Faults:

Power steering rack blew a seal at 55K miles.

I had the water pump, which was just starting to "weep," replaced at 45K miles, in conjunction with preventive maintenance replacement of the timing belt.

Brake calipers and slave cylinders had to be rebuilt at 50K miles.

General Comments:

Had it not been severely damaged in a collision, I would still be driving it. The car consistently drew favorable comments from friends, coworkers, and family members. I replaced it with a 4-cylinder 2003 Stratus SXT, which offers more power and somewhat crisper handling, but which lacks the Spirit's full instrumentation and full opening of the rear windows.

I selected the Spirit partly to accommodate the two six-footers in my 4-man carpool, and partly because I already owned a 1988 Aries K wagon (which is still running strong for my in-laws) and liked the idea of having two cars with virtually identical power trains.

Routine maintenance was always a pleasure, with everything in plain view and readily accessible.

The base 4-cylinder engine provided barely adequate performance, but compensated in fuel economy and reliability.

Faults:

I have had absolutely no problems with this car.

General Comments:

I would recommend a Dodge Spirit to anyone looking for a good, reliable car. My sister also owned an '89 Spirit ES and it too was very dependable and a pleasure to drive.

Operating costs are very cheap for this car. It has a trip computer in the dash to calculate fuel economy. Even though the car is a V6 engine and has 160,000 miles on it, I get an average of 35mpg on a long trip.

There are a lot of nice convenience features. The rear seats fold down. There are cup-holders in the back.

Although a little narrow, due to the fact that this is a smaller sedan, the rear seat has a lot of leg room. Even tall passengers are comfortable on long drives.

All Spirit ES models have the same grey interior. It is quite tasteful and the seats are comfortable. Although it is now 14 years old, the interior still looks as though it is hardly broke in and the seats are very supportive.

Faults:

Cracked head at 210,000 miles.

Clutch went out at 190,000 miles.

Brakes replaced at 160,000 miles.

General Comments:

Having the 5 speed makes this car very fast, i have raced and won against Honda's, Mazda's, and many other cars and have done well.

Faults:

Engine began knocking, connecting rod pin is loose, 180000.

General Comments:

Of all cars owned by my family, my father talks best of this car.

Very impressive family car, sleeper sports car.