Which Low-Mileage K-Car Can I Talk You Into? 1983 Chrysler LeBaron vs 1993 Dodge Spirit

I’ve decided that the theme of this week is going to be platform-mates, and today, I’m featuring a platform you all love to hate: Chrysler’s savior back in the ’80s, the K-car. These cars provided reliable(ish) transportation for millions of people thirty or forty years ago, and today they have a following that seems to be equal parts nostalgia and irony. We’re going to look at two of them that are ten years apart.

Yesterday was all about the BG’s Greatest Hits. I was pleased to see that I started a joke, and a few of you ran with it. Oh, and we looked at a couple of cars, too. The super-clean Mercury Tracer, with its zoomy 1.8 liter BP engine, took home a decisive win over the cool-but-scruffy Mazda MX-3. It sounds like if the MX-3 had been a V6, it would have pushed the vote the other way, but you’re not going to find one of those for $2,500.

I went back and forth on this one before making my decision. The MX-3 is cheaper, and it’s closer to what I’d be looking for in a fun car at this stage. I love a good BP with a manual, but that Tracer is almost too nice for what I’d have in mind, which would almost certainly involve rallycross. I’d feel bad if something happened to it. I’ll take the MX-3, and leave the Tracer to someone who wants to polish it up and show it off.

Common wisdom says that it’s better to buy a car from the last year of an old design than from the first year of a new one. Sure, you might miss out on some whiz-bang new features, but you’re getting a car that has had all its bugs worked out. But what if the previous model was absolute garbage? That was definitely the case with the K platform. Chrysler’s F and M platforms were worthless – and that’s coming from the second-biggest Mopar apologist on this site. The K car had its faults, especially early on, but it was rock-solid compared to what came before. And by the end, the K’s derivatives, especially the AA platform, were actually really good cars. So let’s take a look at one early K car, and one late AA car, and see if I can talk you into one of them.

1983 Chrysler LeBaron convertible – $3,998

Engine/drivetrain: 2.6-liter OHC inline 4, three-speed automatic, FWD

Location: Kirkland, WA

Odometer reading: 57,000 miles

Operational status: I have no idea, actually

You know what puzzles me? Chrysler sold more LeBaron coupes than it did convertibles in every model year from 1982 through 1989, but all you ever see for sale anymore are the convertibles. Where did all those coupes go? I assume it’s that the coupes were seen as just regular cars, so they all got used up, while the convertibles were saved for special occasions and lasted. You know what else puzzles me? How did a clean, low-mileage, forty-three-year-old LeBaron convertible end up at a buy-here-pay-here lot in suburban Seattle? I mean, a ten-year-old Chrysler 200 with a quarter-million miles on it and its Check Engine light taped over, sure, but this?

For the first few years, the K car was available with two different engines: Chrysler’s own 2.2-liter four, or a Mitsubishi-built 2.6-liter. Fancier models, like the LeBaron convertible, usually got the 2.6. It’s carbureted, with that late-malaise-era electronic feedback system that has about a million sensors and a couple miles of vacuum lines. When it’s all working well, it’s fine, but one tiny vacuum leak or wiring short can cause all kinds of drivability problems. I can’t tell you how well this one runs, because the dealership selling it gives absolutely no information about the car’s mechanical condition. I assume it at least runs, or they wouldn’t be asking four grand for it. Anything beyond that is up to you to determine.

You’d expect a fancier interior in this car than in your typical Plymouth Reliant, and you wouldn’t be disappointed. It has leather seats – I don’t know how rich or Corinthian they are; Chrysler was still operating on a shoestring in 1983 – and a fancy trip computer operated by a bank of buttons on the dash. The display for it is right where the Electronic Message Center would normally be, so I have a feeling that the two options were mutually exclusive. This one doesn’t talk, I’m afraid, but it can show you your average fuel economy. It’s in decent shape inside, but the center armrest needs to be recovered.

It has a brand new convertible top, according to the seller, and the paint looks nice and shiny. This car must have spent most of its life in a garage. Kind of a waste, if you ask me, leaving a car sitting around like that, but at least the next owner can put some miles on it.

1993 Dodge Spirit ES – $3,333

Engine/drivetrain: 2.5-liter OHC inline 4, three-speed automatic, FWD

Location: Seattle, WA

Odometer reading: 43,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives fine, but needs a few things

The actual K platform was retired after 1989, but its successor, the AA, was more or less the same thing, with a longer wheelbase. Build the same thing long enough, and you’re bound to get good at it. The Dodge Spirit and its sister model the Plymouth Acclaim weren’t the most exciting things on four wheels, but they got the job done reliably. This Spirit ES was the “sporty” model, kind of like Chevy’s Eurosport – alloy wheels, no chrome trim, and bucket seats instead of a bench.

It also boasts a tachometer for its 2.5-liter throttle-body fuel-injected engine, and a floor-mounted shifter for its Torqueflite automatic transmission. You could actually get a five-speed manual in these, but they’re almost unheard-of. This one has only 43,000 miles on it, 30,000 of which were added in the past few years. It had its head gasket replaced a while back, unnecessarily, and the shop that did it botched some things. It has a small exhaust leak at the manifold, and a broken bolt on the valve cover that will need to be drilled out and re-tapped at some point. This is why it’s important, if you can’t do repairs and maintenance yourself, to find a reputable and trustworthy mechanic. I’ve heard way too many stories like that over the years.

It’s a little dirty inside, but everything looks like it’s in good shape. It has some really cool seat upholstery, too. The radio only works about half the time, according to the seller, but that’s easy enough to replace. Since it’s an ES, it has all the power toys, but the seller doesn’t elaborate on how much of it still works.

It’s nice and shiny outside, and I wouldn’t expect it to have any rust. It has been de-badged on the back, strangely, making it look like one of those generic cars used in auto parts store advertisements. Come to think of it, I think quite a few of those cars back then were Dodge Spirits. This is a car you wouldn’t have looked twice at thirty years ago. Now, however, there are so few left that it stands out.

I imagine some of you are going to shout “Neither!” and refuse to vote. That’s your prerogative. And I expect a few comments along the lines of “My aunt/grandpa/girlfriend’s mom had one of those, and it was crap.” Maybe I haven’t swayed anyone. And that’s fine; tomorrow I’ll give you a chance to vote for something else. Today, however, is all about the K cars.