This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
"the famous head gasket failure that nobody wants to touch". yes, I have a 98 Dodge Stratus that is leaking at the head gasket. I had to buy one of those flat pans to catch the oil in while the car is parked in the garage. My 2 year old got out there the other day and decided to play in the used oil. Is this not a safety issue" having to keep a pan of dirty oil under a car" I drain it once a week and get at least 1 quart. (and have to pay to dispose of it) come on here! so, on top of the fire hazard (hot oil on a hot catalyst), now we have poisoning issues with our children. Is anybody going to help us, or should we just start the whole class action lawsuit? I am sure there are enough people here to back me up on this. According to all of the complaints here, Dodge already knows about it and made a stronger gasket to replace it with.
I have been told by 2 mechanics that I have a head gasket leak. My car is only 5 years old and has 37,250 miles. The repair cost is 7-8 hundred dollars. I am retired, on a fixed income and feel Chrysler corporation should repair this defect.
Timing belt tensioner broke while driving full speed on the freeway. The engine stalled and I was lucky to get to the side of the road safely. Now the car has been at the shop for two weeks and Dodge states the parts are not in production and unavailable until a later unknown date. I have been told that the part is being remanufactured to eliminate the problem, but the new part hasn't been produced yet. There is not a date set for when the part will be available. Dodge obviously knew the part was defective or they would not have improved it for replacement. Why was my safety put at risk for a part they knew was a problem?
I have a 1998 Dodge Stratus and like many others the head gasket needs replacing. I was told about this in July 2002. I was told by service that this was a known problem and that Chrysler would participate in the expense of the repair and it would only cost me $200. At the time I could not afford the repair. Also, the leak was not that bad. I was led to believe that the $200 would be the cost when I had the repair work done. When I called to make the appointment Jan 20, 2003 because the leak was starting to get worse, I asked the service person if this $200 cost was still in effect. He said he checked on it and was told it was. After I dropped off the car, I got a call later in the morning telling me it would cost me full price. My issue is that since this is a known problem on the 98 Stratus why hasn't Chrysler (Dodge) been made to issue a recall. The realized the problem with the head gasket because they changed the headgasket part approximately Nov 1998 in production and replacements.
Head gasket has busted. It's leaking fuel all over the exhaust. I took it to the dealer who said it could start a fire. He said it would cost about $800 to fix. It requires me to put a quart of oil in it weekly.
Consumer called complaining about having problems with the head gaskets. Also stated that has been on our web site where there is more then 40 complaints.dealer was not contacted at the time of this phone call.
When checking the oil, consumer states the oil reading kept decreasing rapidly. Consumer took to Dodge, Dodge says the gasket is too thin and is causing a leak.
Car began leaking oil, but has gotten really bad in the last couple of weeks. I took it to my mechanic and it has been diagnosed as having a faulty head gasket. Apparently a common and wide spread problem with this type year car.
While traveling noticed a burning smell and oil stains under vehicle. Dealer has been contacted, and indicated that head gasket needed to be replaced. *akconsumer spoke to a Dodge representative who informed consumer that this was a common problem with these vehicles.
Head gasket is leaking oil. The dealership diagnosed problem and gave me a quote of $800 to replace head gasket. I told the dealer that there are numerous complaints surrounding this particular vehicle. I did not feel I should have to pay all of the expense.
Head gasket was replaced originally in Nov 00 and was replaced 3 additional times within the next 6-8 month period. I noticed the same problem again earliers this year and am preparing to take it in for the 5th time.
My head gasket hasn't totally blown yet but my car is going through a quart of oil a week. I've had the gasket cover replaced and new spark plug wires installed. Oil still coming out. I take care of my car but not through the dealer. I had to replace the rotors at 16000 miles. Albany Dodge said that they could resurface them for $90 a piece. I believe the rotors should not have been messed up at that time.
March 2002 noticed oil leakage. Had it checked and found that the head gasket needed replaced. The car didn't have even 60000 miles on it. Secondly, the car starting just this summer has stalled on numerous occasion. The temperature has always been above 90 degrees and the air conditioning has been running on high. It stalls only when I'm at a stop or in bumper to bumper traffic trying to shift from first. I have a standard, the clutch doesn't feel like it is slipping, and I'm sure it's not user error. This just started stalling this summer. I've had it to the dealership, but they didn't find anything wrong with the car. But it stalls consistently when the temp. Reaches above 90 degrees.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Las Vegas, NV, USA