Actually our 2.8, the basic engine is pretty tough, with a couple exceptions and they are all head gasket and above. (head bolts, gasket, valves / rockers, and the timing belt fiasco that requires major overhaul work every 7-10 years.)
Other than those, all the problems come from badly engineered add-on stuff required by EPA, and sold to the world.
(EGR + oil-laden CCV)
(Catalytic converter that necks exhaust to 2" or less, and requires excess unburned fuel to fire it, and poor cam timing that allows the fuel to pass through the combustion chamber from intake to exhaust, unburnt.)
And all results of the C-J-D bean-counters' decisions:
A fully electronically controlled engine and transmission (not a bad thing) That is controlled by a C-J-D electronic nightmare. (REALLY bad thing) (bad switches, glitchy programming, REALLY cheap wiring with insulation that doesn't hold up, and fails at poorly designed stress points.
Components that are not up to the task required. IE rear window regulators (not an engine thing, I know, but) Torque Converter totally underdesigned for the task, and the fix is to NERF the engine? Really?
A vehicle that shares the same wiring, relay and programming with the gas version, but they leave the fuel pump out?
What did that save? $5 per vehicle? Stick it in and charge us $20! But no, they want the service work.
And annoying things like a super-long trans dipstick that pops out every time it's driven, unless it's cut off short so you have to make your own marks.
So it seems to me that the VM engine is actually one of the better things Fiat has sold in America.
Compare to:
(X-1/9)
124 spider
It seems the biggest mistake they made was allowing it to be installed in a vehicle that C-J-D viewed as their version of a Yugo.
