The Shelby Dakota was a limited-production performance version of the

Dodge Dakota The Dodge Dakota, known as the Ram Dakota for the final two years of production, is a mid-size pickup truck from Chrysler's Ram (formerly Dodge Truck) division. The first Dakota was introduced in late 1986 as a 1987 model. From its introduction th ...

''Sport'' pickup truck. Offered by Shelby for 1989 only, it was his first

rear-wheel drive Rear-wheel drive (RWD) is a form of engine and transmission layout used in motor vehicles, in which the engine drives the rear wheels only. Until the late 20th century, rear-wheel drive was the most common configuration for cars. Most rear-wheel ...

vehicle in many years. The Shelby Dakota started with a short-wheelbase, short-bed, standard-cab pickup. The 3.9 L V6 was removed in favor of the company's 5.2 L V8 with throttle-body injection. On paper, the swap looked simple since both engines were similar, but the tight space in the Dakota's engine compartment meant removing the engine-driven fan in front and using electric ones instead. Removing the belt-driven fan increased the stock 5.2L V8's output by up (to 175 hp) but torque was {{convert, 270, ft.lbf, N.m, abbr=on. Special wheels and trim, as well as individually numbered dash plaques proclaimed the car's heritage. At the time, it was the highest-performing pickup truck in existence, except for the Dodge Li’l Red Express Truck, and would set the stage for later factory efforts like the GMC Syclone and Ford Lightning. Total Production: 1500. 505 in white and 995 in red. 1 was made in two-tone with red below the stripe and white above the stripe. List price was $15,813 plus freight.

References

Shelby Dakota page
a
Allpar.com

Dakota Dakota may refer to: * Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux ** Dakota language, their language Dakota may also refer to: Places United States * Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Dakota, Illinois, a town * Dakota, Minnesota, ...

Rear-wheel-drive vehicles Pickup trucks Cars introduced in 1989