Chrysler LHS

newgmbuyer · November 2001

Well, I still have my squeaking/creaking sunroof problem after trying silicone spray on the black rubber gasket surrounding the window and after taking it to the dealer to be fixed. It seems whenever the sunroof is closed, the black rubber gasket makes a creaking sound when the car is moving over bumps, turning, etc- ie whenever the body is flexing. When it is closed, I can push down from outside and the sunroof moves/creaks. The dealer said they adjusted the track, but no change. It almost seems to me that the sunroof should close tighter so it doesn't move against the 'frame' or opening in the car. Anyone have any suggestions on this? It is definitely the rubber gasket around the window rubbing against the body (roof) and wax/silicone didn't make any difference. Help- its driving me nuts!

valhs · November 2001

I got so excited when I saw 5 posts on our page I nearly *$@# myself!

2000 LHS, 35,000 miles and going strong

CD-R's - plays 'em fine. Best one is the wave file for the Star Trek photon torpedo blast. Works great in heavy traffic.

KJOO - We don't get offended here. Especially when we're instructed not to take 'affence'. Chrysler owners are generally outnumbered and thick-skinned.

mileshoover · November 2001

I have had similar problems; have found that the noise came from the deflector rubbing at the front of the roof.

Try adjusting the deflector; (mine has a set of headless screws which adjust its deflection) be careful and go slow, count the turns so you can go back to where your roof was set at first if you have to do so. Silicon spray, as you say, on the rubber is good also, you have to mess w/it a bit to find the right spot(s) to remove the noise.

Miles

bb_lhs_2k · November 2001

I read in one of your earlier posts that you use simple green to clean your engine, and then use the foam tire shine stuff to finish it off. I'd like to try it, but I'm worried about getting the engine wet and harming something. Also, do you spray the foam all over the engine (what about the belts). Thanks.

valhs · November 2001

Regarding the LHS, I've never had any issues washing the entire engine compartment. No missing or hesitation afterward. I believe the motor to be a "sealed" unit and without the distributor caps of old you don't have to worry about water getting in and corroding your points. Good catch on the belts though. You do have to be careful not to get Tireshine, Armour All or any other polish on the belts. It's a sure way to start them slipping and shorten lifespan.

bb_lhs_2k · November 2001

Thanks, I'm going to try it. I always liked the engine to be as clean as the body of the car.

mileshoover · November 2001

bb_lhs_2k and valhs --

My '99 LHS engine is cleaner than when it was delivered new in 4/98; now has 40K on it.

How do I keep it clean? Simply by wiping it down with a damp cloth when needed.

I have, on occasion, sprayed engine cleaner on the warm engine if the dirt gets out of hand. But if you direct the rinsing water spray on or near the plugs, ignition wires, parts, etc. it is possible to cause engine miss (shorting out).

Try to avoid spraying that area of the engine. A good way to fix such missing if it happens is to use compressed air over the area to drive off any excessive wetness.

Then run the engine immediately after cleaning it with fluids to help dry it also. Wetness may cause your "Check Engine" light to come on temporarily but will go away as soon as you warm up the engine.

bb_lhs_2k · November 2001

Well, I went for it. I washed the entire engine and then sprayed the tire foam, avoiding all the belts by covering them first. It looks great, as clean and shiny as the first day I got the car. By the way, it ran just fine immediately, no lights on or engine hesitation or anything. But I don't think that I would do it too often, maybe once a year or so.

valhs · November 2001

Sorry it took so long to comment, I was on vacation in Georgia. Nice job on the engine compartment, that's the way it SHOULD look. Now do your door jams and underside of your trunk weekly and you'll have the same disease as myself. Compulsive car cleaning disorder. All kidding aside, other than the silver body color our engines are twins.

