Faults:

The tie-rod ends needed replaced at 100,000 miles.

Paint chipped away from the wheel covers and rear pillars.

A transmission service is something you don't want to forget about with this car.

Several interior-dash lights have burned out.

General Comments:

I perform preventative maintenance and this car has never left me stranded.

Make sure you change the t-belt at 105,000 miles.

I am still impressed by the amount of power this car has. I can easily hit 70 mph on the on-ramp and merge with traffic. However, I usually drive it around myself. If I have a lot of people or weight in the car, I can tell it drives differently.

I would like to get a new car in the future, but I can let this car go until it dies, and by the looks of it, that won't be for a long time!

P.S. Avoid the 3.3 Liter at all costs!

Faults:

Driver Side power window motor starting to get a little slow in cold weather.

Replaced radiator at 159,000 miles.

Passenger side front strut mount makes a little bump noise sometimes when going over rough roads.

Paint on hood and trunk starting to fade.

Brake pads only lasted about 25,000 miles even with replacing rotors and callipers.

General Comments:

I bought the car about 2 years ago and have to say its the best $4000 car I've ever owned.

Its 3.5 v-6 has plenty of get up and go, and isn't terrible on gas either. I get about 16city/24highway. The heater and AC work flawlessly, it handles well, has a quiet ride, and is tough as a box of nails.

I've heard horror stories about Intrepids, but not this one. I put about 600 miles a week on this car and have only had to do routine upkeep. (fluid changes, tires) I will definitely own another Intrepid!!

My only 2 gripes about the car itself is it could use better brakes, and doesn't do that great in the snow even being front wheel drive.

Faults:

Transmission replaced at 85,000 miles.

Shocks/ struts needed to be replaced (130,000 miles), but I ignored it cause I was gonna get rid of it soon.

Air conditioner broke at 135,000 miles - not fixed.

Water pump failed at 150,000 miles; I thought the water temp gauge was broken, so I continued to drive it. Caused it to overheat and blow a head gasket, and warp an engine block. Still drove it home though.

General Comments:

I loved my 1997 Intrepid when I had it, and I am considering buying another one. I first got it when I was 17, and I drove this thing hard. Great acceleration and handling with a smooth ride. I got lots of compliments on the passenger comfort and power.

The first thing that went wrong was the transmission failed (I think 2nd or 3rd gear broke) when I was about a half hour away from my house, but I still managed to make it home in "Limp-Home Mode".

Next to go were the shocks/struts in the front. I didn't replace because I felt like getting a new car, and didn't want to spend any money on fixing the Intrepid.

A/C condenser broke at around 135K, and it was going to be expensive ($800) to fix, so I didn't bother.

While on the way to pick up my friend at the airport, my water temp gauge started to go crazy. It would be maxed, then down to half way, then maxed and so on. I figured the gauge was malfunctioning or something, so I ignored it. Big mistake. Apparently, the water pump had failed and the engine was overheating. The engine stalled when I got to the airport.

From there, I kept filling the radiator with water, cause the coolant was bubbling out the top of the coolant fill tube. It took about an hour and a half to make a 30 minute trip back to my house. We kept stopping under overpasses to let the engine cool down. Made it home, successfully. Then drove it to the repair shop where the mechanic informed me that the head gasket was blown, and the engine block had warped and would need to be machined flat again. Therefore increasing compression, making this problem more likely to happen again. His opinion was that it was not worth it, cause the car was pretty much junk. So I took that opinion, drove the car home (leaking coolant all the way) and then called a junk yard to come take her away :(

I will say that I drove this car very hard, and near the end of its life, I just ignored maintenance all together cause I knew she was near the end of her life.

This car may have had its problems here and there, but not once did it leave me stranded. It always got me back home, and I had two front end collisions on the passenger side of the front end (hit a deer, and hit a car @ 25mph). Thanks, Intrepid. I couldn't expect much more from an American made vehicle...

R.I.P 1997 Intrepid - 150,000 miles.