1997 Plymouth Breeze from North America - Comments

I, have owned this car for 6 years, and will not own another,i, have always bought fords,and figured to try Chrysler's product, for the looks and fuel mileage and the room.found it quite comfortable and was getting 900 kilometers to the tank on the highway.the head gasket started leaking oil externally at about 90k I replaced the head gasket myself. it was also leaking internally into the coolant as a coolant and oil passage are side by side.the gasket material deteriorated between the 2.after that the braking material on the synchronizers for 3rd gear wore out and it would grind every time a shift to 3rd gear was attempted.1500 for a new main shaft or 2000 for a rebuild exchange trans with a 3 year warranty,a new trans was installed along with a new clutch. then at 135k a weird thing happened.the cam shaft oil seal came right out of the cylinder head.the entire seal assembly.i have never seen that occur before. I lost 3 litres of oil in 20 minutes of driving,fortunately the engine was OK as the light came on and it was shut down right away, to see what the reason for the light being on was.i had checked the oil that morn and knew it was good then.250 bucks later all is fine.never had any problems with steering or ac or brakes just drive train and that's enough.

With all do respect, you probably don't care for your vehicle. I own a 98 and nothing is wrong. Why? Because to help prevent things from breaking, you must take the time to care for your car. you can't just get in and drive then when it breaks, blame the car and or the company. I blame you. Many people in my family have or currently own breeze and they are all well cared for. Fords aren't all they are cracked up to be.

I have a 98 Plymouth Breeze, I also have had several things wrong with my car, and YES I do take care of mine. At 74,000 Miles, I had to replace the head gaskets which cost me an arm and leg. I have had to put several thermostats in the car. And here recently at 98,000 miles the transmission sprung a leak. I will never own another. These are junk just as well as the neon's.

I have owned a Plymouth breeze for 7 years and tried to take care of all routine maintenance, but how do you guard against gasket failure, oil seal leaks, falling headliners, etc. I wouldn't own another for love or money.

Well, you guard against replacing head gaskets by checking the coolant level and flushing out the cooling system ever couple of years to ensure that the car doesn't overheat and warp the head. You guard against oil seal leaks by periodically re-tightening the valve cover bolts, and changing the oil every 3,000 miles. And you don't drive the crap out of a compact like a hot rod. You don't "try" to keep up on the maintenance, you "do" follow the scheduled maintenance, and treat the car with respect.

I'm getting curious about some of these maligned cars--the Durango, the Breeze, the Neon, the Focus, a few others. I might have to buy an old one just to prove to myself that when somebody takes care of them, they can be a good car.