1994 Chrysler LHS from North America - Comments

AC went out @ 50k under warranty.

Power control module went out @ 55000 - $750.

Started experiencing transmission problems @ 85000, told I need new tranny - $1700 est.

Right front wheel bearing went out and engine light comes on for no apparent reason.

Like the ride, can't afford the maintenance.

For all of you that experienced tranny problems, what are the typical symptoms? We just bought a one (private) owner used 94 LHS for our son's first car. Cost was reasonable since he paid an equal share. Vehicle has 117K miles (mostly from 6-7 trips to FL for the winters). Everything seems to be working fairly well less a low idle shake (idles at 600 RPMs) and the trans roars/rumbles upon acceleration (I don't think it's the exhaust...isn't this car supposed to be quiet?)...noise could be coming from the engine too, but we have nothing to compare to since we have not driven this vehicle new.

Is this normal? What do we have in store for us? BTW, we do plan on getting a good tune-up done that should take care of the idle situation.

If you're not having problems yet, count your blessings. My transmission started shuddering when it was in overdrive between 20-30 mph. Others start slipping, causing the tachometer to rise and fall even though the speed is constant. I have two pieces of advice: flush that tranny every 20k miles with religious conviction, and use the rec.autos.makers.chrysler newsgroup for diagnoses/troubleshooting. There's more wisdom among those people than you're likely to find at a local garage. Good luck to you.

Oh yeah, if the water pump and timing belt have never been changed, go ahead and do that. Could (will probably) save some headaches down the road.

pt

I would just sell it.

It costs $100 to flush the tranny every time. My fiance has an 89 Honda Accord that has never had a tranny flush, was bone dry of oil, never had a tune up or tranny fluid added. It had a 178,000 miles when I met her and fixed all the above for her and this car has never had any problems. Of course it ran better with oil and a tune up, but this thing has over 200,000 and just keeps going. For the amount that you use to fix your next two transmissions on a Chrysler ($1500), you could buy another more reliable car that will never give you problems. If you spend thousands of dollars on a vehicle, it should be reliable and not give you problems.

Just look at the reviews in this site for Grand Prixs, Accords, and Camrys. You will not see near as many problems. Yes there will be a lemon now and then, but at least not every car is a lemon. There is not a review on a Chrysler product that does not say something about tranny problems or/and numerous other problems. CHRYSLER MAKES THROW AWAY CARS.

I owned a 94 LHS and had a laundry list of problems. I bought the car new in Ann Arbor Michigan. I thought I had died and gone to heaven, such was the quality of the ride. At around 50,000 miles, the A/C compressor went out. I had it fixed under extended warranty. It worked fine for awhile then it died again. at 61,000 miles, the lumbar support mechanism broke in the out position (which for me was okay as I have a slight spine curvature).

At 69,000 miles, the thermostat gave up and caused the engine block to crack which resulted in me having to pay for a rebuilt engine. At 75,000 miles, the seat back frame broke and I had to get it repaired (found out later, that was a recall item). Around this time, I had the transmission fixed for the first of 4 more times to come. Through out the life of the car, I had to have the brake rotors either turned or replaced 3 times.

My tortured steed finally came to its rest at 215,000 miles when as I was pulling out of the repair shop after having replaced the front right ball joint and tie rod mechanism, the transmission died again. I had it towed to my house and 2 days later took it to the junk yard.

It was a beautiful riding car when it was working right, but the cost of ownership is very high. I recommend to anyone to stay away from used Chrysler products. By the way, I have had 4 Chrysler vehicles and they all have issues after awhile, that's why my last 2 cars have been Fords.

The responder from December 2nd put 215,000 miles on his Dodge LHS, so this actually sounds like a success story for the car. I would not count the cracked block for the following reason: The block did not crack because the thermostat gave out. The block cracked (if that is what happened) because the engine continued to be operated with the temperature gauge buried in the red and the owner didn't bother to pull over and let it cool off to figure out what was wrong. Someday when engine blocks are made of ceramic, we won't need to worry about excessive engine temperature or checking engine coolant levels. But until then...