International Race of Champions. It's a race series in which all the drivers are World Champions. All the cars are identical and so it is a race of skill alone. The makers of each years cars offer the same make and model in a street legal version called "IROC."
My daughter had purchased her first new vehicle in 2010. It was a Suzuki Grand Vitara SUV. We had owned several Suzuki vehicles, and they had proven reliable and well made. Her Grand Vitara had an issue after about 6 months of use. It would randomly overheat. The dealer did its due diligence. Yet, no matter what they replaced, it continued to overheat, quite literally, out of the blue. After having replaced the thermostat, radiator, hoses, head gaskets, and even the entire cylinder head, they threw up their hands and called in a factory engine tech (a Japanese tech). I met with him and explained what I thought the problem was (I am a career Mechanical Engineer, now retired). I told the Tech that I was sure that the issue was a crack or fissure in the sand casted aluminum block. It's probably a defect leaving a very thin wall that eventually cracked due to heat cycling. To my surprise, he agreed with me. He wanted the Vitara back to be shipped to their facility for tear down and inspection. My daughter was offered a new replacement, or they would buy it back. My daughter opted for the buy back. What they did was extraordinary. Suzuki paid off her loan, and wrote her a check equal to her down-payment and monthly payments from date of sale. They also gave her a loaner car for up to 30 days while she shopped for a replacement. Within a week, she purchased another compact SUV, using the returned money for her down-payment. Suzuki eventually left the U.S. market (small cars were not selling). However, I hold this company in very high regard for the way they treated my daughter. I never had to apply pressure to get things resolved. This was also my own experience. The best customer service I have ever experienced from a car company. I was sad to see Suzuki leave.
I have a Suzuki Kizashi. I got it from my mom and have since passed it on to my daughter. It's an AWD drive small sedan. It has been pretty reliable. Parts are getting a little harder to get it seems. Suzuki sent a letter over a small recall. So even after being out of our market for quite a while now they are still taking care of their customers it seems.
I had a 2002 Grand Vitara, which I have since given to my daughter. It still runs and has almost 300000 miles on it. Probably the best car I have ever owned. Just a few minor issues, threw general where and tear.
Thank you, for mentioning… interesting…..I never really had any issues( zero on my last 2015 Dodge Journey: except , prices , tacked on, & charged for non-coverage Maintenance (* e.g. $470.00 for four Spark plug Replacements @90,000 (* supposedly a MOPAR Tech Servic Bulletin: eliminating “”**30,000 Spark Plug Replacement IN MANUEL” **, to 100,”000 mile plugs((* necessitated TECHNICIAN ,Scope & BAY EXTRA CHARGES?… LOL)). ,! Secondarily, vehicle already in Bay for a pre PAid lifetime Oil Change Service(* unfortunately with Cheaper Oil Filters, *Conventional 5W-20 Oil, which seems to be viscosity of CONCRETE, @-34 DEGREES Fahrenheit,WE had Dec 2022. Anyways, in Summary: Plugs , this time,an extra $270 Dealer sur charge ! Anyways, decided to go POINT S ( HELENA MT, VALVOLINE Synthetic, *& use their Shop Mech@nics, etc
Ps: interestingly, my Daughter’s first NEW CAR , purchased a 2016(? , a Subaru ( kind of Montana’s State Vehicle,) no problems so far… (a digression, as Lady Resident ( Couch transient) , HIT & Run, across Street backed into Subaru in 2017:: perp provided STATE TROOPER & us : mis informations , **skipped **totally ! ((* We all witnessed the Perp, *& I took pictures on my Phone…Oddly, I had a hit/ Run our same Apartments, in Parking lot night-time, @$$2000.00 plus damages), just few months later, EAST HELENA MT…: unfortunately, we all , have never realized appalling casts of these “” hit run/ non insurance Drivers, etc!!! Thanks for commenting,listening
In 1978, I bought a brand new Plymouth Trail Duster 4x4, which was a beautiful machine. However over the period of a year, it had a whole host of warranty problems and spent considerable time in the dealership. I wrote Chrysler and informed them of the various problems, and to my surprise I was visited by one of their reps. They told me they would buy the car back at the full price that I paid and would give me the choice of any vehicle they offered at dealer cost. I was extremely impressed by their attention to customer service...
that was back in a time when car manufacturers took a little pride still in the product they produced and valued their reputation. these days they don't care what problems you have and will try to get over on you every time...
