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He's jammin' down the pedal like he's never comin' back...
Adventure's waitin' just a-HEEEEAAAADDD!!
ES
Oh yeah, did you end up making it to the Macungie car show? We did, and had a great time, although now I have a little too much of a "farmer tan" from wearing a tank-top to the show!
Andre...I was really surprised by the interest in the late model cars at Carlisle also...lots of LH cars, but the PT customizing that's going on is just incredible.
This was about 4-5 days ago, and she says the check engine light hasn't come on since. She's wondering if this is something she should go to the dealer with, especially given its age and mileage. They've had no MAJOR mechanical problems with it, but the power steering pump has been replaced 4 times (I think all of those were done under warranty), and the A/C is not quite able to keep up with summer heat in TX (which has been the case from the time my parents bought it new).
So, what do I tell her? Spend the diagnostic bucks at the dealer or some other mechanic now, or just wait for the light to come on again? She's restoring a house 200 miles from her home base and my step-dad, and she's keeping a tight lid on the amount of time she spends in the car until she gets a better idea of what exactly is going on (she has this thing about getting stranded.. Well, I guess we all do).
Okay, that's it. Advise, please.
My grandfather has a '94 Taurus, and it's had an intermittent check engine light for a few years now. I wish he'd get the damn thing looked at, but it hasn't left him stranded yet! My guess is that, as long as the car's fluids are all topped off, and nothing's overheating, and the car doesn't act any different when the light comes on, then it's probably nothing too major.
I think I'd get it checked out though, just to find out what it is!
Lessee, comparing the base '00 model to the current SE, here's what I come up with:
1) No rear sway bar on the new model
2) No tint on the windows
3) Cruise control now optional
4) Vinyl in place of cloth on the door panels
5) No carpet on the lower door sills
Anything else we can add to that list? Just out of curiosity, is there anything that's been ADDED to the SE as standard, over the '00?
I am disappointed that Chrysler saw fit to de-content the Intrepid, but I still think it's one of the best values in its class. I'd still take one over an Impala, Taurus, or Camry. I admit to having a soft spot for the Altima, although I don't think it's any better-built. And I like the new Accord too...everything but its looks!
I bought a slightly less agressive set of BF Goodrich Touring T/As from Sam's ($377 US and out the door in 45 minutes). The center of the tread pattern is similar to the Goodyears, but the pattern at the outside of the the tire surface is tighter than the Goodyears, and cut at an angle. Much quieter (in fact, no noise at all) and still close enough to OE design that it shouldn't affect the handling of the car.
At 48k, the only issue we had to have addressed on the car was an eratic idle. The dealer reprogrammed the computer based on a TSB and problem solved. I can't seem to keep the rear brake rotors true, but I suspect that is a driver problem. I am also still miffed that ABS is optional.
Has anyone replaced the unvented rear rotors with vented rotors? Can that be done and keep the OE calipers?
Mike...everyone is describing their leather as "leather-trimmed" or "leather-faced" now...I think someone got called down on the fact that the bulk of the interiors were really vinyl but were being marketed as leather.
Mdey, that's great mileage from those OE tires. Mine only lasted to about 34,000 and boy were they noisy. Much better with the Cooper Touring Lifeliners on there now.
About the brake rotors, I don't know, but am interested in why you are thinking about those rear vented rotors.
ES
the accord is a good car but not free of problems. i currently have an '03 ex v6 coupe and it's had some issues. nothing major mind you but still irritating. here is the list.
1. rear shelf that rattled
2. various/intermittent rattles around sunroof and dash.
3. engine that sometimes cranks for a long time before starting - prolly a fuel pressure regulator problem.
4. door trim that become deformed from the sun presumably.
i will say that the accord does have excellent fit of panels inside and out. but it ain't perfect...!
no, i traded my '00 intrepid for an f150 supercrew back in '01.
anyway, jason, you going to NAIAS this winter? i'm kinda throwing around the idea myself...
Remove tire/rim . Use 10 MM wrench and remove the the two caliper mounting bolts, then remove caliper . Pull rotor off . Thats it !!!
I used to go to a couple of guys who used to work together at a big Plymouth-Dodge-DeSoto-Chrysler-Imperial dealership, and then had been in business on their own since 1965. But they retired last year, and the place just doesn't seem the same anymore. It also seemed like those older guys just knew their stuff better, too. For instance, they knew that my Intrepid needs the Type +4 tranny fluid, but I had to actually argue that point with the guys that took over!
All oil changes have been done by the dealer, because they gave me coupons when I bought the car. Average price to me for oil and filter change has been between $0 and $5.
Is it harder to tell if the rear rotors are warped? I just had my front rotors turned when the new pads were applied. Doing that took out the vibration I was getting when braking. The rear pads were fine and we didn't touch those. The rear rotors are a lot smaller than the fronts. The dealer did not do my brakes, because my brother has his own shop, but alas, it is 700 miles away. He did the brakes when I was on a visit to PA.
ES '99
The mechanic said that I did have some sediment in my coolant, so I figured it would just be best to flush it out before it starts getting too clogged up.
I ended up missing the interval for my belt change, though! I could've sworn that I looked through the owner's manual before, and just never saw it listed. But the last time I looked there it was, plain as day, 60,000 miles. Oops!
The mechanic was also saying that if you change the coolant a little more often, then the hoses will last longer, as well. I dunno if this is true or not, but he said I shouldn't have to worry about hoses until around 150,000 miles, nowadays.
A few other tidbits...he said they'd charge about $140 for a tranny service. One reason it's pretty pricey is because of that Type +4 stuff. And in the event that the tranny ever did go bad, he said that a factory-remanufactured unit would only run about $2100-2200 installed, and that would be with a 3 year/75K mile warranty.
While that's still a lot of money, it does make me feel a little better about the tranny. I was thinking they were a lot more expensive than that!
Oh speaking of trannies, the president of my condo association has a '93 Eagle Vision, with the 3.3. Original engine and tranny. She has about 200,000 miles on that sucker.
OOPS!!
I have missed that belt change, too. I'm not reading that manual carefully enough. Maybe I'll go for the belt and fluid change at the next oil and filter.
ES
does your hotmail address still work??
Mine were getting to the point that they had kind of a shiny, glazed brown look to them, but I didn't see any cracks, at least not major ones.
the email address in my profile works...but let me know if you send something to it...i rarely check it because of so much spam...
ES
So next time you think about parking your beloved Dodge Intrepid in the local shopping mall, you had better think twice!!! Better yet, get a good security system installed.
Based on sheer numbers, the Toyota Camry (my parents pick) was number One. But many more Camry's are produced than Intrepids.
<oops, did I leave my 'Trep unattended, unlocked, and running down in Southeast DC again? ;-) >