1989 Chrysler New Yorker Landau from North America - Comments

First and foremost, this car burns oil. A lot of oil. This is due to deterioration in the valve stem seals. Replacing them is costly in labor, and one mechanic told me that the seals are inferior, lasting only a matter of months before deteriorating appreciably. This is consistent with our experience.

You can get around this by moving to 10W-30 instead of the recommended 5W-30, but give the car a little more warm-up time in winter if you go this route.

Secondly, we have had transmission problems too numerous to mention. Other posters have described transmission troubles; suffice it to say that all of them were familiar to me.

Because of the oil-burning problem as well as exhaust problems, we regularly add an anti-smoke product to avoid choking to death at stoplights. Three very good mechanics have been unable to fix this problem.

The handling on the car is poor. A hard (but not unreasonably hard) turn causes the engine to sputter and occasionally die. In my rural area, with lots of potholes, curvy highways, and dirt roads, it is quick to get out of alignment. You may not have these problems if roads are well-maintained in your area, but if you are rural, this is one to avoid.

The heating system has never worked properly in the entire life of the car (this car has been in my family since it was new). The heater blows cold air unless set at 85 degrees, at which point it blows very hot air. We have to cycle it on and off to be reasonably comfortable. More recently, the panel vents stopped working, although the floor and defrost functions still work (but only when set at 85).

Two doors no longer have exterior trim, as it fell off. It is practically impossible to reattach.

The interior details fall off easily. We have reattached the veneer on the doors several times. The headliner has been re-glued twice by professionals, but will not stay up.

Our power locking system still works, but the rear passenger door lock sticks badly, and the latch is also stubborn.

This car was a gift to my husband from his grandparents. They lived in the suburbs and took long highway trips every year, and liked this car very much. If you want a vehicle with a lot of pickup that will perform well on the highway or in the well-maintained suburbs, this is a fine car (except for the transmission and the valve stem seals).

It's also very comfortable (except for the heating problem). The seats are fabulous. When this car eventually dies, I may keep them as lounge chairs.

However, it is poorly suited to my family's needs in a snowy rural area, so I can't recommend it highly. Its handling is not suitable for narrow roads with sharp turns, and the car does not stand up well to snow, ice, or potholes. As an older luxury vehicle can be very expensive to repair, it's not a good car for young people with limited finances.

The gas mileage is reasonable for a car of this size. We are still getting 23 or more MPG, and it used to be much better. Between 55 and 60, it used to get as high as 29 MPG on the highway.

This car has the easiest-to-replace headlights I have ever seen. They practically snap off and on. Accessibility for battery- and oil-changing are similarly good; there's plenty of room under the hood to do whatever you need to do.

I'm skeptical of the oil additive products like Motor Honey and Barr's Stop Leak, etc. The stuff looks like taffy when you pour it in. It may be a quick fix to stop it smoking long enough to sell it to the trusting, but it's not a real repair. It may stop the oil smoke, but something with that extreme viscosity seems to me like it may be plugging up oil galleries. At least if it's smoking a little, you know the oil is penetrating. Maybe it would be worth going to a higher viscosity oil, rather than the motor honey type additive. Maybe 10W-40. I don't know if the "Max-Life" oil really is better, the oil that says it's better for +75,000 mile vehicles because it conditions valve stem seals.

The Mitsubishi 3.0 motor is a real pile of junk... you can spend thousands on this engine trying to get it right. The metal valve guides slide down and cause the oil leaks- just replacing the seals won't work. Parts cost an arm and a leg for this engine. Working on it sucks... has a timing belt instead of a chain, water pump is driven by the belt... trust me, what would be a simple repair job on a Chrysler motor is a nightmare on this Japanese marvel... don't do it to yourself.

Am sorry I don't agree!!! the 3.0 Mitsubishi engine runs good & I have 80,000 miles on my landau... the gas mileage is good & with any car, repairs are a must!!! I also have a good mechanic & he highly recommends this engine, if you take care of it, it will last!!! my mechanic said that the tranny do stink in the 89 new yorker!!!

I have a 1989 Chrysler New Yorker Landau. I just replaced the transmission - cost $2K, didn't want to, but my husband kept saying it's worth it. About a week later, the brakes failed. Took it to the mechanic for what I thought would be an easy brake replacement, until he called me to say that the Antilock Brake Master Cylinder unit is the problem, but the biggest problem is that they don't make this part anymore. I called a Chrysler dealer who said they only made this system for cars during 88-90. Now I can't find the part and don't know what else to do. I cannot believe that there is no recourse for this. Any idea???

I love the car, not without minor faults... the biggest problem is the anti lock brake system... my yellow dash light and red brake light went on and I lost my brakes... after a $100.00 diagnostic check I'm told the system is flawed from the get-go and a rebuilt unit is $1400.00 plus labor to fix... so my choices are? junk it or junk it... anybody have any other ideas?