Find or Sell Used Cars, Trucks, and SUVs in USA

Rare 1978 Dodge Factory Diesel D100 Pickup [mitsubishi 243 Cu In Diesel] on 2040-cars

Year:1978 Mileage:48000
Location:

East Lansing, Michigan, United States

East Lansing, Michigan, United States

Rare 1978 factory Mitsubishi diesel equipped D100 1/2 ton pickup.  243 cu in straight six diesel. Perfect project for a Mopar fan who wants something rare or for a tow vehicle for your classic Mopar.  Or just something none of your buddies at the car show own or likely have ever seen? 

Running and drivable but the old Dodge pickup body is rusty and in need of some TLC [better yet a full restoration].  The value of this truck is the factory installation of the 6DR5 243 cu in Mitsubishi straight six and the engine is in very nice shape.  Starts and runs better than my 06 Jeep CDR diesel.  With the block heater plugged in it started easily every time in -0F weather this last winter. Engine is completely original except for a rebuilt water pump and new fuel cannister [the old filters are impossible to buy so I installed a new filter canister. Original one comes with the truck.

Less than 2800 or so of these rare Mitsubishi 6DR5 diesel equipped Dodge trucks were manufactured in a short-lived attempt to offer a high MPG pickup for the American market. 

The other part of the story was that Dodge made these to fulfill the consumer market requirement to bid for the US Military vehicle contract. [Dodge lost out and the Dodge M880 and M890 military vehicles (pickups) were replaced by the Chevy CUCV (the blazer)].  

A quote from a motor press article "The 1978 saw also the introduction of the first Diesel powered Dodge pickup truck. Available as an economy choice in the light duty trucks was Mitsubishi 6dr50A 4.0-liter inline 6-cylinder naturally aspirating diesel, rated at 105 hp (78 kW) at 3500 rpm, and ~230 Nm (~169 lb·ft) @ 2200 rpm. The diesel used standard Dodge manual and automatic transmissions via specially made adapter plate which had the LA V8 bolt pattern. This rare factory option, VIN code H, was the result of fuel crisis and the collaboration of Chrysler and Mitsubishi. "  

You can Google other info.

Here is a video of the truck with the engine running.  http://youtu.be/zutkFx6u-AI

Great mileage and torque and longevity but only 105hp and top speed of about 65 mph. So most of these trucks were sold to Fire Departments and for similar uses. This one shows all the signs of having been a Fire Dept truck [Red, covered in bureaucratic labels and warnings, roof plug for what must have been a bubble light, etc]

48,000 on the clock.  It might be original.  Truck shows signs of having been allowed to sit for most of its life.  I've only put abut 6,000 miles on it in 15 years. This truck comes from Northwest Indiana where I bought it near LaPorte in 1999.   Holds together and doesn't flap in the breeze but drivers floor is rusted out.  Rusty rear wheel wells and some rust on quarters. Windshield is cracked just like the day I bought it in '99.  Bed is surprisingly intact. 

Comes with the factory manual for the truck and one for the Mitsubishi engine.

I drive the truck on a regular basis. Starts, runs, drives, stops.  Lights work.  Brakes are fine.  I use it for short runs to the lumber company and similar.  But I have not gone more than 15 miles from home with it since 1999. 

I always intended to restore this beast.  Never happened.  Just remarried and time to sell off some old toys and projects.  

Bring a truck and trailer.  I would *not* drive it home unless you live within an hour of Lansing Michigan and also have a trusty friend driving a trusty pace car next to you with some tools.  No use doing damage to this old gal by running it to bits on the highway in some insane attempt to get to Jersey or Texas.  These old diesels are slow and loud.

The Spyder Motor Wheels in the photos do NOT go with the truck.  Had those since 1980.  

