2001 Dodge Intrepid: engine overheating

Filed Sep 17, 2009 · Engine · 112,124 miles · CA · crash

My car initially started overheated got that fixed which was the water pump then the engine blown and I kept regular maintanance on this vehicle got the head gasket fixed then 3 days later the bottom blew and the timing chain tensor.

Filed Aug 14, 2008 · Engine · 90,000 miles · MD

Tl*the contact owns a 2001 dodge intrepid. The contact stated that there was sludge build up in the engine, despite undergoing regular maintenance. The engine began to overheat and the dealer stated that a new engine was needed at an estimated cost of $6,500. The vehicle has been inoperable for almost a year. The VIN was unknown. The failure and current mileages were 90,000.

Filed Apr 30, 2008 · Engine · 92,000 miles · NC

Tl*the contact owns a 2001 dodge intrepid. While driving 65 MPH, the vehicle overheated. The contact heard a loud noise coming from the engine compartment and had the vehicle towed to a local mechanic. The mechanic stated that the engine failed. The contact could not afford to replace the engine, so he had the vehicle towed to his residence. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 92,000.

Filed Sep 24, 2007 · Engine · 38,500 miles · AZ

I got my intrepid new as a company car, and subsequently bought it when the division had layoffs (less than 10k miles, I was the original owner). It has been a dependable car, until it 'stalled out' last week. Turns out there's water in the oil, so the suspicion is a blown head gasket. The temperature gauge was 'normal' (not overheated) and there was a trail of oil that had come out the oil filler tube (dip stick 'popped' due to pressure). The car is driven about 5 miles each way to work and back each day, and for occasional errands in the evenings/weekend. I took it to a local mechanic to get a further diagnosis and estimate for repair. The vehicle was in good condition (38k miles), serviced regularly, and up until now, considered reliable.

Filed Sep 20, 2006 · Engine · 76,400 miles · GA

Returning from vacation, the 2001 dodge intrepid I was driving with my children, which has a 2.7 liter v6 engine just quit after a slight screeching noise. We were on the highway at the time. Lost brakes and steering. Thank the lord that no one was immediately behind us. After getting the car onto the shoulder and after the car stopped smoking, I opened the hood and found that there was oil either from the head gasket or the timing cover sprayed oil over the drivers side of the engine compartment. Pulled the dip stick and the oil was milky. Had to have vehicle towed. Repair shop said they could not find where the oil came from. Then after two weeks they found that the water pump failed and the timing chain tensioner broke. Vehicle was repaired and driven out of shop. Two days later the vehicle overheated and the oil light would come on after engine got to operating temp. Took car back to fix overheating problem and it was a valve under the intake needed to be replaced. The oil light still comes on. I was then told I needed a new engine, sludge caused the engine to overheat and when it quit on the highway it caused the crank shaft and bearings to go bad. New engine cost $5500.00 from dodge. Already put $2800.00. Car is not drivable and it overheated again trying to get home.

Filed Aug 21, 2006 · Engine · 95,000 miles · MI

My 2001 dodge intrepid, 2.7l engine died while I was driving on saturday august 19th, the engine is sludge and I would like to know why the engine sludge with regular oil changes and maintenance. I was told that my extended warranty will not cover this because it is sludge. The coolant is all gone after I just replaced the coolant bypass hose due to overheating. I owe a lot of money on this car still like 7300 dollars and cant afford to pay for this repair and for the car payments, please let me know what can be done to solve this situation.

Filed Aug 7, 2006 · Engine · IL · fire

I was driving on the tollway when my car began to overheat. I turned on the heater to maximum and drove at about 55 MPH. About one mile from home another car pulled along side to tell me that there were flames coming from underneath my car. I immediately pulled over but could not stop immediately as I lost all power and had no brakes. Since the exit was on an incline I was able to coast to a stop and my wife and I exited the car. Within less than 10 seconds after we exited the car was engulfed in flames and was totaled.

Filed May 4, 2006 · Engine · 83,000 miles · FL

I own a 2001 dodge intrepid with a 2.7l v-6 engine with just over 83,000 miles on it. Driving between tampa and orlando florida, engine started making a rattling noise and lost power. No warning lights came on and the temperature gauge was normal. I was able to coast to nearby exit and get off of expressway, but stranded in remote area. It appeared car overheated with a burst bleeder housing. After getting it towed to orlando, I learned that the engine blew a head gasket and was damaged beyond repair. Replacement quotes are in the range of $3,500 to $4,000 range.

