Fiat Chrysler's quality conundrum

[roadrunner1]

Hmmmmm,

My dad last fall bought a new 3500 Ram turbo diesel (6.7), after the first week it had to go back due to the fuel fill tube was crushed at the time of assembly.

A week and a half ago he shows up here with the battery light flashing on the dash, I plugged in my ScanGauge to check voltage. It read 12 volts so he took it to the dealer and they replaced the alternator. He stopped by saturday morning with the same issue, truck is still at the dealer.

This is just one example (well several but one vehicle) why they are at the bottom of most reliability surveys. I learned my lesson many years ago and won't even look at one to buy.

 

[OneEyeJack]

The question of the day, who's going to own Chrysler, next? Someone in China? The labor unions? The Clinton Foundation? You buy Chrysler, take your pound of flesh and move on. The formula is working, so far.

 

[itguy08]

Hopefully we'll bury the turd once and for all. Had no issues letting AMC, Nash, Studebaker, Dusenberg, etc all go away. Why do we need to keep propping them up?

 

[GiveMeAVowel]

Originally Posted By: itguy08
Hopefully we'll bury the turd once and for all. Had no issues letting AMC, Nash, Studebaker, Dusenberg, etc all go away. Why do we need to keep propping them up?


They're not going anywhere, at least until long after we are all dead and gone...get used to it.

Chrysler does make some nice vehicles, and the newer 200 especially is quite nice, it may not tick all the boxes of Consumer Reports, but as a whole it exceeds some of those... also the 200 and the Dart are going to continue production in another plant, most likely the Mitsubishi Motors plant in Normal, IL.

 

[GiveMeAVowel]

Originally Posted By: HosteenJorje
"The Italians are coming, the Italians are coming." And look what showed up. The Fiat 500 POP. It's been fifty years since I made the mistake of ordering a Chrysler product. Big Hamtramck POS. Looked like it was assembled by monkeys..Not going to make that mistake again no matter what company owns Chrysler. BAH HUMBUG


Of course you don't mention the FIAT 500 Abarth. The car exceeds the fun factor of many other competitors and actually they are reasonable reliable and affordable.

 

[itguy08]

Originally Posted By: GiveMeAVowel

They're not going anywhere, at least until long after we are all dead and gone...get used to it.

Really? Sergio seems to be gutting them. Ram and Jeep will be all that is left. About the only things worth anything.

And I could care less - no need to ever own a Chrysler vehicle when ones from every other company exceed them in all metrics. All we need is another 1979 or 2008 (when we bailed then out before) and hopefully they will be gone for good. Given that these things run in cycles, the clock is ticking...

Quote:
Chrysler does make some nice vehicles, and the newer 200 especially is quite nice, it may not tick all the boxes of Consumer Reports, but as a whole it exceeds some of those... also the 200 and the Dart are going to continue production in another plant, most likely the Mitsubishi Motors plant in Normal, IL.


Really? Cause 3 days ago they were "still in negotiations"
http://www.carscoops.com/2016/03/chrysler-200-production-hiatus-to.html
Quote:
The production has been stopped since February 1, on the back of an excessive inventory of 217 days. This is now down to 147, but demand for the 200 has tanked by 58 percent year-on-year in February compared to the same month in 2015, at 6,600 units.


Who would sign on to produce those turds?

 

[artificialist]

What is the point in the "initial Quality" test?

What really separates a good car from a bad one is how many repair bills it gets post warranty and how many of them are still on the road as the years pass by.

Unless time travel works, you will never know what car is actually going to last.

I was sure GM finally got it right when I bought my 2003 Saturn ION. It turned out not to be so, and I should have bought a Toyota, like most people did.

This is why Honda Accord and Toyota Camry sales are going to remain high.

 

[GiveMeAVowel]

Originally Posted By: itguy08



And I could care less - no need to ever own a Chrysler vehicle when ones from every other company exceed them in all metrics. All we need is another 1979 or 2008 (when we bailed then out before) and hopefully they will be gone for good. Given that these things run in cycles, the clock is ticking...


But they don't exceed in ALL metrics, and sometimes the individual metrics don't make the total product.
Quote:


Really? Cause 3 days ago they were "still in negotiations"
http://www.carscoops.com/2016/03/chrysler-200-production-hiatus-to.html


It's most likely that the Mitsu Normal, IL plant would be used because it is also close to suppliers as well.