We bought a brand new 1978 Plymouth Horizon, that was in the shop a lot more than it was on the road. Two days after we bought it, all the door handles fell off. About a week later, the alternator fell out while we were driving. Fortunately, we weren't going very fast at the time. We got out of the car to see what happened and found the alternator and the water pump sitting on the blacktop. We kept a box of parts in the car to take care of recurring electrical problems. Then the coating on the inside of the gas tank starting breaking down and clogging the fuel pump. The car would die suddenly -- in the middle of an intersection, in a toll booth, you name it. I would call the police and tell them where I left it so they wouldn't ticket the car before the tow truck got there and after awhile, when I identified myself, they would laugh. All Plymouth gave us was free towing. We kept the car for about a year and actually had to call for a tow to get it to the lot to trade it in.
@@robertawalsh2995 i remember those cars,i worked on a lot of them and the dodge version called the omni. those like the Plymouth reliant and k car were Chryslers first attempt at smaller more gas efficient cars and they were just terrible overall. i remember the first reliant we got in our shop, i had noticed that the pins in the door hinges were actual 3/8 cotter pins. i was like what junk Chrysler has started making. these cars killed Chryslers rep though the 80's....
One of my brothers friends got an IROC Daytona when he graduated college. He had the same issue multiple times and it was bought back under Lemon Law. When it ran, it ran great. But it left him stranded several times. The last time it left him stranded he was driving from a jobsite in west Texas to Dallas. Middle of the night, middle of nowhere Texas. Angry doesn't describe his state of mind. He got the tire iron out and beat the car to hell. He broke every window, slashed all the tires and generally destroyed every body panel. By the time he was done it was totaled. After he broke the windshield he got on the roof and caved it in(he was a big guy). He got a ride to Dallas from a trucker and the next day he called his dad and told him exactly what happened. His dad called a lawyer and started the Lemon Law claim. When Dodge finally picked up the car up they asked about the body damage and broken windows and my brothers friend told them "This car should never be sold again to anyone, ever, and I made sure you cant fix it and sell it to some sucker."
Hey Steve!I was a tech at Chrysler for 49 years and I used to work on those engines.They were also in stalled in the Dodge Spirit RT.They were also good for blowing head gaskets on a regular basis.
My dad worked in quality control at Chrysler Corp central staff in the late 1990s to early 1960s, creating and monitoring corporation wide quality control procedures and policy. I grew up hearing about how how they knew how to make great reliable cars but were always overruled by cost cutting or marketing issues.
That's why Chrysler Ford and GM went out of the passenger car business: we know how to build good vehicles, we choose not to. Hence why Ford was forced to buy back every fusion, focus and fiesta they sold in the US due to them knowingly selling a vehicle with a faulty transmission. Car makers in general today have forgotten the basic tenant: it costs more to make something cheap than to do it right in the first place. I'll cite the Ford 5.4L 3v. The engine uses oil pressure and volume as a lubricant as well as a control mechanism to advance or retard the valve timing. So what did Ford do in 2004/5? They used a LOW volume oil pump. Why? It wasn't any cheaper as all it involved was to make the internal sprocket a little bigger.
@@muskokamike127 A thing that caused my dad a lot of anguish was learning about a front end failure that could cause steering loss. He and his staff came us with a solution but were nor allowed to implement it, Higher officials decided that the steering failure was rare enough so that if it was discovered and they were sued it would be cheaper than making the front end failure proof. Some years later Plymouth ran an advertisement showing a car (1962) I think diving from Detroit to Chicago on one front wheel. My dad had left by then but we always thought that weird ad was connected with that front end problem.
@@rationalist47 that unfortunately isn't a rarity. I forget which vehicle it was but it was a Ford, and it was discovered that they did the same: it was cheaper to pay out any possible lawsuits than fix the issue.
@@muskokamike127what when they decided to just add a piece of plastic inbetween the gas tank and bumper on the pinto instead of actually fixing the problem of how the car was designed? 😭😂
@@noahh.8737 If you're referring to the pinto, that wasn't the issue or the fix. With the pinto they found the top most bolt on the differential pierced the gas tank in rear end collisions. So they put an aluminum shield over the bolt. Aluminum because it doesn't spark and is malleable. It solved the problem. In many newer vehicles the gas tank is plastic which has it's own issues but sparking isn't one of them.
