CarComplaints.com Notes: The Dodge Intrepid, Stratus & other Chrysler sedans are infamous for oil sludge problems with the 2.7L V6 engine. If someone offers to sell you a 2.7L V6 model, it's only worth the price of the scrap metal it's going to shortly turn into.
NOTE: Only the 2.7L V6 has the oil sludge problem. Our "Avoid like the Plague" designation is ONLY for models with the 2.7L V6 engine. All other available engines are very reliable with no major problems.
Even with regular maintenance, the oil sludge defect eventually destroys the 2.7L engine typically around 80,000-100,000 miles. The only true fix we know about is to put in the larger 3.2L engine, which has a great reputation.
This issue was never deemed a safety defect by the Feds, so there was no recall. In the end, Chrysler got away with FOUR YEARS worth of defective 2.7L V6 engines in their sedans.
i brought this thought to be nice ass car about 3 months ago everything was going fine till one morning i was getting ready to leave and i heard this god awful knocking sound going on in the engine now im back to walking before the summer even hits thanks palmetto auto and dodge im back to walking just great i dont know what to do and im still suppose to make payments for this sour lemon dodge sucks hope yall do go out of business and go to hell t. t.watson
2000 dodge intrepid piece of sh!!. just got it paid off . engine went and don.t have money to fix . i need to find a class action law suit . let me know of any. do yourself a favor don't buy a dodge
The Dodge Intrepid with a 2.7 engine is a piece of crap and Dodge for whatever reason refuses to acknowledge and fix the problem. I will never buy a Dodge product again.
I purchased the car used $4100 on 12/20/08, because my husband and I were planning on buying our first home. Two months later the car doesn't run. 2 blown gaskets and the car is sitting behind our house as a decorative fixture. 75,147 miles. regular oil changes and maintenance and we are just sh** out of luck.
Bought this car new from the dealer in 2000 never heard of any problems with engine. My wife drove this car for the last 8 years without many problems I am a mechanic by trade and changed the fluids regularly. I replaced every door lock soleniod in the car and they still kept going out and making the buzzing noise every time I would replace one (over 100 dollars each just for the part) then the next one would go out within a couple of weeks this was when I first started hating this car. I also heard of a sludge problem with the engines so I would change the oil even more than prescribed. About two weeks ago i replaced the fuel pump because of a low fuel pressure problem(misfire code on multiple cylinders) at a cost of over 500 dollars. Well I never even got another tank of gas through it when my wife called me and said her car was making a horrible noise and I needed to come home and look at it. So to make along story short this piece of crap had a blown engine. It really ticks me off that Dodge new about his and never did anything to remedy the problem. I would love to get in on a class action lawsuit against these guys.
I am really ticked off now after reading all the complaints about this vehicle. I am not sure what to do, the engine started making noise about a month ago but only does it once in a while. Yesterday was really noisy, so what do I do? I drive 35 minutes to work and living in Illinois this time of year is not ideal to end up on the side of the road. Like most of you mentioned, my car is very nice looking and is taken care of mechanically with routine oil changes and tune ups so now what is the excuse? I'm not sure if I should stop driving it to avoid tow charges and the possibility of being stranded going to work on the midnight shift. What a let down, really shows you how the salesmen take advantage of good people. Sure didn't hear about these problems when I wrote the check for it. I will keep you updated.
- Joe H.,
Hamilton, IL, US
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We have done nothing but baby this car since my wife bought it in '02. Then out of nowhere it starts to tap from the top of the engine, so I go to have it checked and one guy says its a timing chain. Then the second opinion (I always get one) said its the lifters knocking. So I have the lifters replaced and it still makes the same noise. Little did I know that several hundred people are having the same problem with this pile. It's no wonder the big 3 are going down, they can't build a good car if Toyota showed them the secret. Better spend more of the taxpayers money to bail them out too. Greedy bastards.
First this car had the water pump go out and the timming chain break had to rebuild the engine at a huge cost. Thank God boyfriend is a mechanic,6 months later the the engine blew because of the oil sludge build up. Do not buy an Intrepid with a 2.7L engine.
i got my intrepid in 2004, (a gift luckily), engine knocked since i got it, i was lucky again when i had the oil changed at a jiffy lube they left the old oil filter seal on the engine, all the oil blew out one morning so they replaced my engine with a 2001 2.7L from the salvage yard. I thought i got a good deal, no more knocking, less miles (64,000 on new one 140,000 on old one) but now about 3 years later its one thing after another, it started with the cooling system, (water pumps on these cars are a pain to replace) i had to replace nearly everything that had to do with cooling. Then like everybody else this engine started knocking. I used to be a Dodge man till i got this car, what a piece! I'll run it till it dies then junk it. Don't buy a Dodge!
I wished I had saw this site before I bought my intrepid 4 months ago, The car is know knocking so bad it needs the a total engine replacement. I still owe on it!! Great huh! Its not a good idea to buy one.
My 2000 Dodge Intrepid (engine 2.7L) has been very well maintained, the oil has been changed regularly & the car has been driven cautiously. The engine now needs replacement because of a known defect in the lubrication system. The automaker refers to the problem as an �Oil Sludge Defect.� The repairs will coast in excess of $2000.00 & the automaker will not cover any of the cost. I live in the state of Kentucky & our state enacted the �Lemon Law.� I will be researching the �Law� to see if it offers me any recourse. Should I have any success I will �Post� on this site.