Finally posted my experience with the Dunlops on tirerack.com. Up to 3,500 miles on them now and still in love. Total mileage up to 37,500. Hopefully I won't have to use my extended warranty.

bb_lhs_2k · November 2001

Compulsive car cleaning disorder, lol. I think I might have a touch of this disease myself. I, also, used to clean the door jams and the underside of the hood, but I don't have as much time now, so I have to skip all the detailing work. By the way, what color is your lhs?

I just bought a slightly damaged 2000 LHS Grille. I'm going to try to replace the middle grid section of it with some chrome, if possible. I think it will make a big difference on a silver car. The grille is so big, and from far away you can't really see any detail, it looks like there's nothing there.

I'm hoping to get something to look kind of like this:

Then, I have to figure out how to take the grille off the car and replace it. Does'nt seem too easy.

valhs · November 2001

The chrome grill sounds like a great idea that would add a distinctive look to an already distinctive car. That was before all the Concordes got our body. Regarding the chrome, I read on the 300M page where someone did this with chrome door molding. Sounded labor intensive and easy to screw up. Not a task I usually try on a 30K+ car. I also thought the grill was plastic. Can this be chromed? Let me know how you do on removing the grill as well. I agree that it does not look easy.

As far as the color of my LHS, it's stone white. Looks good when dirty, looks unbelievable when cleaned and waxed.

bb_lhs_2k · November 2001

My LHS has 26k miles now. I replace the engine oil every 2500 miles, since new. But I just noticed that in the morning, when the car is warming up there's quite a bit of a very light gray smoke coming out of the muffler. The engine runs and sounds great. Is this normal, or should I bring it in to be checked?

lonestarsled · November 2001

Happy T-day to all! Sitting around waiting for the feast!!

Does this smoke tend to build up in the area? If it is just water vapor it will usually dissipate into the air a few feet away from the car and not build up around the car and is usually white (light gray?) in color. If this is the case no worry, water vapor is the result of the catalytic converters doing their job, and it will be more noticeable on cool damp days. An extremely rich running car usually has a black sooty exhaust. If the car is burning oil it will have a blue color to the exhaust. The two later problems will cause a cloud of smoke that will build up in the area if not taken away by wind.

bb_lhs_2k · November 2001

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!

Thank you lonestarsled, it is exactly the first thing you mentioned, I guess whitish smoke that dissapears immediately, I even rubbed my finger inside the muffler tip to see if there's a black residue or anything, but it's clean. I even see water drops spill out of the muffler too.

I feel better now, I wasn't sure what it was. Have a great day.

lhs2000 · December 2001

I own a 2000 lhs and check this board everynow and then but I see no-one has posted since the 22nd. So I thought i'd leave a short message. My lhs has 33500 miles on it and no problems. I didn't go for any extended warranty because 2000 grand was just too much. I certainly like hearing from people saying that their 2000 lhs is running great, it makes me feel a little easier.
Saw one of the new Concorde's on the road. At first I thought it was an lhs but no it was a Concorde. A very sharp car but dissapointing to me that my distinctive lhs is now going to be pretty commonplace. Oh well, the price of having good taste in automobile designs.

lhs2000 · December 2001

Obviously not 2000 grand but 2 grand. Whew no wonder I didn't go for that warranty

lonestarsled · December 2001

I saw my first Concorde at a local dealer about a weak ago, it was not the special. the interior is not as nice as the LHS, dash in the radio area is funky. I have not seen a concorde special and do not know if they have the better dash.

I have seen many 1999, 2000 LHS's on ebay for auction with over 80,000 miles on them already!!!
Prolly traveling sales people, point is this is a quality car that will last with proper care. Although, I consider 80k miles just getting broken in!!

ottowrkr · December 2001

There is no Concorde Special , only LX LXi and Limited. The special is an option on the 300M The Limited is last years LHS,without the LHS stickers and different rims. The Lx and LXi get the LHS exterior but keep the Concordes interior.

lonestarsled · December 2001

Ok.....I meant Concorde Limited. Chrysler website indicates a Limited edition. I have seen the LX/LXI but not the Limited. What does the Limited interior look like?

ottowrkr · December 2001

Same as last years LHS ,or 300M.

lhs2000 · December 2001

To preserve the leather interior I have been using Meguiars Gold Class leather cleaner and conditioner about every 2 months. Seems to work okay, some of my co-workers advise to clean every month. Is every 2 months adequate? Opinions always listened to though not necessarally acted on

.

