I have a 88 dakota 4x4 3.9 build date 10/87...this truck is different than any dakota I came across, heavy duty cap, bigger radiator etc....

started acted up last week, hard to start after driving, dies when driving, got it to work yesterday, and it wouldnt start back up, went through faq's searched etc

Replaced, coil, plugs, wires, cap, rotor, iac....ran fine started burning oil on way home then died while driving...towed it home, sat over night, started truck this morning moved it now wont start, cranks bbut no spark....

PCM? Igntion pick up asembly? any other ideas? need to get running asap, as I cant get to work

Are you getting voltage to the coil? Is your distributor rotor turning when you crank the engine?
In saying you have no spark, I'm assuming you tested this both with a wire going to a cylinder and with the wire going from the coil to the distributor?

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Current ride: Belleville 220 DES ST - leather, reinforced front end, tan color. Runs on 'alternative fuel'
1996 Dodge Dakota
1986 Honda Civic CRX

No spark from coil to distributor, no spark to cylinders, yes the rotor turns when you crank engine. Ran like a new truck for 11 miles yesterday after new plugs wires coil cap and rotor.

couldnt find any bad wires on left side going up towards battery, took off washer jug, tried a new regulator on the bulkhead just now, leaning towards ignition pick up assembly or pcm....but dont wanna keep throwing parts at it

Are you getting voltage to the coil?
If voltage, while cranking the engine,is at "near battery" level for 1-2 seconds, and than drops to zero, it's usually a sign that the distributor pickup sensor is bad.

__________________
Current ride: Belleville 220 DES ST - leather, reinforced front end, tan color. Runs on 'alternative fuel'
1996 Dodge Dakota
1986 Honda Civic CRX

guess i will be buying the pick up this afternoon when wife gets home...hopefully this will solve the problem. it is just held in by a couple screws if i looked at it right..correct?

I think so.

__________________
Current ride: Belleville 220 DES ST - leather, reinforced front end, tan color. Runs on 'alternative fuel'
1996 Dodge Dakota
1986 Honda Civic CRX

Update....well now I feel like an idiot, after all the parts I threw at the truck I put a new stator in tonight after work, started ten dies, then just cranked and cranked.....after cussing and saying whats going on, i look at a relay on the left front fender....cracked andnot all the way in.... push it in truck starts and runs fine, pull relay truck des, then just cranks

now my question is was it a fuel pump relay, or the auto shutdown relay

On the older trucks, I don't think they had a fuel pump relay (the power just came off the auto shutdown).

__________________
Current ride: Belleville 220 DES ST - leather, reinforced front end, tan color. Runs on 'alternative fuel'
1996 Dodge Dakota
1986 Honda Civic CRX

Update, back to just cranking.....any way to bypass the shutdown relay or eliminate it completely?

truck is throwing codes...12..direct battey input to pcm disconnected withn last 5 key strokes

code 42

this is starting to drive me nuts....HELP please [:@]