2002 Dodge Intrepid: engine overheating

Filed Jul 10, 2011 · Engine · 140,000 miles · WI

2002 dodge intrepid 2.7 engine car sudenly overheated. Anti freeze went out on ground and into oil. Repalced water pump, tensioner, timimg chain, several sensors, gaskets and more.always maintained oil changes at 300k and oil filters. Bad engine- parts saved.

Filed Nov 14, 2010 · Electrical, Engine · 145,000 miles · IA

We bought a 2002 used in 2005. It ran okay, thoughe h the oil pressure light and engine light would come on when idling. We were assured by the dealer we bought it from that it was just sensor and not to worry. Had some small problems with it, nothing too major. They just seemed to happen all the time. Then in 3/09 the alternator and water pump went out for the 2nd time, and even after repair the car would over heat out of no where and without warning. Continued to have the problems with the oil pressure light and engine light. Should have gotten rid of it then, but didn't have the money for a new car. Then in 11/09 the car did the overheat for no reason while my husband was going 70 MPH on the highway, thank god there wasn't an accident. The gauges didn't indicate anything, all of them including the spedometer went to 0. It started gushing water and antifreeze. The engine is shot, it is now a gold lawn ornament. We maintained the car, oil changes every 3000mi etc. Was told its due to "sludge" in the engine and that its a common problem with dodges 2.7 engines. Wish I would've known this before I bought the car, and I wish someone would do something about the ton yard ornament I now have.

Filed Aug 6, 2010 · Engine · 103,000 miles · CA

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 dodge intrepid. While traveling 30 MPH, vehicle would no longer accelerate. Within seconds, the vehicle stalled and smoke was seen coming from under the hood. There was also coolant leaking from the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a local mechanic where the contact was informed that the head gasket and water pump would need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired and there were no prior warnings of the failure. The current and failure mileages were 103,000. Updated 11/19/10. *lj the consumer stated the engine needed to be repalced. Updated 11/2/410

Filed Jul 25, 2010 · Engine · 82,000 miles · NY

Engine failure on 2002 dodge intrepid se 2.7l v6. Per mechanic - timing chain failure and other engine damage due to poor oil flow/overheated oil causing sludge and subsequently clogged oil ports and excessive degradation of oil. This happened even though used full synthetic for entire life of car and changed oil regularly (~ every 5-8k miles) oil.

Filed Jan 23, 2009 · Engine · 106,000 miles · FL

Two incidents: october 2007, a 2002 dodge intrepid with 2.7l v6 had an engine cooling failure causing immediate overheating problem on florida highways. The cooling fitting on the top of the engine popped off causing the engine to loose most of it's coolant. Approximate mileage 106,000 this was taken to the dealer for an expensive repair. At the time the dealer did not notify me of the serious problems with this engine, such as sludge oil pump failures. On january 19th, 2009, the engine failed again. At approximately 125,000 miles. The water pump failed, the heads were blown, and probably the sludge oil pump caused this whole sequence of problems that could have been avoided if dodge made design changes back in 2007. The estimate for replacing the engine is at $6500. Not feasible to repair and I found many complaints about this engine design dating back to 1998 and 1999. Both failures were immediate with little warning to the driver. Thank god no one was injured. Owned by son nick straty

Filed Oct 30, 2008 · Engine · 98,000 miles · TX

Sludge build up, overheated, water pump out, timing chain broken.

Filed Jan 24, 2008 · Engine · 132,000 miles · MN

Driving around doing errands, heading to the next town (15 miles) to finish my errands and my engine started to overheat. I turned around and went to the service station that was only about 1/2 mile away and had them look at the car. I had no previous problems with it overheating. It ended up being a cracked block. I needed to get a different engine because it was to expensive to repair the original one.

Filed Apr 17, 2007 · Electrical, Engine · 88,000 miles · MI · fire

Immediate loss of vehicle power..car went dead and immediately started to smoke and within seconds the engine compartment was up in flames. Vehicle did not overheat.. Engine compartment suffered major fire damage,insurance company investigation still pending.

Filed Nov 4, 2006 · Engine · 119,000 miles · TN

Car began to overheat and lose anti-freeze. Took into a local napa to get thermostat and upper intake hosed replaced(600). Water pump failed, took car to dealership, got timing chain kit and water pump fixed(1200). Then oil light would not go off, replaced oil sending unit and cleaned sludge (300). They heard knocking and replaced starter (500). Now need engine an estimated(4000).

Filed Sep 16, 2006 · Engine · 109,000 miles · TX

It all started with what I thought was just a broken water connector on the top of the chrysler 2.7 liter engine in our 2002 dodge intrepid. I replaced the part myself and thought that it was just a simple issue. But the very next day my wife went to work and got stranded when the car overheated again but there was leak this time just an extremely hot engine. After the engine cooled down and I was able to start it again it was clear to me that the engine had cratered and that it was all due to an internal oil problem from the beginning. As I have researched this issue it has become very clear that this is an ongoing problem with this engine and when we took it to a dodge dealer they were not aware of the problem until I told them about it. After tearing the engine down the dealership said the problem was the same as them others described in the websites, oil sludge causing the internal lubrication to fail. The dealer gave us $800.00 trade in for a car worth $4000.00 which we had work very had to pay off early. The only other recourse was to have a used or rebuild installed at a cost of $5500 to $8500.00 with no guarantee that it would not happen again. So now we have a new used car and a monthly payment again for something that chrysler knows is a problem but refuses to do anything about.

Filed May 5, 2006 · Engine · NC

I bought a 2002 dodge intrepid se in march 2003 with about 20k miles on it. Had it checked by a mechanic and was told all was good. $1,420 to repair the water pump? The engine made a sound, shook slightly which made me look at the gauges to see what was up. The only thing I saw was that the temperature was a little tiny bit over the halfway mark. Usually, this gauge sits without changing once the car is warmed up between the 1/4 and 1/2 mark. Recommend: any service shop that changes the oil in a car should input that service into a national computer system so that anywhere people drive, move, visit, that record is permanent. That is my first suggestions. Then she asked me if the car had overheated. Answer: no. She said the estimate to repair the car was $1,300 and if the heads were cracked that could cost another $700. I was like, "what?" say that again. The way the 2.7l engine is built, the repairs are expensive. I asked if it was worth replacing and she said it was..she couldn't advise me...but you know how it is. This is not a problem confined to my car - it has affected a fleet of them...same type..same engine. After I drove off the lot, I heard a ticking noise. I asked about the notes on the mechanic's ticket that said, "* engine has sludge". No one ever mentioned that to me and I didn't know what it was, either, so I asked. What's that? She said, "that's just the mechanic's notes for when you bring it back." I said, "...yes...but what is it?" then a mechanic appeared and started talking about using synthetic or regular oil (how am I, a lay person, supposed to know what?) to reduce engine sludge and yes, "all these 2.7l intrepid engines have this problem." I said, "so...what does it do?" chrysler needs to fix the 2.7l engine problems, find a fix for the sludge problem even if it means replacing the engine with another type. It is not fair to cost us unnecessary repairs.

Filed Apr 6, 2006 · Engine, Transmission · 101,000 miles · IL

Dt*: the contact stated while driving 50 MPH a loud noise was heard coming from the engine. The vehicle slowed and another loud noise was heard. It was pulled off the road without incident. The engine restarted; however the vehicle would not go into reverse and would only operate at 10 MPH. It was towed to an independent repair shop where the transmission was replaced. One month later while approaching a stop, the vehicle vibrated and the engine overheated and failed. The vehicle was towed back to the independent repair shop where the engine was rebuilt. The manufacturer has not been alerted.