[neon98rt]

I wish you had a spirit then your post would have read. I almost lost my spirit last night

 

[Rickorino]

I am prepairing myself to soon part ways with my Spirit of 11 years which got hit two weeks ago. I still drive it but the other's insurance will likely total it out. Can't find donor cars here anymore and the repairs exceed book value. When that Hundai(?) hit me, my Spirit held on tighter than a tick when that Hundai bounced off the passenger side. I would buy another if I could find one. I think I am the only one in the area with a Spirit as I no longer see any. It's been the best car I have owned and will miss my old friend.

 

[JA Cumbo]

AA's are getting thin on the ground everywhere it seems. Funny thing is I know of at least two or three used as daily dirvers here in town. One is a really nice looking early 90s gold colored Acclaim.

 

[Doug D]

Same here. I know of about two or three that I occasionally see, but other than that they are rather rare.

The "gold" colored Acclaim is probably what Chrysler called "Light Champagne". I know. I had a '92 Acclaim with that color (bought new). That car would still be going if not for the heater core leaking. It had 302K miles when I parked it.

 

[geraldg]

I have a 87 Newyorker 2.2 turbo as my second car and it has a few problems door locks don't work, but it is a great car and have fun with the 2.2 turbo against some new cars. Living in Az don't worry about rust and it rides just great. Also like the split buckets with fold down armrest can fit 3 people in the front seat no stupid console . I think it is the only one I have seen lately.

 

[Neurodeliri]

What's with everyone getting rid of their cars once the heater core starts leaking? I don't knwo about the acclaim, but the replacement for my 91 New Yorker wasnt that bad.

 

[Doug D]

What's with everyone getting rid of their cars once the heater core starts leaking? I don't knwo about the acclaim, but the replacement for my 91 New Yorker wasnt that bad.

Hmmmmm...it was the dead of winter (2003), I don't have a garage, the vehicle had over 300,000 miles on it and replacing the heater core also required evacuating the AC as the evaporator is in the HVAC box and according to the manual that was the only way to get the HVAC box out once the dash was removed. Is that enough for you? Jeeezz......

I suppose I could have found a way to R&R the heater core without having to disconnect the evaporator, but I just didn't have the time. A shop would have charged $800+. The car was barely worth that and was 9 years old. My "fix" was finding a '90 Acclaim for $300 and making it road worthy. As it was I T'd the heater hoses together and drove with no heat for 6 weeks.

I've only had one vehicle where the R&R the heater core would have been relatively easy (by comparison) to replace - A '93 Ford Aerostar. Remove the glove box, remove a panel and the heater core was right there. No need to remove the entire dash. It was one thing Ford did right.

 

[Neurodeliri]

Hmmmmm...it was the dead of winter (2003), I don't have a garage, the vehicle had over 300,000 miles on it and replacing the heater core also required evacuating the AC as the evaporator is in the HVAC box and according to the manual that was the only way to get the HVAC box out once the dash was removed. Is that enough for you? Jeeezz......

I didn't mean it in a rude way, I was just wondering what everyone's reasoning was. I did mine in the fall when I first purchased the car and I don't have a garage either. I think it took me 2 full days of figuring stuff out.

 

[angelescityrunner]

91 Acclaim 2.5 A413 bought for $350 because someone let the oil level low and it spit out a rocker arm. I drove it home running on 3. I just loosened the cam and put the rocker arm back in place. Later did a valve job, head gaskets, timing belt and belts and hoses, the usual cap, rotor, wires and plugs. Later did all brakes, struts and control arm bushings. Needed new coil and wire between the battery and alternator. Mechanically good, just clear coat peeling and paint fading. Drove it 8 years, no odometer. That had died at 135K B4 we bought it. Two years to work at 30miles/day then my son 2 years to high school at 10miles/day and 4 years around college. No head liner. Wind shield sealed with aquarium sealant. Front windows fell out of the tracks and had to be reinstalled with new clips and greasing of the winder mechanism. Shredded a diff seal on the highway and limped back with replacement fluid. Replaced in November on the driveway with leaves blowing in the wind. At the end, the sway bar fell out of the rear axle on the highway. A real character builder for my son. His friends called it "Red Alert." With one year left to go in college the blow-by past the rings spit the oil pan gasket out and it could not hold oil. When I sold it to U-Pull-It I kept the head and the brakes. It was replaced with a dark green 93 Spirit V6 with A670. He drove it a year then after graduation we did head gaskets, timing belt, water pump, belts and hoses, new headlight housings and SilverStar Ultras. After naval OCS in Providence, RI, he drove it from Arkansas to California.
Mine: 92 Acclaim custom Silver Blue repaint
Daughter's: 94 Shadow Blue to be replaced with 91 Spirit Maroon Burgandy with 58K after a transmission rebuild.
Youngest Son: Another 93 Spirit "Gray Ghost" for us to do head gaskets, seals, timing belt kit, water pump, water pipes, belts and hoses, plugs, wires, rotor, cap, diff seals, brake hoses, and brakes as needed TOGETHER for his high school and college experience.
In the bullpen:
88 Horizon
89 Horizon
91 Caravan
89 turbo Voyager
94 Spirit peeling white
These vehicles are the simplest except for having 2x to pull the dash to remove the heater box for replacing the heater core on Spirit/Acclaim. Fuel pump (x2)
but normal engine/suspension/brakes are easy and inexpensive.

 

[mydodgedip]

Got lots of them kicking around here in NJ. See at least one or 2 new ones a week in addition to 5 or 6 regulars in the area. Just found another LeBaron sitting in a driveway yesterday AM going down a road I don't usually take.

 

[Rickorino]

I am prepairing myself to soon part ways with my Spirit of 11 years which got hit two weeks ago. I still drive it but the other's insurance will likely total it out. Can't find donor cars here anymore and the repairs exceed book value. When that Hundai(?) hit me, my Spirit held on tighter than a tick when that Hundai bounced off the passenger side. I would buy another if I could find one. I think I am the only one in the area with a Spirit as I no longer see any. It's been the best car I have owned and will miss my old friend.

My Spirit was loaded onto a flatbed last Friday. Just cosmetic impact damage but "technically" totaled, still drove like a champ. It sure does look nice on the salvage yard's web site waiting to be auctioned off.