Chrysler PT Cruiser Complaints
2,623 consumer complaints on file.
- #11535544July 31, 2023FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
The contact owns a 2002 Chrysler PT Cruiser. The contact stated that while driving at 35 MPH, she could smell fuel in the interior of the vehicle. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who located a fuel leak on the fuel trail line. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 02V215000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 138,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11534177July 24, 2023TIRES:SIDEWALL, TIRES
The contact owns a 2003 Chrysler equipped with Douglas, Tire line: Dug Xtra-Trac II, Tire size: 205/55R/16 91T and DOT number: N60FN11R. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact noticed that the vehicle started to perform slowly when the front passenger side tire inadvertently exploded. No warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to Walmart where the tire was replaced. The contact stated that the front passenger side tire started to leak air. The contact then stated that she noticed that a bubble had developed on the sidewall of the tire. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 157920.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11526442June 11, 2023STEERING
Hello My name is [XXX]. I own a 2002 Chrysler Pt cruiser and for some reason the power steering went out while I was driving! I was able to make it home because I wasn’t far away! My power steering stopped out of no where and my fluid is full and my belt is attached I was also told my pump was in great condition! I’m really concerned because I had my 6 year old child in the car! I now can’t make appointments work or even take my child to school I’m in need for help! INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11492421November 5, 2022AIR BAGS
Air bag warning light on
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11476715July 30, 2022UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The car (manual 5-speed) has issues going into reverse and hits hard shifting into other gears. I see where online it shows this issue happened quite a bit with the 2002 PT Cruiser. I don't drive my care every day and I keep it maintained very well. I have not had any accidents in it so I believe this may also be a recall issue.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11473780July 13, 2022ENGINE, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The electrical system is malfunctioning the fans do not kick on at all,even after reaching temperature.Even when the "Air" condition is turned on full blast or the "Heater" it doesn't matter which one is used it still doesn't engage the "Fan".
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11469857June 17, 2022ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I'm driving along, cruise set to 65. Ac on. Radio on. No sounds or weird feels from the car. Every light on the dash comes on. They went off after two seconds, with the seatbelt light being last to shut off. Then the car hits 113k miles about ten miles later and just... shuts off. All gauges drop to zero. Ac shuts off. Radio still playing. Full tank of gas. Headlights still on, brakes worked, power steering worked, and emergency flashers worked. I managed to get out of traffic and pull over without causing an accident. I turn the radio off and turn the key off for a few minutes. It cranked right back up and ran a little rough for a moment before smoothing out. I drove home without incident, but kept the radio and cruise off. And stayed under 65. Thankfully, traffic was light. The car has not been fixed as of this posting, nor has it been seen by anyone due to the weekend. Unsure of when I can get it fixed due to finances, but if this happens in heavy traffic or on one of many roads with no shoulder, lives will be at risk.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11467435June 3, 2022STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS:UNDERBODY SHIELDS
I heard a strange noise, so I looked under the front end of the car. Saw all that missing. This has happened in the last two weeks. I do not drive in bad weather.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11459151March 31, 2022STEERING
On the way home from work my vehicle began smoking. The next exit off the freeway I80 was taken. As I exited my vehicle became hard to steer. I was able to get it to the closest auto repair shop which was Firestone. The power steering hose had a leak which caused the smoke and my vehicle being hard to steer. After 3 attempts with Firestone and them consulting with Chyrsler Service Department in Fairflied, California I had my vehicle towed to my mechanic. He also had trouble getting the new hose to fit on my vehicle. My mechanic also consulted with the Chrysler Service Department in Antioch, California. They assured him that was the correct replacement hose that Chrysler had replaced because the original hose had been recalled and they no longer carried the orignal hose. The only problem is my mechanic nor the Firestone mechanics could get it to fit. I have contacted Chrysler several times with them not taking reponsibility for the non fitting hose as the claim my VIN is not one of the vehicles affected. Attached you will find the original recall notice sent to me in 2011, the letter I sent to the address on the recall notice and all the receipts of attempts to fix my vehicle. The letter I sent to the address on the recall notice was returned as "unable to forward". I'm hoping other PTs with VIN not listed had the same problem as I and can cause Chrysler to repair and reimburse such vehicles.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11446547January 6, 2022SEATS
Was warming my car up and drove 2 miles to my mom's house and turned it off. Came out about 30 minutes later and the car was full of smoke. Aired out the car and noticed a burnt hole in the middle of the passenger seat. The seat warmer had malfunction and started the seat on fire. Even with the vehicle turned off.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- Yes
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11445348December 28, 2021SEATS
