general problems of the 2008 Chrysler Sebring - part 1

On December 15, 2025, while driving my 2008 Chrysler Sebring in indianapolis, indiana, I noticed smoke coming from the driver’s side near the battery. Shortly afterward, the car completely stopped responding — the brakes and steering were unresponsive — and the vehicle caught fire in that area. I exited the car safely, and the fire department responded and extinguished the fire. The exact cause of the fire is unknown, but I suspect a battery or electrical component failure. No warning lights appeared prior to the incident, except for the smoke I noticed. The incident has not yet been inspected by a dealer, manufacturer, or insurance representative. If inspection is needed, the affected parts can be examined in the tow lot, but much of the vehicle has been destroyed, and there is very little left of the car due to the fire. The safety of myself and others was at risk due to the sudden loss of braking and steering control, as well as the vehicle catching fire while on the road. The problem has not been reproduced, and I am reporting it to ensure the incident is recorded for safety monitoring and potential investigation.

I have a 2008 Chrysler Sebring sedan. The radiator is leaking fluid that splashes all over the wires causing a burning smell. I later found out that this is caused by an electrical issue with the sensors. Similarly my tire pressure sensors are fried. These issues have eroded wires causing my a/c and cruise control systems to malfunction. My power windows have issues sometimes I can't get them to roll up or down. My internal lights in my car flickering on and off. The mess from the radiator is also causing my engine to overheat. I am now having issues with oil pan leaks as a result of too much pressure from the engine. I see that only certain vins were added to the recall list. I strongly suggest that NHTSA add other vins to the recall list, especially mine, since I'm having those exact same issues. I see that there are complaints about this year make and model as recent as last year. Why hasn't the recall list been updated? please update the recall list. Please and thank you!!.

The vehicle stalls and jerks back for up to 2 seconds. However, these two seconds can be very dangerous on a roadway as driving at high speeds it may cause an accident.

My win module is no good or my cars computer. When I drive my car shuts off.

Won't shift out of park.

Front suspension cross-member-sub frame totally rusted out, car has 86,000 miles on it, was garage kept a lot, car is in good shape and sub frame is only thing rusted out, parts around it looks new, look at picture, this should be a recall or Chrysler should pay for it,never seen anything rust like this,very dangerous driving like this.

Gear shift problems it's stuck in park.

I took the vehicle after purchase to the shop to look over and seller agreed that he would cover the cost for "sensor" issue as he stated! the car needs a camshaft and due to the age of the vehicle the mechanic stated if that part is replaced it will possibly need a transmission as well as a new engine. Therefore the repairs would exceed the value of the vehicle or not work at all and waste all that money. Car had issues starting from day 1 too.

Air bag lights and door locking mechanizism failing ## #vpic# 1 - check digit (9th position) does not calculate properly #vpic#.

My 2008 Chrysler Sebring has been in the shop since November 9, 2019. Defective tipm. The starter has caught fire 3 times. Vehicle stalls out and leaves you in the middle of the road. Battery has been replaced. Ignition switch is getting hot when keys are in and the key gets stuck in ignition. Tipm was replaced. Car is still not running due to dealership not knowing what new parts to try. Have also had several problems with cooling systems/fan not working properly.

While driving the dashboard lights flickered then went out, my convertible top has a malfunction and will not open and the door locks unlock and lock on their own.

I ran my VIN to search for any recalls on the vehicle I purchased last year and the description for my VIN comes up as a 2008 Chrysler 200, but my car is a 2008 Chrysler Sebring. If a VIN is a unique identification number for each car what does tl it mean that the description doesn't match my car?.

My car was parked in my driveway, as I was closing the convertible roof, I heard a popping sound two different times. Once I made sure the windows and roof closed I looked to see the back seat arm rest panels had blown away from the frame of the car. I have it at a dealership now waiting to hear there explanation that would cause this to happen.

I bought this vehicle as is in February of this year. The convertible top gets stuck in the up position and doesn't go back down. I cannot see otu of the rear view and obviously cannot operate the vehicle safely. I contacted a dealership and Chrysler and both told me the recall had been addressed in 2008 (they llooked it up by VIN). However, it obviously wasn't since the top is still sticking. They basically told me too bad. However, they were unable to tell me which dealership had marked it as a completed and repaired recall which is strange. I would like it fixed ASAP since I cannot operate the vehicle without being able to see out the rear windshield! it was in a parking lot when this happened.

The front, especially drivers, door window lift mechanism breaks, causing the window to retreat down, leaving the window in an open position. This has been fixed 5 times and keeps breaking. A definite design flaw.

Chryslers are known for their terrible transmissions, but this is our second Chrysler Sebring in this year range (same engine/trans models), both with the same issue. When shifting from or thru neutral, (eg. Reverse to drive), the transmission shifts so hard that it can lift the engine and snap a mount. This causes the car to make knocking noises when shifting (any gear), and causes the car to lurch in and out of gear, neutral, and park.

