Hi my name is Keith and i own a 1993 dakota 2wd 3.9l automatic with overdrive. I have owned the truck since feb of this year. When i first got it it seemed great thought i had a steal becuase the truck only had 69k miles (almost at 73k now) about a month after i had it i started to notice a problem with it. It starts fine on a cold start and roars to life ( love the sound of these magnums at a low idle) however after it is warm and shut off for any longer than a few mins and up until it has cooled all the way down it will struggle to start and when i get her going it idles real low and sputters and if i try to floor it and get it above 2k rmps i hear a sort of knocking noise(doesn't sound good at all so i try not to do that) so i just tap the gas to get it up about 200-400 rpms until it returns to a normal idle (this sometimes takes a few minutes) when i first noticed this problem it wasn't so bad but recently has gotten alot worse (i'm scared to go anywhere in my truck right now) things i have replaced since i've had it include fuel filter, distributor cap and rotor, spark plugs, also had a leak in a hose and the flange to the thermostat houseing not only had a small hole rusted in it it didn't even belong on this truck so i replaced all my hoses (excluding the lower radiator hose) and i replaced that flange and the thermostat itself. I was told my problem could be a few different things first one was the fuel pump but then another person told me it wasn't because when the truck is running right it doesn't hesitate. earlier i replaced the fuel filter (thought it could of help although it doesn't seem to have but it never hurts to put something new on there the one on it looked factory) and it was still warm so it struggled to start so i put some gas directly into the throttlebody to get her going and when i put the gas it it bubbled up quick so the throttlebody was REAL hot and when it first started it the throttlebody made a hissing noise so the dude whos house i was at when i replaced the filter told me i should have the throttlebody looked at but i'm only 19 and can't even find a job right now so my pockets are shallow and if i could get enough to take it to a shop chances are i can't afford any parts so i want to try and figure this out without taking to a shop so i can just buy parts and fix it on my own (want to be a mechanic so i try to do as much as possible on my own) the truck also has a freeze plug leak nothing to serious at the moment just don't have time to drop the tranny to get to it i add some water to the radiator every 2 or 3 days seems to leak maybe a quart in that time period and looks like it still has a good amount of antifreeze in it. If anyone can help me i'd be extremly appreciative. i read someone seemed to be having a simmular problem on a 2002 ramvan with the 3.9 in it this was posted on this site.