dodgeariesguy wrote:I think I'd like to have like a 300M or something like that some time, I would probably get tired of changing inner-tierods and bushings though lol.
I won't buy another LH car because of the issues with the tie rods and the loose racks. Nice cars...we loved our '94 Eagle Vision ESi...but not made for the long haul, imho.
My '01 Neon, though, is another story; 135k miles and the only thing I've replaced that has broken was a shifter bushing. Neons get a lot of bashing and some rightfully deserve it, but I've owned 4 of them ('95 sedan, '97 coupe, 03 SXT and my current '01 ES) and logged over 250,000 total miles on them with very few issues and nothing majorly mechanical or drivetrain related.
I've never before experienced an over-100K mile American-built car that has no interior squeaks and rattles, still has the original clutch and has a suspension as tight and secure as my '01 Neon.
My new/used '88 K-car with less than half the mileage doesn't feel as well-built, that's for sure, but Chrysler was still trying to find their way in the fwd world during the '80s.
btw: our '97 Caravan has not been "trouble free"...it's had a trans rebuild, a head gasket replaced and a rear window motor replaced in 155,000 miles...but it has required less from us than the pair of Honda Civics I owned back in the '90s and delivered way more comfort and practicality.
As for me, my vote goes to the newer cars: better room, better comfort, better performance, better mileage, better handling, better ergonomics...and the 3.3l/3.8l V6 is, imho, one of the BEST engines Chrysler ever made in the modern era. It's the 318 of the '90s and '00s.
'88 Dodge Aries LE - '97 Dodge Caravan Sport - '01 Dodge Neon ES - '09 Yamaha Tmax - '01 Trek 1000 - '09 Cannondale Caffeine 4 29er