11th Dec 2004, 20:25

I bought my 96 Intrepid used with 36000 miles. I paid $1400 for an aftermarket warranty. Best money I ever spent, on the warranty that is... anyway, I love the car, but it has been a maintenance nightmare. I can say however that the 3.5 engine and the transmission are still in tact with 134000 miles on them. I'll credit that to careful driving and consistent fluid changes. It's really a nice car.. just bad component engineering.

11th Aug 2005, 00:22

I currently own a 97 intrepid es 3.5L. Its has a 180,111 miles on it and purrs strong. The problem I'm having is that its overheating randomly. Replaced water pump, radiator, heater core, t. stat, hoses, anything that has to do with cooling. Now this is weird, if I release the pressure at the nipple on the thermostat housing it cools instantly and stays normal for a few days. Also just started idling at 1.5 rpm, but is normal in any of the gears (drive, reverse, etc.). It's also normal when the A/C is on or heater. But all in all it hasn't been a bad car. If anyone has had these problems and knows how to fix it, please toss a comment.

12th Sep 2005, 20:08

My 96' Intrepid goes through about 1 thermostat every 3 or 4 months. It is not faulty thermostats, it is something in there design. It is also VERY hard to get all the air pockets out of the coolant system when changing hoses or a thermostat. My local dealer took 3 times to get it correct.

11th Sep 2006, 13:45

I owne a 96 Dodge Intrepid with a 3.5 engine.4 months ago the motor started to knock, with lifter clang noises when starting up. After it fires up, and putting it in gear it's silent... then when I stop at the light it does it again until I put it in neutrual (But does not do this all the time).No engine lights come on and I was told no reasons for this to be happening.70,000 miles, oil changed every 3500 miles, tuned up 2 years ago, still good gas mileage and smooth power. Can anyone help me?

8th Feb 2007, 07:13

I just bought a 1996 Dodge Intrepid 3.5L from a guy that lives near me. He had a transmission for it (how he got it I do not know) and told me that the car had transmission problems. So I get the car, thinking, he has the transmission, I'll buy the car now and have him put it in later. I'm driving the car one day and I'm at a light. I hit the gas and the car doesn't move. So I have him put the transmission in for me and I'm driving it again, and what do you know, at light, hit the gas, no movement. So he checks it out and says that the filter is dirty and he needs to change the fluid. So he does these things, and the car has been running fine since then, which is probably like 3 or 4 days. Now, when I go to put the car in gear, I'm having a difficult time doing so. I like the car and everything, but my plan is to hold on to it for a few more months (like summer time) and then trade it in. It's already cost me over $1100 to get it fixed.

27th Mar 2007, 23:09

I have a 1996 dodge intrepid 3.5 liter v6, and I bought it used with 121000 miles on it. it now has 140000 and the tranny won't shift past third gear, and it slips. the tranny place said that it was some "hub" thing, and that it is gonna cost me like 1800 because I need to get the transmission rebuilt and this "hub" installed. does anyone know what this is, where I get it, and what to do? I really love this car, and have had no problems with it before this. can anyone help me?

14th Jan 2008, 20:57

I bought my 1996 Intrepid in 2003. When I went to take it for a test drive, I did not try to see if all the windows were working. Big mistake. Not only does the driver seat window not work... nothing on the driver seat door works.

I was a senior in high school and the car had a really nice aftermarket CD player in it and that made me buy it.

I had to buy new tires for it which were hard to find.

The AC compressor went out.

Transmission slips when it's cold outside and you don't let it warm up.

It cracks or squeaks when turning, probably needs a CV joints.

Also, the paint quickly oxidized. I tried to put all different kinds of waxes, polishing compounds and rubbing compounds, nothing works. Dealership guy said it needs to be repainted. Last thing I would do to that car is repaint it.

The only good thing about it is that it does run great and average gas mileage.