What breaks most · 1990 to 1998 model years
Plymouth Laser problems by year
Owners have filed 117 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Plymouth Laser across model years 1990 to 1998. Three years stand out: 1992 for powertrain and transmission complaints, 1990 for engine and cooling complaints and 1991 for seat belts complaints. The quietest years are 1994 and 1993.
- Years to check closely: 1992, 1990, 1991
- Fewest complaints: 1994, 1993
- Complaints on file
- 1171990 to 1998, all trims
- Worst year
- 199235 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 52 fires · 5 injuries · 1 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 126kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 8Across 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | 0 | 4 | Engine and cooling (8) | |
| 30 | 2 | 1 | Seat belts (9) | |
| 35 | 1 | 1 | Powertrain and transmission (17) | |
| 15 | 2 | 1 | Powertrain and transmission (8) | |
| 4 | 0 | 1 | Visibility (2) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Interior Lighting (1) | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | Fuel system (1) |
What fails on the 1992 Plymouth Laser
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 49% |
17 | 1 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 26% |
9 | 0 | Shop engine and cooling parts for the 1992 Plymouth Laser |
| VisibilityMirrors and glass | 11% |
4 | 0 | Shop all visibility parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Seat belts | 9% |
3 | 0 | Check recalls for seat belts on NHTSA.gov |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 9% |
3 | 0 | Shop electrical system parts for the 1992 Plymouth Laser |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 9% |
3 | 0 | Shop body and structure parts for the 1992 Plymouth Laser |
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 3% |
1 | 0 | Shop brakes (hydraulic) parts for the 1992 Plymouth Laser |
| Child Seat | 3% |
1 | 0 | — |
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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1992 plymouth laser badly slipping transmission car quit in traffic able to get it towed to repair a full transmission repair at cost of 1150.00 $ by transmission kint temple tx in 2002 all parts replaced oct 10 2002.
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Engine: motor on car eats timing belt on vehicle. Driving on freeway and vehicle stopped ,loss of all power. Timing belt had 30,000 miles. There was a national recall in 1993, had new engine and timing belt put on. The problem is still an existing one. *ak
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The timing belt was recalled on this vehicle and replaced mar. 31, 1994. Now 20,000 miles later it has gone out again. It was a service recall. *ak
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 Laser years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 1992, 1990, 1991 carry the most filings on the Plymouth Laser. The 1992 alone has 35 complaints, led by powertrain and transmission.
What is the most common Plymouth Laser problem?
On the 1992 model year, the most-reported component is powertrain and transmission with 17 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Plymouth Laser problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Plymouth Laser complaints that include mileage is about 126,000 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.