1992 Dodge Daytona from North America - Comments

There was a fuel line leak which was not expensive to fix, but very dangerous.

The radiator was leaking and completely blew at 164900.

The bushings in the door had to be replaced because it made the door chime continuously and the power locks keep locking while driving.

The front brake pads wore out. Luckily I replaced them before I destroyed the rotors.

The exhaust had a hole since about 170000 km and was recently replaced.

Now the water pump is leaking and will have to be replaced soon.

As you can see I have had many problems considering I have had the car only 20000 km. I do not drive the car hard, but perhaps the last owner did.

The car is easy on gas and looks a lot nicer than my old Delta 88 which was wrecked in an accident. I only wish it would stop breaking down.

You made 6 points about your Daytona I wanted to comment on...I'm on my 4th Daytona, a '92 IROC, and I will drive them until I can't find them anymore! Your car isn't doing too badly, considering the mileage, and I can't speak for your repair abilities (not that mine are great...), but here we go: 1) The fuel line leak: you're right, it's dangerous, but usually gives you advance warning by smell. I fixed one leak near the fuel rail with JB Weld and have had no problems in over a year (Good stuff!), although that might be inappropriate. 2) Radiator leak/blowout: If you live near a junkyard, go get one out of a wrecked Chrysler. They're easy to remove. Buy new hoses and clamps and change your fluid. 3) Door bushings: $5.00 for new pins and bushings, plus a friend to help balance the door. Get a sharp pry bar or chisel to bang out the old bushings. Do BOTH doors at the same time, and re-grease them every couple months. You won't have any more problems. 4) Brake pads: A consumable. They wear out on new cars too, so I don't count that. 5) Exhaust hole: Also a consumable, but take advantage and upgrade to higher performance muffler. 6) Water pump: A new one is $35 from Autozone, along with a tube of RTV gasket sealer. Unbolt the air conditioner compressor, disconnect and remove the alternator, and you have a straight shot at the water pump. This is a good time to replace the power steering/alternator/air conditioning belts, as you have everything torn apart already. One important component to owning a Daytona: get a Haynes Manual! The $10-14.00 you spend will save you thousands in labor charges! Also, check out www.allpar.com AND the links! I recently found that a part called a 'shutter wheel' was subject to disintegration (after aging), in the distributor. It explained why my girlfriend's '86 Dodge Aires wouldn't start. I checked the distributor, and sure enough the cheap plastic piece was broken. I'm going to pick one up from the bone yard. When I bring parts like this to the counter to ask what I owe, they usually say, "Have a nice day." Try to get that from a dealership. They'll sock you $200.00 just to plug in their diagnostic equipment, and then sell you a complete distributor, plus more labor. I've also fixed my power windows for less than $3.00 a side when the plastic tracks broke! That involved the manual, the bone yard, and 3-5 hours of my time (the first one was a bear...). Try to convince Mother Mopar to fix it for that! You have a nice car, so go surf, and have fun!

Given the age of the car, I'd say it's doing pretty well. You cannot expect a ten year old car to provide the reliability of a new one.

There was a fuel line leak which was not expensive to fix, but very dangerous.

*** A lot of old cars need new fuel lines, they usually rust out from being under a car so low to the ground.

And the power locks keep locking while driving.

**SAFTEY FEATURE!

The front brake pads wore out. Luckily I replaced them before I destroyed the rotors.

**Normal repair on a car.

The exhaust had a hole since about 170000 km and was recently replaced.

**Any car over 12 years old may need new exhaust.

Now the water pump is leaking and will have to be replaced soon.

**Radiator stop leak. $6 WalMart. Yeh, it's not gonna fix the real problem, but it works for 6000 miles.