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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  Quality - 1994 Chrysler Concorde
  By jack600 - August 16 - 2:00 am

  1.Air Condition need repair 2.Transmission break down, went to AAMCO in Centereach,NY, the repair cost $2600, had to discard the car

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  DONT DO IT - 1997 Chrysler Concorde
  By Chryslers are bad - August 9 - 2:00 am

  We bought my wifes Dads car. The car had 22,000 miles on it after 3 years. Now has 73K. This car has been a piece of junk!!! Bad rack and pinion, (VERY PRICEY) numerous tie rod ends. Needed new Air Compressor, water pump, power steering pump, and now the transmission is going. I will NEVER buy another Dodge/Chrysler product again.

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  Love the car!! But has issues - 2006 Chrysler 300
  By Jason - August 5 - 2:41 pm

  IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN BUYING A HEMI 300 READ THIS FULL REVIEW FOR THE TRUTH!! I read online about these cars before I bought mine, I found countless reviews about the 5.7 hemi completely failing at 100k miles, I thought I could avoid this if I was careful, so I went ahead and bought one, and the engine completely failed and needed a full rebuild at 145k, my machanic did it for 6k cash, I have had no trouble with the engine since other than the check engine light poping on and off all the time randomly for no reason (which is common with all 300s) the biggest problem with this car is the front end, all 300s have this problem, and there is no way around it. The entire front end is the most unreliable setup on earth, you can put 1500 into brand new bushings and control arms and a few weeks later it will start makeing noise again, I have owned mine for 5 months or so and my car is currently in the shop for front end repair for the 4th time! No matter what u replace, its only going to fix the noise for a month or so, then you will hear a new noise, every single 300 owner Ive talked to has had the same problem, one of my friends even had it happen a month after he bought his car brand new, its simply part of the life of a 300 owner. The rear suspension is bad too, but not nearly as mutch as the front. I have never had this happen, but a few of my friends have had electrical problems with theirs causing the car to burn out its own battery, or even turn itself off in the middle of the road. I am yet to experience this with mine. The transmission in my 300c AWD has been pretty good to me, have only had one problem with it, I would be driving and pull up to a light and when I try to start again the transmission would rev up to high rpms and I would only crawl forward at about 3 mph, so I had to restart the car in the middle of the intersection and it fixed its self, but then happen again 5 min later, and again and again, I brought it in and it ended up being a 10 dollar sensor, that was in the tranny instead of on top where it usually is on a car, so I had to send it in to a rebuild place which charged $850 for the job, no problems since, the tranny is different for the AWD cars, mine is still running strong at 148k miles, I hear the rwd tranny fails at about 100k miles. The Chrysler 300c hemi AWD ( and rwd) is a mess when it comes to rely ability and maintenance, but when it is running right it is the absolute nicest car I have driven or rode in, I get complements on the car every were I go, it looks fantastic, it sounds mean, it rides amazing, it shifts smooth, and you have endless power under your foot, its like driving a Mercedes with a bad ass American v8, Its mustang gt/camaro z28 speed in a car that is full sized,comfortable and weighs an extra 1000 lbs, plus with the AWD its good in the snow, and actually handles really well, the suspension is firm for a normal car but it feels plush and expensive, the interior is very nice, actually really good quality materials, feels and looks very nice, this car is extremely unique, and there is nothing else on the market like it, I went with my heart and bought one ignoring all the bad reviews, and even though the maintenance is insane, it guzzles gas and has endless problems, Im still glad I did. If u decide to buy one, u can get extra life out of your hemi by changing the oil every 3000 miles, using high octane fuel like 93 (I was using 87 when my engine failed) and investing in an oil catch can, to prevent oil build up inside the engine, which is commonly what cases the HEMIs to eventually fail.

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  Bad Car, No Response from Manufacturer - 1999 Chrysler LHS
  By Robert Jordan - August 5 - 2:00 am

  This car has been a problem since day one. 2 of 4 windows motors replaced. Lights interior flicker, Tires have been replaced three times, windshield replaced, security key antena replaced, ac out twice in 1 year, noise coming from side view mirrors re plalced, rubber around headlights reglued, Transmission sensor went out twice, overall a very great looking car, dealership (Brevard Chrysler) did what they could, close to a lemon, under a lease, for one more year, cant get any relief, wish I could, would get rid of this thing in a heartbeat.

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  Beware - 2000 Chrysler Sebring
  By Gregaaaaa - August 1 - 2:00 am

  Very poor construction and the quality of parts is bad. Brakes fell apart at 30K. I mean the rotors virtually fell apart. Tranny went at 50K. The car eats tires which is a sign of poor components.

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  2000 Chrysler Grand Voyager SE - 2000 Chrysler Grand Voyager
  By J.James - July 25 - 9:13 am

  We only have about 25,000 miles on this vehicle, but the following items have needed to be replaced or repaired since purchase in 2000: * Faulty steering column @ 6000 miles (improper installation at factory) * Leaking transmission fluid (misaligned clamps) * Rough shifting transmission (new fluid and gaskets) * Clock spring replacement (recall) * Replace hose clamps (6 clamps, transmission) * Water leak underneath passenger floorboard * cracked doopanel (drivers side) * Warped glovebox (Improper fit at factory) * Faulty trans. solenoid pack

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  sebring me flowers - 2000 Chrysler Sebring
  By jrbird - July 18 - 2:00 am

  good car. tranny makes noise this is normal. engine a little underpowered

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  Bad top - 1999 Chrysler Sebring
  By SuperDaveOz - July 18 - 2:00 am

  Convertible top thread used to sew top was coming undone after only 2 years. After 3 years it began to fall apart completely. Should have lasted longer.

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  Be careful of future problems - 1995 Chrysler Cirrus
  By Matt Keller - July 16 - 2:00 am

  Before I purchased the vehicle I checked out Edmunds.com review on the Cirrus. They raved about how remarkable it was, "1995 Car of the Year," but what they did not inform me about were the severe defects in the transmissions of the vehicles. Having taken the car in five times in the past five months my patience with the upstart tranny has worn thin. Just remeber to remind your local mechanics its a defect in the transmision module and not the solenoid. Other than that problem the car runs wonderfully and has a fairly good interior.

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  Very Unhappy - 2002 Chrysler 300M
  By Very Unsatisfied - July 15 - 2:00 am

  Purchased this vehicle and was in the service department for the first 8 weeks of owning it. On top of shimmy going down road, this car had a custom paint job contracted by the Dealership. The paint continually chipped off and nobody at the dealership wanted to take any responsibility. Once you leave the lot, dont call them, they are not concerned with your problems or your return purchase. Finally unloaded this car for a Toyota Avalon XLS and love this car. Sight was bad in the 300M.