1990 Chrysler LeBaron Problems: 14 Known Issues

On the 1990-1995 Chrysler LeBaron, owners and mechanics report head gasket failures on the LeBaron's Chrysler 2.2L and 2.5L four-cylinders and on its Mitsubishi-built 3.0L V6. On the four-cylinders, the usual trigger is overheating. A stuck thermostat, a coolant leak or air trapped in the cooling system lets the engine run hot. The cylinder head then expands and crushes the middle of the gasket, and the gasket blows out there. A mechanic on one owner forum describes this pattern. Owners on the same forum also say failure is not certain: some of these engines have passed 150,000 miles with no problems. On the 3.0L V6, the aluminum heads sit on a cast-iron block, so the gasket sees a lot of movement as the engine heats and cools. A failing gasket often shows up as air bubbles in the coolant. Most failures happen on engines that have had recent cylinder head work or were remanufactured. Chrysler later raised the 3.0L head bolt torque spec from the 65-72 ft-lb listed in early manuals to 80 ft-lb. Heavy EGR carbon buildup can also damage the gasket's combustion seals at the center cylinders and push exhaust gas into the coolant. In one technician report, a 1994 LeBaron GTC with the 3.0L pushed coolant out of the radiator while the engine was cranking. The coolant stopped coming out once the spark plugs were removed.

On the 1985-1995 Chrysler LeBaron, the LeBaron's 2.2L/2.5L four-cylinder and 3.0L V6 engines are belt-driven overhead-cam designs with a rubber timing belt that has a finite service life (roughly 60,000 miles); the Mitsubishi 2.6L offered in early-1980s LeBarons uses a timing chain instead. The Chrysler 2.2L/2.5L four-cylinder engines are non-interference designs, so a snapped or skipped belt leaves the car stranded but does not bend valves. The belts age, harden, and can skip a tooth or shred, causing a sudden stall/no-start or rough running. The Mitsubishi-sourced 3.0L V6 in the LeBaron is the SOHC version, which has enough valve-to-piston clearance that a belt failure should not normally cause internal damage (only the DOHC versions used in other vehicles are interference engines). Because these cars are now decades old, many run on original or badly overdue belts, making this a leading cause of roadside breakdowns.

On the 1985-1992 Chrysler LeBaron, the turbocharged LeBarons (Turbo I, with a Garrett T3 on early engines and a Mitsubishi TE04H from 1988, and the higher-boost Turbo II) suffer turbo center-bearing and oil-seal wear from oil starvation at cold start and shutdown, and from coking when the engine is shut off hot without a cool-down. Worn seals let engine oil pass into the intake or exhaust, causing blue smoke (especially on startup or boost), oil consumption, and eventually a frozen or noisy turbo. The small-frame T3 is prone to burnt oil cutting a groove in the turbine shaft so the seals can no longer hold oil. Lack of oil changes and hard acceleration on a cold engine accelerate the failure.

On the 1990-1995 Chrysler LeBaron 3.0L V6, the Mitsubishi-sourced 3.0L V6 is well known for oil consumption caused by hardening valve stem seals and by pressed-in exhaust valve guides that can work loose and slide out of the heads (engines built after late 1991 got snap rings on the exhaust guides, and late-1992-on engines got revised stem seals). As the seals shrink/harden, oil seeps past the valve stems while the car sits, then burns off on startup as a puff of blue-gray smoke that clears within 10-30 seconds. This is distinct from head-gasket failure (which burns coolant): compression is typically normal and the car steadily consumes oil between changes. Replacing seals alone often fails within 10-20k miles because worn guides provide the slop that destroys the new seals; a plugged PCV drain in the valve covers can worsen consumption. The 2.2L/2.5L fours can also develop valve-seal seep-down smoke with age, but the 3.0L V6 is the standout.

On the 1985-1995 Chrysler LeBaron, the distributor pickup is a three-wire Hall-effect sensor (an optical pickup on the 3.0L V6) that tells the engine computer the engine is turning so it can fire spark and injectors. These pickups are prone to heat-related, intermittent failure: the car runs fine cold but suddenly stalls once the engine bay heats up, then restarts after it cools (heat-soak). The Hall sensor can fail without setting a code, and because the computer sees no engine-rotation signal, it cuts fuel and spark entirely. On the 3.0L, an intermittent no-spark can also come from the coil or ignition module, so the pickup must be confirmed with a scope/voltage test.

