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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  Luxury at great price - 2000 Chrysler LHS
  By coach_graham - July 2 - 5:27 pm

  I have had this car for 2.5 years and 24000 miles. The only thing Ive replaced is the tires. This car is well built, reliable, and extremely comfortable. This is a luxury car at a very affordable price.

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  Buy it youll like it - 2007 Chrysler PT Cruiser
  By even13 - July 1 - 10:00 am

  Bought this car used with 18K miles for my wife, she shops a lot and needed something to haul her "stuff" around, I have always liked the body style so it was an easy sell it now has 60k. I find that I enjoy driving the car it handles well, power isnt what you buy one of these for but it had enough to get my first ticket in 30 plus years, my other car is a 2001 mustang go figure, the PT is a great little car for the money fun to drive just wish the mileage was better. I get 23 to 25 mpg

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  Horrible 9-speed unreliable transmission - 2016 Chrysler 200
  By Shawn - July 1 - 12:59 am

  When going from reverse to drive or even from Park to drive the transmission will go into drive at first up to about 5 miles an hour and then starts slipping for about 20 to 30 seconds with the engine revving and then finally goes back into drive with a big thump jerking you back into the seat and is sometimes kind of scary the worst part about it is its been to the dealership three times and they say they cant duplicate the problem and I told them it was intermittent that it didnt happen all the time I even talked to the service manager after the third time of taking it in and he even told me that there was nothing they could do unless it showed a code that was bad or duplicate the problem and while telling me this he acted like I was bugging him so now Im stuck with this car but Im paying a lot of money for a car Im scared to drive....SO NO I DONT RECOMMEND ANYONE TO BY THIS TYPE OF CAR AT ALL

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  Great Car for a Woman - 2005 Chrysler 300
  By Barbara J. Fitzsimmo - June 30 - 8:46 pm

  Not only is this car georgous, but it is extremely comfortable, has great pick up (so I can get on those expressways), and reliable. My gas mileage is at 25 mpg around town and 30 on the road. My mechanic tells me that once I hit 10,000 m., it will get even better! I also like the fact that the control of everything is right at my finger tips. I dont have to take my hands off the wheel for hardly anything! Not one day has gone by that someone hasnt asked me about the car. They all fear that it is expensive because it looks so good! I assure them that the price is within the reach of almost everyone. We have owned many cars over the years, but I love this car better than any!

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  02 PT Cruiser Limited - 2002 Chrysler PT Cruiser
  By infantrydrillsgt - June 30 - 5:43 pm

  I work in the used car business, so I see and drive just about every make and model of car out there. The PT Cruiser I own is as solid as the day I bought it. It has held up better than many of the much vaunted Hondas I see on a daily basis.

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  Nice, but could have been better - 1998 Chrysler Cirrus
  By Mark Sarsfield - June 30 - 5:05 pm

  This is a nice car. Built like a tank. Almost as heavy as one, too. Engine is under-powered, though, and is shoe-horned into the car. This makes it hard to work on engine components, which I have done several times. Tranny also hesitates to shift when you floor it. You practically red-line before it goes into the next gear. Avg. fuel economy for a V6. For the amount of driving that I do, I have to fill the 16-gallon tank up about once a week. Body and paint are in great shape, except for some minor dings on the doors from inconsiderate shoppers/neighbors/coworkers and a few tiny rust bubbles on the very tip of the hood from rocks flying up on the highway.

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  Disappointing: Too Many Repairs - 1995 Chrysler Cirrus
  By Anne from Ohio - June 30 - 1:50 pm

  I bought my Cirrus new. I changed the oil every 3,000 miles and was religious about routine maintenance. It was a good car for the first 7 years. But then it all went down hill. It has been in the shop so often that I finally had to get rid of it so that I could get something reliable. Now the distributor needs to be replaced at only 86,500 miles! Several other things are also wrong, including a window motor and the A/C condensor. A new car payment will cost less than maintaining this disappointing vehicle.

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  6 months and lovin it - 2005 Chrysler 300
  By rjm - June 30 - 9:10 am

  Bought this car in Nov and love driving it every time I get into it. Great power when you need it, great ride and quiet Owned Lincoln LS and Continental before and no comparison

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  300 M - 1999 Chrysler 300M
  By Linda - June 29 - 9:46 pm

  This car has had alot of problems:AC, compressor, emergency flashers that come on by themselves, flickering headlights, courtesy lightcovers coming off, power windows that dont work (1 actually shattered and had to be replaced)and backing up very fast without the drivers foot even on the pedal and the paint has faded from red to pink.

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  Terrible Brake cost - 1999 Chrysler Sebring
  By Randy - June 29 - 4:15 pm

  Every 25,000 I needed a font brake replacement, including rotors. This is an unacceptable cost. I was not hard on the brakes, I just drive the car to work and home, almost all highway. I called Chrysler after the second time to let them know what was going on and maybe they might want to see if it is something in the manufacturing of the rotors. I was treated very poorly by the customer representative. I will never own a Chrysler again after I sell this car!!