We were driving on the interstate when the oil light came on and a few seconds later the car died. We had to have the car towed to a service facility and the next day they told us that it was a catastrophic engine failure due to engine sludge which was a problem with these Dodge engines. The fix is going to cost us way more than the car is worth. I am out of work and we don't know what we are going to do about this. We may end up having an expensive driveway decoration till we get the car paid off later this year. I think Dodge should recall these cars since this seems to be a prevalent problem. I know one thing for sure. I will NEVER buy another Dodge product again.

Today is now Tuesday march 11, 2008 i bought my car in april of 2006 i've had it almost two years !! now my car has been fine for the most part the check engine light comes on goes off now and then the dealer said that's "NORMAL" sure...... then i had my oil changed and since then my oil light comes on when it idle's...... but on Sunday i was on my way to Oakland from vallejo 35 mile trip or so but by Berkeley 10-15 mi or so it shut down???? got off the freeway safely thank god.. checked water and everything else seemed fine... tried to start it back up after 20 min or so started fine but now a knocking sound ???? got it back on the freeway (nowhere to turn it around there) and wasn't on the freeway for a half a minute and it shut down again....!!!!!! merged over to the shoulder and sat there upset as to what i'm supposed to do ???? my 5 yr old asleep in the backseat.... we had the highway patrol push us off at the next exit and i had it towed back to my house $160 dollars wow there went my paycheck this week not to mention my car note is 2 weeks late right now!!! and i'm in the middle of trying to find an apartment have to be out by april first!!! I bought this car in hopes of a "RELIABLE" car i'm a single mom i work full time and wow now this .... i may lose my job now with no transportation to and from work???? i opened the hood tonight and pulled out the oil dipstick (i heard if theres water in there u blew your head gasket) well i pull it out and wow it looks like mud !!! light brown and everything.... my friend is supposed to come over and look at it tomorrow and see what he can do but after reading all of this i know what's wrong i'm just surprised that dodge isn't coughing up to the fact that this car's engine sucks!!! shoulda bought a Honda civic!!! now i don't know what i'm gonna do i have 1200 dollars to put me and my son in a studio apartment since it's all i can afford but how am i supposed to get to work now???? i owe $9500 on this car still....... if anyone knows of any help please let me know!!!! i would appreciate it!!!!! rhemby143@yahoo.com

Most of the posts I've seen regarding the Dodge Intrepid oil sludge problems involve the models up to 2002. However, I have a 2004 and I have had nothing but problems with it. The car has had significant overheating problems and I've had to have parts like the thermostat and thermostat housing (made of plastic!) replaced multiple times. This time my mechanic replaced the housing and found that the water pump was leaking. He knows someone that works for Dodge who warned him that while he was in there, he better replace the timing chain. So, replacing the timing chain and the water pump comes to about $900. They put it back together to test drive it and the oil light comes on. That's when they discover the oil sludge that has been reported hundreds of times by other Intrepid owners. I've changed the oil regularly. I don't even know the extent of the damage or the cost of the repair at this point. I've only had a drivable vehicle for 4 of the last 18 days. I'm a single parent with a 25 mile commute to work (in an area with no public transportation), so being without a car is killing me. I can't sell the car because I owe more than it is worth and I would feel terrible selling it to someone else anyway. I'd love to hear of any SC or national class action lawsuits.