Happened to me last year with a Nissan Leaf. At first they offered me $1800 after making 9 months of $450 payments. I asked them if they wanted me to contact an attorney. Later, they offered me to trade for another new Nissan with the same or higher MSRP. Worked in my favor since I purchased the loaded 2020 Leaf at a $9000 discount. Traded it for a 22 frontier pro-4x. Increased my confidence in Nissan customer service.
@@nmccw3245 all of the times were in the morning, getting ready to go to work. Wouldn’t “start”, electric = “won’t go” They replaced a lot of things, including a new inverter (about $5000+labor). After 4 expensive tows and shops + rentals, I contacted them about the lemon law. I don’t think they ever found the problem. At the end, I was getting about 110 miles from a 220 mile battery. Pretty sure it was an electrical problem… sorry couldn’t resist.
Chrysler also used a smaller gear/sproket on the intermediate shaft that spun the oil pump at 3/4 crank speed instead of 1/2 speed. The timing belt was a unique design with trapazoidial teeth. In the mid 90s on their new 2.4L DOHC engine, Chrysler used an automatic tensioner and a belt routing that is actually longer than the TIII and still used roller rockers to actuate the 16 valves. In 2007 the engine was redesigned with a timing chain. AllPar is a great resource on Chrysler products, Dave Zatz, who started it, and I have had some very intersting exchanges. There is a set of pictures I sent him of piston grade (sizing) letters stamped on the oil pan rail of a 1989 2.5L turbo block from a Lebaron Coupe.
I wouldn't consider their new engine in 2007 to be a redesign, it was a completely different engine in every way. it was the world engine that was a collaboration between Hyundai, Chrysler, and Mitsubishi. nothing carried over from the previous 2.4 engine.
@@j_tootie Never dug into it, I was just running through the parts lists looking for updates to the timing belt system, and when I looked at the 2007 and saw a chain, I just stopped there.
I had a '92 Spirit R/T - the other car that got the Turbo III. Timing belt tensioner let go while driving (without breaking the belt), and I found someone making upgraded tensioners for it. I replaced the belt and installed the upgraded tensioner, and had no more problems for the next 20k miles that I owned it. It's quite fortunate that this was a non-interference engine.
Sounds about right. TFL bought one a few years ago that had an engine failure at like 200 miles. Couldn't diagnose it. Land Rover literally flew in an engineer from the UK and even her couldn't figure it out.
@@backwoodstherapy The dealer gave me full sticker price (even though I got a good deal) on a trade for a deeply discounted '11 Range Rover Autobiography. Ridiculously beautiful but only slightly more reliable. Same constant electrical issues but at least this one never left me stranded. Never knew when the windows, gages, locks seats etc would decide to stop working for a bit. I sold it after a year. Even made a bit of money on the deal but I'll never do it again.
2:50 Most people don't know anything about car engines. Mechanics take most car owner's diagnosis with a grain of salt. (timing belt, for instance). Your diagnosis was correct and your method to conclude it was great. Another owner may have the same occurence and it turns out to be a plugged fuel filter. A good mechanic will keep the owner's failing experience in mind and troubleshoot the problem himself. Great video. Glad you came out on top with the Jeep.
Hey Steve; great story. Resonates on several levels; first I had an 1992 IROC Z Camaro (great car back then) and Adam Alexander your associate handled my 2021 Jeep Wrangler Lemon Law litigation…to great success!
As it is Father's Day weekend, I was thinking about my dad. Dad worked for my Uncle Stan back in the 60's at Pentagon Pattern & Engineering company in Chicago Ill. Uncle Stan's company was responsible for creating the pattern to the new engine block for the first ever front wheel drive 'K' car for Chrysler, I believe. Anyway, Happy Heavenly Father's day to all Dad's this weekend.
I heard that some aftermarket company made a triple roller chain kit you could buy for it. I love when customers diagnose their vehicle. Driver brings his truck in for a clutch adjustment. I find springs, ball bearings, and half the clutch fork when I took the inspection cover off. Ten hours of labor and 2 grand in parts.
Are you saying that a quick search on an internet forum for the make, model, and year of my car isn't a good way to diagnose the rattle-thump-thump-zhing I'm hearing when I apply the brakes?
That's why I give them a list of symptoms (sometimes a full page) and let them figure it out. I had one where I was getting a squeak (not a long squeal, but more of a "chirp, chirp, chirp" sound) that went away once the engine warmed up. The problem was, the drive to the shop was long enough that the noise went away by the time I got there. So they kept the car for a couple of hours to let it cool off, and they found that the pulley on the belt tensioner was just starting to go bad.
