Dodge Intrepid Reliability by Year
Based on 2M+ real complaints filed with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
8,078 NHTSA complaints (1987–2004).Complaint rate: 75495.3 per 1,000 vehicles.
Should I buy a Dodge Intrepid?
Quick answer from 8,078 NHTSA complaints · 1987–2004
Dodge Intrepid reliability depends heavily on the model year.
Keep scrolling for year-by-year complaint trends, recall campaigns, and component breakdowns — or click any year above for a full report.
Which Years to Buy & Avoid
Years auto-clustered by complaint volume relative to this model's median.
Rankings based on raw NHTSA complaint counts. Sales volume data not yet available for this model.
Bottom line: Avoid the 1999–2000 Dodge Intrepid (105 crash-related complaints). The 2003–2004 models had significantly fewer reported issues. Most common issue across all years: Engine And Engine Cooling:engine.
Avoid These Years
Average
Better Years
A model's reputation is just the start.
Even within the “good” years, individual cars can have hidden accidents, title issues, or odometer rollbacks. Check the actual VIN before you buy — full history report for $4.99 (vs. Carfax $44.99).
Complaints by Model Year
NHTSA complaint count per model year
Common Dodge Intrepid Problems
Most reported component complaints to NHTSA. Bar length = volume; color = crash-involvement rate.
Show full table
| Component | Complaints | Crash % |
|---|---|---|
| Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine | 1,494 | 0.6% |
| Engine & Cooling | 821 | 0.9% |
| Automatic Transmission | 522 | 2.9% |
| Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine:Gasoline | 291 | 0.3% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline:Fuel Injection System | 275 | 0.0% |
| Steering:Rack And Pinion | 231 | 1.7% |
| Air Bags:Frontal | 176 | 83.5% |
| Equipment:Appliance:Air Conditioner | 148 | 0.7% |
| Engine And Engine Cooling:Cooling System | 139 | 0.7% |
| Exterior Lighting:Headlights | 130 | 1.5% |
When Each Problem Spiked
Year × component heatmap. Darker cells = more complaints that year. Reveals which model years a specific defect concentrated in — useful for spotting redesign-cycle quality dips.
Year-by-Year Breakdown
NHTSA complaint count per model year — click any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
| Year | Generation | Complaints | Crashes | Fires | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987NO DATA | — | 2 | 0 | — | View → |
| 1988NO DATA | — | 2 | 0 | — | View → |
| 1992NO DATA | — | 2 | 1 | — | View → |
| 1993NO DATA | — | 554 | 35 | 13 | View → |
| 1994NO DATA | — | 1,024 | 66 | 25 | View → |
| 1995 | — | 919 | 67 | 38 | View → |
| 1996 | — | 709 | 41 | 25 | View → |
| 1997 | — | 473 | 35 | 29 | View → |
| 1998 | — | 493 | 37 | 12 | View → |
| 1999AVOID | — | 1,236 | 54 | 18 | View → |
| 2000AVOID | — | 1,227 | 51 | 31 | View → |
| 2001 | — | 729 | 26 | 23 | View → |
| 2002GOOD | — | 413 | 11 | 12 | View → |
| 2003GOOD | — | 140 | 6 | 10 | View → |
| 2004GOOD | — | 155 | 11 | 7 | View → |
Year-by-Year Breakdown
Tap any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
Data Sources & Methodology
Complaints: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation consumer complaint database (8,078 records for this model). Public domain data, updated monthly.
Sales data: Not yet available for this model. Complaint counts are shown as raw numbers.
Rate calculation: Complaints per 10,000 vehicles sold = (complaint count / US annual sales) x 10,000. This normalizes for sales volume so high-volume models like Civic or Camry aren't unfairly penalized.
Year classifications: AVOID = 1.5x+ the model's median complaint count. GOOD = 0.6x or below. Years less than 3 years old are marked TOO NEW (insufficient data).
See also: Dodge Intrepidaccident & safety statistics from our vehicle history database.
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