Horn and passenger side low beam went out on my 4-cyl. 2. 4l 2008 Chrysler Sebring sedan about a month ago. I replaced the bulb, which is labor intensive on this car in itself and the low beam still did not work. I tested the new bulb and it worked fine. I moved the bulb to the drivers side headlamp and it worked fine. The harness for the bulb connector carries a 12v current but still the low beam does not work. Every online search points to a faulty tipm(totally integrated power module). I can't afford a new one at $595 and that's if I replace it myself. I'm unable to find a compatible used part at salvage yards in the area and Chrysler dealer says there is currently a month long national backorder on the part and is unsure if I'll have a replacement in a month. This alone should be a red flag that there is an underlying issue at Chrysler. In the mean time I continue to search salvage yards and am looking for a way to bypass the tipm to get the headlamp working, which in itself could still leave me open to other failures on the tipm. All this said, I'm wondering if other electrical components will start to go soon as well. As it is I'm having a problem with the horn, which I believe also runs through the tipm.

Passenger window exploded in the door while touching control button for window to open to ask directions. Had to travel by myself to mexico 300 miles away and had to drive all the way back to las vegas with no window. The driver's side window did the same exact thing last summer in 2015. Called fca customer assistance center everyday for a week now and they told me my case was being escalated to a case manager. They would not help me. All I want is for Chrysler to pay for the repair of my defective window. I called 1-800-992-1997. They call themselves fca customer assistance center. They were a waste of my time and effort. Last window on driver's side did the very same thing. I want satisfaction!!! I want the window repaired by chyrsler on them as I repaired my last window blowout. Can any one suggest some help as I really need it today and even last week? I'm afraid of driving my own car. Chyrslers should either bring their windows up to new standards (electrically) or not sell any to people who live in the desert. They are not safe!!! this car is always garaged and has low mileage as I worked close to home. What's this world coming to? who's out there to help me? chyrsler sure is not!!! only god!!!!!!!!! I stopped for directions on this last window explosion, but the other window I was driving to the hospital without stopping.

Takata recall. During the course of a year since I've purchased this car, I have experienced issues with what I believe to be power steering. Twice while coming to a stop (stop sign or light), my steering would lock along with my brakes. When I took it to a shop I was told my thermostat needed replaced. I told them to fix the issue. On April 17th while driving home from work a little after midnight this same issue occurred only while I was still driving. I was able to force my wheel to turn enough to drive up the bend I was driving around rather than the school in front of me. Finally I hit a pole and my car has been ruled as a total loss. I have many concerns in regards to what actually happened and why.

I brought my car in 2009. My lights have blinked from the start. On August 11, 2015, I drove 1 hour and 17 minutes 59. 5 miles in moderate traffic. I arrived at agency. I exited the car. About 5 minutes later, I returned to my 2008 Chrysler Sebring and entered my car. I started the car as normal applying the brakes while shifting gears and put my car in reverse with acceleration. As my car was in motion the car dangerously shut off in the middle of the busy road and I had to apply the brakes quickly while rolling and in motion. My dad and I put a diagnostic on the car and it read a code. We checked the potential problems. The only problem was the transmission fluid. We refilled the transmission fluid. On March 4, 2016, I drove 51 minutes 33. 4 miles in moderate to heavy traffic. I arrived to a military location. I exited the car. About 3 minutes later, I returned to my 2008 Chrysler Sebring and entered my car. I started the car as normal applying the brakes while shifting gears and put my car in reverse with acceleration. As my car was in motion the car dangerously shut off in the middle of the busy road and I had to apply the brakes quickly while rolling and in motion. As my car was in motion the car dangerously shut off. My dad and I checked the transmission fluid and the transmission fluid seemed okay this time. The 2008 Chrysler Sebring dangerously shuts off while rolling and in motion. No light stays on during the duration of the trips to warn me of anything that may be malfunctioning. The 2008 Chrysler Sebring shuts off with no warning while in motion. After it shuts off while in motion the malfunction indicator light comes on and it goes off. I called the dealership that I had been taking my car in for service since I brought it. The Chrysler dealership has expressed uncertainty about finding the problem. I spoke with corporate with my VIN and they did not help.

My back lights work as long as the car is in park. But when I shift into drive they go off. I only know this because other drivers that was driving behind me told me so. I have been told it is tipm module. I do not have a $1000 for the repair so I only drive it in the day time.

I bought the car 1/02/2016 2 weeks later I am in motion I put my foot on the brake at a red light it takes off on its own,cuts off when I make a stop.

