$300 for valve cover gaskets?

My first car was a 1970 Charger 500, before I had it rebuilt, the transmission was mostly made of JB-Weld...

Originally posted by Swimmer
Chrysler 1996 Town and Country Mini-Van LXI- two weeks ago- Dealer replace a/c evaporator-step one- remove dash- Cost: $1328.00

This week- a/c compressor clutch apparently slipping-burnt up clutch coil- I purchased a replacement compressor at Oreilly Auto Parts- $309.00 with tax...I installed it- works great. I have had lots of refrigeration experience and been in the field since 1968.

As bad as all that this is the worst- I went to a Chrysler dealer to get o-rings for the suction and discharge line where the lines fasten onto the compressor. Get this, two o-rings, small little pieces of round rubber- total cost $23.00.

I guess that is the cost of staying cool in Kansas.

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My wife and I have had Chrysler 5 minivans: 1986, 1992, 1192, 2000, 2001 and they've all had A/C problems. Chrysler must by their evaporators and condensers from the low bidder, because they all leaked. There was a hidden warrantee on some years.

Check https://www.allpar.com for info.

If a fluid flows through it and it's a Chrysler, it will eventually leak. The rear heater lines on my 2001 T/C rotted out in 3 1/2 years and cost $850 to replace. The power steering pump fluid cooler sprung a massive leak at 4 years and cost $800 to fix. The evaporator was covered under an extended warrantee or it would have been about $1100. Fortunately the wife was in an accident that took out the radiator and condensor which were replaced with aftermarket parts.

Other than that, they have been great cars with the exception of the 86 which had the 2.6 liter Mitsubishi engine which also need a head gasket for $1800, and a timing chain, and many other parts for $2000, but in the end it went 325,000 miles before the tranny gave out. The 2.5 liter Chrysler L4 engines are good for about 200,000 miles and the 3.3 and 3.8 liter V6 engines look like they will easily make at least 250,000 miles.

Bob

Originally posted by Loopy
$300 for the valve cover gaskets seems a bit high, but not highway robbery. My wife's minivan (talk about a cramped engine compartment...) recently blew a head gasket (don't get me started...bought it brand new, head gaskets went bad at 55,000 miles...), and it cost $1800 for that nifty little repair job...

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thats rape...this is why i do my own service. my aunt paid 900 dollars for an AC job. for my intrepid, i went to the junk yard, bought a rebuilt compressor for a bit over 200 bucks, threw it on, evacuated the system, and then had it filled at the shop. total cost was a little over 300 with tax. there's no reason they should be charging 300 dollars for valve covers.

auto manufacturers dont look at service anymore. how long does it take to go 150,000 miles? after you take a new car 150,000+ miles, you're looking for a new car most likely (the majority of car buyers), all the manufacturer has to do is make sure their cars are reliable to that number...im sure its not 150,000, but a generic number based on the average mileage on a 1 owner trade in.

Originally posted by bobkrech
My wife and I have had Chrysler 5 minivans: 1986, 1992, 1192, 2000, 2001 and they've all had A/C problems. Chrysler must by their evaporators and condensers from the low bidder, because they all leaked. There was a hidden warrantee on some years.

Bob

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Interesting, I've got a Dodge RAM 2500 that's eight years old ('98 model purchased new in Dec 97) with 150,000+ on it and very few problems over the years. Still on the original battery, and the only bulbs I've replaced are the rear license plate bulbs. The A/C compressor clutch bearing went out last May. The whole compressor w/clutch cost $200 at the parts store. Get this, the clutch only cost $250 from the dealership! The parts store doesn't carry a clutch only . . .

We use it to transport our rocket gear . . . (note rocket related content)

So any (RX-3) photos ?

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sorry, nothing scanned or online, it's all packed away deep in the garage

The compressor on the 1996 Chrysler mini van is located where it is relatively easy to get at. While I had it out I also replaced the filter/drier. ( $37.00 ) I added 8oz. PAG 46 a/c compressor oil ($7.00). After pulling a vacuum and adding 46oz. 134a refrigerant the a/c works very nicely. I don't have a clue what a dealership would have charged to replace the compressor. I do as much of my vehicle service as possible also but removing the dash is one job I avoided. I did consider a used compressor but opted for the rebuilt to get warranty. ( 3 months )

While it is a nice vehicle on the road my partnership with any Chrysler product ends with this van.

My neighbor bought a new Chrysler van in 2005. 14,000 miles later, new transmission. My van had the transmission rebuilt at 44,000 miles. ( $2300.00 )

I better stop, I'm getting depressed.

We had a beautiful 1999 Intense Blue Dodge Ram 1500 that we bought new and got all the services done at the stealership.
When the warranty expired at 70k miles it just fell apart like Bluesmobile in front of Cook County Courthouse:
Distributor, water pump and a/c all went at 73,000 miles closely followed by tranny, both oxygen sensors and a speed sensor at 75,000... Freeze plugs rotted thru right after 80,000... ABS brainbox fried before we hit 90,000 and about the same time the rear window developed a leak rivaling the Niagra Falls.... Then the distributor blew again, rear door lock jammed shut, and finally at 104k the dashboard got cracked and fell into pieces inside a week.
That ended my husbands lifelong relationship with domestic makers and we bought a new Toyota Tundra 2005 that now has 20k on it without a blip or a hiccup, time will tell...
But you gotta have an octopus mechanic on the Yoda, even for a truck its packed full of spaghetti under the hood...
I'm still heartbroken over that Dodge, it was a beautiful truck...

I am a former VW/German car mech. I remember when you could pull out a bug engine and rebuild it in a day or less! now on the new beetles you need to remove the fenders to do almost everything! and the engine takes a few days to rebuild. 4 hours just to get it out of the car.