Automobile / Dodge / Daytona

Dodge Daytona Car Repair Questions and Answers

Question: 1999 Dodge Daytona mileage: 105,000. My heat gauge goes the whole way to hot and blows out cold air then it will finally go down to normal and it will blow out heat when I pull in my driveway and let it idle it goes back up to hot. When it does that I look in my coolant bottle and coolant is pouring out the overflow I bought a new thermostat and it is still doing it I was told it could be my head gasket or the head but my car is not loosing power not smoking and not leaking water into my oil. So, I am not sure if it's the head gasket or head. Jimmy

Answer: The heater in your car depends upon a flow of hot coolant going through the heater core in order to get hot air into the car. If the heater core is partially plugged, it will restrict the flow. If you have a head gasket that is putting exhaust into the cooling system, it will eventually get into the heater core. When this happens there is no coolant in the heater core to make the air warm. If the water pump vanes have corroded away the result will be very poor coolant circulation causing the heater to not blow hot air. If your car is equipped with a heater control valve that is not functioning properly, the coolant flow will be restricted. One or a combination of these factors is likely the culprit in your case.

Question: 1998 Dodge Daytona mileage: 116,000. I bought this car a little over a year ago and it ran fine for a while with only a little burning of oil. Now the car smokes badly while at idle from the hood and from the exhaust! It has 116,000 miles on it. I plan on getting it rebuilt. If I did this and took care of the engine would it last for a while?

Answer: The answer is yes, if the engine you select is a good quality rebuild. Not all rebuilds are the same. It depends on the rebuilder. Ask for references or at least ask friends and be sure you get a warranty.

Question:  1995 Dodge Daytona mileage: 165,000.  5 speed. Had this engine rebuilt at 100,000 miles.  This spring, the mileage dropped from 18-20 mpg around town to 10 mpg.  New 0² sensor last spring.  Computer/ECU 2 years ago.  New coolant temp sensor this summer.  Why the drop in mileage?

Answer:    Your car is equipped with a computer controlled engine management system.  An independent auto service center can scan your computer for fault or error codes.  The information should pinpoint the malfunctioning components.

Question:  1997 Daytona mileage: 133,400.  The low setting on my headlights is next to useless.  They cast very little light.  The high beams are much better.  The battery appears to be charging and the car runs fine, but it seems that the headlights are not getting enough current to emit very much light.

Answer:    With headlights on, check the voltage at the back of the headlights.  If voltage is low, you may have a bad connection at the switch.  Check to see that they are aimed correctly.

Question:  1999 Dodge Daytona mileage: 82,145.  Drove car to work every thing fine.  After work car would not start, all it does is try to start.  The engine runs for 1-2 seconds and dies the car showed no signs of problems, check engine light never came on to warn of any problems.

Answer:   Test the fuel pump.  It may have failed.

Question:  1999 Dodge Daytona mileage: 132,000. After the engine is fully warm, it will start to sputter. Black smoke will come out of the exhaust. It does not happen all the time. I have new wires, plugs, rotor, cap, pcv, oxygen sensor, and just about every other sensor you could think of. Timing is ok, idle speed ok, I checked for codes and none appear. I also checked for vacuum leaks and found none. The engine has no problems starting hot or cold. I did notice when the car was sputtering I could not get my timing light to work as if the timing was off. The car is in mint condition except for the high miles. So, I hate to trash it. Has the computer seen it days? Is there a way of resetting the computer? Any idea of what the problem may be?

Answer:  You have done a through job of trouble shooting your problem. You mentioned your timing light not working when the problem is present. Two things come to mind, the pick-up coil in the distributor or the computer maybe failing. If the computer is failing it must be replaced.

Question (follow-up):  The Hall effect is working. You mentioned the computer. What is the difference between the logic module and the single module engine controller? Which one would most likely cause the problem?

Answer:  Your car is equipped with magnetic pickup and an iron reluctor (star wheel). As the distributor turns, the reluctor passes by the magnetic pick-up creating an A.C. voltage spike. That spike is "read" and amplified by the ignition Module (single module engine controller). Your module is an integrated part of your engine management computer (logic Module). We would try replacing the pick-up coil first. It is the cheaper of the two and the most likely.

Automobile / Dodge / Daytona

Look up more Dodge Daytona Questions in our Car Repair forum section.

Try looking up your problem in our Auto Repair topics section

Got a Car Repair Question? We will answer it for free.

Replace Air Filter

Check Engine Light