On the 1985-1995 Chrysler LeBaron, the Auto Shutdown (ASD) relay powers the ignition coil, fuel injectors, and (via the fuel-pump relay) the fuel pump. When the ASD relay fails, contacts wear, or its connector corrodes, the engine cranks but gets no spark and no fuel and will not start; failure can also be intermittent, causing the car to die while driving and then restart later. On many LeBarons the relay sits on the driver's-side fender/strut tower. Because the same no-start symptom can come from the logic/power module or the pickup, the relay should be swapped or bench-tested to confirm.

On the 1990-1995 Chrysler LeBaron, leBaron instrument clusters (both standard and the digital dash) are a common failure point. The speedometer reads zero or erratically and the odometer stops counting, usually from a failed vehicle speed sensor (VSS) on the transaxle, a stripped odometer drive gear / worn speedometer cable on cable-driven clusters, or internal cluster/solder failures. On the digital dash, segments drop out or the speedometer sticks at 0. Because a dead VSS also feeds the computer, it can additionally affect shift quality and idle, not just the gauge.

On the 1990-1993 Chrysler LeBaron, on LeBaron convertibles, the rear quarter window motors sit low in the quarter panels. Water that runs down past the top collects there when the drains clog, and the motors corrode and seize. Owners report one or both rear quarter windows stop going up or down even though the switch is sending power. Chrysler addressed water build-up at the motors with a dealer campaign that added drain holes below the quarter windows.

On the 1990-1995 Chrysler LeBaron 3.0L V6, the LeBaron uses the Chrysler A604 (41TE) 4-speed electronically-controlled automatic transaxle. This was one of the first fully electronic automatics and its solenoid pack is the primary failure point. The solenoids develop internal leaks and electrical failures, causing erratic shifting, no-shift conditions, and limp mode (locked in 2nd gear). The transmission controller can also fail. The A604 was so problematic that Chrysler waived the warranty deductible, provided loaners, and offered buybacks on early units that couldn't be fixed.

On the 1990-1995 Chrysler LeBaron, the A604 (41TE) Ultradrive on V6/turbo LeBarons is infamous for dropping into limp mode — the transmission loses the higher gears and is stuck in second and reverse only, often after a speed/input sensor fault, voltage glitch, or internal clutch problem. Early Ultradrives also suffer clutch-pack and torque-converter wear (Chrysler made many running design changes early on), and use of the wrong fluid (Dexron/Mercon instead of the specified Mopar ATF+3, now superseded by ATF+4) quickly destroys them because the wrong fluid is too 'grabby.' Symptoms include harsh or no shifts, a buzzing/shuddering converter, and a transmission that won't upshift past second until restarted.

On the 1989-1995 Chrysler LeBaron, leBaron overheating is common and one trap is unique to these cars: around 1989-1990 the 2.2/2.5 switched to a counter-rotating (reverse-rotation) water pump driven off the back side of the accessory belt, whereas earlier engines used a clockwise pump. Installing the wrong-rotation pump (or a generic replacement) pushes coolant the wrong way and the engine overheats even though the pump looks correct. Combined with the small radiators, electric-fan failures, and tired thermostats on these aging cars, owners report boiling coolant, rising temp gauge, and on turbo cars heat-soak that can crack a head or blow the gasket. Always match the pump to the engine's rotation.

On the 1985-1995 Chrysler LeBaron, the two-prong engine coolant temperature (ECT) sensor at the thermostat housing feeds temperature data to the engine computer for fuel mixture and to the cooling-fan and gauge circuits. When it fails or its connector corrodes, the computer mis-fuels the engine: the car runs rough or floods when warm, stalls once hot, and is hard to restart until it cools (a classic heat-soak no/poor-start). The temperature gauge can read erratically or peg, and the electric cooling fan may not turn on, leading to overheating. Note this is the computer's ECT sensor, distinct from the dash gauge sending unit.

On the 1990-1995 Chrysler LeBaron, the LeBaron convertible's hydraulic top system suffers from cylinder leaks, pump failures, and the fabric top material degrading from UV exposure. The hydraulic cylinders develop internal seal leaks, causing the top to operate slowly or stop mid-cycle. The fabric top material shrinks and becomes brittle, developing tears at the stress points near the rear quarter windows. The rear plastic window yellows and becomes opaque, reducing rear visibility.

On the 1985-1995 Chrysler LeBaron, chrysler's throttle-body and MPI fuel-injection LeBarons use an Automatic Idle Speed (AIS) motor (idle air control) that meters air around the closed throttle to keep the engine idling and to catch the idle when the A/C compressor cycles or when the throttle snaps shut. The AIS pintle and its passage carbon up, and the motor itself wears out, causing a rough or hunting idle, idle that surges up and down, stalling when coming to a stop or when the A/C kicks on, and sometimes a high idle that won't come down. The symptoms overlap with vacuum leaks, so the intake and vacuum lines must be checked first.