I have owned everything with little brand loyalty.   Ford, Chevrolet, Oldsmobile, Dodge, Jeep, Porsche, BMW.  25 vehicles at last count.  I've never owned a Japanese vehicle yet recognize their quality.  If you are wondering, the Dodge was a horrible vehicle too.  I should have learned from that experience. I was completely open to buying the best vehicle.  Now, I am biased.  Any Car but MOPAR.

  Why did you doing this?

Because I was pissed off and I have a right to express my opinion.  Hopefully others will consider my opinion valuable.  I'm not trying to damage D-C.  I just want to bring to their attention a problem that I had that was never resolved in their organization.  Thank God we have some remaining freedom of speech in this country.

  What qualifies you to make opinions about automotive quality and service?

Uh..  Buying cars?  Buying lots of cars?  Driving lots of cars?  Giving somebody my money and expect them to deliver the goods?

How about just being old?  Maybe I drive a lot?  Maybe I read a lot?

What makes anybody an expert?

I have above average mechanical ability.  I've been the chief mechanic at a service station in my younger years.  I continue to maintain my own vehicles when repairs are not covered by warranty.  I recently did a complete restoration of my Corvette.  I know what I'm doing with a vehicle.  It's my hobby.  I can still diagnose and fix problems the first time better than most mechanics in a 5-star dealership around here.

  You are a jerk.  You just whined and complained.  You never let the dealer do their job.

Sure, sure.  Whatever you think.  If this is the only conclusion you can reach after reading all the information on this site including the links to other sites, then I'm not going to convince you in this section of the site.

The car and dealer service sucked.  I'm right.  You are wrong.  I am right about you being wrong.

  You must be the only person that has problems.  Are there other sites?

They are everywhere.  Check my list of links.

  Lemon Law protection?

No.  Too late.  Also, I think it would be quite a battle since several of my "problems" can't be duplicated by the dealer so they haven't even tried to fix them.

  How long did you own the vehicle?

Bought it in September 1999.  As of May 2001, it had 36,000 miles on it.  Dumped it June 2002 with 56,000 miles.

  Why did you buy it if it is so bad?

On paper, the vehicle seemed like an exceptional bargain.  Except for a few subjective criticisms that I have listed, the problems did not show up in the limited test drive. 

I was taken by the styling and the Motor Trend "Car of the Year" rating.  I forgot that Motor Trend also named the Chrysler "K" cars "Car of the Year" back in the 80's.

  Why didn't you just dump it and buy something else?

Like I have piles of cash to throw away every time somebody sells me a product that sucks.  Most reputable companies will try to rectify the situation.  I've had a problem or two with other makes of cars.  Sometimes it took a second trip to the dealer.  But they always fixed it.

We do have financial priorities.  This car depreciated rapidly because of the brand and because of the mileage.  I have now dumped it almost 3 years and 56,000 miles later.

  So what are you driving now?

A 1997 Lincoln Mark VIII, a 1977 Corvette, and a 1991 Jeep Cherokee. 

The Lincoln has been virtually problem-free and annoyance-free for the 40K miles I've owned it.  Dealer service from Lincoln-Mercury dealers has exemplary.

The Jeep, a design prior to Chrysler takeover and the Daimler-Chrysler merger, has been an exceptional vehicle.  However, a trip to the same D-C dealer's parts counter for a part for the Jeep reminded me of the rude, incompetent service I experienced in 300m back in 2000 and 2001.  Nothing ever changes.  They still suck.  I just wonder how they get by with it.  Does D-C ever check they quality of service that their 5-star dealers provide?  Apparently not. 

  Were these problems really that big of a deal?

To me, yes.  To Daimler-Chrysler, obviously not.  That's why they are not fixed and some of the problems were still being built into every 300m coming off the assembly line and the dealers don't care to fix them.  I lost a lot of time and spent a lot of money on rental vehicles.  The car was rarely fixed when I returned days later.  I don't have the luxury of going without a car for days.

  Were the problems escalated by the dealer?

According to the service manager, yes.  Regional said don't fix the problem unless you can see it.  I have no proof anything was ever done.

  Did Chrysler ever contact you?

Never.  But some of their employees (so they claim to be) have definitely contacted me, pissed off and with abusive, threatening emails.  They never put any effort into resolving problems but they were very aware of them because they surfed my site!  I eventually intercepted web traffic originating from the Tuttle-Click Chrysler dealer in Irvine California and sent them off to an alternate web page.

  Did you try going to another dealer for service?

Yes.  But I shouldn't have to do this.  They are all 5-star certified, right?

The second dealer, highly recommended, screwed up a simple repair to the shifter.  The car needed a shifter cable replacement.  Why?  The car was junk.  No car should require this sort of repair today, especially one that only saw the perfect climate around here and had less than 50,0000 miles on it.  Anyway, it was returned to me obviously out of adjustment after two repair attempts.  I would have taken it back a third time but traded the vehicle for a new one instead.

  It looks like you have a prejudice against Chrysler?

Didn't have one before this incident but I do now.  I have a problem with their customer service and quality that, based on responses from others, is not a local problem.  

Quality of product and service are important to me and I received no satisfaction in these area from my investment in their product.  I got a great looking vehicle with lots of bells and whistles that was unreliable, noisy, and a nightmare to try to get serviced.  Furthermore, its depreciation reduced its value.