@@almostfm I was making a joke about how hard it must be for mechanics to make any sense of what most of us say and to poke fun at those who do silly things like search the internet and then insist they know what's wrong even after the technician can show them the broken part. Like you, I try to be helpful with the information that they ask for, but sometimes a test drive is in order because I can't even determine from what location the noise is coming. I am glad that there are smart people who know how to keep our cars roadworthy.
Interesting video. Love Allpar, learned a lot on that site. I did a quick look and actually found a guy that created extremely simple fix for this issue with an extra idler. Too bad a Chrysler engineer didn't think of this back when they first encountered the issue - or just used an automatic tensioner like the fellow mentioned.
Steve: I really enjoy yours videos. Your telling us about your personal experience just make this one even better. My sister had one of the 4 cylinder Dodge Daytona and she drove it for years. She cried like a family member died the day she had to scrap the car.
I had a Datsun 310 that shredded timing belts every 12K - 14K miles. The belt didn't break, but it would take off all the teeth that were meshed with the lower gear (about 8). I just started carrying around a spare and would replace it every 10K. All you had to do was pop the cover off (three screws) and do a quick swap. Best to get it done before you had to crank everything around to TDC.
Steve, I had 1992 Spirit R/T ( 1 of 92 built in Red) Same engine and transmission. Very limited run, they were built in Mexico for the 91 and 92 model years. They continued production in Mexico only for a few years after that, just for their Federal Police. Chrysler techs had no training on them and didn’t know how to service them. Yes, belt deflection was critical, and if you followed the service manual to the letter, you would be out of time (distributer-less ignition) or the belt was too tight. I did all my own work. The rocker tappets would often need replaced (checked for damage or failure during the timing belt replacement) as you had to loosen both camshafts for the service. Pirelli brand was best but Gates belts held up well too. I put 225,000 miles on mine. Daily driver for thirteen years. My belts would last 60k easy.
Ha ha you had me going back to the Chrysler Laser I had. It was an 84 XE 2.2 Turbo. It kept going through turbos. But I loved that car. Thanks for bringing back memories.
I had a 1976 Mustang with a 2.8 Cologne V6 engine, that had a timing gear. It was made out of brittle plastic (probably Bakelite) that shattered while driving. Replacement involved removing half of the front of the engine and fishing pieces out of the crack case and oil pan.
I had a Nissan Stanza in the early 1990s that ate axle boots, but only on one side. And in the 70s I had one of those TINY original Hondas (there's actually one in a display case in the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago; you know you're getting old when a car just like yours is in a museum). I took a speed bump in a parking lot a little too fast one day (it was in shadow and NOT painted white so I never saw it), and as best we could determine, it threw the timing chain out of whack just enough that sometime later the engine blew. I am not a "car guy" so I can't explain it any better than that.
The first car I remember my parents driving was a Chrysler. Which is why I won't buy one. It was a lemon before lemon law was a thing. The carburetor was a mess, and the service departments never even looked at it when they "serviced" the thing under warranty. My dad was a shade tree mechanic and discovered the problem. His solution worked, but by then the engine was wrecked by the carburetor not working, so it didn't last much longer. We love our Subaru.
Great story Steve, jogged my memory about a 95 Dodge V10 truck I bought that had an idle hiccup they were having trouble diagnosing. I agreed to let thier lead tech drive it home for a couple days so he could see several heat-cool cycles. Homeboy got a DUI in it the first night he took it home. My truck got impounded LOL. They gave me a brand new 97 with a 360 V8 sticker for sticker. Looking forward bought an 07, then a 2020 Ram. Their good customer relations at the time made a customer for life. I think other companies have something to learn from stories like these..
the belt tensioner itself may have been breaking causing the belt to snap, those older adjustable belt tensioners really did not like being over tightened. you needed to have a certain amount of tension on a timing belt and there is an actual gauge that was used to make sure you did not over tighten it. newer cars using timing belts will have an automatic spring loaded tensioner similiat to the one that keeps the tension on the serpentine belt that runs you alt, a/c and power steering pump...
Good story. At a Ford dealership, there was a "year-end close-out" on the car that I was buying. That dropped the price by about 3K$. There were three colors to choose from, cream, white or gray. I chose the darker of the three colors - gray. Everything was already drawn up, service package, etc. My car ended up being a brand new car from the current year (base price 17.4K$) rather than a close-out (base price 14.4K$). I only paid about 16.5K$ due to their error - with the service package. My brother said that he had never done that well on a new car. I am still driving that car today about five years later.
