Howdy all. Here's the deal on my baby. I took 'er in for a clicking/slippage in the steering and they couldn't diagnose the problem on their test drive. I went out on a drive with the service advisor and was able to dupblicate the problem after making a u-turn. The service advisor said he could feel a bumping sensation under his seat as the wheel was turned. The x-fire tech was gone for the evening, so the advisor told me he'd call me the next day with some feed back. Got a call within an hour telling me that the steering gear would need to be replaced (supposedly a $2300 part!) Also, the dealer is going to replace the instrument cluster as my left "function button" doesn't function. Car goes in on Friday. This is the first car I've ever owned (out of 13 cars) that ever had to go back to the dealer the day after purchase with any kind of signifcant problem! I've had 2 cars that I would consider lemons >> a 1975 Buick Skyhawk and a 1985 Pointiac Firebird. I hope this isn't an omen!!!!! :?

 

Sounds to me like whoever does the new car prep at your dealer is not doing a very good job. I would have thought that at least the function button would have been found prior to your taking delivery.

 

Sorry about this, but I'll take another Five Star bash here. When I took delivery of my 300m in 2000, I discovered the AM radio wasn't working a short time later. Just for kicks I took a peek at the delivery checklist, and the AM radio got an all clear. I just chuckled.

 

Sounds like a lot of "pencil whipping" going on.

 

Car dealers are like every other business,you have to shop around to find one with good service.5 star doesn't mean too much, it comes down to the attitude of the employee's.

 

Shame on you for peeking!!! :twisted: :twisted: :twisted:

 

Service advisor just called, the steering gear install went fine, but after installing the instrument cluster, they can't get the odometer reset to the correct mileage of 568. The dealer is going to hold the car over the weekend (Chrysler support line is closed as of 2pm Pacific time). At least this time I got a Sebring convertible........ Had one other problem come up on Thursday>>>it appears that the recirculation/fresh air function is stuck in the recirculation mode. The red light comes on when you push the recirculation button, but nothing happens. Windows are fogging up even in dry, cool weather unless I run the A/C compressor. Service advisor says the tech hasn't had time to diagnose the problem yet........... I told him to get on it ASAP cause I don't want to bring the vehicle back again just to have them tell me a part has to be ordered. Will this vehcile ever be at 100%??????????????

 

Steve,

Give it time, they'll get it put back together again. I went through a major transmission problem and a few other minor ones before everything worked right with 2815. There was a time I wanted to burn it in front of my dealership.

I know I'll catch flak for this... although I love the car and mine is fixed now, I still do not feel it measures up to a car that sells for $35k and comes with a MB pedigree. There were just too many problems starting with a glove box lock that fell out the first time I opened it. The Crossfire was "rushed" into production and I don't buy the "every new model has teething problems" school of thought unless you're talking GM or Ford.

Now that mine is fixed, I'm a happy camper but still harbor the thought of, "how is it going to hold up in the long run?" If I were to do it over again and know what I know now, I think I'd pass ... it's a MB hybrid being sold and serviced by Chrysler, a company that IMO still has alot to be desired. The dealers for the most part do not know anything about the car and have one maybe two techs that have recieved minimal training on a car that has so many bells and whistles on it.

We have a couple of techs on this forum that are very helpful and point us in the right direction when the need arises. Bottom line, we're all learning about this unique car together. :wink: :wink: :wink:

 

I think this car will hold up very well.If you compare the Crossfire with any other 35k car the crossfire will win hands down.If you put the car on a lift you will see the build quality.Even the windshield washer hose is of high quality.Every part of this car is painted or under coated.The top of the line Chrysler was the 300m (30k+) and its build quality doesn't come close to the Crossfire.Just think about it any problem your having with the Crossfire...Mercedes owners are having the same problems on their 45 to 85k car.

 

You're right .... I've been all over this car and the quality of all the components is great. And I'm very happy with the fit and finish.
The only place that I think needed some better undercoating are the rear wheel wells. I undercoated mine and the road noise is now totally gone. The only things I hear now are the engine, stereo, and a little wind noise from the mirrors.

 

Great... now that 2815 is fixed and no more popping out of gear, it should be a keeper for a long time to come!!! I'm happy. :wink: :wink: :wink:

 

WM, I am interested in what you used to undercoat the wheel wells. I was going to do that also. Any insights?

Thanks

 

I mean absolutely no disrespect to any of the techs on this board or to any other tech for that matter, but I just don't get the business model behind forcing Chrysler dealers to send techs for "training" in order to be allowed to sell the Crossfire, when another branch of the same corporation, i.e. Mercedes-Benz, already has techs trained on this engine, transmission, suspension, etc. My tech may be a great guy but my dealer has sold a grand total of 4 Crossfires and most have not been in for anything more than an oil change. If my tech takes apart my engine for any reason it will be the first time he has ever worked on this engine. Granted it's not Martian science, just German, but maybe a little different than USA? Meanwhile a mile or so away is a Benz dealer where they have probably worked on 100, 200 or more of these engines. From a business standpoint (and the consumer's standpoint), what's wrong with this picture? If you were hiring a lawyer to handle your divorce would you want a rookie -- even say an experienced real estate lawyer, but who's never had to handle a restraining order -- or someone with 100 nasty splitup trials under their belt?

 

i expect that the business model is that mercedes is trying up upgrade the whole chrysler company, not just some cars. the dealers have to be able to sell and maintain these high quality cars properly or there has to be a way for them to go away.

i think this will be a long process but that d.c. is big enough to stay with it till it works and the crossfire will be remembered as the first car of the "new" chrysler corp.

i think that once the car-writers get over their genetic suspicion of mercedes performance and chrysler quality the whole deal will come together and we'll all look like geniuses.

or not.

dan

 

It's true a mercedes tech should have more experiance and knowledge of the mercedes components.But any experianced chrysler tech with the right tools and manuals and chrysler tech support should be able to fix your car right.With Chrysler coming out with new models,drivetrains and electronics every couple years,were always doing repairs for the first time.Some new models will also carry mercedes components and transmissions,so we will be getting more experiance.

 

The complaints about problems seem to indicate you've never owned new Mercedes, BMW or VW. VW being the worst for reliabliity and Mercedes being the best but still not very good.

 

:lol: :lol: That sums the whole issue up very very well.