What breaks most · 1996 to 2002 model years
Plymouth Breeze problems by year
Owners have filed 667 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Plymouth Breeze across model years 1996 to 2002. Three years stand out: 1996 for engine and cooling complaints, 1998 for engine and cooling complaints and 1997 for engine and cooling complaints. The quietest years are 1999.
- Years to check closely: 1996, 1998, 1997
- Fewest complaints: 1999
- Complaints on file
- 6671996 to 2002, all trims
- Worst year
- 1996182 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 6268 fires · 58 injuries · 2 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 80kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 41Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 182 | 16 | 10 | Engine and cooling (95) | |
| 155 | 9 | 8 | Engine and cooling (83) | |
| 174 | 20 | 7 | Engine and cooling (67) | |
| 117 | 16 | 7 | Engine and cooling (29) | |
| 38 | 1 | 9 | Steering (16) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (1) |
What fails on the 1996 Plymouth Breeze
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 52% |
95 | 2 | Shop engine and cooling parts for the 1996 Plymouth Breeze |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 14% |
25 | 1 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 12% |
22 | 3 | Shop brakes (hydraulic) parts for the 1996 Plymouth Breeze |
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 11% |
20 | 1 | Shop steering parts for the 1996 Plymouth Breeze |
| SuspensionStruts, springs and control arms | 8% |
14 | 1 | Shop suspension parts for the 1996 Plymouth Breeze |
| Air bags | 6% |
11 | 10 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 4% |
8 | 0 | Shop body and structure parts for the 1996 Plymouth Breeze |
| Unknown or other | 4% |
7 | 1 | — |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
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1996 plymouth breeze had something break from the vehicle. The consumer stated the vehicle stalled and caught fire after coming to a rest on the shoulder. *kb the cause of the fire was undetermined. (ohio traffic crash report)*jb
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1998 plymouth breeze, was exiting ohio turnpike when it caught on fire. Bf (ohio traffic report # 10-0637-91)*jb updated 12/10/10 *bf
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The consumer's vehicle was parked in the parking lot of the hospital, the intercom announced there was a vehicle on fire. The vehicle was not driveable. *jb *nm
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Plymouth Breeze years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 1996, 1998, 1997 carry the most filings on the Plymouth Breeze. The 1996 alone has 182 complaints, led by engine and cooling.
What is the most common Plymouth Breeze problem?
On the 1996 model year, the most-reported component is engine and cooling with 95 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Plymouth Breeze problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Plymouth Breeze complaints that include mileage is about 80,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.