We had a 1998 Oldsmobile Bravada with SmartTrac. The smart track had no indication whether or not it was in four-wheel-drive, it was completely automatic. Within the first 20,000 miles all the ball joints had to be replaced. Within the first 30,000 miles both wheel bearings on the front had to be replaced. Then I think right after the warranty ran out at 36,000 miles I had to replace CV joints. And then it 40,000 miles another wheel bearing went out. The day my wife picked it up from that repair the upper a-arm separated from the chassis while she was driving across the bridge stranded her on the bridge. I am surprised the shop didn’t notice how loose it was when they did the bearing repair. Come to find out that the transfer case was stuck in four-wheel-drive from day one. GM did repair the transfer case and replace all the ball joints again under what they called a goodwill repair since we were over warranty. We then traded it in on another different vehicle.
I've done hundreds of timing belts, most of them go out at 70-100,000 miles. I am doing a timing chain on a mini cooper right now, the chain broke at 72,000 miles. I couldn't believe how small the chain is. It is not much bigger than a bicycle chain. I'm told that the chain wears fast on these. It is a single row chain most cars have a double row chain.
You sure had a lot better luck with Chrysler than I did. The under body components of my Jeep pretty much rusted out after six years, spent thousands getting things replaced, only 56,000kms on the car. Then the ABS gave out. Emailed Sergio Marchionne hoping he would help (my father taught in at the University of Windsor). Got a call, they'd pay to have it looked at. After that they didn't offer to do anything (just look at it). Sold it for $7k CDN. Absolutely the worst vehicle I've owned in my sixty five years, and the ones just below that were all Chrysler products as well. Will never touch another Chrysler nor recommend them (unless I really hate you). Bad mouth them at ever opportunity.
Hmm, your explanation of the buy back and you essentially getting the same amount trading in, versus a actual buy back is flawed. When you get a buyback, you get almost alll of your out of pocket money back, AND taxes. On a trade in, dealers don’t give you crap. Always get a lemon buyback when it’s applicable and do not screw yourself and trade in.
That was quite the hot rod engine back then- 224 hp from a four cylinder was mad. That's when most mainstream v6s didn't even make 170 hp, let alone 224. The 1992 Toyota Supra Turbo with a 3.0 inline 6 turbo just made 232 hp. That Turbo III was also used in the Spirit R/T iirc- another super rare car. Considering this significant engine reliability issue, I can see why these Turbo III cars were so rare then and now.
@@for2utube I'd rather wear out a timing belt on a non-interference motor than blow a head-gasket any day (research those 3rd gen turbo Supras). But only a 4k mile timing belt life was insane.
I owned one interference type. NEVER again will I get another. It was the 2nd time I had it towed in during a vacation that I found out what that meant.
Thanks for the story! I’ll have to keep AllPar in mind, bought my first Mopar in 2018 (2011 Charger Mopar Edition) and I love driving it and showing off the stripe.
I'm actually shocked that things turned out well. My experiences w/ Chrysler products not so much. I had a terrible experience w/ Dodge up in Detroit Headquarters. Back in the late 90's, there was a huge recall on Dodge Dakota's w/ their ball joints. They were to be changed over with a kit for the Dakota. My 99 Dodge Dakota R/T with the 360 V8 had about 35,000 miles, which is relativity low considering ball joints should last +100,000 miles before changing them. Dealership told me that it is not covered under any warranty or recall and the job would be over $1,000.00, but Dodge urges me to replace it immediately. I ended up getting the contact info for Dodge headquarters and called them up. Recall was for all Dakotas except the R/T. R/T has the same ball joints as the regular Dakota. Turns out NHTSA and Dodge lawyers came to a settlement where they were to exclude any vehicle with "R/T" in it's branding. I asked the person on the phone if there's any chance of paying partial for my services to be performed on getting the ball joint replaced since I did put a little bit of mileage on the truck. Can you work with me? The response was no and get your ball joints fixed. I said, well I guess my next car will be a car from Japan. Person's response was go ahead, I don't care. The only thing I still own from Chrysler is my Mulholland Edition Prowler. That one is a keeper for life. Got to tell you, I couldn't be happier w/ both of Toyota MR2 Spyders.
Steve, In own a 92 IROC R/T i drove it hard for over 10,000 miles, never did anything to the timing belt. it is in my barn with a bad water pump. guy that gave it to me for free, had replaced the belt.
