[pt500]

Never got around to this, so here goes. Photos attached.

1994 Dodge Intrepid, 3.3L motor, Emerald Green Pearl (code PGF), quartz cloth seats (code BFSD), 54,146 original miles (Jan 2022). I have all the original sales paperwork and the big glossy sales brochures from the dealer. New price in April 1994 $17,369.65.

Special ordered from factory with these options:
column shift with 50/50 front seat (code BF), 4-wheel disc brakes with ABS & message center (code BRT), speed control (code NHM), conventional spare tire (code TBB), carpeted floor mats (code CLE).

It's been in my family since new. Inherited from my retired father who usually rode his bike to work or took the bus, so only miles were for around town chores, close weekend outings, and one annual vacation. I obviously don't drive it much, but really like it, especially compared to most of the the new fugly, overly-engineered cars these days. With the Intrepid and other LH cars everything is fairly easy to work on, especially with the 3.3L motor - lots of space in the engine bay.

Routine maintenance done regularly: oil/filter, trans fluid/filter, differential fluid (once), coolant, brake/power steering flush, fuel/air filters, plugs/wires, PCV, wash/wax, rubber protectant, etc. Minor bumper dent repair & paint scratch touch-ups. I wipe down the motor regularly when it gets dirty. I mostly do my own work, but the few times I've taken it to a shop the mechanics always comment on the good, clean condition for its age. Besides the routine maintenance, it seem like something minor wears out every year, mostly do to the age (weatherstripping, plastic fasteners, cable Tesa wrapping tape & flex housing, headliner/visor fabric).

Parts replaced: Some suspension parts (working my way through all of them), sensors, thermostat, EVAP solenoid, Interstate batteries, belts/hoses, brake calipers/rotors/pads/flex hoses, repaired one brake hard line crack/leak (need to replace them all soon), replaced one rear cracked light assy (off ebay), and of course tires/alignment. Painted the underside with Rustoleum in several places to fight surface rust.

I have hoarded some parts & filters for the future from ebay and Rockauto.com (including when they came up, cheap PCM, TCM, BCM, ABS & air bag modules - like $15-$25). Obviously some parts are getting hard to find. I should have also stored away a new Walker muffler when they were still common and various other parts when you could still often find 1st Gen LH cars at junkyards. I do have an old Snap-On MT2500 scanner "red brick" with all the needed plug in modules and manuals (also from ebay) since it is the pre-1996 OBD-I diagnostic system.

Photos are from last year, except for the odometer photo taken today. The black wheel covers were off Amazon on sale for $25 a few years ago and look much better than the original bland silver Dodge ones. I've had to park the car outside lately so even with regular waxing the clear coat is starting to flake off on the trunk and the roof clear coat is getting very cloudy, so I'll be polishing or touching that up when I get around to it - lots of YouTube videos on how to do it. (BTW, the Battery Buddy gizmo in the engine photo shuts the battery off if you leave the lights on - no longer made.)

 

[peva]

Nice to see!

 

[sneakahead2345]

I own a 97 Intrepid ES 3.5 WITH AUTO STICK TRANSMISSION with only 42,000 its for sale

 

[pt500]

I own a 97 Intrepid ES 3.5 WITH AUTO STICK TRANSMISSION with only 42,000 its for sale

OK, got me beat. Any photos or interesting story on the car?

Like I wrote in another thread, there are sometimes news stories or videos about some rich guy who passed away, who had a stash of nearly new, well-preserved cars in a couple of barns out on some land - sometimes valuable classics, or just models he liked liked. Do a Net search on classic cars + stashed + barn - if you want to waste a bunch of time.

I recall reading about a guy who stored a 1996 Impala SS for years as an investment, since it was announced as the last year. (He had an extra garage space somewhere.) He did all the proper car storage stuff like oil fogging the cylinders, etc. Can't recall, but he later sold it for quite a bit of money. It had like 30 miles on the odometer.

It is possible to find really low mileage cars when a retired person passes away (often garaged), and the family or estate is selling the car. Unless it has collector value, even with the low mileage the retail Blue Book values are usually very low due to the age.

As I wrote, I don't like the new cars with all the overdone electronic nonsense - much of it just to comply with the government mileage mandates. The Intrepids are very easy to work on by compartison. In the last few years the big push is for small engines with turbos and more electronic controls, as well as stuff like the annoying "stop-start" technology, which requires significant modification to several vehicle systems. (Even the Honda Accord has dropped their reliable V6 for turbos.) One local mechanic told me all this stuff is driving them crazy, and customers complain all the time about the high bills trying to diagnose electronic problems in particular.

 

[NOLAdude]

Congratulations on owning such a clean rare old gem! I just bought a 1997 one owner Intrepid with 78k miles. It's not nearly as clean as yours though, because it's lived outdoors it's entire life. And the weather has definitely taken a toll on the paint work.

 

[TheBlackPanther]

I got a 3.5 intrepid 1996. Plan on doing a full teardown within the next two weeks. Mostly needs new gaskets. Only 116k. I bought it at 99k 3 years ago.

 

[TheBlackPanther]

But does it have black plastic hubcabs? OK, got me beat. Any interesting story on the car?

