1986 Chrysler LeBaron 2.2 liter I-4

Summary:

This car is perfect for my needs

Faults:

I love this car. Not a lot has gone wrong with it. The air conditioning doesn't work. The panel air blows through the defrost exit. The seats have been recovered at 50,000 miles. A new top was installed. The paint is fading. The windshield cracked.

General Comments:

This car is my first car and I love it. Chrysler makes them to last. My grandpa took great care of it and since it was his third car it has very low miles.

For a four cylinder it has a lot of power and is very quick.

The seats are very comfortable and beautiful.

The exterior is in great shape other than the candy apple red paint fading, and the rubber bumpers color fading into yellow.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 6th March, 2005

1986 Chrysler LeBaron GTS 2.5 non-turbo

Summary:

I can't think of a worse car

Faults:

CV joints on both front axles.

Broken sub-frame.

Had to rebuild engine.

Transmission failed.

Seats ripped along seams.

Water leaked in through rust holes.

Had to replace the steering column because it started to move from side to side.

Could not park on a hill or else the car would get stuck in Park (which seems to be a problem with Chrysler products in general)

General Comments:

This car was the worst POS imaginable. My parents bought the car with 44000 miles on it. Within 6 months of buying it, they had to rebuild the motor. At 65000, they had to rebuild the motor AGAIN. They also had other problems with it. They gave it to me as a first car at 102000 miles because dealers would not accept it as a trade-in.

The trend continued. Within a month of getting the car, I had to rebuild the engine for the THIRD time. At 110000, the transmission failed. Shortly after that, the CV joint failed on the right front axle, and when it failed, the sub-frame to the car broke. Later, the other CV joint failed. The only reason I even kept repairing it was because I knew a junkyard owner that had one for parts that did the repairs for me cheap.

In addition to the mechanical problems, this car also had rust holes in the front wheel-wells that let water in. The seats ripped along the many poorly constructed seams. And, finding a parking spot was a challenge, since if I parked on any sort of an incline, the car would get stuck in park (and both transmissions did it).

I finally was able to dump the pile for $500. A year or two later, I saw it sitting for sale in front of a salvage dealer. When I inquired about it, they told me that they had to replace the transmission again as well as the master computer in order to make it sellable at $300.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 4th February, 2005

24th Sep 2005, 17:19

I have the same car only I guess I take better care of mine cause I am the second owner of mine and it hasn't had a problem besides a window motor.

18th Apr 2006, 21:00

What I don't get is, why did you accept the LeBaron as a gift from your parents in the first place? If it needed so much work, you should have told them to give it to someone else. Investing money into it was another poor decision. If you knew for a fact that the car had problems all along, you should have sold it as soon as you received it. Your parents most likely never maintained this vehicle for it to become such a financial burden. Maintenance is crucial in order to keep a car running and driving without major issues. They probably never even bothered to get the oil changed every 3,000 miles or get the fluids flushed and changed every 15,000 miles. I'll bet that the LeBaron never even saw a Tune Up at 50,000 miles. Do not blame Chrysler for your parents' mistakes. I will however vouch for your Transmission troubles. I own a 1987 Chrysler LeBaron GTS with 114,444 miles on the Odometer and my Tranny is starting to slip. Other than that issue, I love my car! If you bought another Chrysler car that wasn't owned by Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb, your outlook may change. Your family will be the first ones to cheat you on vehicles, whether they are free or paid for. I made this mistake twice.