Auto Services in Michigan

Westside Collision Service ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Automobile Body Repairing & Painting
Address: 222 Wayne St, Burt
Phone: (989) 792-1401

Vision Collision ★★★★★

Automobile Body Repairing & Painting, Automobile Parts & Supplies, Auto Body Parts
Address: 1510 Haslett Rd, Okemos
Phone: (517) 339-7704

Venom Motorsports Inc ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Automobile Parts & Supplies, Automobile Customizing
Address: 5174 Plainfield Ave NE, Smyrna
Phone: (616) 635-2519

Vehicle Accessories ★★★★★

Automobile Parts & Supplies, Truck Accessories, Truck Caps, Shells & Liners
Address: 7400 Dixie Hwy, Ortonville
Phone: (248) 620-9220

Tuffy Auto Center Novi ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Automobile Parts & Supplies, Mufflers & Exhaust Systems
Address: 24400 Novi Rd, Milford
Phone: (248) 347-1080

Transmission Shop ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Automobile Parts & Supplies, Auto Transmission
Address: 13033 Gratiot Ave, Ecorse
Phone: (313) 527-3560

Auto blog

Dodge Scat Pack for 5.7L Hemi V8 detailed, priced

Sat, 05 Apr 2014

Dodge revived the Scat Pack name back in November at the 2013 SEMA show. At the time, though, we were short of details on forthcoming upgrade packages, which were destined to add some oomph to the Challenger, Charger and Dart. We're still waiting to hear about the upgrades to the Dart's 2.4-liter four-pot, but Dodge has gone ahead and released the details on the upgrades to the 5.7-liter Hemi V8 in the Challenger and Charger R/T.
As we detailed in our original post, three different Scat Packs will be available that will allow customers to upgrade their cars without voiding the warranties. Starting with the $2,195 Stage 1 kit, owners will net an extra 18 horsepower and 18 pound-feet of torque thanks to a Mopar-branded cold-air intake, exhaust and ECU ref lash. Stage 1 is also the only package that could be installed outside of a Chrysler-authorized service center without voiding the warranty (a mechanically competent owner could even do it at home, we're told by Dodge). Stage 2 builds on the entry level Scat Pack, and adds performance camshaft kit, which boosts output over the stock 5.7 by up to 30 hp for $1,895. As with the Stage 1, the ECU is tweaked.
For those that want to go whole hog, they can add the Stage 3 for $4,995. The top-tier gets quite serious, adding CNC-ported cylinder heads, as well as high-flow headers and cats. Output over stock is 58 hp and 47 lb-ft of torque. Each kit comes with a pair of badges, just in case owners want a bit of visual flair.

Chrysler to accelerate production of 2013 Ram and V6 engines

Fri, 16 Nov 2012

Chrysler is adding a third shift at its Warren Truck plant to meet demand for the new 2013 Ram pickup. And with tight supplies of its Pentastar V6, the company is also boosting output at its Mack Engine plant.
The expansions will add 1,250 jobs and are part of a $238 million investment by Chrysler in the Detroit area. Warren's third shift will begin work sometime in the spring, a Chrysler rep told Automotive News. Mack's increased Pentastar production a could include both 3.6 and 3.2-liter engines.
The company says it also plans to invest $40 million in its Trenton Engine plant to allow for production of a 3.2-liter V6 as well as the Tigershark inline-four for the upcoming Jeep Liberty replacement.

2015 Dodge Viper getting small increase in power

Tue, 29 Jul 2014

The Viper is used to being the most powerful car in the Dodge and SRT stables, but the arrival of the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat means that's no longer the case. The serpentine supercar is, however, reportedly getting a small boost in output for 2015, amounting to all of five horsepower.
The increase was uncovered by Road & Track courtesy of the SAE J1349 certification process to which Detroit's Big Three automakers submit themselves and which reports the Viper's output at 645 hp instead of the 640 it was rated at until now. There are a hundred factors that could have contributed to the relatively mild boost in output (best guess? nothing at all changed...), but we doubt anyone's going to complain about some extra horses under the hood.
The five-horsepower boost brings the Viper that much closer to the 650-hp Chevy Corvette Z06, not to mention the 707-hp Hellcat, but the Viper's impressive power-to-weight ratio ought to mean it'll have little problem keeping up in a straight line - which is just one of the reasons why Chrysler won't shoe-horn the Hellcat into the Viper: as R&T points out, the supercharged engine is too heavy and the blower makes it too tall to fit in the Viper's engine bay.