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Still, as long as you take care of it, you never know. If I were to lay odds, I'd say that two things that would fail before the engine do would be the transmission and the air conditioning. Chrysler's traditionally been a bit weak in the 4-speed automatic tranny department, but these days, they just don't build transmissions in general like they used to. Nowadays they make them compact and lightweight, so that they don't take up much space, and don't sap too much horsepower. Although I've heard that the Chrysler unit actually "dumps" some of the hp along the way to the wheels, because it's not quite strong enough to handle high hp. Or, at least that's the way it was for awhile.
And as far as air conditioning goes, it's not that Chrysler units are bad (I think the same company sources both Chrysler and Honda a/c), but just, as the car ages, a/c just seems to be one of those things that inevitably goes! Also, on the quest to 300,000 miles, I'd also expect an alternator and a starter or two to go, and maybe a couple of power window motors. Plus the obligatory water pump, but that's something that's a maintenance item these days, and changed with the timing belt.
Also, how you drive is a big factor in how easily you get up to high mileage. If you do a lot of highway driving and take a lot of long trips, have a long work commute, etc, then 300,000 miles will come a lot more effortlessly than if you live 3-4 miles from work and just do a lot of local driving, like I do. I'm at around 104,300 miles now. I put on a lot of my mileage early in the car's life, because I used to deliver pizzas part time, and took a couple trips to Texas. I think I hit 30,000 miles in just 10-11 months! Nowadays though, I hardly put 10,000 a year on the car any more. So I'm only about 20 years away! :shades:
Cases in Point...my 1981 Grand Prix - I sold it after it reached 91,000 miles. I was much younger and richer in 1987...I probably would have gotten another 30,000 or 40,000 miles out of the drive train...! My 1987 Cougar - 185,000 Miles on the original drive train before I sold it to my Idiot Cousin - who got ANOTHER 48,000 miles out of it - before he donated it. My 1979 Bonneville had either 300,000 or 400,000 miles on it before we lost track of it (sold to a mechanic in Brooklyn).
NONE of these cars ever needed a new engine or tranny while I owened them.
My 1999 Intrepid is better than any of these vehicles, both in performance and condition. To look at it today (I did have the back bumber and front hood repainted earlier this year) - you could not guess that it had more than 30,000 or 40,000 miles on it. I use Mobil One oil and change the tranny fluid every 15-20000 miles.
If I'm worng about this car, I will let everyone know.
Now...Some New Rules:
Dad's Rule #1 - I will not buy you another car if you neglect, abuse or destroy this one. Screw this one up, plan on many bus rides.
Dad's Rule #2 - Show any signs of recklessness, start trashing the car, or become too preoccupied with the car, I will notice it. See Rule #1.
Dad's Rule #3 - Show any slips in your grades, I will hear about it. See Rule #1
Dad's Rule #4 - Show any disrespect to yourselves or others on the road, get busted for anything illegal while driving, I will hear about it. See Rule #1
Dad's Rule #5 - If you get tired of the car, that's understandable - My advice is - get a part-time job, save up the money and see Rule #1.
That should about cover it, don't you think?
The 3.2/3.5 are a completely different engine from the 2.7, and are good, solid engines. They're also cheaper to replace when they DO go bad! These engines actually have their roots in the old 3.3 pushrod V-6 that surfaced back around 1990 or so, in cars like the Dodge Dynasty, Chrysler New Yorker, etc. This engine replaced the Mitsubishi 3.0 V-6, and was carried over into the LH cars for 1993. A 3.5 variant that was converted to OHC was constructed, and put out 214 hp, very impressive for the time. Normally, when you take an engine that was designed as a pushrod and then converted to OHC, you get a mess. Just ask Chevy about that 3.4 DOHC V-6 they offered for a few years back in the 90's! :surprise: However, in the case of Chrysler's 3.5, this was one rare instance where the conversion was done right. Now, IIRC, early models did tend to have problems with the timing belt, and a/c problems were also common, but these were corrected after a few years. The 3.2 was a slightly smaller version of the 3.5, offered from 1998-2001. Same basic design, though.