Filed Apr 19, 2006 · Engine · 100,000 miles · KY

My dodge intrepid se 2.7l engine suffered a blown engine with no warning on 4-16-06 on my way home from work. There were no indications of a problem, no warning lights and no signs of overheating. I suddenly heard a rattling noise coming from the engine that increased quickly to a loud banging. I got off the exit immediately and coasted into a hotel parking lot. I turned off the engine and raised the hood to see antifreeze all over the engine. I removed the cap to the coolant container and brown antifreeze boiled over onto the ground. The oil had been changed on 2/7/06 and the fluids topped off. The oil and fluids had been checked every week after that up until the engine blew and the fluids were of normal color and consistency. The car had approximately 65,000 miles on it when I purchased it and proper maintenance had been maintained throughout the time I have had my it. The car had just recently reached 100,000 miles and I still owe nearly $5000 on this car, have no vehicle to get to work and can't afford to buy a new one with the car payment I have to make on it each month. I have been told repeatedly that the 2.7l engine is worthless and there was nothing I could have done to prevent this catastrophe from occurring. It would cost me approximately $2000-$3000 to repair or replace the engine with no guarantee it wouldn't sludge up again and blow a second time. I also experienced numerous other problems from day one, such as constant squealing from the brakes and rotors despite changing them out twice, followed by problems with the steering from suspension problems and problem steering bolts. The problems on this car from day one range from the issues mentioned before to electrical shorts, faulty steering bolts, broken the-rod ends and suspension problems all of which are common issues I have researched and found on numerous blogs and websites such as dodgeintrepid.net.

Filed Apr 19, 2006 · Engine · 100,000 miles · KY

My dodge intrepid se 2.7l engine suffered a blown engine with no warning on 4-16-06 on my way home from work. There were no indications of a problem, no warning lights and no signs of overheating. I suddenly heard a rattling noise coming from the engine that increased quickly to a loud banging. I got off the exit immediately and coasted into a hotel parking lot. I turned off the engine and raised the hood to see antifreeze all over the engine. I removed the cap to the coolant container and brown antifreeze boiled over onto the ground. The oil had been changed on 2/7/06 and the fluids topped off. The oil and fluids had been checked every week after that up until the engine blew and the fluids were of normal color and consistency. The car had approximately 65,000 miles on it when I purchased it and proper maintenance had been maintained throughout the time I have had my it. The car had just recently reached 100,000 miles and I still owe nearly $5000 on this car, have no vehicle to get to work and can't afford to buy a new one with the car payment I have to make on it each month. I have been told repeatedly that the 2.7l engine is worthless and there was nothing I could have done to prevent this catastrophe from occurring. It would cost me approximately $2000-$3000 to repair or replace the engine with no guarantee it wouldn't sludge up again and blow a second time. I also experienced numerous other problems from day one, such as constant squealing from the brakes and rotors despite changing them out twice, followed by problems with the steering from suspension problems and problem steering bolts. The problems on this car from day one range from the issues mentioned before to electrical shorts, faulty steering bolts, broken the-rod ends and suspension problems all of which are common issues I have researched and found on numerous blogs and websites such as dodgeintrepid.net.

Filed Mar 20, 2006 · Engine · 72,000 miles · TX

In may 2005, my 2001 intrepid with the 2.7l engine left us stranded in the middle of the road due to overheating. The heater also would blow hot air only half the time. I was unaware of the 2.7l engine problem. The car also had an oil leak. Towed the car to an authorized chrysler dealer. This dealer performed a diagnostic check on the car and found quite a few things wrong. Contacted the 'extended' warranty company and they advised I needed to take the car to 'their' authorized dealer. Had the car towed there also. The 'warranty' dealer also ran a diagnostics on the car and only found about half of the things wrong with the car. After fighting with the extended warranty for 10 days without a vehicle, they agreed to authorize the work. The dealer fixed the heating problem and replaced the water pump. They also fixed the oil leak and replaced a couple of gaskets. The dealer called us and informed us that the engine had sludge buildup and that a de-sludging was recommended. This of course not covered by the warranty. We decided to do the de-sludging at a $300 cost. We received the vehicle back on june 14th. Well, on aprox. March 2nd, 2006 I was driving back from night school on interstate 10 when my engine started knocking. I was doing 60 MPH. I stopped and checked the oil and it was normal. So I went on home. The next day, the car would not even start so I had the car towed to the same dealer as before. They ran a diagnostics check and said I need a new engine. Aprox cost $6400. I owe 7k on this car still. The extended warranty will not authorize this work since they claim that the de-sludging voided the warranty. The dealer recommended it and the warranty had said they wouldn't pay for it but nothing ever came up about voiding the warranty. I'm stuck without a vehicle again, in a rental car of my own expense and no $$ to fix it at this time!!!

Filed Feb 13, 2006 · Engine, Transmission · 89,000 miles · OH

Dt*: the contact stated while driving 6 0mph the vehicle temporally stalled. The vehicle was driven to an independent repair shop were the transmission computer chip was replaced. The intermittent stalling continued while driving 35 MPH and the vehicle was towed to another independent repair shop. The mechanic determined there was sludge build up in the engine and the engine needed to be replaced. There was a coolant leak which had contaminated the oil. Updated 04/17/06.