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.
1998 Dodge Stratus engine complaints
Page 3 of 5: complaints 41 to 70 of 123, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Oil leak in my 1998 dodge stratus after only 35,000 miles.
The vehicles head gasket failed and the manifold cracked. *nlm
Head gasket leak
1998 stratus, 78000 miles, leaks oil badly. Started about 76000 and has worsened. Hope this can't catch on fire.
Nar 03/17/2003 the head gasket were defective and leaked prematurely in the 1998 dodge stratus. The consumer requested that he be reimbursed for the attempt to repair defective head gaskets in the amount of $ 300.00 from the dealer. *cb
At 78,000 mile delevoped a bad oil leak, don't know if it can catch on fire. It sure smells bad.
The head gasket failed.jb
The engine/head gasket had an oil leak. Scc
1998 dodge stratus head gasket cracked I have 48 thousand miles on the car oil leaking into the cooling system called chrysler they were no help at all this seems to be a very common problem with the dodge stratusthis is going to cost me between eight and nine hundred dollars.I feel the company should make good of this problemi also understand there may be a class action suit against them. Hope there is something you can do to help with this problem.I honestly don't feel this type of repair should have to be done at 48 thousand miles
Engine serpentine belt failure.
Engine serpentine belt was frayed.
While driving and without warning the head gasket blew causing oil to leak. Dealer notified. Ts
Head gasket is blown. Oil in the coolant. All hoses and radiator cap have to be replaced and not covered by warranty. 62000
While driving head gasket blewout, causing an oil leak.
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?
At approx 60,000 miles my 1998 dodge stratus, developed an oil leak at the head gasket, a cracked exhaust manifold, a timing belt tensioner and cover that have failed, a leaking water pump that needs replacing. My mechanic estimates $2150.00 to replace and repair all these items. To top this off my mechanic tells me that it will take 2 to 3 weeks to get the timing belt tensioner and cover because there's a big back order on these items. Meanwhile I'm without a car! By reveiwing the complaints on the web, I see that this vehicle's head gasket was redesigned by chrysler since 1998, also the timing belt tensioner has been redesigned. The car has been great up to this point. However I feel, all these recent problems are clearly pre-mature especially since chrysler has had to redesign the head gasket and tensioner in order to correct the problems with these items. Should there not be a recall on the 1998 dodge stratus for all these breakdowns? Do I have any recourse on this? Could you please help out. Thank you.
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.
Massive oil leak from head gasket there is a consistant problem with the 98 (and other years) dodge stratus engines. The head gasket is leaking oil massively. Whe you are driving it splatters down the underside of the car, landing on the catalytic converter, the exhaust pipes and muffler. I have no fires of yet, but we have restricted use to short trips. Here is a link to a message baord with similar people with problems. Http://www.cartrackers.com/forums/live/chrysler/8.html
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. Mr
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. Please provide any further information. Ph
Please contact me if you have any information on this subject. Dt
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. Dt
Head gasket failure internet reveals widespread problem. Dealer acknowledged problem. Called chrysler they said individual dealers would handle problem on a case by case basis. Reputable dealer also aaa offered to repair as good will for $378. I hope someone else benefits from my experience. What is the correct thing for a manufacturer to do when it appears every single engine will eventually fail before the expected life of the part? Can the gov't help us? Dt
Started with an oil leak that required about a quart of oil per tank of gas. This suddenly got much worse, about three weeks ago. Car began to overheat and also had no heat inside. My first thought was a thermostat and I purchased one and went to replace it, only to find the coolant looking like chocolate milk. Seems to be a clear indication of a ruptured head gasket. Engine will still run and there seems to be no structural damage, only that the oils is blowing into the water. With no heat on the inside, I would hope that a heating/coolant system flush will take care of that. Dt
Oil leak under engine head, causing smoke to come into 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.
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