The Dodge Spirit was a mid-size car (by today’s standards) that was considered a replacement for the K-Car (aka Aries and the Plymouth Reliant). It was produced between 1989=95 with assemblies in both the U.S. and Mexico. The cars themselves were rather ordinary, front-wheel-drive family transports powered by 4-cylinder motors. However, the exception was the Spirit R/T, a truly “spirited” version of the car that had a turbocharged engine and low production numbers. This is one of those autos. Nicknamed “Dorothy” by its owner, the Dodge is reluctantly available here on Barn Finds Classifieds. Located in Knoxville, Tennessee, the asking price is $9.000.
In 1991, Dodge introduced the Spirit R/T which came with a 2.2-liter, 16-valve DOHC motor that was designed by Lotus, who won out over Maserati for the job. Using a Garrett intercooled turbocharger, the Turbo III engine with fuel injection produced 224 hp and 217 lb-ft of torque, a rather potent combination in a light car. Rounding out the drivetrain was a heavy-duty 5-speed manual transmission with gears supplied by Getrag. The R/T had special exterior and interior trim pieces and came with color-keyed 15-inch alloy wheels.
Chrysler advertised this Spirit as the “fastest sedan made in America.” Capable of doing 0 to 60 mph in under six seconds, it was in a league with the BMW M5. Motor Trend was impressed enough to name it “Domestic Sport Sedan of the Year”, beating out the Ford Taurus SHO for 1991 and 1992. Just 1,208 copies were built in Mexico in 1991, and 774 of those were red in color like the seller’s car. Only 191 more followed in 1992 before production ended.
The seller’s family is the third owner of “Dorothy” and she resides in the same market where the car was sold new. We’re told the Dodge is quite presentable but is not a showpiece. It has been repainted but has its share of nicks and scratches, with a bit more on the rear plastic bumper cover. The seller has discovered that the driver’s door was replaced at some point, but no record of the repair was kept. The only reason the Spirit is for sale is that the seller has room out of space.
It runs and performs well and has had some recent work done, including a rebuild of the transmission (the auto has 103,000 miles), air conditioning components, thermostat, water pump, driveshafts, and timing belt. Still on the to-do list would be a new oil pan seal as it leaks a little, and a new muffler (which the seller will provide). Why was the car name Dorothy? We don’t know but don’t think it was after the character in The Wizard of Oz. We’re guessing more likely “she” was named after the tornado-tracking technology in the movie, Twister.
The big 3 put out cool little fwd rockets now and then.
This was the Hellcat of the 90s.
So was I. Don’t matter too much in 2022.
Period road tests characterized this car as a great engine in search of a chassis to match. Fast, but crude, in other words. Personally, I think a car that’s a bit rough around the edges is more fun than one that’s quick and refined. These days, I drive a BMW X5 that’s remarkably fast and completely composed at any speed, but I still miss my first Mustang 5.0 LX. It was like a 225HP V8 strapped to a soap box derby car, and it was a blast, partly because i never knew if it was going to do what I asked of it.
CCFisher, Fast, but crude, sounds like a perfect description of my ’86 GLH Turbo.
Lots of fun on the cheap.
fisher be sure to mention the rt out ran bm5 at that time and your car cost thousands more !
I rented a few of the turbo 2.2 cars back in the day. Thrifty rental always had one on the lot. By the time got a handle on the crazy torque steer you were almost 2X the speed limit.
So maybe someone can answer this. Was the entire engine designed by LOTUS or strictly the heads? Sort of seem to recall the heads were pretty much the extent of LOTUS involvement. Now guess I got to research this.
They only were involved with the cylinder head. Standard 2.2 block.
To put it like Carroll Shelby, these things were stronger than chicken shi#. I took one up to about 100 in an interstate test drive encounter with a Mustang 5.0. He didn’t win. Stout indeed.
Then it should have been called the Dodge STCS!
Ralph – you’re right – Lotus designed the DOHC 16v CYLINDER HEAD of the Turbo III 2.2 litre 4-cylinder Chrysler engine, but the rest was as basically designed by Chrysler and introduced in 1981.
I owned a 1990 Plymouth Acclaim with a Mitsubishi 3.0 V6 engine and automatic.
It truly was a seven passenger car if needed, and because it weighed less than 3000 pounds, the engine produced plenty of power and speed. It truly was a very quick car for its time. And yet it was out performed by the turbo models. Amazing.
But do u guys think it’s worth 9Gs? Or even 8??
I’ve driven/owned a bunch of these cars, such as:
1987 Shelby CSX
1990 Shadow Intercooled VNT
1990 Shadow 2.5 Turbo
1992 Spirit R/T
They were great to drive for their time and now that many of the computers/SBEC’s can be reprogrammed, and there are still plenty of go fast parts, even more fun. What was 175-224 HP back then is 300-500+ hp now, and an absolute blast to drive. Still love my ’92 :)
My 1993 3.0L V-6, Dodge Spirit Highline in light blue was without question my favorite car that I have owned. I believe these Spirits have no equal in the looks department. And when you stepped on that gas pedal, hold on! It drove out like no other car I’ve driven. Very responsive. I absolutely loved that car. Some one hit me 2 years ago & it was totaled. It was in excellent condition inside and out with 74k miles.
Had a 1990 Plymouth Acclaim LX very powerful great gas mileage never had trouble with that car wish I still had it today.