Quote:

The production has been stopped since February 1, on the back of an excessive inventory of 217 days. This is now down to 147, but demand for the 200 has tanked by 58 percent year-on-year in February compared to the same month in 2015, at 6,600 units.



Who would sign on to produce those turds?


The car is a good product, the marketing folks dropped the ball, and
didn't follow through. The thought of condemning a mid size car because the back seat isn't the size of a Crown Vic is the the turd if you ask me. The automotive and mass media are idiots the sheep don't think independently and critically enough often.

 

[termigator]

I used to work at Hertz and drove many different brands. One thing I have noticed was that, when the miles piled up, the domestics did not hold up well (Nissan didn't do that well either) whereas Toyota, Mazda and Mitsubishi were still solid, rattle free vehicles. I remember the Camrys holding up particularly well. It was pretty boring to drive, but I guess not everybody's into "fun to drive" vehicles.

As far as Chrysler vehicles being the pits, it's hard to argue that when it seems like just about every reputable car magazine in North America put them either near or at the bottom of list of any type of measurable metric.

To whoever said that the Challenger/Charger/300 is better than any Lexus ever made, I just have one question: Have you ever owned a Lexus? You mentioned that you've owned cars from companies besides Chrysler, but you did not mention owning a Lexus. I certainly won't disagree with you if horsepower is the only thing you're measuring. However, start throwing in other factors (e.g. fuel economy, refinement, luxury amenities, fit & finish) and your claim begins to lose credibility

 

[dishdude]

The family and I have owned at least a dozen and a half Chrysler products starting in the early 80's, and each one has given good service. No complaints.

 

[Robenstein]

Chrysler needs to learn to make small cars people WANT to buy again like in the Iacocca K car era. While some of their cars are certainly cool, they are not very practical for a large demographic of buyers.

 

[supton]

My mother had an 2.5L Acclaim, and for what it was, it seemed ok. It did die at 150k but only after being abused by a few teenaged drivers.

Now the 2.8L V6 / 3AT Jeep she had... I had no love. Yet it did go to high miles. It's also the only vehicle I've seen idle perfectly well with 2 plug wires removed!

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: roadrunner1
Hmmmmm,

My dad last fall bought a new 3500 Ram turbo diesel (6.7), after the first week it had to go back due to the fuel fill tube was crushed at the time of assembly.

A week and a half ago he shows up here with the battery light flashing on the dash, I plugged in my ScanGauge to check voltage. It read 12 volts so he took it to the dealer and they replaced the alternator. He stopped by saturday morning with the same issue, truck is still at the dealer.

This is just one example (well several but one vehicle) why they are at the bottom of most reliability surveys. I learned my lesson many years ago and won't even look at one to buy.


My work purchased about six months ago two new Laramie 1500's, the one replaced a 1500 HD that had gone through a couple of transmissions, the other replaced a '13 F-150 Platinum. So far they have been flawless, but they don't have a pile of miles on them yet of course. The guys could have chosen any truck they wanted and they both chose a RAM. I was particularly surprised that the Ford got replaced with a RAM, as he was very happy with the F-150

Our current work fleet is now all RAM's with the exception of a lone '12 F-150, where it used to be a mix of Dodge, Nissan and Ford. We haven't owned a GM in quite some time. None of them have been in for issues like your dad's FWIW, though the Ford has been in a couple of times for driveline vibration, otherwise nothing major except oil changes and brakes.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: termigator


To whoever said that the Challenger/Charger/300 is better than any Lexus ever made, I just have one question: Have you ever owned a Lexus? You mentioned that you've owned cars from companies besides Chrysler, but you did not mention owning a Lexus. I certainly won't disagree with you if horsepower is the only thing you're measuring. However, start throwing in other factors (e.g. fuel economy, refinement, luxury amenities, fit & finish) and your claim begins to lose credibility


I have never owned a Lexus, but I did trade my E39 M5 in on my current SRT-8 Charger. I posted a somewhat comprehensive initial comparison in the vehicles section shortly after I made the purchase and it may be worth a read. Short version: the fit and finish in the SRT is extremely good and at about half the price point of the BMW. I have no doubt that TCO is going to be less as well. I will also add that there is no comparison between the '06 and the '14, the SRT is better in every possible metric than its older R/T sibling. The BMW had better seats, a nicer wheel IMHO and some slightly nicer materials inside (brushed stainless) however the SRT has better brakes, lower NVH (except the factory junk tires are loud), and is generally more composed over most bumps. It also has more power and gets better gas mileage. There are times when I miss the BMW, it felt a bit smaller and nimbler, though it really wasn't much of either. I do however thoroughly enjoy the Charger and if I could have kept both (I don't have enough driveway or garage space) I would have.

