Friday Fantasy: The Sidewinder Was The Dodge Dakota Of Dreams
Ram may soon reboot the Dakota pickup.
The brand has been showing small truck concepts to dealers in recent months and reports are that they are INTO IT.
It could end up being electric this time. Or not.
Stellantis has hedged its bets with the development of its upcoming vehicle platforms, which were engineered to accommodate pretty much any type of powertrain.
What it probably won’t be is a convertible. The again, you never know.
Ram might end up offering a version of the Jeep Gladiator, which isn’t technically a “convertible” but is very capable of popping it’s top. There is precedent.
The original DODGE Dakota was offered in a Sport Convertible model from 1989-1991. Dodge commissioned specialist American Sunroof Company (ASC) to build the topless two-doors, but it flopped like a fabric roof and canceled after only about 4,000 were sold. But the idea didn’t die.
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A few years later, when the next generation Dakota was coming to market and Chrysler was cranking out some of the most glorious concept vehicles of all time, like the Dodge Copperhead and Chrysler Atlantic, it built a concept truck that still looks cool today.
The Sidewinder debuted at the 1997 SEMA Show. Inspired by the Dodge Viper, it was the brainchild of a young designer fresh out of school named Mark Allen.
It definitely looks like something a student would sketch during a daydream, and Allen told MotorTrend at the time that the idea was to do a hot rod-style “cartoon of the Dakota.”
Concept car specialist Metalcrafters built it on a chassis from race car outfit Reily & Scott.
The two-seater features a frameless windshield, exaggerated fenders and a stepside body that manages to look more modern than retro. It’s 20-inch and 21-inch wheels were huge at the time, but might not get a second glance today.
Behind its large crosshair grille sits a 640 hp Dodge Viper GTS-R V10 engine that drives the rear wheels through a four-speed automatic transmission. Sub-four-second sprints to 60 mph were estimated.
Sure, it wasn’t a true convertible either, more of a roadster with a clip-in roof, but it was a concept and that could’ve been sorted out for production.
Of course, it never made it that far, but something like it did. Just not from Dodge.
The eerily similar, but far more retro, Chevrolet SSR debuted in 2003, with a retractable hardtop, and proved to be slightly more successful than the Dakota Sport Convertible, with nearly 25,000 delivered through 2006.
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One thing’s for certain. If Dodge decides to give it another shot, it’s going to need to find a new designer.
Allen retired this year from his role as vice president of Jeep design, where he oversaw the launch of the Gladiator, which he said is one of his favorite vehicles, along with the latest Wrangler.
Hardly a surprise.
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