"I don't envy you," were the parting words of a California staffer just before our editor-in-chief drove our long-term Dodge Intrepid test vehicle from Beverly Hills to Denver.

Twelve hundred miles later, our driver arrived in Denver, completely satisfied with the Intrepid's long-distance performance and looking forward to spending more time in the car. With the exception of the somewhat sketchy exterior build quality, he had only good things to say about the Intrepid, such as: "It's a very nice car at a very good price." He was happy with the vehicle's overhead cam engine, Infinity sound system with CD, leather interior, gargantuan trunk, roomy backseat, communicative steering, large front cupholders, quiet cabin, effective brakes and traction control.

En route, he saw only one other 1998 Intrepid gracing the highways between California and Colorado, which made our beautiful Bright Platinum Metallic sedan a unique presence on the road. Thanks to a rock-solid chassis and well tied-down suspension, he was also able to avoid killing a lost black Lab that had wandered onto the freeway near Needles, Calif. The ABS worked admirably and the brakes hauled him down from 80 mph fast enough to save the pooch's life.

Just before the Intrepid's cross-country jaunt it was taken into the shop, due to an ornery driver's side window which sometimes failed to go down, and a driver's seat that felt loose on the track when in the forward-most position. As with most visits to professionals who can help, the first problem corrected itself while driving to the service center at La Brea Avenue Motors. After taking a look at the seat, the service tech did some adjusting and told us that it should be fine in the current position. The current position, however, wasn't all the way forward and made it difficult for that staffer to drive comfortably.

Something else we've noticed is that the fuel economy seems to fluctuate quite a bit between highway and city driving: 13.2 mpg up to 30.4 mpg is a big stretch, although this month the average fuel economy rested at an admirable 26.9 mpg, with most of those being highway miles.

Best Fuel Economy: 30.4 mpg
Worst Fuel Economy: 13.2 mpg
Maintenance Costs: $0
Problems: Driver's side window not working properly, driver's seat loose on its track.