmly to the body, and put the bolts in a plastic bag so they don't get lost. I used to do that with a Datsun pickup I had many years ago.

[joeonthecape]

Im sorry,,the dakota is 2 WD and I am thinking tow it with rear wheels on the dolly,,is this doable?

[kaydeejay]

If it's 2WD are you planning on towing it backwards?????

If it's a 4WD then a dolly won't help you, but if you can select "N" (Neutral) on the transfer case you can flat tow with no dolly.

From the 2004 Owner's Manual here, section 160.

"4HI
4 Wheel Drive High Range - Locks the transfer case inter-axle differential. Forces front and rear wheels to rotate at the same speed. Additional traction for loose, slippery road surfaces only.

4LO
4 Wheel Drive Low Range - Low speed 4 wheel drive.
Locks the transfer case inter-axle differential. Forces the front and rear wheels to rotate at the same speed.
Additional traction and maximum pulling power for loose, slippery road surfaces only. Do not exceed 25 mph (40 km/h).

N
Neutral - Disengages both the front and rear driveshafts from the powertrain. To be used for flat towing behind another vehicle. See Recreational Towing for more information.

Shifting Procedure - NV244 Transfer Case NOTE: If any of the requirements to select a new transfer case position have not been met, the transfer case will not shift.The indicator light for the previous position will remain ON and the newly selected position indicator light will continue to flash until all the requirements for the selected position have been met. To retry a shift:
return the control knob back to the original position, make certain all shift requirements have been met, wait five (5) seconds and try the shift again."