 

[SteveSRT8]

Originally Posted By: termigator

To whoever said that the Challenger/Charger/300 is better than any Lexus ever made, I just have one question: Have you ever owned a Lexus? You mentioned that you've owned cars from companies besides Chrysler, but you did not mention owning a Lexus. I certainly won't disagree with you if horsepower is the only thing you're measuring. However, start throwing in other factors (e.g. fuel economy, refinement, luxury amenities, fit & finish) and your claim begins to lose credibility


I have. Had two different models. They were far from perfect, but their dealership experience was extraordinary. Way too numb and boring for my taste, but my Wife loved them. Excellent resale as well. Just drove the RX series last year while shopping for Wifey, ended up with a RAM!

As for 300's, we bought ours in August of 05. A fully loaded SRT8 model. Incredibly low price, real AMG name brand parts all over it, some of the best sedan dynamics on the road. Flawless paint, excellent durability. Brakes in a class by themselves. Outrageous performance, too.

Well past 100k miles now, over 200 dragstrip passes and many many road course track days as well. Truly as far from the average Chrysler perception as you could get....

 

[Smokescreen]

Origin: Fiat

Late Middle English: from Latin, 'let it be done', from fieri 'be done or made'.

 

[Oldmoparguy1]

Bad-mouthing Chrysler products is a cottage industry. It's all over the internet. There are only 6-8 members here in bitog. Of them, none have owned one in the last 10 years. Most have never owned a Chrysler product. My last non-Chrysler product was a 1965 Pontiac GTO. I sold it in 1970. It was all rusted out. I've had nothing but Chrysler products since. Only 2 were bought new. All others were bought used in various states of disrepair. Since 1970, I have gotten good at repairing mopars. They are generally easier to work on and simpler to repair then some of the money pits that I see reported here. YMMV.

 

[KrisZ]

Originally Posted By: Oldmoparguy1
Bad-mouthing Chrysler products is a cottage industry.


It certainly looks like it.

My experience with Chrysler is nil, as the Grand Caravan is my first ever Chrysler product.
Long term reliability and my satisfaction are yet to be seen, however my initial impressions of this vehicle are positive.
The engine, lauded in various reviews as "unrefined" I find nice and smooth with a good sounding growl to it. Funny as no reviews I read, ding Honda for the clunky and unrefined VCM transitions.
The transmission is also reported to be unrefined and poor shifting, something I do not agree with. With the Eco button off, I find it quite responsive when needed and the shifts so far are nice and smooth both on the upshift and downshift. It is quick to unlock the TQ and downshift on the highway though, but it's not a negative for me.
The interior, universally criticized everywhere. Again, I do not find it bad. The fit and finish is OK, gaps are fairly even, no rattles. Sure there is very little in soft touch materials, but this is a people and family hauler, I do not want plush interior that will be torn to pieces by my kids. Nothing spectacular, but there are also worse interiors, many found in Toyotas.

 

[roadrunner1]

Well while I haven't owned one in many years I have seen first hand that their quality hasn't improved, in the trucks at least. The last new truck my dad bought was an '06 3500 Dodge that spent more time in the shop when under warranty than in his driveway with a multitude of problems. They finally got it straightened out but I thought the whole reason for buying a new vehicle was driving trouble free for the first few years.

My dad has been a Dodge guy his whole life, as was my grandpa. I don't remember one he had bought new that didn't have to go back to the dealer two or three times within the first year, and he has probably bought at least a dozen trucks and maybe that many cars new over the years. It just seems hes accepted the fact that its part of the ownership process. I can completely understand why Chrysler/Dodge/Fiat/Jeep have been consistently at the bottom of the reliability ratings for decades and several different ownership groups.

Its really good to read that there are several here who have bought new cars/trucks and have had good luck with them. I am well aware that they are setting new sales totals monthly, so they all can't be bad.

 

[HM12460]

Interesting thread here. I have always considered Chrysler to be somewhat inferior to GM and Ford. I must admit I had/have no reason to think that way. Having owned numerous Dodge trucks, full size and Dakota's, I haven't had a bad one yet. My '03 is aging very gracefully and continues to be a pretty good bang for the buck. I just noticed today the A/C isn't putting out quite like it should and will need some attention here shortly. My biggest issue with the current Dakota is fuel economy. It is a thirsty little beast.