Faults:

The water pump sprang a leak around the pulley-seal at around 200,000m. I still drove it for about 35 miles with no coolant at all.

About 1 year after I bought it, the car caught fire from a cigarette butt that had flown back in. The rear of the car (mostly the backseat) was in flames, and some wiring had to be replaced. I continued to drive it for another 2 years.

The paint job was shot, so I just kept covering it with primer occassionaly.

The wiring harness in the dash was bad, possibly from the fire, so no AC, radio, etc.

The alignment was terrible, because no one had greased the front end in decades. I went through a lot of tires.

The brakes went bad; I believe the master cylinder was sucking air. This is why I eventually had it junked.

General Comments:

Absolutely indestructible.

I bought this car for $40 from my aunt. When I found it, it had been hidden under a pile of wet leaves for about 6 years.

It cranked right up, though it needed a new transmission.

I put this hunk of junk through hell, and I am still amazed at how dependable it was; I did as little maintenance as possible on it. The leaking water pump was the only time it ever 'broke down' on me, and it still got me home with no coolant, and a red-hot engine!

Faults:

Turn signals didn't work when I got it, turns out the car was brought to a Strauss repair facility, and they just taped the wire. Fixed that (correctly).

Horn didn't work, that was just dirty contacts.

Exhaust leak, doesn't matter because I am putting in a completely new exhaust, custom dual exhaust. (not a cat back system, all the way from the headers I'm putting on).

Headliner is gone, because of cheap glue.

General Comments:

Very reliable, low operating costs, besides the gas mileage.

Gas mileage is good for the era it was built in; 18 city, 24 highway (factory specs).

Comfortable, great ride, comfortable vinyl seats.

For other owners of Dodge Diplomats, Chrysler Fifth Aves, and Plymouth Gran Fury's, here is a great website.

www.dippy.org

Faults:

When I first got the wagon, it had the original electrical engine parts, i.e. spark plug wires, coil, distributor cap. These of course gave horrible performance.

The valve springs were too short for such a big engine resulting in poor acceleration.

The roof lining tends to sag after the rain.

General Comments:

After a 5 minute warm-up this car hits 0-60 m.p.h. in just over 6 seconds, and a top speed just under 130 m.p.h.

360 cubic inch V-8, need I say more?

Wonderful smooth brakes.

Serious under-steer in sharp turns, but a very stable car.

Cool growling engine note.

Comfortable leather seats.

Beautiful styling with lots of chrome in a Cadillac sort of way.

Big, sturdy front and rear bumpers.

Faults:

The driver's side window ceased functioning in the fall of 2002.

General Comments:

The seats are extremely comfortable in the Diplomat. Interior quality is impressive.

The acceleration of the car is rather good with the 318, although it is a little slow in the winter since it's carburetted.

This car is a massive commanding yacht, but it steers much easier than the Legacy (Subaru) I drove or the Outback (Subaru) I own.

This is an excellent car and its only downfall is its lack of all wheel drive.

The car does experience vibrations at highway speeds.