Like I wrote in another thread, there are sometimes news stories or videos about some rich guy who passed away, who had a stash of nearly new, well-preserved cars in a couple of barns out on some land - sometimes valuable classics, or just models he liked liked. Do a Net search on classic cars + stashed + barn - if you want to waste a bunch of time. I recall reading about a guy who stored a 1996 Impala SS for years as an investment, since it was announced as the last year (he had one extra garage space somewhere). He did all the proper car storage stuff like oil fogging the cylinders, etc. Can't recall, but sold it for quite a bit of money. It had like 30 miles on the odometer. It is also possible to find really low mileage cars when a retired person passes away (often garaged), and the family or estate is selling the car. Unless it has collector value, even with the low mileage the retail Blue Book values are usually very low due to the age.

As I wrote, I don't like the new cars with all the overdone electronic nonsense - much of it just to comply with the government mileage mandates. The Intrepids are very easy to work on by compartison. In the last few years the big push is for small engines with turbos and more electronic controls, as well as stuff like the annoying "stop-start" technology, which requires significant modification to several vehicle systems. (Even the Honda Accord has dropped their reliable V6 for turbos.) One local mechanic told me all this stuff is driving them crazy, and customers complain all the time about the high bills trying to diagnose electronic problems in particular.

Yo be careful lots of scammers on here I've fell victim before.

 

[pt500]

Yo be careful lots of scammers on here I've fell victim before.

I agree. Like I wrote before, the most likely situation where you can find a legitimate low mileage car is from a retired person who kept it in a garage and doesn't drive much anymore, or from their family after they pass on. If it was in the family since new, all the better. You can usually tell if someone is being honest about a car when you ask about its history. You've got to check it out well. If they've kept service receipts that is a very good sign; like a lot of the guys in his day, my Dad kept all the major service receipts on the car. If not, ask about recent service (oil, coolant, brakes, even transmission fluid changes) and who their regular mechanic was. If the car has been in storage for a while, there are procedures online that show what you should do before startitng it.

If it passes your own inspection (see checklist below) and pulling a CarFax report, I'd still say it is worth it to take it do a mechanic for a $100 or so for a pro's inspection, including importantly a compression check and suspension/rust inspection on the lift. A mechanic can usually tell if a car has 75K legitimate miles or 275K miles. One of the easiest ways is to look at the suspension for rust damage (not just light surface) and rotted-out bushings. With the Intrepid/LH cars obviously look to see if the inner tie rod end bushings look OK since they are considered a wear item on these cars. However, the used car scammers usually concentrate on much higher value used cars (like newer cars that have been wrecked/repaired or flooded and dried out). With the very low book value of the Intrepid/LH cars now, there isn't much profit to be made at all on them.
Link to inspection checklist:

Used Chrysler LH Buyer's Checklist!

Used Chrysler LH Buyer's Checklist!

Attention Moderators: PLEASE STICKY! It has come to my attention that some people have come to us at dodgeintrepid.net with what we would call lemons. The goal of this checklist is to prevent someone from accidentally buying a lemon. So you want to get an Intrepid, Concorde, LHS, 300M, Vision...

www.dodgeintrepid.net

 

[polmanter74]

I got a 3.5 intrepid 1996. Plan on doing a full teardown within the next two weeks. Mostly needs new gaskets. Only 116k. I bought it at 99k 3 years ago.

I have a 2000 dodge intrepid 2.7 I bought that had only 64,570 miles on it one owner. I'm in the middle of a teardown right now. New head gaskets timing chain set, water pump ,oil pump new performance valves and every gasket in-between.

 

[TheBlackPanther]

I have a 2000 dodge intrepid 2.7 I bought that had only 64,570 miles on it one owner. I'm in the middle of a teardown right now. New head gaskets timing chain set, water pump ,oil pump new performance valves and every gasket in-between.

I have a post of the process in first gen general forums. Mines about to reach 500 miles on the new engine

 

[polmanter74]

I have a post of the process in first gen general forums. Mines about to reach 500 miles on the new engine

Can I ask why you had to rebuild, was it sludge

 

[TheBlackPanther]

No I was having a coolant burning issue and the car is old 117k. So I decided to clean it all up. I had also done other repairs previously just didn't get to my heads or crankshaft bearings

2nd and 3rd gen intrepids we're discontinued because of the oil sludge problems yes. The gen 1s though are non interference and run like a dream.

 

[TheBlackPanther]

The flange that connects the heater core to lower intake was burning coolant. Permatex blue and paper mahle gasket sealed it.

 

[polmanter74]

No I was having a coolant burning issue and the car is old 117k. So I decided to clean it all up. I had also done other repairs previously just didn't get to my heads or crankshaft bearings

2nd and 3rd gen intrepids we're discontinued because of the oil sludge problems yes. The gens though are non interference and run like a dream.

Yes I love my car I think the intrepid is a good mid size sedan. I'm im replacing all these parts since I have my engine basically apart all the way down to the block might as well just replace everything that way everything is brand new and I shouldn't have to crack my engine open again. I put in new head gaskets, valve cover gaskets. New valves upgraded fuel injectors, upgraded water pump, timing chain and all components, new lifters, oil pan gasket, oil pump, timing chain cover gasket, . I basically rebuilt my whole engine except for the crankshaft. I upgraded all my hoses to blue Fluorosilicone hose, and blue vacuum lines. This summer I plan on painting my car to candy metallic blue, I already bought the air compressor, paint gun , and all the 4 step paint.

 

[polmanter74]

I have a post of the process in first gen general forums. Mines about to reach 500 miles on the new engine

Just a quick question if both my camshafts are on the timing marks right but my crankshaft sprocket was a half link off would that cause a problem running