My 2001 dodge intrepid engine failed while trying to pull off of the road leaving my mother half in and half out of traffic. The mechanic states there is no oil within the engine. However, we just had a complete oil change in october of this year. There is has been no sign of leaking and no oil light indicator until immediately prior to the engine locking. After reading everything on the website I am appalled that dodge can get away with this. As consumers we have to join together and force them to take responsibility. The average consumer cannot afford to throw hard earned money out of the window. We plan to junk the car and not risk further loss after reading these horror stories. I will never purchase another vehicle from dodge or chrysler. I spoke with an online engine rebuilder who called this the "engine of the year". They are selling so many there is a backlog. Descriptions of other complaints found online at: http://www.datatown.com/chrysler/.
2001 Dodge Intrepid engine complaints
Page 11 of 19: complaints 281 to 310 of 525, newest first, as owners wrote them.
2001 dodge intrepid 2.7 engine died while driving for no apparent reason. The vehicle was driven 400 miles the day before and performed flawlessly. This engine failure was not a condition of poor maintenance and estimated repair costs are $5300.00 and exceed the resale value of the vehicle. This engine failure could have been a severe safety factor if it had failed 24 hours sooner on the toll road at high speed.
Dt: the contact stated while driving the engine seized causing a jerking motion from right to left. The vehicle was towed to the dealership where a blown rod was discovered. There have been no repairs made to the vehicle. *ak updated 01/25/06.
I own a dodge intrepid 2001 with a 2.7 liter engine. I was driving and suddenly without warning...no sounds....no lights... The engine died...I nearly was involved in a major accident. I took my car to the shop and they said the engine was no good and I needed to replace it. I was quoted $6100. 00 and sludge was mentioned by the mech. I changed my oil every 3000 miles like clockwork (my dad was a auto-mech) because I realize how important it is. My question is how can sludge build up so quickly.... And there is definitely something very fishy here... Please help...
Driving on freeway about 60 miles an hour when oil light came on. 2 minutes later engine failed. All of a sudden it went off. Got towed to machine shop and the cost is 5,000 to get it fixed. Car cost me 3 thousand. I am still paying for it, now I can't drive it. I need a way to work so that I can pay for the car. Want to get in on class action lawsuit, need to know how to.
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I own a 2001 dodge intrepid that I am still paying on. The engine failed at 69,000 miles. There was no warning that this was going to happen. I got regular oil changes every 3,000 miles. It wouldn't start one day, I had it towed to the dealership. They told me that my engine needed replaced due to sludge buildup. The timing chain also failed. I am a single mother of three children that cannot afford $6,500 for an engine. I am stuck paying payments on this car.
The engine just went dead when I was driving. No signs before that. I bought the car only for 31 days.
On 11/29/05 I was driving home from work on I-10 through the deserted and hurricane katrina storm ravaged section of new orleans east when my 2001 intrepid seized up and would not run. I barely managed to safely get the car off of the interstate and onto the now desolate morrison road exit. As a woman alone I was extremely frightened to have my car abruptly seize up on the interstate and was terrified that it would not make it to a safe place off of the interstate without getting hit. Once I rolled to a stop, however, I discovered that I was in an extremely unsafe area as the area had been flooded and looted after hurricane katrina, there were no businesses open to help me due to the extent of the storm damage in the area, aaa told me it could be hours before they could get to me, and it was going to be dark within an hour. It was so dangerous that the national guard and then the state police would not leave until aaa arrived. Once at the garage, we were given the chrysler song and dance that the car engine failed because of sludge and that it had to be our fault. They offered to happily replace the engine for a sum of $7,000. No mention was made of all of the complaints that chrysler has had on the 2001 intrepid engine and the numerous failures of this engine. Due to the eminent danger that chrysler placed me in - continuing to allow me as a registered 2001 intrepid owner to drive a vehicle which they knew was going to fail or had a high change of failing - perhaps some of the top brass at chrysler should be deserted in the middle of a storm ravaged area with only looters for company so that they can fully understand the extreme danger they have placed consumers in simply because we are driving their vehicles!