Well isnt this nice thanks alot Dodge!...i just bought this dodge piece of crap and first ,the problem 2 days of buying it was that the engine would race up and down ...not only at an idle but while i was driving with my three small children in the car.!Now its knocking and sorry fellow viewers LUCAS will not fix this problem a new motor from a junkyard(that will probably break too)has been priced at 2000.00...good luck ...cause mine has been horrible ...i will never own another Dodge car!!!!!
I loved my Intrepid and was terribly upset when my car developed this awful - can I say horrifying ?- knocking, but I have to say that I owned it for 7 wonderful years with absolutely no problems. Of course when it did go it went completely! Cost to repair was $3000-$5000 new and about $1500 used ... IF you could find a rebuilt or used engine which I couldn't. My greatest regret is that Chrysler no longer makes it!
HEY CHRYSLER, if you are listening we need a car that is WIDER - I don't like to rub elbows with the other passengers !!!
Before I found this site, I thought it was just my bad luck with this car. This year and model should be recalled. How can it only last 75,000 miles? The quote to fix it is $4200.00 dollars (for a new engine), which is more than it is worth. Which by the way is a quote from a reputable mechanic, not the dealership. Who knows how much they would charge. It has been sitting in front of our house for two months. I am not sure what to do with it. Needless to say, I will never buy a Dodge again. If any one knows of any class action law suit for this model, please post. I will gladly take my time filling out tedious paperwork to sick it to Dodge. :)
im a fool, yes its true. who else but a fool would own 2 of these lemons!! the car started to tick, then it quickly became a loud knocking and overheated. thankfully my brother in law owns a tow truck so when i phoned him he said shut it off and he came and picked me and the car up. haven't brought it in to be checked out yet because everyone ive talked to says its going to be around 4000. to get it fixed. i paid 5 for it!! should have stuck with my Chevy's, never let me down!!
I guess I am in the same boat. Engine Knocking mostly in the front right side. My dad checked and there's no sludge so what now? I have owned it for 25 months and naturally the warranty ran out on month 24.
Bought this car from a used car dealership because it has a good look. The car rides nice but the engine SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!The engine has been knocking for the last year. I don't know what to do with this. Should I spend the money and get a 3..2 or just take my loss and buy a new vehicle. This is my first Dodge and I will never buy another one. Re sale for this car-NOT. Its called junkyard!!! Drove it to a dealership for a trade-in and they looked at me and said-You got some clicking going on there. They wanted to give me 1500.00-should have taken it..........
Around November of 2007 my engine started ticking and now its in February 2008 and my engines is now knocking quite loud especially at high RPMs. When I bought the car the dealer said that the 2.7L engine was one of the best engines that Dodge had made but know that i have had the car for about 4 years i know that is a lie, I have had nothing but problems and have spent alot of money on this engine. Now that its knocking I know its just a matter of time before the engine just goes completely and from what I see on here its going to cost anywhere from $2000.00 to $5000.00 and if I do get a new engine I sur e dont want to replace it with the same piece of crap 2.7L I would want a 3.2L or the 3.5L but then I will have to change the transmission and probably even more and I'm not sure I want to go through all that. I like the car itself but the engine is a big piece of crap. I would really like to trade the car in and get something reliable but how can I do that now and get any money for it with the engine knocking that bad, I'm stuck unless I just want to take a hugh loss, there should be some kind of help from the person who sold everyone such a piece of crap instead of saying its all because we arent taking care of the engine right.
engine started ticking then knocking....never did any lights come on, seems as iff everyone either had window and door lock problems or engine problems. i had both...the only fix is to junk in or spend thousands on something thats not worth it...seems if there is that many people complaining about the same thing on this engine, that dodge ought to fix or reimburse us
Hi, My name is Dora, I am now the owner of a 2000 Intrepid, I just paid off about 3 mos. ago. BIG MISTAKE!
Well as it turns out even after regular oil changes, somehow my engine went bad and since have replaced the engine, which set me back $3900.00, after engine was replaced I then had to get a new starter, alternator, among
other things, well my car is now back in the shop for like the 13th (not exagerating) time (within the last 2 mos.)and they
are now telling me I need the power train control module replaced, which is a $500. min. part. (not to mention
labor and programming this part). So I now have another $1000. bill. This is so ridiculous I am financially drained! I regret now, not buying another car.....
Premature engine failure at under 70,000 miles. The oil was changed on schedule regularly, yet I did note some sludge at one oil change. The engine seized with little warning. I noticed a light ticking two days prior and the ticking ended up being a rod bearing. Engine is shot and will cost over $2000 for used engine (installed). My concern: if the first engine blew, what guarantee that the replacement won't also go. Very disappointed in Dodge.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
i brought this thought to be nice ass car about 3 months ago everything was going fine till one morning i was getting ready to leave and i heard this god awful knocking sound going on in the engine now im back to walking before the summer even hits thanks palmetto auto and dodge im back to walking just great i dont know what to do and im still suppose to make payments for this sour lemon dodge sucks hope yall do go out of business and go to hell t. t.watson
- Kkjk H., Jjj, JJJ, US