1997 Dodge Stratus: engine overheating

10 of the 349 complaints about the 1997 Dodge Stratus describe engine overheating.

owner complaints: 10
of this car's complaints: 3%
recalls: 0

Is there a fix? 18 service bulletins cover this area of the car. See below

Engine overheating by model year

2006
2
2005
1
2003
1
2002
1
2001
3
2000
2
1999
4
1998
4
1997
10
1996
7
1995
2

What owners say

Filed Jan 29, 2004 · Engine · 95,000 miles · NY

Vehicle overheated. Mechanic determined that engine head gasket was the cause of the overheating problem. Oil was leaking through the seals.

Filed Oct 8, 2003 · Engine · 70,000 miles · TX

Head gasket blew and had to be replaced about around 70,000 miles. Now the car is overheating again and there appears to be oil in the coolant, leading me to believe that similar problems have resurfaced again. Given the tremendous number of similar complaints logged by consumers on this website and others, the company should take immediate action.

Filed Jan 21, 2003 · 69,963 miles · CT

Blown head gasket at 69,900 miles. Leaked oil, never overheated. Possible cracked head.

Filed Aug 6, 2002 · Engine, Transmission · MD

Engine will continuously overheat. Also, oil and transmission fluid was leaking.. Contacted dealer, and the dealer could not find cause of problem.

Filed Jul 3, 2002 · Engine · IL

Vehicle has a massive oil leak and devolping a loud knocking sound. The vehicle is loosing approximately 1-2 quarts a day. The vehicle is overheating within 5-10 minutes into driving and the oil is burning off the motor. The independent mechanic stated the head gasket is faulty possibly due to the style or the material; affecting the surrounding parts. The dealer was notified of the problem. Please provide more information.

Filed Nov 30, 2001 · Engine · MN

I have a 1997 dodge stratus that I took in for overheating they replaced the thermostat, flushed the radiator, and replaced a belt. Then three days later my car was still overheating so I brought it in again and this time the head gasket was blown due to oil leaking and the exhaust manifold was cracked. This was not cheap to fix all of this and prior to this happening I had to pay $650 to get brakes in front and back, roters, and replace the hydraulics in the rear brakes. Both tie rods have broke also in the past two years. So overall I have had to stick a lot of money in to a fairly new vehicle. I don't expect to replace this much stuff on vehicle unless it is 10 years or older. I would like to contact chrysler to see if they would provide any help. I see by the other complaints listed that the head gasket seems to be a common problem.

Filed Oct 5, 2000 · Engine · NH

Head gasket failed at 53,000 miles causing a loss of coolant which subsequently LED to the engine overheating. Had the vehicle towed home and filled cooling system with coolant/water. Took to nearest dealer for repair; waiting for estimate of cost as of 10/5/00. Idler pully failed causing loss of drivability at 43,000 miles. I had it repaired at a private shop for $350.00. Seems too early for these componants to be failing.

Filed Jul 9, 2000 · Engine · MD

Exhaust manifold - upon dealer replacing defective cylinder head gasket, was notified by dealer that the exhaust manifold has a crack and should be replaced. Prior to taking to dealer another garage had determined the cause for overheating to be from a defective head gasket. They did not mention anything about crack in exhaust manifold during their inspection of the vehicle. Owner feels damage was caused by the dealer upon removal of the cylinder head or due to excessive heat caused by overheating from the defective head gasket. Dealer refused to acknowledge responsiblity and refused to contact dodge factory representative. They said it was safe to re-install the cracked exhaust manifold and drive the vehicle. We are concerned about exhaust fumes coming into the vehicle and feel it is unsafe. Steering rack - the power steering failed and caused vehicle to be virtually undriveable. When we contacted the manufacturer, we were told it was out of the warranty period. We therefore paid to have it replaced at a cost of almost $800. We feel that the rack and pinion steering rack assembly should not have failed with only 52,000 miles on the vehicle.

Filed Feb 23, 1999 · Engine, Transmission · CA

Consumer believes that when the head gasket blew the transmission fluid burned out resulting in the transmission overheating and locking up.

Filed Jan 16, 1999 · Engine · IA

Several owners of the neon and stratus cars have been showing up with head gasket failures which are not an inexpensive repair. Between the oil leaks, overheating and worries, I am wondering who to contact to see if chrysler failed to build the motor with the consumer in mind.