I took delivery of (I think) the first ‘95 model of a Saturn in the Bay Area. Got it home and it was leaking trans fluid from the front seal. They bought it back right there. The replacement had so many other problems though, all different, from water leaks to torn seats. It was a crappy car. But Saturn did stand behind it.
I had a regular 1988 2.2 non-turbo Daytona with 145,000 miles on it when I got it. The car looked close to new. I loved it and for just the non-turbo motor it moved pretty well. I've been a mostly Mopar person since the mid 1980's. I can say this much not every Mopar I've owned treated me good! Here is what matters most to me on average though I've had a better experience overall with the Mopar products than I have had with Ford's and GM's. Once you get into higher performance stuff no matter the brand you've laid out the welcome mat to future mechanical issues and shorter engine life. Especially with the LA engines and RB Mopars once you get them set up right you can just abuse them so much more, I've found than you can a comparable Ford or Chevy product.
My dad and I test drove a Spirit R/T with the same engine....it blew a head gasket on the test drive. Aside from that we loved the car, and my Dad still says "Maybe we should have gone ahead and got that one..."
The cliché shouldn't be "It ain't rocket science." It ought to be, "It ain't auto mechanics." The guys and gals who diagnose and work on vehicles don't get nearly the respect they deserve for having the brains they have. That detailed discussion that finally explained the problem with your IROC was amazing.
I've been wanting to tell you for years just how impressed I was to see your take video on the whole Chocolate Rain era of your life. You saw it for what it was, but you did a great job of using that popularity to your benefit. You're one of the most well-grounded people I've seen. Congrats. I hope all is well.
I had a 1985 Toyota Celica Supra (before the Celica and Supra were totally different cars). In 18 months it shedded 3 rear differentials. It didn't have many miles, nor much HP, and I didn't abuse it. It was fixed under warranty and I just gave up on it the 3rd differential fix and sold it.
I remember having to work on one of those, repeatedly (twice). I suggested making an additional (small) tensioner installed in the valve cover to put pressure on the belt in between the cam gears. .... but I'm not a 'Technician', just a self-taught mechanic/engineer/inventor.
@@keithe2150 You just reminded me of an old tale, A Bear and a Rabbit are sitting in the woods taking care of "business" The bear says to the rabbit, " Does s#!t stick to your fur? " The rabbit replies, " Yeah, it's a real problem " So the bear picks up the rabbit and uses him as toilet paper... Moral of the story, Don't follow bears into the woods, you may end up on a rabbit. Have a good weekend and happy father's day, if it applies.
@@Bobs-Wrigles5555 that’s a great story my story is that a pig and a chicken we’re discussing breakfast. The pig is the only one talking and he looks at the chicken and says for you breakfast is a contribution for me. It’s a conviction :-) no I don’t have any children, but I certainly have enough nieces and great nieces and nephews to keep me busy for a while we will take care.
Warranty isn't important for Dodge. Bought a used Grand Caravan, another $999 for extended warranty. The multi colored pamphlet spelled out everything. For this story it clearly said "All gaskets and seals are covered.". Transmission seal began leaking and got bad fast, 50 miles was a quart of fluid. I immediately called for service and was told SEALS ARE NOT COVERED! I explained I had the warranty and I noticed the leak, checked and corrected the fluid level and 50 miles home it was down a quart. If it gets worse it will burn up. "THAT WILL NOT BE COVERED BECAUSE YOU DID NOT KEEP THE FLUIDS AT PROPER LEVELS"!!! I told him it says the seals and gaskets are covered and I have the proof, he said I'll call you back. He did and he actually said "seals and gaskets are covered IF we mess it up during a repair only". Everything you mess up during a repair is your responsibility!!! They refused. I called the local news...it was in for the free repair that day!!
My buddy has a Shelby GLH-S Omni with the DOHC T3 motor swapped into it. He declined my $12,000 cash off to buy it. I love the 2-2 turbo motors, but the DOHC is a different animal. Dodge finally got it right with the srt4. People rarely note the T3 DOHC dodge motor was 220hp while the much praised DSM eclipse/Talon 4G63T was rated at 190hp.