If it's a '98-04 model you're looking at, basically just make sure it's been maintained well and not abused. Chrysler's 4-speed overdrive automatic has always been a week spot, although they improved them drastically around 1996 or so. And they've improved them, little by little, ever since. The 2.7 doesn't put as much strain on the tranny as the 3.2 or 3.5, so one consolation of having a 2.7 is that the tranny will probably last longer. However, if you maintain it and change the fluid regularly, you shouldn't have a problem with either engine.
The 2.7 does have a bit of a reputation for sludging, so if you find a model you like that happens to have one, make sure you have accurate maintenance records to go with it. The main reason these engines sludge up is because they're built to tighter tolerances than the 3.2/3.5, and have to work harder and run hotter to move a 3400-3500 lb car around. Keep up on the oil changes, and don't let it overheat, and you'll be fine. But DON'T let it go 10,000 miles between oil changes! Actually, don't let ANY engine do that!
But, I'd still try to hold out for a model with the 3.2 or 3.5. If nothing else, you'll get better performance, little, if any, penalty in fuel economy (the 2.7 has to rev harder, which offsets the advantage of its smaller displacement), and usually, a better-equipped vehicle, as the 3.2/3.5 were offered in higher trim levels like the R/T, SXT, and ES, whereas the base/SE just had the 2.7. ES models from '98-01 used a 2.7 standard with a variable intake manifold. It only boosted hp by 2, and torque by 5, but the torque curve was consistently higher across the whole RPM band, so it did give a pretty good boost to performance. Most ES's in '98-01 probably had the 3.2 though, which cost around $500 extra. For '02, they just bit the bullet and made a 234 hp version of the 3.5 standard.
I'm holding around 104,700 miles right now. I'm guessing the trip to Florida, once you factor in driving around while we're down there, will get me up over 107,000.
Bob
When batteries start to get weak though, don't they usually exhibit a sign of it first? For instance, the car being harder to start? My car starts up just as fine as it did when it was brand-new. Maybe I will resist the urge to tempt fate though, and do it on Saturday before leaving.
Thanks for the gentle prod, Dad!
Which way is the easiest?
Let everyone know.
Not the best design for checking/cleaning or tightening the terminals.
Or swapping the battery out.
My battery is five years old too.
Dad
I'll let you guys know how it goes, after I put it in tomorrow.
I am just wondering if the problems that I hear about the 2.7 engine should worry me or not. I will definetly maintain it regularly but is there something that I should know that I haven't heard?
I haven't had it for long but I love it already!
So anyone I could use some feedback
Thanks in Advance!
Thanks
That makes the dealer look like the better bet right now.
:shades:
Would anyone have any info?
thanks
I did swap out the battery on Sunday the 31st, the day before we left. It's NOT an easy job, and I was pretty fed up with the car by the time I was finished. It was bad enough that I started thinking about trading the car in before it came time to replace the battery again! :mad:
Anyway, you basically have no choice but to jack up the car and take the tire off. You can see the battery from under the hood, but it's too big to bring it out that way, as about half of the battery is actually underneath the headlight assembly. It's best to take the air cleaner assembly loose though, because it does make access to the hold-downs much easier.
The little plastic panel in the wheel well is pretty easy to take off, but be careful, because it's held in place by these little bolts that go through these clips that are attached to the panel. They're not attached very well, and will fall off. Also, when you're taking off the bolt for the hold-downs, make sure you cover the positive terminal with a rag or something, or you'll most likely be hitting it with your socket, and making a nice little firework display of sparks. I wonder how many people have been electrocuted trying to replace one of these batteries? :surprise:
I'd say the whole ordeal took me about an hour and a half, maybe a bit more. One reason it took so long though was because I had to keep hunting down tools, and the socket I used had something wrong with the ratchet. It kept going into, for lack of a better word, "neutral". Somewhere between on and off.
