Overview & Reviews

Chrysler is generally considered part of the Big Three, a title that refers to the traditional triumvirate of domestic automakers. The current accuracy of this classification is open for debate, but there's no debating the fact that Chrysler has experienced a revival of sorts over the past few years.

Chrysler Corporation was founded in 1925 by Walter P. Chrysler, a noted machinist; he'd purchased the Maxwell Motor Corporation of Detroit and used it as the foundation for his new company. The automaker quickly earned a reputation for advanced engineering. In 1928, Chrysler Corporation expanded with the purchase of Dodge and the creation of the DeSoto and Plymouth divisions.

The 1930s saw Chrysler boldly looking toward the future with the introduction of its revolutionary Airflow. Powered by a front-mounted inline-8, the car was one of the first to be designed with aerodynamics in mind, and featured swooping lines and a prominent grille. Perhaps a bit too ahead of its time, the Airflow was a flop with the public. Chrysler was able to survive the lean years of the Depression thanks to strong sales of its entry-level Dodge and Plymouth brands, whose vehicles boasted more traditional designs and much lower price tags.

Chrysler shined postwar. For a period in the late 1940s, it even surpassed Ford as the No. 2 U.S. automaker. The company's storied "Hemi" V8 engine debuted in 1951. Offering 180 horsepower, it was a significant improvement over Chrysler's previous 135-hp V8. The Hemi engine was meant to trounce the V8 offered by Cadillac, Chrysler's rival, and it kick-started Detroit's horsepower race of the 1950s and '60s. The '50s also saw the debut of treasured Chrysler classics like the handsome Town and Country and the sleek 300C.

By 1961, Chrysler had trimmed its line of brands by dropping the DeSoto nameplate. New technologies were also afoot, such as unibody construction (Chrysler was the first of the Big Three to introduce it) and the replacement of generators with alternators for a car's charging system. In the latter half of the '60s, Chrysler was heavily involved with NASCAR and producing performance-oriented cars.

At the same time, however, dark clouds were gathering. As with other domestic automakers, the 1970s proved to be a difficult decade due to the oil crisis, new government regulations and changing consumer tastes. A costly and ineffective overseas expansion further hurt the company's bottom line. By the late '70s, the company was in such financial disarray that it petitioned the government for $1.5 billion in loan guarantees to save it from bankruptcy.

Thanks to impressive public campaigning by then-chairman Lee Iacocca, the debut of the well-received K-car platform and the creation of the modern minivan, sales had improved dramatically by the mid-'80s. The government's loan was paid off seven years early. The picture further brightened in the late 1980s with Chrysler's purchase of American Motors Corporation (which netted the company the Jeep brand) and a joint venture with Mitsubishi known as Diamond Star Motors.

Success continued through the early 1990s. In 1998, German-based Daimler-Benz merged with Chrysler to form DaimlerChrysler. At the time, this deal was presented as a merger of equals. But it quickly became apparent that it was more of a purchase, with Daimler being the dominant partner.

Less than a decade later, that merger was no longer, as Daimler sold Chrysler (and Dodge) to a private equity firm in 2007. However, that merger had borne some worthwhile fruit, most notably in the form of the Chrysler 300 full-size sedan. The latter shared some chassis components with an older Mercedes-Benz E-Class platform.

As such, the 300 was a highlight for Chrysler that had a pleasingly solid feel to its driving dynamics that was further sweetened via an available powerful V8 engine. But soon after the split, America's economy slid into recession. Due to poor sales and debt, Chrysler had to declare bankruptcy and the federal government intervened with bailout loans. Eventually Chrysler came under control of Italy's Fiat.

Today, the lineup has been pared down to a pair of sedans, a convertible and a minivan. However, after years of having lackluster entries in the very important midsize car category, Chrysler made major improvements in the performance, design and quality of its midsize sedan entry, the 200. The latest 300 also stands as a prime choice for a premium full-size sedan. Still, it remains to be seen as to whether this and future product releases will be enough to restore the company to its former glory.

User Reviews:

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  avoid the pacifica - 2006 Chrysler Pacifica
  By j - February 9 - 11:32 pm

  Good idea, poor execution. Sunroof failed when we picked up car at dealer, took 3 days to fix. Within a week serpentine belt was squeaking like a 20 year old car took FIVE trips to dealer to fix (dealer explained, at last visit, that Chrysler service policy was to replace belt at least three times with Chrysler part after that they could install GM part (!) that actually worked). Dealer couldnt have cared less about problems. Car is underpowered, with poorly spaced 4 speed auto gearing. Terrible climate control (no heat to legs in winter) and poor/slow defrosting. Very disappointing overall, cant wait to get out of lease and into an Audi Q7.