One day Mr. Lehto, one day you’ll lend me your ear on the subject of my experiences over the past 17 years with one dealership and my Dodge Magnum RT. For the record, it’s how things were denied and dealt with or not dealt with at question. Besides that I’d argue these cars are the most reliable out there. I’m at 190,000 miles, the engine runs BETTER (more on why another time) than new, the paint shows very little age wear, and the interior gets used HEAVILY as if it’s a truck yet shows in very good condition, and every single thing in the car works as it is intended. I’ve never had one single issue with any of the interior accessories, no door lock or window issues, no sunroof issues, never a leak, only drivers seat wear from me, the factory rotors were trash, and the bushings in the suspension are crap. The problem has been in how they deal with things. Deny, deny, deny. I know you have massive experience, and you’ve heard it all. But I’ll bet that once you hear or read my story, your mind will be blown. And guess what, I’m not alone by any stretch. They tried HARD to frustrate me out of the car, to give up, but they had met the wrong guy. I am seriously considering writing a book on the subject. Yep. There’s that much to just this experience. I was raised not to be litigious, and have passed in many opportunities to do such a thing. I started watching your channel from the subject of problematic dealerships. You would greatly enjoy hearing how I have thus far handled this contention. IF, you felt there was a case worth initiating, I would follow your lead, as through watching countless videos by you, I honorably respect your sense of morality. At this point my intention is to get them to buy me out of my warranty. It cost me about $2300 when I got it back in 2009. That was the best investment of my life. But they have brought great stress and cascading issues to my life, and to this day have yet to fix problems that I myself have fixed, effectively out teching their best techs. I want them to buy me out of my warranty. I have decisively demonstrated that this car is a lifer and that I intended to keep it for life when I got the warranty. I have proof that Chrysler never INTENDED to fulfill their obligation on this contract, shown by not producing the necessary parts for ongoing repairs. It is their RESPONSIBILITY, per the Magnusson Moss Warranty Act, to take upon themselves the needed actions to fulfill their obligations. I want them to pay me what they would spend in the next 25 years. Holler.
Dodge also put that exact Turbo III engine in the Dodge Spirit R/T for that year. We purchased one of the Spirit R/T's new in 1992. We also had the timing belt failures. However, in our case, we finally found out that Dodge had a Service Bulletin and it also mentioned about the belt "Slapping". However, there fix at that time was to replace both Cam pulley that the belt ride on because of a manufacturing defect where those pulley's were not truly round and caused the belt slap. The redesigned pulley's had a new/redesigned part number. They changed both of the Cam Pulley's for us, and we never went through another timing belt. We eventually sold that car, but I would sure love to have it back today!!
Used to have a '07 Subaru Forester. That was an interference engine (broken timing belt = very bad.) So, I had the timing belt replaced on schedule. Unfortunately, the "mechanic" never torqued the bolt on the timing belt tensioner. Scrapped the engine when the timing belt slipped. Had a bit of a fight to get the mechanic shop's insurance to make it right, but they eventually did.
At the turn of the century, before there wasn't much going on on the internet, I constantly used alpar. I remember following their instruction sheet to replace the timing belt in my LeBaron convertible and the instructions even warned me to not drop a certain part in the engine.
I had a '84 Daytona Turbo Z. All black with leather. Two engines and 5 transmissions later, i paid for that xar 3 times over. My friend's Toyotas and Hondas only needed gas, oil, brakes, and tires.
Sitting here listening I went "My money is on a tension problem. Maybe automatic tensioner defective." Yes and No. It was a tension problem, NO automatic tensioner! 😄 Great video.
I'm a Mopar guy and I was a Daytona guy for years, but only the single cams. I had 6 of them, all had an interesting story. Few mechanical issues. For some reason people remember my Frankenstein car the most, different color pieces from different cars just to make the one complete, and a cheesy spray painted skull on the black hood. Plus I had a 1985 Shelby with a pre-recall turbo, I later found out why the turbo was recalled. The exhaust outlet was too small and it would glow red hot on a long trip, but just once.
We purchased a 2910 chrysler town and country withbonly 36.000 mikes on it. It was Canadian built, and we had nothing but issues with it. We got rid of it within a couple of years.
i had a ford focus that made a noise at cold start, i believed it was the timing belt slapping. i told my uncle, a mechanic, and he was kinda dismissive about my explanation. especially bc it didn't do it when i got to his house, as the engine was warm. he left to run some errands and when he came back, we started it and it made the noise. sure enough it was the timing belt slapping, the tensioner had a failing bearing. it really pissed me off how dismissive he was, like idk what i'm talking about. sure i don't have as many decades of experience, but i know a bit and work on my own stuff whenever i can. anyways, thanks for the video. i remember hearing this story before and i'm glad you got your answer, that kinda stuff would make me curious too. as an hvac mechanic, i like to figure out not only what went wrong, but why. it's like mechanical forensics, it helps mitigate repeat problems and it's simply fascinating.