Oh yeah, I'm up to around 107,300 miles now. I saw a couple of Chargers while in Florida, and I really like 'em. I'll probably replace the Trep with one...eventually.
Other items of interest....Just had two service calls in the past two weeks. I noticed some pronounced wear on my "new" driver's side front tire after two extended trips. Turns out my front bearing had gone bad. That was replaced and the tire replaced (under warranty). Tire was actually ok save for a 15" worn stretch on the outer edge--the inner tread was fine. Thankfully they just went ahead and replaced the tire. Two days ago my 2000 ES wouldn't start after driving in a particularly severe rain storm. Turned out that my alternator had been in the process of "dying" for the past few months. Had that replaced and the battery checked yesterday. Thankfully the shop was able to check for the cheaper of several remanufactured units. Alternators--much to my surprise--can get pricey very quickly if you don't check around. Officially mileage is just over 116,000. Feeling OK about these items being replaced relative to the mileage. It's a FWD car that I don't "baby"--frankly I'm surprised I haven't had to replace the CV joints and axles yet.
Best wishes to everyone--it'll be a busy and high mileage summer for me and my family. I'll likely pass 120,000 before fall.
andre: welcome back...for all the problems you had, assuming you bought a 5 year battery, you won't have to touch it for another 4 years, and your trp will have 150K-200K, and probably ready to become a boat anchor... :shades: :shades:
I keep thinking about changing to synthetic, but at this point in time, would it be worth it? If the dino juice hasn't done its job well, would the damage already be done at that point? Now one thing I HAVE done regularly is have the transaxle serviced. Every 30,000 miles. IIRC the owner's manual calls for 100,000 on the "regular" schedule and 50,000 miles on the "severe service" schedule.
Smithed, if you do change your battery from above, let us know how it goes! Also, watch your back if you do it that way, especially if you're tall. Most likely you're going to have to do a lot of bending over and twisting and pulling, so don't pull a muscle or slip a disk or something!
smithed: $734 does not sound bad if all that major work was done...esp timing belt and pump, and serpentine, plus the once-in-a-lifetime tuneup...if you actually do go to 200K, another $750 will be chump change...
froggersjc: I would think overkill with no benefit whatsoever...if the oil will go 5K (some feel syn oil goes 7500-10K, but I change it every 5K) then the filter will go 5K...if you truly believe that the oil is filthy enough to change the filter at 2500, then be consistent and change the oil at 2500, because you will damage the engine with your "filthy oil"...or keep the filter to 5K, which is the correct thing to do...and if you really are pulling out that much filth at 2500, you do not need regular oil/filter changes, you need an engine flush to roto-rooter the engine and then put in fresh oil/filter every 5K, but not, IMHO, the way you are doing it now...however, YMMV...
Bob
Ed
Bob
Bob
Last month I satisfied my lust for "new" wheels by picking up a 1997 Chrysler Town & Country V6 AWD. the thing is fantastic - it outshines my newer 1999 3.2L V6 Intrepid both in peformance and ride. The Trep is much better on gas.
Next year, my sons get the Intrepid, and Dad gets whatever the hell he wants!! (Grand Prix GXP, '05 Bonneville GXP, Charger, Mustang, Impala SS, and 300 AWD are all on the short list).
Bob
Oh yeah....what's with the "Marsha7" screen name when your name is Bob
When I started with Edmunds a number of years ago, naturally I had to pick a user name...I wanted to name it after my wife, so I picked marsha1...they said it was taken...I picked marsha2...it was taken...I picked marsha3...it was taken...do you detect a pattern here???...marsha7 was approved...my name, however, is Bob...
I have wondered just how long I have been a member of Edmunds...I have tried to offer valid answers to posters' questions, and I hope I have been helpful to the folks here, not counting the occasional humorous answer because some folks leave themselves wide open when they post...
But, in the topics I post, not counting when I ask my usual comparo questions, I really do hope I have been helpful to the Edmunds folks, as they have been very helpful to me...
Bob