As I put over 20000 miles/yr on the car I certainly would like 80000 to be just broken in. That ought to be just about the time I finish paying it off. I did have a Jetta that lasted 225000 until my sister did it in. I'd like to keep this one around because inside and out is real class.

sduncan2 · December 2001

I am looking at a 1995 LHS with 110,000 miles.
The car is in mint condition and was driven from Tn to Ohio every month. The price is going to be in the 2500-3500 range. Is there anything I should check out that might be unique to the LHS.

Thanks Steve

bb_lhs_2k · December 2001

My mileage is at 27500 now, and I'm starting to think that I might need the extended warranty. When I bought the LHS, I wasn't sure how long I was going to own it, so I passed on the extended warranty. But I really like the car and it looks like I will keep it for a few more years.
Anyone know where to buy the warranty at a good price. I remember a couple of websites mentioned here in the past, but I don't recall the address.

njerald · December 2001

Cheapest Chrysler factory warranties at www.chryslerwarranty.com. They have 3 levels of warranties, each with a choice of deductibles. A good job for a spreadsheet.

bb_lhs_2k · December 2001

Thanks!!

daffin · December 2001

I purchased an extended warranty through the chryslerwarranty.com folks just prior to hitting 36,000 miles on my 99 LHS. A couple of weeks ago, I had just passed 40,000 miles when the car began behaving strangely. I pulled over immediately and called my dealership. To make a long story short, the rod and hub (?) for second gear had broken in the transmission. The shop told me that if I had not purchased the extended warranty, the repair would have cost me $1600, rather than the $50 co-pay associated with my coverage.

The moral of the story is to get that warranty! The cab-forward design of the LH platform cars limits space in the engine compartment to such an extent that even most simple repair procedures are going to require a fair amount of labor.

lhs2000 · December 2001

I see that your co-pay was $50 but how much was the warranty? If you don't mind me asking.

bb_lhs_2k · December 2001

After reading "daffin"'s story, I'm sure that I'll be buying the warranty. I figure that I drive about 15k miles per year, so I'm going for the 60 months plan with 75000 miles, Maximum Care Plan. I haven't decided if I'll be choosing the $0 deductible for $1290 or the $50 deductible for $1110. I called my local dealership to see what they can offer, their price was about $400 more than chryslerwarrant.com, crazy.

daffin · December 2001

...how much the warranty I purchased cost me, I think it was between $1700 and $1800 (6-year, 100,000 miles, Max care, with a $50 deductible, car in service 13-24 months).

tksalhs · January 2002

I have a 2001 LHS - Great car!

And I want to keep it that way. Can anyone tell me of a web site where I can keep track of the Technical Service Bulletins for the LHS?

Thanks for your time.

PS: This discussion group seems to have slowed down - doesn't anyone have anything to say?!

jsylvester · January 2002

Go to http://www.alldata.com/recalls/index.html

I would also check out the 300M and Intrepid R/T boards. They are all similar cars as far as drivetrain and chassis are concerned.

lonestarsled · January 2002

.....and on the same day! I will be sending out my fake interior wood trim out to be refinished with simulated brushed aluminum (photogenisis). On that note, does anybody know how to remove the door panel trim just above the arm rest? I suspect it will require removal of the door panels themselves. If that is the case I will do a dynamat treatment to the inner doors at the same time.

scotian · January 2002

I believe they are one piece units.

fedlawman · January 2002

I see that among the Chrysler townhall boards, you folks seem to be the enthusiasts so I'll join you for a while.

I never thought I would be driving a car like the LHS, but last Wednesday, my boss told me that my company car (1995 Firebird Formula) was to be turned in.

