NHTSA Complaint #11323916 — 2016 CHRYSLER 200

WHILE TRAVELING ON ROADWAY THE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT ILLUMINATES WITH THE SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT. IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWED BY THE SERVICE POWER STEERING WARNING MESSAGE AND THE VEHICLES IS SHUTDOWN BY THE PCM. TOTAL LOSS OF STEERING, POWER, AND CONTROL. THE VEHICLE TURNS OFF AND DISPLAYS A MESSAGE TO PUT THE VEHICLE IN PARK TO START. IT WILL NOT CRANK OR TURNOVER UNLESS YOU DISCONNECT THE BATTERY AND RESET IT. THE "SAFETY FEATURE" OF THE ELECTRONIC POWER STEERING FAILURE IS TO KILL THE ENGINE COMPLETELY WITHOUT REGARD TO IT'S CURRENT STATUS OF TRAVEL AND MOVEMENT. OUR DEALER, EARNHARDT DODGE IN GILBERT AZ, HAS NO IDEA WHY THIS IS OCCURRING AND WANTS TO CHARGE $600 TO ATTEMPT TO DETERMINE WHY THE FUEL PUMP REFUSES TO ENGAGE WHILE THE SERVICE POWER STEERING WARNING MESSAGE REMAINING. THIS IS ONE OF THE FIRST YEARS OF ELECTRONIC POWER STEERING IN THIS VEHICLE AND WE ARE BEGINNING TO SEE NUMEROUS OCCURRENCES ACROSS THE WEB OF THIS ISSUE WITH THE 200 HAPPENING AROUND 45K TO 60K MILES. OURS HAS 60K MILES. SINCE THIS IS AN ISSUE THAT APPEARS TO OCCUR A FEW YEARS INTO OWNERSHIP, DEALER MECHANICS HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THE CAUSE IS OR HOW TO REPAIR IT SINCE THEY HAVE NO EXPERIENCE WITH IT THUS FAR. IT IS AN OBVIOUS SAFETY ISSUE TO SHUT DOWN THE FUEL PUMP WHILE TRAVELING AT ANY SPEED AND SHUT DOWN THE ELECTRONIC CONTROLS RESULTING IN A "DEAD STICK" VEHICLE WITH NO WAY TO STEER OR BRAKE SAFELY. PLUS, ONCE YOU DO MANAGE TO GET THE ISSUE DIAGNOSED, NO "EXPERTS" ARE ABLE TO DETERMINE WHAT THE ORIGINATING ISSUE IS WITHOUT REPLACING TOTAL STEERING SYSTEMS AND ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS. FROM A CONSUMER STANDPOINT THIS WILL SURELY BECOME AN INCREASINGLY DANGEROUS SITUATION FOR DRIVERS IN THE CHRYSLER 200 AND OTHER DRIVERS ON THE ROADWAYS. I PRAY SOMEONE LOOKS INTO THIS ISSUE THOROUGHLY AND CAN ASSIST THE PUBLIC AND OWNERS OF THESE VEHICLES IN SECURING A RESOLUTION. *TR