Today’s Dodge Dakota wears the R/T badge which, in MOPAR quarters, means there’s something good cooking under the hood. Let’s see if this hot rod pickup comes with a price that spoils our appetite.

The number 3 has always been considered lucky. We even say things like “third time’s a charm,” and Schoolhouse Rock taught us that “Three is a Magic Number.” If only that magic applied in the automotive world. Yesterday’s had but three wheels, although that made it less magical and more of an odd duck in this day and age. Its quirky nature didn’t translate into affection, either, which, in turn, failed to generate much support for the Tri-Hawk’s $10,000 asking price. By the end of the day, the trike had fallen and it couldn’t get up, in a 90 percent No Dice loss.

Now, I’ve done some due diligence and can confidently confirm that today’s does have fully four wheels. Five if you count the spare. That’s a good start. This truck represents Dodge’s attempt to inject a little performance into its mid-size truck line and give the company something to compete with the Camaros and Mustangs of the day in the pre-Challenger era. This was also the era when the trucks were sold under the Dodge name and not ‘Ram’ so it’s got that going for it.

Owing to cost and utility degradation in towing and weight capacity, the R/T proved to be not all that popular, with fewer than 17,000 sold over the six years it was made available. Of course, this truck laid the groundwork for the Viper-powered Ram 1500 full-size truck that followed so we should give it its due.

The Dakota was already available with Mopar’s 5.2-liter V8, giving it a leg up on other mid-sized and compact pickups, and that made wedging in the 5.7-liter in the R/T edition all the easier. In truck tune, that made 250 horsepower and an even more impressive 345 lb-ft of torque.

Other performance package updates included a reworked suspension that drops the truck 19mm, bigger brakes, a limited-slip differential in the back, and some more robust internals for the four-speed automatic. Those all rolled on fatter 255/55 17 tires giving the truck some handling cred. To save weight and keep the cost down, the Dakota R/T was only offered in 2WD.

This one seems to take all of that and then turn it up a notch with the addition of a ProCharger centrifugal supercharger that the seller claims ups the ante to 500 horses. The ad also says the truck has a 6.7 liter V8, so clarifications need to be made.

Dodge offered the R/T in four colors: black, blue, amethyst (yeah, yellow), and like this truck, Flame Red. Body-color trim and big badging completed the package. This 70,000-mile truck has all that but at some point along the way it has traded its factory alloys for some aftermarket ones that, at least aesthetically, aren’t necessarily an improvement.

The bodywork and top coat look to be in excellent condition, as do the lights, trim, and bed, with the latter jauntily sporting a ducktail spoiler. The seller also touts an accident-free history and a total lack of rust as two of the truck’s plusses. We don’t get to see the interior at all, so we’ll just have to assume it’s in comparable condition to the exterior, and not full of rabid raccoons or anything.

This is a one-owner truck and it comes with a clean title, plus what the seller says is the documentation for all the “high performance enhancements.” What might something as rowdy as this likely is bring in today’s market?

The seller asks $22,000, and honestly, no other Dakota from this era would bring anything close to that. This R/T, however, is relatively desirable and has some performance tweaks that likely make it even more engaging than its already amped-up factory level. What do you think, is it worth that $22,000 asking? Or, at that price, is this an R/T that’s DOA?

You decide!

Dallas, Texas, , or go if the ad disappears.

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