Faults:

Right off the bat I had to replace the brain and battery. Very cheap. Easy to find parts for this car. I have had to replace the battery again. It tends to eat batteries. I put on a new set of tires within the first 4 months.

General Comments:

I have put 50,000 miles on this car in 3 years and it WILL NOT DIE!! I laugh everytime I think of it. I have owned several ford vans, mercedes, toyota, etc. This is by far the ugliest car I have ever owned; but, I can't sell it. And, who would buy it?? it is so old now and so ugly and I have abused it so bad and it just keeps on going. My initial cost for the car 3 years ago was $850.00 plus the minor costs as I mentioned above, approximately $450.00 including the new tires. This has been the best $1300.00 I have ever spent. I have been looking for another car to buy, but I will keep this one as my dependable back up. It handles the road real good still and loves to get out on the open highway; doesn't care too much for in town driving, but tolerates it in hopes for that next long haul drive on the highway. If you buy one of these cars... GET THE V6 engine not the 4 cylinder. There appears to be quite a difference. Also, I heard that the Dodge spirit or Dodge intrepid is the same exact car. Good Luck with your Acclaim.

Faults:

The original paint job on this car is poor and the colour is uneven. It is currently in the process of peeling from the roof and truck of car in large areas.

Has a tin-like noise with heavy acceleration.

Uncomfortable driver and passenger seats.

Have had to replace a few standard items: brakes, gas tank, rear bearings, gas and brake lines - nothing really out of the ordinary.

General Comments:

Excellent value for money.

Very reliable - has never needed to be towed or any major repair.

Great student/ small family car.

Decent gas mileage and overall very low cost of ownership.

Smooth highway driving, quite manageable in the city as well.

Faults:

In 1998, we had to replace a coil inside the engine that was not making contact so the car would not start.

Early in 2004, the belts started to squeal, but were replaced by mechanic.

Early in 2004, "Check Engine" light came on and stayed on. Will be taking to mechanic in a couple of weeks.

General Comments:

When we bought this car in 1996, it had approximately 91,000 miles on it.

We have had it for a little over 8 years and except for a few minor problems, we have had very little problems with it and it now has around 187,000 miles on it.

In 2002, we had it painted since the light blue paint was starting to flake.

Faults:

My father bought this car and at 12004km the a/c H valve had to be replaced. At 52000km, 57001km, 67634km, and 71732km the air conditioning has failed for one reason or another. It has failed again close to 114000km and must be serviced. I have spent close to $2500 repairing the air conditioning. This is not a good car for A/C.

The O2 sensor has been replaced at 43098km and 94500km.

This car is very hard on brakes and hard to find ones that don't squeak.

The trunk leaks which is a know fact from other surveys and reports and I now have to have some body work done on it.

General Comments:

This is a very easy car to maintain if you like to do your own maintenance. The plugs, wires and oil filter etc. are all located ahead of the engine and easily accessed. The engine bay is not cluttered with a lot of electronics like some cars.

The paint finish is very good and has kept up its lustre.

The bodywork has fended off rust very well except the bottom of the doors are starting to rust. The drivers side door is the worst.

The engine is still very strong and I cannot detect any oil burning. It has passed the Ontario Drive Clean Emission tests well below the limits over the past 4 years since testing was mandatory in Ontario. Likely due to regular oil changes.