Hi 1st Time Owner Here!!

[Unseenspirit2002]

My wife and I have always owned Intrepids. Over the years we owned 3 since 1997. We Traded in our 2000 ES for a 2002 PT Cruiser, Touring Edition. it only had 25,000 miles on it and since my wife has wanted one since they first came out we went ahead and traded my sexy ES in. The car runs, drives and almost looks like new. I can pop the hood and lick the engine and not get dirt on my tongue, it's that clean. I've read through some of the forums and am sort of horrified by what other readers are experiencing! Can I expect similar issues with ours? The only thing I noticed is the oil was a half a quart low so I purchased a bottle of some 5w30 and brought it to the proper level. What are some of the real issues with these cars? We live in Denver and everything is right here so we maybe put 4000 miles a year on a car.

[bobs turbo pt]

welcome to the board !!

[Franksredpt]

Originally Posted by Unseenspirit2002

My wife and I have always owned Intrepids. Over the years we owned 3 since 1997. We Traded in our 2000 ES for a 2002 PT Cruiser, Touring Edition. it only had 25,000 miles on it and since my wife has wanted one since they first came out we went ahead and traded my sexy ES in. The car runs, drives and almost looks like new. I can pop the hood and lick the engine and not get dirt on my tongue, it's that clean. I've read through some of the forums and am sort of horrified by what other readers are experiencing! Can I expect similar issues with ours? The only thing I noticed is the oil was a half a quart low so I purchased a bottle of some 5w30 and brought it to the proper level. What are some of the real issues with these cars? We live in Denver and everything is right here so we maybe put 4000 miles a year on a car.

I have a 2002 also. Bought it new. Have never had any major problems with it. Have done regular oil changes, tried to keep up with recommended service according to manual. Only thing I've ever replaced was a sway bar bushing. Right now I'm at 83,000 miles and will need to replace timing belt soon. Don't worry to much about problems others have had. Mine has been one of the best cars I've ever owned. In fact, I've considered selling mine and buying another one. Oh, and welcome to the forum.

[CREWZIN]

Welcome to the forum. If you read all through the forums, you come across many different problem but comparing them to the over a million sold, the problems are pretty wide spread. The most common ones are the multifunction stalk (cheaply made and a small part burns out which causes the fog lights to stay on); power steering pump or steering stalk ( pump fails or clicking noise when turning); chrome wheels rusting around edges which causes air too leak form tire; and last but not least, different parts fail which causes problems, example idle air controller, cam sensor and high pressure sensor for the air conditioning. On top of the list is multiple problems with idle and running because of the cheap plugs and wires that originally came with the PT from the factory.

Not all of these happen to everyone and some of us have seen none or one. I have 90,000 miles and had the cam sensor wires burn and the power steering pump fail. I've had a lot more things fail on my Corvette than on my PT.

Don't abuse it, keep up preventative maintenance and enjoy the ride.

[soonercruiser]

Welcome "Unseen"!
Had the soonercruiser for a year, and it's been a blast! No problems at all - 2006 Touring NT - standard tranny!
I love it so much that I just picked up a second PT - GT convertible!

[quicksilverdon]

Welcome.
I'm on my second PT.
Just to add to Crewzin's list - replace the ignition wires - suggest Crane wires afrom www.RaceAndStreet.Com and put in new plugs at the same time. Then you'll be set for a while.
The other thing was the auto tranny - around 50,000 miles, get it flushed and the ATF + 4 fluid replaced. I just had mine done, cost about $175. You don't have to go to dealer, just make sure 1) mechanic has a machine that flushes (not just drains) the auto, and 2) be sure they use ATF + 4 (or ATF +5).

[Unseenspirit2002]

Originally Posted by quicksilverdon

Welcome.
I'm on my second PT.
Just to add to Crewzin's list - replace the ignition wires - suggest Crane wires afrom www.RaceAndStreet.Com and put in new plugs at the same time. Then you'll be set for a while.
The other thing was the auto tranny - around 50,000 miles, get it flushed and the ATF + 4 fluid replaced. I just had mine done, cost about $175. You don't have to go to dealer, just make sure 1) mechanic has a machine that flushes (not just drains) the auto, and 2) be sure they use ATF + 4 (or ATF +5).