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  Water stains seats! - 2007 Chrysler PT Cruiser
  By psupanda - February 9 - 6:03 am

  Weirdest thing EVER. If a drop of water gets on the seats it leaves a watermark. Ive had my car for only a few months and the interior looks terrible. I tried to clean it, and that only made it worse. Wherever the cleaner went it left a watermark stain.

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  Underpowered and Blind Spots - 2001 Chrysler PT Cruiser
  By Techshark - February 8 - 10:00 am

  We liked the looks of the Cruiser but have found it hard to drive. It has large blind spots at the rear quarter panels and is grossly underpowered. We often have trouble getting up hills at highway speed. Also the fuel economy is not great, 20mph at best. Had we known these items we would not have bought the car.

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  THE BEST CAR! - 2005 Chrysler 300
  By QJT57 - February 8 - 10:00 am

  I LOVE THIS CAR!

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  Read this before buying Chrysler - 2007 Chrysler Pacifica
  By Les Heinrich - February 6 - 10:39 am

  We purchased a 2007 Chrysler Pacifica and were happy until we had it washed. After washing we noticed that all chrome trim pieces were etched or corroded. We had less than 2000 miles and had the car only 7 weeks. We returned to the dealer and were told they would contact Chrysler. We have now had 3 conversations with Chrysler and they have basically said too bad that it is a normal condition in areas that use Mag Chloride on highways. I believe this is a defect in the fabricating process since we have had a 1999 T&C van for over 8 years and show no sign of this problem. This may be a problem in several northern tier states. Beware before buying Chrysler in snow areas. Very Disappointed

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  small problems ad up - 2001 Chrysler Sebring
  By sjs1 - February 6 - 2:00 am

  The rear window defroster detaches when lowering the convertible top. Warrenty work by authorized Chrysler dealers is poor. Replacing the rear window everytime the defroster detaches has gotten old - fast. The roof also rattles.

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  Driving the 3.5 six vs the 5.7 v8 - 2007 Chrysler 300
  By J R Martin - February 5 - 3:05 pm

  The bis 6 was great. Fine handling,very good power, but my wife wasnt impressed with the leather seats, and I wanted the walnut WOOD trim with sunroof. There was what we both wanted in C model (v8) in the lot. Superb power and only 1 mpg less than the 3.5 six, so we bought the C< with an excellent price. Huge A pillars detract from drivers vision, but plenty of leg and headroom, front AND REAR. Steering wheel controls are confusing and will take a lot of patience to memorize. Extra stalks around steering column are ridiculous as is power control for tilt/telescope feature.

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  2.7 Ltr. problems - 1999 Chrysler Concorde
  By C. Renard - February 5 - 5:43 am

  Bought it used in a rush to replace our totaled truck. It looked great, rode great but was a wolf in sheeps clothing. What a mistake!!! 2 weeks after buying the car I found out about the 2.7 liter engine problems. I babied the car in hopes it would get us by until the insurance settlement was paid. No such luck- 8 months later the motor blew. I found out later this was actually the 2nd motor for this car and it had less than 50,000 miles on it. What a piece of junk.

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  Has been good car to me - minor problems - 2001 Chrysler Sebring
  By slatsyrc - February 4 - 11:29 am

  I have owned this car since 2000 when I bought it brand new. I had some problems with the dealer not putting the oil plug on right and it burned the engine and I had to replace the engine. The other problem is the front bumper is not designed well for going up steep driveways or parking over cement blocks and in result it is now torn and hangs down and scrapes a lot. Other than that, everything has seemed to go well. Something did explode in my rear view mirror perhaps related to the heat in Houston and the rear view dimmer feature. I have had it 6 yrs now and has been very good to me so far. Spark plugs are a pain to get replaced though due to the plenum.

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  Great Car Unit I get my Porsch 911 - 2005 Chrysler Crossfire
  By Dreberg - February 3 - 8:46 pm

  Love the looks, love the attention, love the american tags, love the great sounding stereo. Like the seats, like the driving posture, like the trunk space. Disappointed with visibility, throttle response time, heavy feeling to steering, Hate the wet and snowy weather handling (better to leave it in the garage then any way). Good that wife can drive it. My kids think it is too flashy and would have rather me have the SLK.