First I went to start the car, I noticed the battery wasn't starting. I open the hood and tried to move the battery post, they were tight, but the plastic cover on the post started sending sparks out when I touched it. After a while I tried to start it again and it started right up. Then I noticed the malfunction indicator light came on. I let it run for about a minute then I turned it off. I didn't drive it at all that day. Later I checked it again. It didn't start. So I did the same thing again it started right up but the electronic throttle control light was on as well. I was afraid to drive it I thought the sparks might make it catch on fire. I think there were a recall on this car a while back. I've never had a problem with this car. I know that many people have had this same problem on their Chrysler vehicles. I read about many other problems as well. What should I do next? I'm really not interested in paying any deductibles and car repairs at this time. Help!!! is this anything that I need to worry about?.

Vehicle shuts off while driving.

I was in the process of entering a highway from a driveway. I hit the gas pedal and the car took off uncontrollably across the highway, across lanes of traffic, went up an embankment and then back down where the car shut off. I had not driven the car since the accident, but when I picked up the vehicle at the dealership where the convertible roof had been worked on, I noticed the electronic throttle indicator light was "on". This may the reason it accelerated uncontrollably.

Was driving on the interstate headed east from hickory flat ms to myrtle ms. Throttle control light began to blink, check engine light came on, all power shut down quick, car would not start, waited 45 minutes before it started . Motorist stop to help me push it to the side of the hwy.

Front end knock felt through steering wheel after car warms up for 15 minutes. Car in motion or if you rock steering back and forth.

Vehicle came to a complete stall while taking left- hand turn on intersection @ ~15mph. It now shows the indicator light for the engine randomly and stalls somewhat frequently at low speeds. Lastly, the trans is slipping rigorously.

My car both in both park/drive will sporadically jump in rpm's for no reason. This has happened on 40+ occasions in which the vehicle will rev from 600 rpm's up over 3500 rpm's within a second. I called Chrysler and Chrysler stated that they have not have any reports from other vehicles and gave me no solutions to this problem. My check engine light is not on. I mentioned to Chrysler that I am afraid that my car is going to one day rev while I am driving and I will not be able to control it. I am afraid that I am going to either injure myself, passengers, other motorist and/or pedestrians. I have been at many stop lights and stop signs where it has revved and moved forward even with my foot firmly on the brake. I want to report this in case something happens, I do not want to be liable for the cars actions since Chrysler does not seem to want to take my issue seriously.

So far my 2008 Sebring has turned off while driving twice. I was slowing down from 30mph for a stop light and it turned off and was luckily able to utilize the brakes if not I would have rear ended the vehicle in front of me, but as for the steering, it was unresponsive. However, I turned my car back on as if nothing happen until the second time it stalled while turning into my street. Same issue occurred (no steering, but brakes were ok. )car stalls once again good thing my car turns back on immediately. Its was dangerous only for the fact that oncoming traffic would be unable to see me stalled there because road forms a hill over the canal, since soon after I went passed over the canal my street entrance is more or less 20ft from the canal, it could be a blind spot.

When raising or lowering the top it would malfunction (some where between completely up or down) and remain in that state sometimes for hours, local towing services refuse to transport the vehicle to a nearby dealership out of fear they would do more damage to it. Since purchasing the vehicle (2007) we've had it serviced (Sep' 2007, Jul' 2010, and Sep' 2011) at different dealerships for the same problem; each time they assured us that the problem had been corrected. Most recently (may 29th) we again had the vehicle in for service, for the same problem. As before, the rear window panel (right side) has dropped several inches, the top is inoperative, and a strap that attaches to the underside of the top has broken and hangs down into the cradle. As royal protection plan has expired, the dealership has projected my out-of-pocket repair costs, this time, to exceed $1,015. We have not been able to determine if a recall has been issued for this recurring problem.

The throttle body light just can on after crossing a speed bump and stop and killed and hesitated to restart now this throttle body part is on national back order.

I was driving in stop and go traffic and started speeding up due to less traffic. I was going 60 mph when my car stopped accelerating and started making this weird revving noise (the kind when you are parked or in neutral), my warning light came on for the electrical panel. I then pulled over because it was not going any faster than 35 mph. Just letting it sit it was making those same noises. I turned the car off and restarted it. The light when away and it was able to drive again. It had a little issue getting back up to speed but overall it went back to normal.

The car sometimes stalls. On several occassions, mostly during or after it rains, it will just cut off. It cuts off at stop lights and while I'm driving. There are no indications on the dashboard before it cuts off. It always starts back up after each incident.

When closing the top, I heard a pop sound and the roof stopped. It would no longer open or close but was stuck halfway open. The deck lid (a trim piece with plastic hinges) had broken affecting the top operation. It was repaired out of pocket in 2013. Now in 2015, the same piece broke again, again rendering the top inoperable. I contacted Chrysler about the issue and was told there was nothing they could do. I live in PA and only use my top about 3-4 months out of a year (and limited at that since I have small children in the back seat daily) so this broken piece was not even used much before it broke for a second time.