NHTSA Complaint #10743574 — 2006 CHRYSLER PT CRUISER CONV

IF YOU INVESTIGATE MY VIN, YOU WILL SEE THAT FROM SOON AFTER I BOUGHT MY CAR, I HAD A WEIRD PROBLEM WHERE THE GAUGES WOULD GO CRAZY, THE DASH LIGHTS ALL LIGHT UP, AND SOMETIMES EXPERIENCE FULL ENGINE SHUT DOWN, IF NOT JUST HAVE AN ACCELERATOR FAIL WHILE DRIVING. FOR YEARS, I KEPT TRYING TO WORK WITH CHRYSLER TO ALLOW THEM TO DIAGNOSE AND FIX THE ISSUE AND THEY WERE NEVER ABLE TO DO SO EVEN THOUGH I HAD PHOTOS OF WHAT WAS HAPPENING. IN APPROXIMATELY JULY 2011, I MET SOMEONE WITH A CONVERTIBLE PT CRUISER LIKE MINE AND SHE ASKED IF I HAD ANY ISSUES WITH MY CAR. I DESCRIBED MY PROBLEM AND SHE SAID HERS HAD THE SAME PROBLEM. SHE SAID THAT A NEW IGNITION SWITCH FIXED THE PROBLEM BUT CHRYSLER REFUSED TO HELP. I WAS THRILLED AND CALLED CHRYSER TO REPORT THAT I HAD FINALLY FIGURED OUT THE PROBLEM. I BEGGED AND PLED WITH THEM TO FIX IT BUT THE BEST THAT THEY COULD PROMISE WAS THAT IF THE PROBLEM TURNED OUT TO BE THE IGNITION SWITCH THAT I WOULD BE REIMBURSED FOR THE COST OF ASSESSING THE PROBLEM ($200+ FOR ASSESSMENT), BUT NOT FOR MY TIME NOR WOULD THEY BE ABLE TO PROVIDE A RENTAL WHILE IT WAS BEING ASSESSED OR FIXED. GIVEN THAT I COULD NOT MISS WORK AND HAD LITTLE FAITH THAT THEY WOULD ADMIT THE PROBLEM WAS THEIRS, I WAS FORCED TO ALLOW THE PROBLEM TO CONTINUE TO EXIST. WHEN THE GM IGNITION SWITCH PROBLEMS CAME OUT, I CALLED AGAIN AND EVENTUALLY SOMEONE CONTACTED ME TO HELP AFTER SEVERAL MORE PLEADING CALLS FOR HELP FAILED AND I ESCALATED THE ISSUE. MY IGNITION SWITCH WAS REPLACED AND THE PROBLEM NEVER HAPPENED AGAIN. I SAY ALL OF THAT TO SAY THIS: PLEASE LOOK INTO CONVERTIBLE PT CRUISER IGNITION SWITCHES. THEY ARE A KNOWN ISSUE THAT WAS NEVER RECALLED AND A GOOD NUMBER OF OWNERS REPLACED ON THEIR OWN. WHILE I APPRECIATE THE EVENTUAL FIX, WHEN INFORMED OF THE PROBLEM FOR YEARS, CHRYSLER DID NOT ADDRESS THIS CLEAR DANGER AND I ENDURED A GREAT DEAL OF STRESS IN THE INTERIM.