LOL...50,000 miles!?!? Not to be a jerk but there is no way in God's green Earth I would ever let a Mopar Tranny go 50k between flushes. Once a year, brother, not 50k. I've owned Intrepids which have notoriously cheesy transmissions and I've only rebuilt one and that was simply because I felt it was due with 205k on it ...not because it needed it. I figure an ounce of prevention costs less then a new tranny.I've only ever used ATF+4 fluid since the TSB was released way back when and prior to that it was ATF+3. I've never heard of ATF+5, not to say it doesn't exsist, but I'll stick to what I know. Truly what I'm asking for is what are the common weak points in this car? I've read of excessive oil consumption, Electrical issues on some and weak front-end bushings. Anything else wrong with these cars such as catastrophic engine failures like the 2.7 liter? Or if the timing belt snaps will i need a new engine? Off subject, My Grandmother lives in P'burg on Belvidere Rd across from the Highschool there...small world huh?

[CREWZIN]

The ATF +5 is what Chrysler is calling the synthetic blend of ATF +4. I had mine flushed at 50K (now 90) with the synthetic. We all agree the auto tranny is a weak link and yes "ounce of prevention etc., but 50K doesn't seem unreasonable if your not beating your engine/tranny. Almost all of us use Mobil 1 or other synthetic and still change the oil way before it's due to go along with the prevention theory.

The engine is "supposed" to be an non-interference type so no catastrophic failure can occur but from what I've been told , the pistons can still know into the valves and cause damage. That's why I'm looking around now for a good deal on a timing belt change, along with an upgraded belt tensioner, water pump and normal belts.

[Unseenspirit2002]

Originally Posted by CREWZIN

The ATF +5 is what Chrysler is calling the synthetic blend of ATF +4. I had mine flushed at 50K (now 90) with the synthetic. We all agree the auto tranny is a weak link and yes "ounce of prevention etc., but 50K doesn't seem unreasonable if your not beating your engine/tranny. Almost all of us use Mobil 1 or other synthetic and still change the oil way before it's due to go along with the prevention theory.

The engine is "supposed" to be an non-interference type so no catastrophic failure can occur but from what I've been told , the pistons can still know into the valves and cause damage. That's why I'm looking around now for a good deal on a timing belt change, along with an upgraded belt tensioner, water pump and normal belts.

ATF+5 is the Synthetic Blend of ATF+4? Well that's cool, I didn't know that it existed. I know the manual says 50k but I don't put but maybe 4k a year on a car, at that rate it would be 6 years before I would be required to do it. Since everything out here is stop and go all the time I'd rather pay the $200+ to just have it done yearly. I never pound on an engine and drive every car as if it were my last one I would own. I'm hoping that with the Mobil 1 the engine will last a good loooong time. I'll look into the ATF+5 (any links?), because truly, Synthetic is the better way to go, IMHO. My wife and I like the car, she more then me. I think the seats are a bit uncomfortable, almost like it needs physically more to it. Otherwise it's decent, a bit small but worth it in the long run.

[CREWZIN]

Address your last comment first. The seats are chair like and at least for me, pretty comfortable. They don't have padding, pads and bolsters that sport seats have because the original intension of the cruiser was to "cruise", not to take corners like a race track.

My invoice for the tranny flush says 16 quarts of SYN/Fluid @ $4 per qt. plus 1 can of Flush @ $24. I watched the person doing it and instead of bringing all the containers of ATF+4, he had two brown boxes with red synthetic fluid with ATF/SYN written on the side. When I asked if it was ATF+4, he said it was the +5 synthetic.

Now when they do the "flush", the can of flush which they run through the transaxle is supposed to clean the filter as they don't drop the pan & filter during the flush. I didn't like that.

The next day I had them drop the pan and replace the filter. I had to pay for the labor, 4 more qts of +5, black adhesive (they used that to seal up the pan instead of a gasket) and hazardous waste disposal, but I felt better with having it done.