He FAXed me a list of cars available for GSA purchase and gave me a $20,000 (GSA price) limit.

Well, I really wanted to get an SUV (Explorer, Durango, or Jeep Grand Cherokee) but they were all above the price limit. Then I considered getting another Firebird Formula (it now has 320 HP), but I decided that it was too noisy, cramped, and unpleasant to sit in for long periods.

Ultimately, I decided to get a "large sedan" that would be fast, quiet, and comfortable for long periods. Well, after much soul searching, I selected the Chrysler Concorde Limited. It was $21,500 but my boss said he could fudge that small amount. I briefly considered the 300M, but my "bosses bosses boss" drives one and I thought that it might be politically incorrect for me to have one too.

What impressed me about the Concorde is the looks (inside and out), the horsepower, and the features for the money. I considered the Buick LeSabre but it didn't have such features as traction control, CD player, or alloy wheels. The Pontiac Bonneville didn't have traction control and had a hideous interior. Both GM vehicle, although nice, also don't have the power of the Chrysler 3.5L HO engine.

Overall, I am very excited about getting my Concorde (probably sometime in June) and thought I would come here to get any recommendations on good websites I can visit to read more about it. I'd like to see some more photos of the car, read some road tests, and hear some of your ownership experiences.

I've enjoyed reading your posts in the past and look forward to your responses.

Brian

bb_lhs_2k · January 2002

Anyone know if this chip really works? And would using it Void the warranty?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/aw-cgi/ebayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=600286658&r=0&t=0

beach15 · January 2002

I think you'll like your Concorde Limited a lot. I know you have a new Rendezvous and this is a completely different vehicle. We have a 2000 300M that's black pearl with charcoal leather (hot and dirty!) and we have had and still have some problems but it's a nice car. Main complaints? Way, way too noisy (a lot of this is the Goodyears (crapyears) that they no longer use), rattles and creaks, transmission is horrible and thumps and jiggles in and out of gears, and there really is not that much power like it seems from the numbers. But, despite this, it's a nice car and the 2001 & 2002's are better now.

As for the GM's you talked about, I have some experiance in that area too. We were actually going to trade the 300M for a LeSabre after being in a bad accident in the Chrysler, but have decided to keep it I guess. The LeSabre will get you moving faster and has more muscle from a stop and at normal speeds, has stronger, and in our opinion, better brakes, feels more solid, is bigger, and is quieter (a lot) than the 300M. As for the Bonneville, well, what can you say, it's a Pontiac and a GM, not a good thing to be. I like the looks better than the LeSabre but the interior is nasty.

Best regards and good luck with the Concorde Limited, it's a very nice car!

fedlawman · January 2002

It makes sense that the GM 3.8L would have more torque down low...it is a great motor. I mostly didn't choose the LeSabre because of it's lower equipment level (climate control, alloys, CD player, etc.)

I must admit that my Rendezvous has really spoiled me. I have grown accustomed to options such as dual climate control, trip/mileage computer, heated/memory seats, etc. The Rendezvous is, quite simply, a sweet ride. An amazing GM product!

A few weeks back, while my Firebird was in the shop, I borrowed a 1996 Intrepid with the 3.5L for a few days.

It was a rattle trap, with buzzes coming from the door panel and steering column, but the engine had good power. I also liked the handling, which was soft, but with minimal body roll at the same time. It was a noisy car, with wind and tire noise levels higher than I expected from a car of that size and heft.

If the Concorde is at least as quick, but with better noise control and build quality, I'm sure I will be happy. Surely, Chrysler has made improvements since 1996?

daffin · January 2002

Your new Concorde Limited will likely seem like night and day in comparison to that '96 Intrepid! As you probably already know, the platform has been completely redesigned since then, right down to a more efficient 3.5L V6. I am still pleased with my '99 LHS, for all the same reasons I've stated before in this forum.

