1999 Intrepid v.s. 2001 Sebring

Hi,

I was looking for a 2001-2002 Sebring v6 when I stumbled across a

1999 Intrepid v6 2.7 with 85000 km on it. I really liked it when I test drove it and I heard it share the same engine as the Sebring v6 anyway (Intrepid is heavier though). I was almost commited to buy it, but this morning I suddenly heard all the horror stories about the v6 2.7L engine in the Intrepid. So now I am wondering whether I should continue to look for the Sebring. Do they indeed share the same engine? Does using better engine oil help with the engine problem? $5600 cnd is not that bad a deal, but I don't want the car to blow up on me within a couple of months. Any suggestions? Many thanks.
Reply to
wgemini
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To quote Clint Eastwood, "The question is 'Do you feel lucky?' Well - do ya - punk!?"

Seriously, unless you know the history of the car - primarily (1) Was it mostly highway driven vs. short-trip stop & go (2) Did it have regular oil changes - I'd say pass on one with that many miles on it - its fate, good or bad, is probably pretty much determined by those factors regardless of what you do to correct/prevent problems now - especially if it is badly sludged up - anything you do to flush/clean it out at this point (if it is heavily sludged) is liable to absolutely destroy the engine from all the crap that will be released inside the engine if it is badly sludged up now.

Also, keep in mind that, based on my reading of LH car forums, I have concluded that the large majority of 2.7L catastrophic failures occur at roughly 95,000 to 130,000 km. You have to consider that the previous owner may have noticed some subtle warning signs or been warned by a friendly mechanic and decided to sell to avoid the risk.

*IF* you know the history of the car, then you might ignore the above - perhaps the dealer will provide you with name and phone number of the previous owner so you can talk to them and see what they have to say (about maintenance and how it was used/driven - assuming you can believe it)?

I bought my '99 Concorde with 2.7L at 58k miles (93,000 km). I did not know about the problems with the 2.7L before I bought it, but I was later able to determine that it had been a fleet sales car with hiway miles and regular maintenance. It now gets driven 80 miles/day, and I use Marvel Mystery Oil in it for gradual cleanout and preventative. It now has 165,000+ miles (266,000 km) and is running great - so I was 'lucky'.

Bill Putney (To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my address with the letter 'x')

Reply to
Bill Putney

Thanks. Do you know whether the Sebring v6 and Intrepid share the same engine? Because if they do and I buy a 2001 SeBring, it would probably have even higher mileage and thus the same problem. Or should I avoid both cars and perhaps go with the 4 cylinder model? Thanks.

Reply to
wgemini

You're welcome.

I'm not an expert on Sebrings, but I do believe they do come with the

2.7L - if it is a 2.7L, then it is definitely the same engine.

Be aware that DC did do some unpublicized modifications in the '00-'01 time frame to alleviate the sludging problems, and they are using the engine (further modified??) in their new platform, so somewhere along the line they must have genuinely fixed the problems. I don't know how effective those changes were, so the '01 might be a safer bet than a '99, but no certainty.

Sorry I can't be more definite - you have to make the decision on the risk. If you were to buy either, you should certainly use the publicity over the problems to lower the price to make whatever risk you're taking more worthwhile.

Bill Putney (To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my address with the letter 'x')

Reply to
Bill Putney

I just bought a 98 sebring LXi v6 with 140k miles on the speedo and it seems to run great and is getting 25+ mpg. It looks to be very well taken care of so should I be worried now?

Reply to
RM

IMO probably not. I'm assuming that it's making it this far is due to regular oil and filter changes (not at 7500 mile intervals but at 4000 mile or shorter intervals), and more highway than city driving. Don't slack off on the oil changes.

Bill Putney (To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my address with the letter 'x')

Reply to
Bill Putney

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