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Dodge Intrepid
3457 messages, Last post on Oct 08, 2012 at 5:35 PM
You are in the Dodge Intrepid Forum.What is this discussion about? Dodge Intrepid, Sedan
#540 of 3457 Considering 98-99 ES Intrepid by regalluvr1
Dec 06, 2000 (9:09 pm)
Next year my wifes go to work car(91 Buick Regal Limited) will hit 140,000 miles so she wants to sell it and get a Champagne 98-99 ES with leather like the 98 ES we test drove in Aug 98.We choose between the 98 Dodge ES and a 98 GS Buick Regal and purchased the 98 Regal GS and like it fine.Our only experience with Dodge was a new 94 Intrepid that we traded off in 1995 with only 27,000 miles on it.It had lousy head lights,drivers power seat stripped out at 18,000 miles,computer went bad,AC worked half the time,etc.It drove good,3.3 had plenty of power,got good mpg,was roomy,but wasnt reliable.We traded it off for a new 95 Buick Regal Custom and our local Buick dealer had lots of trouble selling our 94 Intrepid.We have (4) liscensed Buick Regals 98 GS,91 Limited,86&85 T-Types, and all are good dependable cars.I'm a Buick man and would rather see my wife get a 97 GS or 97-98 LS Regal but she wants an Intrepid.I'm still concerned about the quality and reliability of the 98-01 Intrepids and their trade in value.Intrepid owners,you are going to have to convince me that we should consider a used 98-99 ES for my wifes go to work car.You see a ton of 1998-2001 Intrepids going down the highway but are they more reliable than the 93-97's were?I see alot of unhappy Intrepid owners posting here.
#541 of 3457 Don't buy it, Regal by smithed
Dec 07, 2000 (1:02 am)
Regal, I personally like our 99 ES with leather, and have had 24,500 trouble free miles. But I wouldn't buy one if I were you. You like Buicks and the Dodge will automatically sense this (they are like dogs in that way) and begin to fail you as soon as you drive off the lot. Your pheremones are set for Buicks, and I wouldn't rock that boat if I were you. Please, do yourself a favor and buy the Buick instead. You will be happier, just knowing it's a Buick and not a Dodge.#542 of 3457 Jason5 by marsha7
Dec 07, 2000 (1:06 am)
Dueling pistols, please...10 paces and turn...hey, it worked for Alexander Hamilton...well, I mean it worked for Aaron Burr.#543 of 3457 marsha7- by fastdriver
Dec 07, 2000 (1:20 am)
marsha7-Aha.... there you are! I knew something would drag you out of the bushes! LOL....
fastdriver
#544 of 3457 . by ed12
Dec 07, 2000 (4:21 am)
regaluverI also had a 94 Intrepid. I know what you mean about the headlights. Terrible. Also, I had some problems. I then got a 97 LHS which was much more reliable and had much better headlights.
Now I drive a 99 300M which is up to 40,000 miles and has been flawless. Clearly, Chrysler is now building much more reliable, better assembled cars.
Good luck with whatever you choose.
#545 of 3457 REGAL by j_j_kidd
Dec 07, 2000 (1:48 pm)
Your best choice might be anything but an Intrepid. The leading consumers magazine lists ALL Intrepids up to and including the 98 model as "used cars to AVOID", with a much lower than average reliability and resale value. The 99 00 01 are too new to determine if the reliability has increased, but with the same tired design and componets the chances of that happening are remote.#546 of 3457 One more input.... by davidu
Dec 07, 2000 (4:23 pm)
Well Regal Lover, I have a 99ES, which I absolutely love- it's even Champagne with leather!! In the 18 months I've had it I put about 23,000 miles on it, with the only problem being a failed power window motor.If you look for a used vehicle that's been well maintained and cared for, I don't think you'll have any difficulty.
#547 of 3457 Regalluvr by andre1969
Dec 07, 2000 (4:36 pm)
I know a couple people with first-generation LH cars...none of them have anything really great to say about the cars, but none of them had anything really bad to say, either. A lady at work has a '94 Concorde 3.3, with over 100K miles on it. I forget what kind of problems she's had with it...nothing too major, but she has a little rust at the bottom of the driver's side door.As for the current generation LH, I can only speak for the one I own, a 2000 Intrepid 2.7 that now has about 33K miles on it. It's been a good car so far, getting around 19-21 mpg in city/pizza delivery type driving, and up to 30 on the highway if I don't push it too hard.
Still, if your a die-hard Buick man, you may be happier with a newer Regal than an Intrepid. First off, the Regal has a bigger, torquier engine. My 2.7 will move if you floor it, but won't launch like an engine with plenty of low-end torque. I hear the 3.2 is better, but it still hits its peak torque at a much higher rpm than the Buick 3.8.
I also agree with Smithed, about how if you're used to a Buick, you'll tend to be more forgiving of a Buick's faults and less forgiving of a Chrysler or Ford, or other products. My grandparents on my father's side always bought Fords (which is probably why my dad prefers Chevy/Pontiac). Well, in the 60's they tried Pontiacs because they liked the style. They had a 66-67 Tempest and then a 71 Tempest. Then they got a '75 Dart Swinger. Hated it. Traded it in for a '77 Granada that promptly dropped its transmission, and gave them all sorts of other problems, but to this day swear it was a better car than that Dart was. And they've bought Fords ever since.
All of my cars have been either Mopar or GM, and since I'm used to them, I would probably be more critical of a Ford product.
Sorry if this is starting to sound too much like an attempt at psychology!
-Andre
#549 of 3457 regalluvr...et al.. by Jason5
Dec 07, 2000 (5:55 pm)
I think you can, in general, disregard the comments made by j.j. kidd. His commentary, while initially somewhat accurate is betrayed by the "tired design" comment. Sounds entirely too familiar and is more bias driven than data driven.While Consumer Reports has labeled the LH family, in general in the AVOID category--we discussed ad nauseum at this site CR's inherent bias toward Chrysler products. You need simply look up the LH's at MSN's Automotive site for a more balanced perspective. The two first gen Intrepids that I'm most famililar with (Aunt and Mother) have been solid, if not perfect, performers. They've had no significant problems--and that's with a 93' and a 94'.. My own experience with my 2000 ES has been a good one. I think you would do much better to research owner history on a used vehicle than other data per se.
Which ever vehicle you pursue I hope you enjoy it!
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