It can be argued that the second-generation Dodge Dakota was the sportiest smaller-than-half-ton truck in the company’s history and because of that, those trucks still have a strong following in the performance world – particularly the short bed, short cab form. That crowd will likely enjoy the 1999 Dodge Dakota that Allison Kovalik will campaign in the 2024 Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge Grudge Match, as it is a purpose-built race truck with the latest Dodge powerplant.
“The truck was already set up for drag racing, but had not seen the track in probably 10 years. The previous owners let it sit in a shop for 6 years and never did anything to it. So when we acquired it, it was in rough shape and needed a ton of work. But it was a great base to build off of,” said Kovalik. “It already had a cage and had Caltrac split mono leafs. But it was just a roller, no engine or transmission.”
Like all of the vehicles in the Grudge Match this year, Kovalik’s Dodge Dakota is powered by the 3.0-liter, twin turbocharged Hurricane inline-six, which is mated to a modern 8-speed automatic transmission. To get a bit of an advantage over the competition running stock components, this team sent the torque convertor to 501 Performance in Ohio to be “tweaked”.
The power from that modern engine and transmission combo is sent to the wheels by a massive custom Tin Soldiers fabricated 9” differential housing, fitted with Strange 35-spline axles and a 3.50 gearseat. QA1 provided dual adjustable shocks for the front and rear, but Kovalik did keep the Caltrac splint mono leaf rear springs and the traction bars. Speaking of traction, this Dakota rides on RC Components “Hammer S” wheels, wrapped in a set of 29×10.5W tires from Mickey Thompson, that put the power to the ground.
Several companies stepped in to provide items for this build. Mancini Racing provided items like the manual master cylinder and the unique driveshaft split yoke for the 8HP75 transmission. Summit Racing provided new seats and seat belts, an ice water tank and a water pump system to chill the air-to-water incooler of the Hurricane engine. Finally, Holley provided the team with an AEM CD7 programmable dash, along with a new fire suit for Allison. You won’t want to miss this build barreling down Woodward, tickets are still available!
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