Note: Allpar does not take responsibility for the veracity of any information or opinion presented, does not claim expertise, has not necessarily verified or performed the repair or modification described, and is not responsible for any consequences. Please proceed at your own risk.
Quick fixes, troubleshooting, and common repairs
Check These First - car parts and more
- Automatic transmissions - prevent and solve problems
- Resources for owners
- Car parts sources
- Getting and decoding computer codes
- Dispute resolution
- Solving problems with dealers
- Scheduled maintenance and dealer scams
- Chrysler FAQ
- Information on the nearly-universal, long-term emissions warranty
- The stalling and non-starting page
- Technical help bulletin board
Chrysler transmissions
- Prevent or repair four-speed automatic transmission problems cheaply
- Change your transmission fluid yourself
- An inexpensive torque converter lockup modification to prevent shudder and breakdowns
- Installing a transmission fluid cooler to prevent problems
- Clutch replacement - step by step replacement (Neon shown)
- 5-speed manual transmission (cars)
- Some 3-speed FWD automatic transmissions
- Manual transmission shifter cables (rear and front wheel drive)
- Shift kits and manual valve bodies
- Lubricants for New Venture truck transmissions
Engine, fuel, and driveability for Dodge, Jeep, and other Chrysler cars, trucks, and minivans
General Troubleshooting:
- Troubleshooting fuel injected cars (all cars made in the 1990s and later; includes notes on sensors)
- Cars with electronically controlled carburetors
- Check Engine light goes on just after visiting the gas station: the cap may be loose.
- Overheating
Stalling, Starting, and Idling (“Driveability”)
- AIS motor (Automatic Idle Speed motor) and idling speed
- Basic driveability diagnosis and repair
- Idling and driveability issues
- Troubleshooting fuel injected cars
- Stalling (also see Stalling on stopping (EEK)) and idling and troubleshooting)
- What to do when your car won't start
- Cleaning the throttle body - most engines (covered in detail)
- EGR system replacement on a budget
- 3.5 liter V6 - rough idle and skipping (usually after 50-75,000 miles)
- How to diagnose leaking fuel injectors
- EGR valve replacement
- Replacing the fuel pump (general) | (Cherokee)
Oil, Filters, and Oil Leaks
- Fix oil leaks of the 3.0 V6 - cheap! (see also this link)
- Other possible oil leaks from the 3.0 V6 - repair guide with photos
- Oil filters for 2.2/2.5 engines (EEK!)
- Synthetic oil and oil change intervals (EEK!)
- 2.2 / 2.5 liter engine oil leaks
- Building a PCV oil canister to prevent PCV system oil leakage
- Replacing oil gallery plugs
- Spark plug tube seal replacement
- Oil pressure sending unit (oil light) repair (minivan but many cars are very similar)
Repairs to specific engines
- 2.2 and 2.5 liter four-cylinders
- Replacing head gaskets (EEK!)
- Engine mounts | transmission mounts (EEK!)
- Rebuilding a 2.2 turbo engine with extra power
- Replacing timing belts
- Chattering noises / piston slap
- Oil filters (EEK!)
- Miscellaneous repairs and advice
- Setting cam timing
- Bleeding (purging) the Chrysler 2.2/2.5 liter cooling system - essential
- Sticking throttle: check/clean the idle air control valve in the throttle body
- Turbocharger issues
- 2.6 liter four-cylinder - made by Mitsubishi, used by Chrysler
- 3.0 liter V6 engines - made by Mitsubishi, used by Chrysler.
- 3.3 / 3.5 / 3.8 engine repair tips
- Slant Six engines
- Vintage engines: see below
Vintage cars
- Vintage car troubleshooting and common repairs: stalling, non-starting, belt noises, loss of power, wipers, speedometer, idle quality and speed, seat belts, front end height, pinging, and more
- Electronic ignition system replacement — inexpensive, complete replacements for 1970s-1980s cars and trucks; and upgrades for cars and trucks that originally had points
- Electrickery, part I: alternators and voltage regulators
- Electrickery, part II: gauges and the instrument panel
- EGR system replacement on a budget
- LED replacement bulbs tested/reviewed
- 1949-1955 headlights: Bulls-Eye sealed beam units
- Front end alignment tricks, tips, and specifications
- How to swap in a police firm-feel chuck and get rid of steering slop
- One Lap of America in a Plymouth Valiant | Preparing the "One Lap" Plymouth Duster
- Tuning carburetors
- Starters
- Speedometer repair
- Windshield wiper linkage repair
- High-performance oil pumps for classic cars
- Converting to disc brakes; disc brake repairs
- High-tech carb tuning with a wide-range oxygen sensor
- Upgrading seat belts on vintage cars (Valiant.org)
- Adding seat belts:
- Starters, slant six and V-8s
- Imperial Club’s transcriptions of Master Technicians Service Conference books, 1947-1973, for all Chrysler Corporation brands - extremely helpful! This includes no less than sixty movies.
Other
- Skipping and backfiring (2.2 and 3.3)
- Fuel injector diagnosis and replacement. (EEK!)
- Fuel pump diagnosis and replacement.
- Power steering pump replacement (Neon)
- Transmission slippage and speedometer failure (EEK!)
- Replacing stuck oxygen sensors (EEK!)
- Low gas mileage and low power
- Spark plug choices
- Sealing small engine cracks
- Checking optical distributors
- Turbo boost spiking and boost creep
- Neon head gasket replacement
- Starting a car that's been sitting for a long time (taking a car out of storage)
Chrysler Brakes
- Step-by-step guide to replacing disk brake pads, with pictures, by Roger Lister
- Step-by-step guide to fixing drum brakes / replacing shoes , with pictures, by John T. Blair
- Fixing brakes
- Antilock brakes - a general guide
- Brake noises and what they mean
- Brake upgrades to heavy duty (FWD) (EEK!)