While driving my car home from work it started making a loud noise, once I got it home into the drive it stopped running. Had I been on the highway this could have caused an accident but lucky for me I don't live more than 5 miles from where I work. I had it towed to a mechanic where they said that the is sludge build up and that the timing chain had broken which had blown up the engine. They mechanic said this is a common occurrence with these cars and I paid him $2,000 down to start working on the car. My fiend suggested that I contact the chrysler company and I opened a complaint with them. They said I needed to have the work done by one of their certified mechanics, I told him that I had already started the work at another company. They refuse to help with any of the costs unless I have the car towed to one of their companies where I would have to pay the original mechanic over a $1,000 to replace the old engine and cancel the order of the new one. I had called the dealership prior to all of this and because the car's warranty had expired they offered no help.
Dt: the contact states vehicle died while pulling into driveway. The vehicle would not restart. The vehicle was towed to an independent repair shop. The repairman informed her that the engine failed due to sludge build up. She contacted manufacturer,that and they requested she bring vehicle to an authorized dealership for repairs.
Dt: the contact stated after turning the engine off, the vehicle would not restart. The vehicle had to be towed to the dealership, who discovered that the engine had sludge build up, and would have to be replaced. He chose not to repair the vehicle. *ak the air condition and heat did not work and the timing belt was loose. Updated 12/27/05.
Dt: contact stated the engine failed while driving the vehicle. He contacted the dealer, and they claimed it happened due to the contact's error on oil changes. The transmission failed as well. There were no prior warnings concerning the failures. The vehicle was serviced on a regular basis. The contact provided documentation for oil changes. The transmission was replaced under warrant. However, the engine will not be repaired due to the excessive expense.
Dt: the contacts stated smoke emanated from the engine, the vehicle shut off. She contacted the dealer, who stated s there was oil slug built up in the motor. The dealer insisted that the contact did not change the oil often enough. The vehicle needed a new engine. There was no prior warning. The dealer offered no free remedy.
Dt: the contact stated the engine failed while driving at 65 MPH. The vehicle was towed to a repair shop. The serviceman said that the engine would have to be replaced. The antifreeze leaked into the oil. The engine locked. The manufacturer has not been contacted. The contact does not plan to repair the vehicle.
Dt: the contact stated timing chain snapped while driving at 60 MPH. The engine I locked, and will have to be rebuilt. The mechanic stated the oil was not getting through the whole engine, resulting in engine failure. She contacted manufacturer, and they offered no free remedy.*a
Car seized up afternoon of oct. 14, 2005. This vehicle has been maintained with oil changes every 3-5,000 miles.
Dt: contact owns a 2001 dodge intrepid. On 10-06-05 the contact's grandson was driving the vehicle when it completely stopped. The contact reportsed of having no problems with car prior to this incident. There were no lights that came on prior to the incident. She had it towed to a repair shop, where they told her the motor blew out. The car had less than 40,000 miles on it. The mechanic at the repair shop told her he had never seen anything like it. The mechanic advised her to call the federal safety agency. Her daughter found the number on the website. The contact talked to a dodge manufacturer in detroit. They gave her a claim number: 14143722. They told her to show proof of all of the oil changes she had done on the car ,and they would take it up from there. The mechanic told her the oil was very clean. He had just changed it about six weeks ago.
Normal driving on interstate. Engine light came on. Before I could get onto next exit (1/4 mile), engine started knocking. Took exit and pulled directly into closed car dealership parking lot. Engine died. Oil leaking from engine. Called mechanic. Towed car to his shop. Had car for 6 months trying to find replacement engine. Put in rebuilt engine. After 5 months, engine began knocking as before. Stopped immediately and had towed to my house where it now sits. 1st engine and parts not available.
Engine failed while driving on the expressway. Had to coast across 3 lanes of traffic to get to the exit. Diagnosis is that the engine needs to be replaced due to sludge build up. Second time major work has had to be done to this engine due to sludge build up.
Engine began making a tapping noise. Took vehicle to dealer and was told that motor was full of sludge and would have to be replaced and that chrysler extended warranty would not cover the repair. Had vehicle repaired by an independent auto repair shop - replaced timing chain, tensioner, oil pump. Cost of repair approx. $2450. Old parts are not available.
