10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
87,080 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.

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problem #5

Oct 072018

PT Cruiser 4-cyl

  • 70,000 miles
While driving on 10/7/2018 the steering became hard and upon stopping there were flames under the hood. I did research and found that there had been a recall on PT CRUISER in the past, 04V268000. When I contact daimler Chrysler I was told there were no recalls on my VIN. Before driving the car on 10/7/2018 there was not any steering fluid under the car. Luckily the fire was noticed prior to leaving the car or the car would have been engulfed in flames. I will like Chrysler to pay for this repair. The car only has 70,000 miles and has been cared for very well. Please let me know if you can help with this claim. Thank you, [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Flourtown, PA, USA

problem #4

Nov 162014

PT Cruiser

  • 70,000 miles
The contact owns a 2008 Chrysler PT CRUISER. While driving at any speed, the vehicle experienced a complete loss of power and all the warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure intermittently occurred two minutes after the vehicle was restarted. The contact stated that the failure manually needed to be restarted in some instances of the failure. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired.the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.

- Algonquin, IL, USA

problem #3

Feb 062015

PT Cruiser

  • 100,000 miles
I was coming home from work and driving down the street when the lights on the dashboard went out, the gas gauge went to zero and the car just died. I lost power steering and braking and I was lucky there was no one behind me at the time. The key was locked in the steering wheel and I could not restart. I called 911 for help as cars were now zooming up behind me stalled in the lane. I was so scared that someone would hit me. I sat waiting for the tow truck for about 15 minutes when the lights suddenly came on again and the gas gauge went back to full. I tried to start it and it started right up. I was able to drive it 2 blocks home. The next day I drove to the cleaners and while trying to park it died in the parking lot. I again waited and it finally started again. I took it to the Chrysler dealership and they say they can find nothing wrong. They suggested I junk it for about $100. I have also taken to an independent mechanic and he said he could not find a problem. I see there are others who have reported a similar problem. And now there is a Chrysler recall on other 2008 models with what seems like the same problem. I cannot drive this car because it is unsafe in traffic.

- Daly City, CA, USA

problem #2

Feb 092015

PT Cruiser 4-cyl

  • 106,401 miles
I was exiting the highway and heard a pop and my car started spinning out of control and I almost hit a medium. My car was stuck on the exit ramp.

- Columbus, OH, USA

problem #1

May 232014

PT Cruiser

  • 89,000 miles
I have been driving this car for a while and on the day this happened I had returned from work parked in my driveway with no problems. When it was time to go back to work I backed out of the driveway and noticed the car handled hard. I stopped shifted it back into park and then went back into drive still the steering was hard to turn. Of course the was late Friday memorial day weekend so I ended up renting a car for 5 days because of the holiday and the fact I had an extended warranty so no Chrysler certified mechanic was on duty to work on my car.Tuesday morning I go over to the dealership only to be told a belt had slipped and there was no explanation for why it happened. I wasn't charged for this but it cost me a tow and 5 days of rental for a car so I could get to and from work. When I got on this site I couldn't find any info so I still am not sure if the car is safe to take very far.

- Muskegon, MI, USA