A great economy car with a slight attitude
Needed an alternator at 100,000 miles.
Paint faded due to sitting outside.
The Spirit is great at fuel economy, and still picks itself up quick on the highway.
The suspension is great and provides a comfortable, quiet ride.
Other than the slight ticking sound of a normal Dodge motor, the car has a real quiet idle.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 8th April, 2003
Great straight line car, wish it had a 5spd!
The alternator went out at about 125000 miles.
The fuse box is broken, causing the dome lights to not work. I have a jumper wire from one fuse to the next so the blower motor can get power.
Had an oil leak due to my mothers poor maintenance.
Very fast car for a 3 speed automatic, and 162000 miles. I used Marvel Mystery Oil, and the engine is like new. And I beat my friends 95 MX6 with a V6 5spd!
Very reliable, and easy to work on! Plenty of space under the hood, and oil changes could not be easier.
The handling is the worst part of the car. It has way too much body sway, and needs sway bars!!!
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 15th September, 2002
This is a great, fast, reliable, American car
Went through 2 alternators.
Had to replace the air conditioning compressor.
Have had to replace the clutch cable 2 times.
I think this is a great car, we have owned it for 10 years and over 200,000 miles that is good reliability. This cars has good acceleration and handles very well. Dodge rules!
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 30th May, 2002
Very reliable and very economical car - THUMBS UP!
The fead gasket blew 5 times already - but I knew of this problem on Spirit's from day 1, so it was expected.
Nothing that has been out of the ordinary for a car with this mileage.
I have not had any major problems with my Spirit which I have considered out of the ordinary. With over 340,000 kms, I consider things like mufflers, brakes, timing belts, PCV valves, TPS sensors, oxygen sensors, spark plugs, you name it - all ordinary maintenance items to fix and replace.
I would love to chat with other Spirit owners about their problems and possible fixes, as I have owned this car from day one and have gone through every "maintenance" item that arises out of normal wear.
There is slight rust on the car, so if anyone knows a good private individual in the Toronto, Canada area that could get this problem fixed for me over the weekend or something, please let me know asap!
integra252@yahoo.com
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 22nd August, 2001
Just following up on my own posting. It is now a year later and she is still running.
Now have 360,000 kms!
Taking it in to repair some bad rust spots.
Posting another follow-up. It is now December 2003.. she's still running, and now at 380,000 kms.
Posting another follow-up. The car now has 406,000 kms, still running strong. Tune-up done, engine still purrs nice. Here's to hitting 500K!
Excellent transportation value
Replaced CV joints at 140,000 miles & 165,000 miles.
A/C condenser at 170,000.
Replaced heater control inline fuse.
Timing belt at 70,000 and 206,000 miles.
Comfortable and dependable.
At 207,000 miles uses 1 quart per 1000 miles, compression is 110, 140, 145, 140.
Mileage 33mpg.
Has never let me down.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 12th March, 2001
A roomy, plain looking reliable car
The automatic transmission makes a rough clicking noise when shifting the car from park or drive into reverse.
Both front seat window crank knobs keep falling off.
The driver's side window is very stiff to roll upwards or down.
This has generally been a safe, fairly well equipped car that has not cost a lot of money to maintain, not too bad on gas, and is very big inside, and comfortable. And the horns' loud too.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 8th September, 2000
What is the fix for the driver's side window that is stiff and hard to roll down?
I generously sprayed the tracking areas, rubbers and guides of my doors with a 100% Silicon Spray Lubricant form C.T.C..
I was amazed how it fixed the up/down sticking of my window. It had gotten so bad that I was afraid to snap or damage door components when rolling up or down.
The windshield wipers might not work because of the following ailment: the trapezoid might be disconnected from the motor. There is a button-like thing that is capped, it forms the connection between the trapezoid and the motor. My wipers died in pouring rain, and I connected them pretty quick. But afterward they kept disconnecting, over and over again. Then we burned the cap with a lighter and connected them. Three years - and the problem has never returned. Check that out. The motor can be checked this way: just turn the wipers on, listen for clicking noises. If you can hear them, then this means, in general, that the motor is functioning.
I have a 92 spirit and when I turn the car off my head lights stay on... I turn the lights off.. but the day time lights still stay on... the only thing I can do is disconnect the battery... I think its something to do with the wiring.. can anyone tell me how to fix this?
14th Jul 2002, 09:48
Damn, that is reliable! That kind of reliability is hard to beat! I don't even think my Volvo has been quite that reliable.