How do i prevent the front shock from turning on a 1998 dodge dakota? 4 cylinder, 2 wheel drive. It seems impossible to access the flat on the shock rod!

Put truck in reverse and zig zag backwards turning truck left and right will take it out of four wheel when stuck.

There is vacuum switch on the transfer and you can remove the two vacuum lines on the front axle,
pass side and pull a vauum on canister, to test for the rod engaging,with wheels off ground,and turning them

see chiltions manule for this its ezer than trying to explain allso get a alinement after it will re set your aline ment when you replace the shocks you will move everything on the frount end more up off the ground

none at all just basic wrenches and sockets just did a set for my buddy i sprayed the bolts down a day ahead of time with wd40.

You need to check your brakes ASAP. You may have metal on metal on your front pads. You may have a bearing problem if the brakes are in good shape. But check it out as soon as you can to prevent further damage.

A Dodge Dakota with 4-wheel steer? Do you happen to mean 4-wheel drive?

If so, you should not operate the vehicle in 4-wheel drive when you are traveling on a hard, high-traction surface. When in 4x4, the transfer case connects the front and rear axles, and does not allow for differentiation of wheel speeds necessary when turning. This is compensated for when driving over low-traction terrain because the tires slip easier.

Basically, the jerking, bucking and locking of the truck is due to the binding. This will eventually lead to damage in the driveline. If the roadway isn't covered in snow, there is no need for the 4 wheel drive to be engaged.

For all Dodge V8 truck engines, the firing order is 1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2. For all Dodge V6 truck engines, the firing order is 1-6-5-4-3-2. For Dodge inline 6 cylinder engines, the firing order is For all Dodge 4 cylinder engines, the firing order is 1-3-4-2 All dodge distributors rotate clockwise.


look at your distributor cap while standing on the driver's side of the vehicle.
Start at number 1, which is labelled on the cap, and go
clockwise

Good Luck

If you are looking at your engine from the front of the truck, here is the cylinder layout:
6 5
4 3
2 1
The distributor rotates clockwise and the firing order is:
1-6-5-4-3-2
You can find a picture of this at:
http://autorepair.about.com/library/firing_orders/bl-fo-9158.htm

For the 2001 Dodge Dakota there are 3-engines: 2.5L, 3.9L and 4.7L:
I have included all three below.

For 2.5L:
Firing Order:
1-3-4-2
Cylinders:
(back)
...4
...3
...2
...1
(front)
Distributor:
....(back)
.........2.(+)-screw
4
..............1
(+).3
....(front)

For the 3.9L
Firing Order:
1-6-5-4-3-2
Cylinders:
....(back)
6..............5
4..............3
2..............1
.....(front)
Distributor:
.....(back)
(+).6...5
..1.........4
.....2...3.(+)
....(front)

For the 4.7L:
Firing Order:
1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2
Cylinders:
.....(back)
8................7
6................5
4................3
2................1
.....(front)
Coils located inboard/adjacent their respective Cylinders

Let me know if this helped, or if you have additional information or questions. Feel Free to contact me at FixYa.com!

sounds like a cv joint