As part of its agreement with Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, Dodge developed and produced the Dakota pickup lineup in a few body shapes, including the four-door version.
While Mitsubishi tried its luck on the light-pickup segment on the U.S. soil, Dodge was already a veteran there. That’s one reason why the American customers preferred the Dakota instead of the Mitsubishi Raider, even though they were built in the same factory and shared everything but a few body panels and badges.

The Dakota’s design was inspired by older Dodge models and showed a front fascia similar to its SUV sibling, the Durango. Its retro-design style with the hood taller than the front fenders and the big headlights attracted more customers. Dodge shoed the same cross-hair grille design and, depending on the trim level, with a chromed surrounding. From its sides, the longer cabin built for five adults made room for four doors to ease-up the ingress and egress. Its rear fenders showed flared wheel arches, and the carmaker offered the pickup with only one bed option.

Unlike its siblings, the Club Cab featured front-hinged rear doors and richer interior equipment. The Quad-Cab was built more as a leisure vehicle than a workhorse. Even though the materials were not top-notch, the carmaker tried to offer a pleasant view of the two-tone dashboard design with a high-mounted audio system. As an option, Dodge offered the vehicle with four power-windows and an automatic transmission with the selector placed behind the steering wheel.

But, like the Mitsubishi Raider, Dakota’s sales were not as high as expected. After Mitsubishi asked Chrysler to stop producing the Raider in 2009, it became even more difficult to sustain the compact pickup. Eventually, in 2011, Dodge stopped the Dakota production.