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Dodge Dakota Check Engine Light Questions

This page will list all the Check Engine Light questions and answers asked of us pertaining to Dodge Dakota trucks.

Question: I HAVE A 2004 DAKOTA 4X4 QC 4.7 80,000 MILES MY ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON A WHILE BACK SCANNER READS PO452 EVAP EMISSIONS CONTROL SYSTEM PRESSURE SENSOR LOW I REPLACED PURGE SOLENOID AND LEAK DETECTION PUMP AND GAS CAP DID NOT FIX THE LIGHT TRUCK RUNS FINE IS THERE A CERTAIN PART OR AREA THAT NORMALLY THROWS THAT CODE THANKS - Mike, October 2008

Answer: Hi, a P0452 is Evaporative Emission Control System Pressure Sensor Low Input. There's a similar P0452 thread here on the Durango, please take a look at it for suggestions and troubleshooting steps. Good luck.

Question: 1998 dodge dakota, v6, 5 spd, P0443, will not allow the code to be rest/cleared unless the engine is off, and comes back on as soon as the engine is started, so, I know I have a bad circuit, but where and how do I find it. - Mark, October 2008

Answer: Hi Mark. The check engine light is illuminated to indicate that there is something wrong. Until the problem is repaired the light will continue to come back on. I found an excellent article on P0443 @ OBD-Codes.com. I would recommend you look at the section titled "Possible Solutions" as it has some troubleshooting steps to follow. Good luck!

Question: I have a 2000 Dodge Dakota 4wd quad cab 4.7 v8. How do I get the codes from the check engine light without a code reader? Thanks - Gregory, October 2008

Answer: Hi Gregory. You told us you live in Wilmington DE, which has at least two AutoZone stores. AutoZone (& possibly other auto parts stores) will read your codes for free, so stop by and ask them to do it. Keep in mind they're in the business to sell parts, so find out the code and do your research before just changing parts. A proper diagnosis saves you money. Good luck!

Question: I have 1997 dodge dakota v6 over a 100,000 miles. water pump and belts were going. Losing antifreze the check engine light came on the day I took it to the garage. Two days later the work was done and i picked it up and the check engine light is still on. How can i get it off and what is making it stay on? garage was closed when i picked it up. will try and talk to them when they are open. Jim - September 2008

Answer: Hi Jim, thanks for the Dakota question. It's a little unclear. Did you ask them to fix the antifreeze/water pump/belt problem or the Check Engine issue as well? If you took it in and asked them to repair the antifreeze leak than they didn't look at what's causing the check engine light to stay on.

Typically a leak like an oil or antifreeze leak has no real way of telling you there's a problem using the MIL (malfunction indicator lamp), also called the check engine light. There are no sensors to detect leakage so the problem is likely not related (unless coolant ran down on a sensor and caused it to fail, triggering the MIL). So in your case what needs to be done is the OBD-II trouble codes need to be read from the truck's computer. That will give you (or your technician) an idea of where and/or what the problem is. It could be related to the antifreeze but it could not as well. Yeah, talk to the shop and see what they say, they may want the truck back and have additional charges to look at that. Good luck Jim!