Parts (lack there of)

[marlam]

I’ve been following this thread with great concern regarding the lack of “Chrysler parts”. However, what confuses me in this (and other threads) is the continual reference to Karmann having disappeared. Karmann are now owned by Volkswagon and VW have gone as far as to cancel and compensate another body builder (Magna) so that Karmann can build two new/updated Porsche models later this year. Their future, if what I have read over several weeks in Google News items, appears to be secure. So, if that is the case and they manufacture “our” body components, why do we not have any? It would seem that there should be a profitable after market for replacement/repair components – this is true of all vehicles, even those manufactured in small numbers. The problem cannot be that these components cannot be produced, but rather that there is some “Chrysler” related issue (e.g. owed money, breach of contract etc) that has either halted production, or caused Karmann (or their suppliers) to refuse to ship the parts that they already have.

On a different note, I was amazed that when FP’s crossfire won the car of the decade that Chrysler made no attempt to exploit this achievement. I am sure that BMW, Audi, VW etc would have turned that kind of award into good publicity and marketing hype.

[LugNut]

"Glad to see it went to you Lug!"

Thanks -- if it's what I need, and in good condition, I'll have a spare that needs sanding/painting -- I'll likely need to do that anyway (on both?) to experiment with matching the silver paint.

" If I had only bid 50 cents more???"

All's fair in love, war, and eBay bidding!

[huudoo]

check here Chrysler Parts Direct - Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep Parts and accessories
i talked to a rep he told me should be good for a few more years

[VALKRYDERGUY]

Tell Chrysler whats on your mind on Facebook:

Chrysler / Facebook

Chrysler Communications / Facebook

[Skyshadow]

I got all kinds of parts from Chrysler about two weeks ago. the only unavailable part was the SRT bumper. And it was said to be in and available in 40 days.

[AllEuro]

Originally Posted by Skyshadow

I got all kinds of parts from Chrysler about two weeks ago. the only unavailable part was the SRT bumper. And it was said to be in and available in 40 days.

What parts did you get? I mean are the mechanical or body parts? The mechanical stuff should never be a problem.

[Skyshadow]

I got a headlight, lower control arm, outside temp gauge and SRT bumper

[AllEuro]

Originally Posted by Skyshadow

I got a headlight, lower control arm, outside temp gauge and SRT bumper

Huh, that;s interesting. Did you have to order the headlight and bumper or were they in stock at the place you ordered them from? Did you buy everything from your local dealer?

[radmanly]

Does anyone here work for a dealership or for Chrysler Corp. and can give us a definitive status on the availability of Crossfire parts?

[AllEuro]

I just got off the phone with Chrysler Parts Direct and there are now over 200 orders waiting to be filled on grilles for the crossfire. The guy I spoke with said there are ~20 orders placed per week on the grilles. WTF chrysler??????????

It's clear that there is still a problem and that chrysler needs to answer for this.

[thallc230]

Originally Posted by mac92a2002

The thought of selling the car does get us upset as we do love her. But without parts to fix her, or they become to expensive to buy, then what is the worth of having a collector car that looks like crap or doesn't run. I understand this some years down the road but not when the car is 4 years old. As for chrysler, their service to the customer was terrible. I will not do business again with them, was looking at a challenger but have now decided on the camaro. I have been able to find the needed parts in the junk yard around the nation but the insurance company is unwilling to ship them from a junk dealer as they end up being to costly in the long run. Not bashing anyone here just heated about the situation. Waiting till october or later, having the car being given back to me tomorrow and being forced to pay the deductible before the work is completed is just not right, all from the friendly chrysler dealer.

What site/service did you use to find parts for your crossfire online from junkyards? I personally need a front upper grille. Please feel free to contact me via PM or reply. thanks!
Tusk

[Skyshadow]

I got all my stuff through Ferris 'sowardcustoms' (he is a member on here from Texas). I think he had a lil trouble on getting some things but he figured it out and got me my gear quick and for cheap too. I think i got like a 20% discount on everything

[+fireamx]

For what ever it's worth, this goes out to all you future " long term" Crossfire keepers. Since I'm on record as not having much faith in the controvisial "10 Year Parts Law", I have just one recommendation. STOCKPILE!
I'm sure many of you feel (with over 75000 Crossfires produced) that through attrition alone, there will always be an ample supply of "used" body parts available, and that may very well be true. But nobody knows what the future may hold for these cars.
Personally, I predict that when our secret eventually leaks out (and you know it will) these cars will become highly sought after vehicles. It's going to take a few years, but I have no doubt it's going to happen, and when it does, sit back and watch the bidding wars begin on EBAY for parts.
Case in point. Back in 1970 when I purchased my AMX, I knew that its production was coming to an end after the 1970 model year. With a total 3 year production of only 19134 cars, and with a desire to keep my car for a very, very long time, I ordered several major "NOS" body parts unique only to the AMX. Fortunately I've never had to use any of them, and now I'm being told that a nos 1/4 panel that I purchased fourty years ago at dealer cost, for $125 is now bringing $1500 and maybe even more.
So any part you buy and put away will do nothing but appreciate in value whether you use it or not.
Just build yourself a little 10'X12' storage building in your back yard for a few $100, and you'll have enough room to store a completely dismantled XF
in it.