- Vintage: Restoring and tweaking 4-piston disc brakes (1965-1970s)
Body (Dodge, Plymouth, Eagle, Jeep, Chrysler, AMC, etc)
Suspension
- Tire misunderstandings and solutions
- Roger Lister's guide to replacing ball joints (step by step, with photos) - EEK
- Do-it-yourself alignment
- Sway bar upgrades for better handling
- Coil spring clamps for lower height and better handling
- Repair for loud rattle from rear shock absorbers
- Which shocks and struts to use?
- Load levelling suspensions (air shocks): replace them | fix them
- Minivan bushing replacement
- Suspension tightening through bushing replacement (with photos)
- Windshield wiper linkage repair
- Tony Lewis' guide to fixing steering (step by step, with photos) - LH series
- Loose tilt wheel (works on many cars but take precautions to avoid setting off the airbag): Pull the wheel, the turn signal switch and the lock ring. Tighten the three, somewhat-hidden Torx bolts inside the wheel, below the lock ring. (Bob O’Neill).
- WARNING: Nearly all Chrysler and Dodge 2004-05 vehicles can be severely damaged if the wrong power steering fluid is used. Fluids or supplements containing Teflon have a special danger of clogging or restricting the mesh filter in the pump reservoir, which can actually result in the loss of the steering rack (thanks, Richard Benner. Based on a Service Slants article.)
Other (except electrical - see below)
- Interior restoration / trim repairs / carpet cleaning / plastic touchup
- Paint issues
- Repairing a sagging headliner (EEK!)
- Minivan (and probably other vehicles) window repairs
- Repairing holes or heavy rust in the floor (also see: rusty floor repair for more minor work)
- Fixing squeaky doors
- Replacing the airbag clockspring
- If you need frame or body specs for major repairs, try autorust.com! (thanks, Juliana Licher)
- Replacing the Hub and Bearing on an LH car (Dodge Intrepid, Eagle Vision, Chrysler Concorde, etc.)
Electrical, lighting, and stereo
- Charging system / electrical (battery and alternator) diagnostics
- Making cloudy, dim, yellow headlights like new
- Stereo speaker repair and a guide to Chrysler/Infinity systems
- Solenoids: what they are and how to diagnose and repair them
- Pre-1980:
- Upgrading alternators on older Mopars
- Fighting wiring harness corrosion and upgrading alternators and generators (through 1980s)
- Fixing and getting more accurate and reliable gauges
- Electrical diagrams (1969, 1970s, 1980)
- Replacing points with electronic ignition (good!)
- Replacing and gapping points
- Adding a new stereo to an old car
- Electronic ignition system replacement — inexpensive, complete replacements for 1970s-1980s cars.
- Front-drive cars, 1980s-1990s (K-based):
- A guide to 2.2 and 2.5 liter engine alternators (EEK)
- Headlight repairs (EEK)
- Aries and Reliant A/C Panel Lamp Replacement
- A relatively cheap instrument panel/gauge cluster repair
- How to check battery codes
- Antitheft systems
- Alternators vs generators
- Stereo fixes, tips, and tweaks (e.g. to read CD-Rs)
- Radio repairs (external link)
- Instrument cluster failure: Joseph Kan wrote, "After checking fuses, I removed the IOD fuse from the fuse box under the hood (to remove power from the components that stay on when the key is removed, and to reset these components). I waited twenty minutes and replaced the fuse. When I tried the ignition, everything worked!" (At a $500 savings over the dealer estimate) - confirmed by Fritz and Laurelyn Schrom (also saving $500) and by Gary A.
Jeremy Zumwalt noted a fix for breaking C/V joints (2.2/2.5 liter): changing the motor mounts. The motor mounts on the 2.2/2.5 liter engines are often a weak spot.
Heating and A/C
- Air conditioners
- Troubleshooting
- Fixing air conditioner clutches yourself - an illustrated guide! (requires Acrobat Reader)
- Fix that air conditioning smell!
- Air conditioning repairs and upgrades from older systems
- Chrysler has a secret warranty of 7 years on some A/C evaporators. See lemonaidcars.com for details.
- Heat
- Fixing heat issues - includes properradiator flushingmethod
- Bleeding (purging) the Chrysler 2.2/2.5 liter cooling system - essential
- Overheating
- Replacing heater cores, fixing vents, and other info (1960s A-bodies but may apply to others; link to Valiant.org)
- Radiator hose and radiator replacement (Neon)
EEK! denotes a page from the Everyday Extended K-Car Mailing List archives, which are maintained on this site.
Other resources, car parts, and repairs
- More vintage car repair tips — also see the valiant.org repairs site
- Some Allpar pages include repairs for specific vehicles. Performance modifications are listed separately, but and can be mentioned in the engines pages.
- Minivan repairs
- Making a 100,000 mile car feel new again
- Neon repairs
- PT Cruiser repairs
- Secret warranties (a tad out of date)
- Fixing the GE WBVH6240 front-loading washing machine
- Provide feedback on dealers or repair shops.
- Mike Holler’s performance and repair guides — step by step with photos
Note: To remove rusty or stubborn screws, try Kroil as a penetrant, or B’Laster; Liquid Wrench is “okay.” Dan Stern sometimes uses Diet Coke; the phosphoric acid eats away corrosion and rust, there is no sugar to act as a glue.) Stephen Thurber wrote: “First apply a penetrant and give it a couple of hours. Then get a reverse (left hand) bit about 1/2 the diameter of the screws. Use a drill running reverse. The bit will dig in and catch the screw and back it out.”