Before the internet it was much easier for sleazeball car companies and dealers to make you think your car was the only one with the problem. Loved my 87 Shelby Daytona. Still have an 89 that I race on the circle tracks. It has been repowered with a Neon engine though.
Nissan bought back June 2014 my 2013 V6 Altima purchased 9/2013. Automatic transmission had an intermittent “shudder” that was only supposed to be happening on the 4-cylinder Altima’s. Got back every penny under the California lemon law.
My dad bought a brand new Dodge Dakota in 94. First new vehicle he ever bought. The engine had to be replaced 6 times and the transmission was replaced 7 times all in the course of 2 years. He was already talking to Chrysler about replacing it with a different one, when the 7th transmission blew. The dealer put it on the lift, and dropped it and bent the frame. Chrysler just gave him his money back and said be on your way lol
I have a 2018 Dodge Durango SUV. On the back of the vehicle, it has a light bar that contains the brake lights, the back up lights, and accessory lights that light up the entire light bar when you lock or unlock the doors. Well, over time, the tail light section of the light bar fills up with rain water, so much so that it shorts out the entire bar and needs to be replaced. After looking online for solutions to the problem, I discovered that many people have the same problem. Apparently Chrysler knows about the problem because the tail lights have drain plugs on them. Removing the drain plugs empties the water that's in the tail lights. Since my original light bar no longer worked, I had to have it replaced...at a cost of $1500. When the dealer called to get a replacement light bar, he told me that I got the last one in the country.(Obviously, many other people needed to replace theirs also.) Once the new light bar was installed, it to began to fill up with rain water, but since I was vigilant and checked the lights every time it rained, I discovered this, so I ended up just removing the drain plugs and left them out, and the lights no longer fill up with water. Oh, and no, the warranty didn't cover the replacement light bar...the warranty doesn't cover lights.🙄
Had a very similar problem with an AMC Gremlin - also stalled going 55 MPH, was able to restart while coasting. After the dealer not really determine the problem I found if I replaced the fuel filter every month never had the problem again.
Mom had a 92 Daytona ES with the 3.0 V6. I was in about 8th grade. She had bumped the gear shift very slightly in the reverse direction. (Console shifter) Evidently the lockout wasnt right and I saw a fountain of sparks coming from behind the car on I75 north near Tipp City. Arena Dodge in Vandalia Ohio replaced the transmission under warranty. That car was an interesting wine berry color with light grey interior. Wasnt a bad car, just wish it had been a little more sporty.
ex wife had a 92 Daytona N/A had nearly every issue possible- my 86 daytona was pretty good for 10 years . My brother had 89 shelby turbo- they were nice cars for the most part- bought a 98 integra its the same fun feel
Turbo Dodge and Turbo Mopar have many threads about the problem. One person relocated one idler and it helped with the problem. Another issue in my eyes is the front cam cog only has 4 or 5 belt teeth in it. The valve spring tension is over kill and that also contributes to the fun. The T-III was offered in the Spirit R/T and Daytona IROC only. 91-92 for the spirit and 91-93 in the Daytona. I have a Spirit R/T that did the second problem timing belt related and that's stripped oil pimp gears as its also driven off the belt. Didn't check the tension so my fault. Once the idiot light comes on you need to kill the motor and and push the clutch in to stop the motor because will keep running until it self destructs with no oil pressure.
I had a friend that bought a 1988 Alfa Romeo Milano Verde V6, he loved that car. but it would break down weekly. I asked him why me just don't get to take it back under the lemon law, he said that Alfa was exempt from the law. they never run even at the dealership, it was the greatest car you could drive for around 200 miles. then back to the shop. and I have to say it was fun to drive.
I learned how to drive a manual on an 87 Daytona Shelby Z. It had the 2.2 turbo II motor. At that time, it was the fastest dodge model until the Viper.
As an auto tech viewer, I appreciate the detailed explanation. Interesting... Reminds me of the "string shooter" Or the "mould effect" Not the same thing but put me in mind of it.
If life gives you lemons, make lemonade. If Chrysler gives you lemons, sue them. Remember when Lee Iacocca, while running Chrysler came up with the ad slogan "In the car business you either lead, follow, or get out out of the way." I always wanted to ask Lee, "Please define Dodge."