[shapeshifter309]

Originally Posted by +fireamx

For what ever it's worth, this goes out to all you future " long term" Crossfire keepers. Since I'm on record as not having much faith in the controvisial "10 Year Parts Law", I have just one recommendation. STOCKPILE!
I'm sure many of you feel (with over 75000 Crossfires produced) that through attrition alone, there will always be an ample supply of "used" body parts available, and that may very well be true. But nobody knows what the future may hold for these cars.
Personally, I predict that when our secret eventually leaks out (and you know it will) these cars will become highly sought after vehicles. It's going to take a few years, but I have no doubt it's going to happen, and when it does, sit back and watch the bidding wars begin on EBAY for parts.
Case in point. Back in 1970 when I purchased my AMX, I knew that its production was coming to an end after the 1970 model year. With a total 3 year production of only 19134 cars, and with a desire to keep my car for a very, very long time, I ordered several major "NOS" body parts unique only to the AMX. Fortunately I've never had to use any of them, and now I'm being told that a nos 1/4 panel that I purchased fourty years ago at dealer cost, for $125 is now bringing $1500 and maybe even more.
So any part you buy and put away will do nothing but appreciate in value whether you use it or not.
Just build yourself a little 10'X12' storage building in your back yard for a few $100, and you'll have enough room to store a completely dismantled XF
in it.

Now I'm wondering how much it would be to buy a whole Crossfire, part by part.

Also wishing I had the money to do such a thing. In reality, you could use everything but the frame/unibody. Hopefully you never crash it, and you'd be good to go for anything that goes wrong.

[Johnnie]

This thread has been going for a few months. It doesn't seem the backorders have arrrived for many of the people waiting.

I hit a deer the other night and now I need a headlight assembly, grill, and hood. It looks like the hood will be the hardest to find.

Am I doomed to wait forever.

"I don't want to, I don't want to, I don't want to wait in vain." Bob Morley

[Skyshadow]

My car was totaled because the unavailability of parts... just saying

[Bazzer]

Originally Posted by Skyshadow

My car was totaled because the unavailability of parts... just saying

This worries me such that I'm considering a change sooner than I intended as I use mine as a daily work horse.

[radmanly]

Isn't the Crossfire body parts situation typical? Every car eventually goes out of production and parts start to dry up, right?

I intend to keep mine forever. I like my Crossfires today as much as I did the day I got them. When I can't get parts from Chrysler, I'll be scouring the junk yards. Hopefully, I'll never need any front body parts as those seem to be the hardest to find.

[Joliet John]

I've been involved in some aspect of the automotive industry, including parts, since the mid-90's. What I see here is not unusual, nor is it Chrysler or Crossfire specific. In the past, I've run into issues where there is an issue with the current/previous supplier/manufacturer and a new supplier/manufacturer has not yet been determined. Sometimes there have been issues with the part which required re-engineering or retooling. I even ran into an issue where the part was not available because the *packaging* had to be redesigned, and the process in just doing that was extremely long. (for the record, it was a Ford door. The bottom edge and corners on every one we got was bent due to the poor packaging)

I've had to tell customers the OEM part is not available, and there was no estimate on when the part would be available. In cases where LKQ or aftermarket parts weren't available, I've had to suggest the shop work with the insurance company to total the car.

It just happens like that sometimes.

In a case where it's hail damage, I would pull the dents or bondo them and repaint the part so I could drive the car until the OEM part did come available.

[HellFire]

We are not the only ones having issues with Chrysler. There are many dealers around here that do not even try to sell their extended warranties anymore, because they are often not reimbursed for their expenses. It is easier to get Zurich Auto warranties to pay than pretty much any other warranty supplier, be it factory or not. With them, you also have the option of taking the car to several different shops for repairs, instead of the Chrysler dealer who doesn't know how to work on an srt-6! Of course, it does cost a bit more for the warranty, but I would recommend it to anyone. They are also more flexible in allowing different sourcing for parts etc. So, in a nutshell, they are screwing not only the customers that buy the products, but the dealers that sell them too! BTW, the Zurich bumper to bumper warranty actually covers MORE than the Chrysler warranty too. As someone here pointed out earlier, there is always an out for every warranty. That is the value of the total car. With our cars getting older and values dropping, many cars are getting a fender bender away from being total losses. If you've got an srt-6 with 95k on it and the engine/supercharger goes out.... I would not be surprised to see them keeping the car and you getting a check. This is a bad situation all the way around, but hey, let's look on the bright side. It is just this kind of crap that causes a ton of cars to be scrapped and the value of the survivors to go up. Eventually, they will be worth something again. 30 years from know, they will be worth 50-75 k I bet, if not more. The problem is, they were 50k new and with inflation going the way it is, 5k now will probably be more equivalently than 50k then... LOL Oh well, it is the price of owning a bad a$$ ba$tard car from AMG/Mercedes/Karmann/Chrysler. I used to put that order in reverse, but the more I learn of Chrysler's recent money saving tactics, I give them only the credit they earned. They bought the car from the other companies and shipped it here, so they now go last and I can't wait for my AMG badges. LOL I mean seriously. My wife had to have a Journey(underpowered crossover), so I bought her one. It is just a few months old and the rear quarters are popping out, the gap between the front bumper and headlights is a full half an inch from the lights(I thought she wrecked it when I noticed it) and the door hinges are already rusting out, despite the fact that it lives in a garage at home and a parking garage at work! I don't think it has been rained on more than a few hours total if you add up the short drive to work on days it was raining. She still loves the car, but the fit and finish all the way around looks like a car put together by a high school shop class for an assignment. Actually, it looks worse than that. I couldn't give that work an A and most people will work hard enough to get an A on a group project. LOL Anyway, sorry for rambling. My Ambien kicked in, so I apologize if this doesn't make too much sense. LOL TTYL