Dt: the motor stalled while the vehicle was in motion which caused a loss of power steering and brakes. The dealer stated that the motor needed to be replaced. This was due to sludge build up in the motor. The dealer stated that this was due to poor maintenance. The manufacturer stated that the vehicle was no longer under warranty and they will not repair the vehicle. The oil was changed every 4,000 miles. The vehicle restarted after it cooled down. The vehicle was driven to a local mechanic and towed to a different mechanic.
Dt: the consumer stated that 2001 dodge intrepid had an engine problem. The block on the engine failed. The consumer ha put a new engine in the vehicle. The consumer recorded every time that the oil was changed. The consumer stated that it was not a maintenance problem on the car. The car had no prior problems with the engine. The consumer contacted chrysler and filed a complaint with them. The consumer was informed that vehicle did not have warranty left. The total engine cost will be around $5,000. The consumer said that the car was parked outside of his house because of the engine failure. The dealer has seen the car, and they did diagnostic testing, and they found that the engine needed to be replaced. The consumer was going to have the vehicle fixed. The reference number to the complaint that consumer filed with chrysler was #13947422. Chrysler was contacted on august 19, 2005.
Engine failure while driving vehicle. Engine stalled while driving at 35 MPH on public highway. Vehicle was towed to an automotive repair shop. Vehicle was diagnosed as having engine bearing failure. Was told that an engine replacement was recommended. Cost of new engine at 6900.00 dollars.
Shortly after my 2001 dodge intrepid reached 70,000, I began to notice that it seemed to be burning oil. I had not noticed any problem with the vehicle previously. I later found out that this was just the beginning of the engine failure process that I would experience. I have cared for the car regularly including oil changes, but also found that this would have made no difference in the outcome. After having the oil changed on 9/18/05, the car began to make extensive engine failure noise. I took the car to the john elway chrysler plymouth dealership in golden, co, and was told that this was a known issue by chrysler corporation, but that I had no recourse in having the failed engine replaced. The service advisor admitted that there was nothing that I could have done differently, because chrysler admitted to the 2.7l v6 engine in the intrepid having a serious lubrication problem, but they would not assist in the repaid of the engine in any way.
Dt a defective 2.7 liter engine. It had sludge build up and it caused the motor to blow out. The first time it happened was in june 2005, and the second time on september 9, 2005. The motor was making a tapping sound, but the cylinder had broken inside the block, and it was flapping up and down. The dealer said the water pump was bad, and the consumer would have to pay for the motor.
We have a dodge 2001 intrepid with the 2.7 liter motor. According to other mechanics and personnel within the dealership, there are defects with this motor that chrysler refuses to address. It has to do with internal components and causes the motor to basically blow up. Our first motor blew up at 83,000 miles and the dealership installed a different motor with 58,000 miles which blew up again 3 weeks later. Today, september 19, 2005, we were to take possession of our repaired car with its third motor within 2 months and were asked to pay a portion of the bill because the dealership claims that this repair was due to a faulty water pump even though the water pump and the timing chain assembly are one and the same on this vehicle. It is my opinion that these 2.7 liter motors are defective as thousands can attest on the internet, chrysler knows they are defective but dahmer refuses to act responsibly because they purchased the company after the defect originated. These 2.7 motors which are sitting on the shelf at junkyards across the country have become worse because the passage of time sitting on the shelf and are worse than the original motors put in them. Furthermore, our extended warranty company, triad advantage, foreseeing the problems to come, shut down, went out of business and took the money and ran when these claims were becoming apparent.
Dt: the consumer stated that 2001 dodge intrepid had an engine failure at 62,000 miles. The vehicle was regularly maintained. The consumer was driving the car and heard a knocking sound, the engine seized while in traffic. The consumer had the car looked at and was informed that he would have to have a new engine. The consumer has not talked to the manufacturer as of yet. The consumer has since bought another vehicle.*ak update 1/11/2006 -
I was driving my 2001 intrepid during busy traffic and the engine started making a fairly loud tapping noise. As I tried to get over to the side of the road, the car stalled. The car blocked traffic as I had to get out and push it off the road. It never restarted and I had it towed to a local dodge dealership. They informed me that the engine needed replaced... Huh?
My dodge intrepid 2001 engine locked up while I was driving on the freeway. The repair bill is between $4,500-$6,000. The engine is now dead. The mechanic said there was no oil in it although I've put in 3 quarts in the last 2 weeks and had the oil changed on time.
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