The only possible concern I would raise is that, based upon the design of these cars, if anyone needs to spend any time under the hood, the labor's going to be expensive--since yours is going to be a company car, that's a non-issue!

You will appreciate the Concorde Limited even more when you find yourself having to load up the trunk for an extended trip. I was able to pack a week's worth of clothes for me, my wife, and stepdaughter, plus all the Christmas presents, when we went to spend the holidays in our home town. There is absolutely no way we could have done that with a 300M!

scotian · January 2002

"Chrysler townhall ... enthusiasts" -- Not to start a family fued, but you apparently haven't visited the 300M discussion...

fedlawman · January 2002

No, I haven't checked out the 300M area. I think I'll go visit right now!

mcgreenx · January 2002

Haven't been back here for over a year, and the lease on my Y2K LHS will be winding down in October. The LHS/Concorde design is getting long in tooth, and even though I still like its appearance, as well as that of the 300M, I'm wondering what's in store for next year. Haven't done any research yet, but what is the outlook? BTW, my Y2K LHS has been a wonderful car, nothing but routine maintenance in 45K miles.

ottowrkr · January 2002

You will not see many, if any changes for 2003. That is because the replacment for the LH cars will be a 2004 model . This is when we go RWD and have the option of a V8 engine.

upstateny3 · January 2002

We purchased a 2000 LHS in October - 25,000 miles. Finally had to put our 1990 New Yorker to rest - 204,000 miles. It was a sweet car all the way through, so we had to stick with the Chrysler product. Glad we selected the LHS. Love the car! We're long legged folks so we like the spaciousness of the cabin. It cruises along beautifully.
I've read in prior messages about the exhaust vapor. I'm still concerned about the amount and length of time it goes on. In our cold climate it's still pretty heavy after 10 miles. Glad to know it's exhaust and not oil! Can anyone give me reassurance that this is not unusual?
Thanks
This message board is a great source of info when you are considering a purchase.

lonestarsled · January 2002

Unless your are loosing a large amount of oil (check your dip stick)or have extremely bad gas mileage, and/or the car is running rough I would not worry about it. I noticed it too. The job of the catalytic converter is to turn unburned hydrocarbons into water vapor. It is more obvious in cold weather. Check you exhaust tips and you should only see water standing in the tips. Thats why the stainless tips have a hole in the bottom of each of them, although I find that the hole is too small to drain off the water buildup.

upstateny3 · January 2002

Thanks lonestarsled. Cruised down to Albany last week (4 hours 1 way) and got 27 miles/gallon. Haven't had any drop in the oil. I've noticed the water dripping and wondered about that too. Thanks for the reassurance. The LHS certainly seems to be performing perfectly....but, you know, you kinda always worry when you buy a used car.

scotian · February 2002

I saw a stretch LHS limo (the last style, pre-1999). Pretty cool!

fastdriver · February 2002

scotian-

I saw several of those in Las Vegas when I was there. They are cool looking.

fastdriver

bb_lhs_2k · February 2002

I hope it's nothing serious, but lately I've noticed a loud clunk or knock from the front end of the car. I can't duplicate it all the time, but it's getting more and more frequent. I think that I've narrowed it down to, maybe, the front suspension or steering system. It happens whenever the front end lifts up or dips, kind of quickly. For example, when I first accelerate forward after backing up, "POP", you hear a loud tap from under the hood. Sometimes when driving and the body lifts or drops a bit, I can hear it well now.
Anybody with similar symptoms? Or any clues to what it could be?
I'm planning to have the dealership check it, but if I can't duplicate the sound for them, it would be hard to figure out.

ottowrkr · February 2002

sounds like the sway bar links. The same thing happened to me.

bb_lhs_2k · February 2002

Otto, I'm so glad you're here!!! This is really great, knowing exactly what is wrong before going to the dealer. It makes it so much easier to fix the problem. I'll take it in next week to have them replaced, hopefully under the warranty, I'm at 29k miles.

Chrysler LHS

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