Owners have filed 323 complaints on the Dodge Spirit, covering 1989–1995. The system named most often is Engine And Engine Cooling (53 reports). Worst years by volume: 1991, 1994, 1993; cleanest: 1989, 1995, 1990. 28 reports describe a crash, 21 a fire, 3 a death. On average the car was 4.8 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Dodge Spirit
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 323 Spirit complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Engine And Engine Cooling 53 Read
Vehicle caught on fire in engine compartment while parked. There were no injuries. Engine oil ignited when engine padding got heated by engine. *ak
1994 dodge spirit caught fire while driving on the ohio turnpike. Consumer states he pulled over when the vehicle began to have problems then it caught fire. *kb the police report stated the fire originated in the engine compartment. Ohio traffic crash report# 10-0372-91
Car was sitting at the side of the road when it caught fire. Fire dept. Did not list a cause for the fire
Power Train 47 Read
Vehicle jumped out of park into reverse gear, causing loss of control/accident
Vehicle is in driveway in park in idle position jump into reverse impact 6:00 position speed unknown causing damages to house. Tt
Wheel bearing failure caused right rear wheel to fall off while driving
Electrical System 40 Read
My cars air bag light continued to stay on and caught fire to my ignition switch. I was out over $600 for repairs. I know you have recalled some 1995 dodge cars and want to know if mine has the same parts on the air bag? Pls advise via e-mail. Thanks. Joanne ramirez
Upon turning ignition switch smoke began to come from steering column then from dash. Turned off ignition and had car towed. Dealer states that ignition grounded out and caused extensive burning of wiring system throughout dash and motor. If this had happened in high traffic where ignition could not have been turned…
Upon starting vehicle or when driving smoke is coming from steering column area. Problem occurred mostly upon starting vehicle. Consumer has contacted dealer, dealer has not determine the cause. *ak ignition switch shorted out and burned up
Suspension 33 Read
Consumer stated that the torque tube cracks inside of weld on left hand side of vehicle which weakens the trailing arm. Dealer contacted. Nlm
Consumer stated the torque tube cracks inside of weld on left hand side of vehicle which weakens the trailing arm. Dealer contacted. Nlm
1995 dodge spirit has a defective trailing arm assembly.***no answer required***. *mr the trailing arm was welded. The weld did not hold long and broke causing a loud pop when making right turns. The consumer believes the vehicle should be recalled for this problem since the problem is a common defect
Air Bags 30 Read
When the air bag on the driver's side deployed during collision, driver's hands were injured, driver's thumbs were almost cut off by the sharp edge of the air bag cover
Air bag deploy darn near took thumbs off my hands, required 15 stitches in all. Hit deer, causing air bag to deploy
During frontal impact, the driver's side air bag did not deploy
Service Brakes 18 Read
Brake system failure, loss of braking ability, resulted in an accident
While driving the braking system malfunctioned, the pedal went to the floor and caused an accident. Also, the passenger's seatbelt did not retract and did not hold the occupant, causing the occupant to hit the windshield. Cause unknown. *ak.et
Ignition switch was failing again after being replaced 3-4 years ago. Also, wiring harness was faulty, causing heater and air conditioner motor switch not to operate/ airbag light stayed on continuously on the dashboard/,brake pads fell off the right front wheel without any warning/ gear selector failed, did not show…
Seats 16 Read
Vehicle was impacted at 3:00 position, vehicle was at complete stop, driver side seat broke, and went into reclining position , causing seat back failure
Hit from the rear and the driver's seat disconnected from the frame
Driver's side seat broke and went into reclining position when entering the vehicle
Fuel System 14 Read
Consumer parked car and while still sitting in car started to feel very strong heat and car burst into flames. Consumer was able to get out of the car. Consumer believes fuel line leak may have started the fire
Vehicle shut off while driving and gas tank caught on fire.the trunk near rear seat was on flames.this occured with no warning. Tt
The vehicle leaked gasoline due to fuel line being abraded by friction
Spirit years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Air Bags | 1 | 1 | |
| 1994 | Air Bags | 7 | 2 | |
| 1993 | Air Bags | 4 | 4 | |
| 1992 | Air Bags | 3 | 1 | |
| 1991 | Air Bags | 9 | 6 | |
| 1990 | Air Bags | 4 | 6 | |
| 1989 | Electrical System | — | 1 |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 224 |
| Average complaints per series | 1.4 |
| Worst single series | 5 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 4.8 years |
A model average of 1.4 hides a worst series at 5. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
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- No ads, no tracking — and much more
How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Spirit?
By complaint volume, 1991, 1994, 1993 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Spirit years are the cleanest?
1989, 1995, 1990 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Dodge Spirit have?
323 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 1989–1995. Of those, 28 describe a crash and 21 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.