general problems of the 2001 Chrysler Pt Cruiser

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".

The contact owned a 2001 Chrysler Pt Cruiser. While the vehicle was parked, the contact noticed white smoke coming from the engine compartment. The vehicle then became engulfed in flames. The contact exited the vehicle and rushed away from the scene. The contact stated that the vehicle exploded. The fire department was contacted and extinguished the fire. It was not indicated if a police report was filed. The vehicle was destroyed and towed to a salvage yard. The dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and sent a technician to inspect the vehicle. No further assistance was offered. There were no injuries. The failure mileage was 107,000. The VIN was not provided.

"takata recall " in my Pt Cruiser the engine dropped down in the car and the front axle bar and frame was broken and the wheels could not turn or control the car I am lucky to be alive the vehicle was in motion on a city street trying to turn into a ice cream shop the car is still doing a sudden jerking when driven and after paying a lot of money to get it started and fixed I am still having problems with this car and no money to get another.

I filed a claim with Chrysler about the rusted out engine cradle and they refused to replace it.

I first sent this complaint on Mar 7, 2014 and received an email reply acknowledging it, but since haven't heard anything. Is my complaint being taken seriously? it is a serious complaint as follows: on Feb 5, 2014, my 2001 Pt Cruiser shut down while it was being driven down a busy street. It didn't make a sputter or a sound, it just died. Luckily, it coasted long enough for me to pull off onto a quieter street and up against a curb. We had it towed to the automotive shop the explanation for the motor shutting down was alarming. The automotive tech reported the crankshaft position sensor needed replacing. As I understand, when this sensor goes bad, the engine automatically shuts down. With no warning. I had gas in my pt. I don't think people know about this; the tech said most cars that are 'newer' (as far back as 2002, at least) have this sensor. This is a serious safety concern and appears to be widespread. I looked through every page of my 2001 Pt Cruiser owner's manual and didn't find any indication that there would be a problem like this or that the crankshaft position sensor should be tested regularly, if it could be tested, that is. The national highway traffic safety administration would be doing the public a lifesaving service to look into the danger of this failed design, not to just replace them in all cars with a new one, but with one that is not designed to fail at the risk of the drive and anyone else in the vicinity when a moving car decides to just shut down. With no warning. There is not a time frame for this part to fail, but cars that are around my cruisers may be ready to give out. Please look into this dangerous situation. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

I have had many problems with this car to include electrical, over heating (which was never fixed even after taking it to the dealership 3 times), and transmission. In 2013 as I was driving down a busy 4 lane hwy. I heard a sudden and loud booming noise and the car began shaking violently. Thinking that I had hit something in the road I began slowing down and making my way to the shoulder of the hwy. But before I could get to the shoulder of the hwy. The car made that loud booming noise a second time and shook violently again. It then lost all power to the front wheels leaving me stranded in the middle of the hwy. After removing and opening up the transmission I found that the drive shaft in the center of the transmission had sheared in half. Upon further inspection I believe that the slightly worn engine mounts cause a binding action on the drive shaft in the transmission thus causing the shaft which is made of a composite material to basically explode inside the transmission. This problem is so well known by us car buffs that jasper engines inc. (a well known company that remanufactures engines and transmissions) replaces this stock shaft with a stronger more robust one when they remanufacture these transmissions. The violent shaking of the car that happened when this transmission shaft failed almost cause me to loose control of the vehicle on a very busy hwy. Chrysler should recall all transmissions with this type of composite shaft.

There is a chronic problem with 2001 to 2003 Chrysler Pt Cruisers overheating to the point of disabling the car, and sometimes damaging the car beyond repair. There appears to be no solution to the problem. The following discussion thread has over 250 people complaining about this problem, and only a small fraction of them have had satisfactory solutions. . Read more...

My 2001 Chrysler Pt Cruiser consumes approximately 1 quart of oil every 1,000 miles. I reported this problem to the dealership that services my car and was told that this was normal and within acceptable specifications but I do not believe this to be true.

Engine stops dead in the middle of driving. . . Dealer has not been able to repeat problem but 4 warnings come up on computer.