Timing belt broke at 78,000km.
Fuel leak in the engine compartment!
Transmission shifts erratically.
A/C compressor seized twice (2 new A/C's needed).
Transmission leak twice.
Rack and pinion steering failed.
Front axle seized.
Chrysler badging fell off.
Hood shocks failed (both).
Windshield wiper arms failed.
Headlights poorly aligned from factory.
Exterior light bulbs blown (6 new bulbs needed).
Automatic temperature controls failed (which went to the default setting of full heat, and full fan on a 30°C day).
Primary catalytic converter failed twice.
Door moulding fell off.
Door seals are coming off.
This car is crap! If it were not for the extended warranty I would have had to pay over $7000 for repairs for driving the car 36,000km.
This car's been in the shop more than 15 times, 10 of which we needed a rental car. The rental company even gave us a discount for being their most valuble customer.
You may save money when you buy the car but in the long run a Japanese competitor will save you a lot of hassle.
Well, you seem to be one of the few, perhaps you should read the manual when you get a car and make sure that you keep up the maintanence, because I have never seen such problems with Intrepids. Even Blue Book gives them good ratings.
Add cracked (due to to poor stamping design) seat bases and broken inner tie rod bolts (unsupported except by the outer lock tab) to the defect list. After working on these cars I'm glad I don't own one.
I own one, the things that have broke. I had them replace with after market parts that gave me a life time warranty. that solved a lot of the problems from repeating.
I have owned and worked on these cars for several years and they are very reliable if taken care of. The reason Toyotas are considered reliable is that every time you bring one in for"maintenance" they replace half the car. Trust me, I have owned several and would never buy one again.If you question Toyota's policy of "replace it before it breaks,so that we appear reliable", they get very defensive. The only people that think Toyotas are reliable are people that know nothing about cars and just bring them in for "routine maintenance"!
I inherited my Dodge Intrepid from my Father. He had little problems.
It down shifts while driving and I lose my gages.
Placed on a scope, it shows no problems. Different dealers say different things at different prices.
Being a senior in age I'm afraid to drive it and can't afford the repairs. Guess I'm stuck.
By the time any car has 74,000 miles on the clock, many things can happen that effect the service life. My 93 E/S went almost 180,000 with minimal work. Granted at that time it took an engine, but that was very much due to condition of use.
The trans on these cars can be a weak point, there is a very small range between too low and too high on the fluid. I took a trans oil pan from a wrecking yard and made a deep pan and pick up for my Intrepid, and have had no problems since.
Finally, with any used car, I don't care who built it, if you're not up to checking it out take it to a shop and pay to have them OK the car before you buy.
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