3.9 Liter V6 Swap

Read up first. I read that the Magnum V-6 was a temporary solution because a V-8 didn't fit in the first Dakotas. It was basically the Magnum V-8 with 2 cylinders chopped off. The bank angle was not ideal for a V-6 so it had vibration issues. It only lasted ~3 yrs. They squeezed a V-8 into the Dakota and the excess V-6's were used up in Ram Vans and such. I recall this is on the AllPar site.

The 3.8L V-6 in my 2002 minivan looks like it might be a descendant of the LA engines, having pushrods and such, but an optimal bank angle. However, I never heard of a RWD version, so probably no bolt-up tranny. What might be neat is a 2.5L 4 cyl turbo. Someone said there was a RWD version. People run 12's in a minivan, so think what it would do in a Dart.