The 1990 Dodge Dakota is a rear-wheel drive truck, meaning that is uses a drive shaft to direct the power produced by the engine to a differential, which then carries that energy to the rear wheels to propel the vehicle. The back of the drive shaft features a single U-joint, sometimes referred to as a "spider gear." Within the U-joint are several bearings, which wear out over time. Replacing the U-joint is fairly simple, but the drive shaft must first be removed.
Park the truck on a level surface.
Disengage the parking brake.
Shift the transmission into neutral.
Position a wheel chock in front of both front tires to prevent the truck from rolling forward when the back of the truck is raised.
Raise the back of the truck with a jack, then lower the truck onto jack stands positioned underneath the truck's frame. (Raising only the rear of the truck will prevent the transmission fluid from leaking out of the back of the transmission when the drive shaft is removed.)
Remove the two U-shaped bolts from the back of the drive shaft (the portion of the drive shaft that connects to the differential). Both tips of each U-shaped bolt feature a single nut. Remove the nuts from both bolts with a wrench, then pull the bolts out of the drive shaft.
Wrap the U-joint's four bearing caps with masking tape. The U-joint looks like a "+" sign. At each corner of the U-joint is a bearing cap. Wrapping the caps with tape will prevent them from falling off and releasing the small bearings when the drive shaft is removed.
Push the drive shaft's yoke (the end of the drive shaft that enters the back of the transmission) toward the transmission until the drive shaft clears the differential.
Pull the yoke out of the transmission.