The contact owns a 2010 Chrysler PT Cruiser. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the front driver's side seat inadvertently moved forward toward the steering wheel. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. The mechanic was able to adjust the front driver's seatback to its original position; however, the vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 69,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11441234November 21, 2021STEERING, WHEELS, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Answers and explanations to all of the above questions: My power steering assembly is leaking pretty bad and is only getting worse. I have a bad shoulder that I had surgery on and if it goes completely out I am afraid i wont be able to turn the steering wheel & cause an accident. The rims on the vehicle are cracked/cracking & I believe one has a hole or 2 & another 1 is forming one. It's also scratching & ruining the rotors. Its not the pads they are fine but I need at least 1 new rotor & can't because the rims are defective causing it to happen again which can easily damage the calipers locking up the wheel causing a crash plus sometimes theres a loud crunching noise not grinding like the pads are bad cause they are not. I know the difference. The trac off & airbag lights are on then they go off then come back on again.The dashboard is cracked and it caused the vent to break where anything can get in it.The clear coat is peeling and yet the paint under it is in great shape.I also believe that the instrument cluster is causing the lights to come on the dashboard.The vehicle can be picked up when ever you have a spot open for it. I would like 48 hours notice due to work. This is a safety issue if the power steering goes while driving I cant steer it because I didn't know it was leaking it went out and I was stuck blocking traffic and couldn't turn it the passenger had to do it for me, If the rims get worse or hole bigger it can crack or break in half while I am driving. The defrost vent is open to particles that can get in there that shouldn't. The airbag light on could be a defect or the air bags defective. Nothing has been inspected on it since I just found out when looking up this make, year and model a price on power steering to find out there's a recall on it as well as other issues. There were no warnings and the only code that came up was the high fan relay switch. Since then the trac off light goes on and off as well as airbag light and now is currently on.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11427363August 1, 2021ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE
all of the dash board instrument cluster lights turn on breifly,car speed starts to drop, lights on dash turn back off,[ all except seat belt lights] then car seems to restart itself and will reaccelerate.all this happens while we are driving in traffic at highway speeds, this is not good and could result in a very serious incident, not only for us but for othe
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11426744July 27, 2021ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
While driving the vehicle I could begin to smell a strong odor of gas them almost like the smell of plastic melting and the vehicle engine started running hot temperature so I immediately turned off the engine as I pulled over to the side of the road and as I stepped out of the car aflame began under the hood and ended up burning my entire engine. Fire department had to come and extinguish the car.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- Yes
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11422896June 30, 2021STEERING
I bought this car and seen online there was a safety recall for the power steering/hoses malfunctioning. This cars power steering is non-existent and WILL NOT HOLD any power steering fluid. I'd like to file for the recall. This makes my car dangerous to drive. It's my only transportation. Thanks! [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11389021January 20, 2021STEERING
POWER STEERING HOSE LEAKING.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11386711January 5, 2021FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
FUEL ODOR IN PASSENGER COMPARTMENT INVESTIGATED AND FUEL LEAK IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT WAS FOUND. THE LEAK IS AT THE CONNECTION FROM THE FUEL TANK TO THE FUEL RAIL CONNECTION. THE CONNECTION IS ON THE VEHICLE RIGHT/PASSENGER SIDE AND AGAINST THE FIRE WALL. IF NO RECALL, AT LEAST ALL REGISTERED DRIVERS SHOULD BE NOTIFIED OF THE ISSUE. LEAK WAS DISCOVERED ON 1ST LOOK DUE TO GOOGLE SEARCH OF ISSUE. ISSUE IS NOTICED AT START UP AND DISAPPEARS (LEAK CONTINUES) WITH VEHICLE SPEED OR WITH AIR FLOW DILUTION. CUSTOMERS NEED TO FIX OR FACE THE POSSIBILITY OF A UNDER HOOD FIRE. THANKS.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11386397January 4, 2021AIR BAGS
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 CHRYSLER PT CRUISER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNDISCLOSED SPEED, THE AIR BAG SENSOR WARNING LIGHT REMAINED ILLUMINATED. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS NOT DETERMINED. AN UNKNOWN DEALER AND THE MANUFACTURER WERE NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE BUT, NO ASSISTANCE WAS OFFERED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 102,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11385200December 28, 2020ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE
SPORADIC INSTRUMENT CLUSTER POWERS ON AND OFF ILLUMINATING ALL LIGHTS. WHEN CONDITION OCCURS IT IS VASTLY DISTRACTING UNABLE TO DETERMINE VEHICLE SPEED ACCURATELY. WHEN THE ISSUE IS PRESENT THE ENGINE WILL TYPICALLY SHUT OFF. THIS SEEMS LIKE AN INCREDIBLY BAD CONDITION TO ALLOW IN A VEHICLE AND CONTACTING CHRYSLER LED TO NO SOLUTION FOR RESOLVING. INTERNET SEARCH SUGGESTS THIS IS NOT A ONE OFF SITUATION AND EXISTS ACROSS SEVERAL MODEL YEARS. CHRYSLER DOES HAVE A RECALL NOTICE "01V288000" FOR MODEL YEAR 2001 WHICH APPEARS TO BE VERY SIMILAR IN NATURE. DUE TO THE HIGHLY DISTRACTING NATURE OF THIS CONDITION AND FREQUENCY OF SIMILAR OWNER REPORTS IT SEEMS PARTICULARLY EGREGIOUS THAT A RECALL NOTICE DOES NOT EXIST.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11364677October 16, 2020POWER TRAIN
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 CHRYSLER PT CRUISER. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 45 MPH, THE VEHICLE DOWNSHIFTED TO SECOND GEAR INDEPENDENTLY. THE CONTACT STATED NO WARNING LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT STATED HE PARKED ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. THE CONTACT RESTARTED THE VEHICLE AND DROVE TO HIS DESTINATION. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC TO BE DIAGNOSED. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE TRANSMISSION SENSOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. A DEALER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE MANUFACTURER HAD NOT BEEN INFORMED OF FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 50,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0