I was backing out of driveway and the passenger side ball joint came apart. This let the control arm fall in to the rim. Breaking it and blowing out tire. Also damaged cv axle and passenger side fender. Prior to that about 3 months before the driver side ball joint did the same thing. This time I was slowing down to turn left. Also dropped control arm through the rim and tire. Thus damaging cv axle and fender. After this l checked in to this and seen there was a recall on this year vehicle. After checking my VIN# I saw that my vehicle was not on the recall list. It seems to me that this should be investigated. An perhaps more vehicles should be added to the list for recall.
Chrysler Sebring Convertible ball joint problems
66 of the 733 owner complaints about the Chrysler Sebring Convertible describe ball joint or control arm failure, most of them for the 2002 model year.
- owner complaints
- 66
- worst model year
- 2002
- typical repair cost reported
- $1,080
- typical mileage
- 82,000
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.
By model year
Often reported together
Headlights 2Check engine light 2Grinding brakes 2Transmission failure 1Stalling 1
What owners say
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 chrysler sebring convertible. While driving 40 MPH, the lower control arm fractured and the front passenger side axle separated from the vehicle. The contact was not injured. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was not included in the federal safety agency campaign number: 10e059000 (suspension). The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 chrysler sebring convertible. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would abnormally shake. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the control arms needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in the federal safety agency campaign number: 10e059000 (suspension). The approximate failure mileage was 112,635. Updated 02/12/16*lj
I purchased this vehicle last dec,2014.. It is a used vehicle though, its in very good condition. I was backing out of my drive way approx. 2 weeks after I bought it & the right side passenger side the suspension, arm & ball joint just fell out.. The day prior to this I heard a definite knock from that wheel base. In fact when I was backing out of the drive, I was on my way to the mechanic. Well, being stranded, I had to call a tow service to haul it in for repair.. They said they could replace it,& the charge for the assembly would cost $112.00 plus.. Having it replaced & repaired. It is now 10 months later & the knocking is back & my concern is that it will fall out when I'm driving causing an awful accident. This is wear I stand now w/ this issue that is recorded under your recall descriptions. Thank you..
I was driving on savannah springs drive (a patio home community) and I heard a horrible noise and stopped. I though I had a flat tire but when I got out and looked, my left front wheel had off. (the balljoint came loose from the control arm) the car was not drivable and had to be towed home. We just purchased this car on 4/23/2015 from new life auto in noblesville, in and drove it home to louisville, ky on i65. The car drove great and I took it out for a drive and turned into a neighborhood less than 1/2 mile from my house when this happened. I was on a very busy road prior to this and thank the lord that I was not on that road when it happened. The tow driver said I would have totaled the car and hit someone else. No injuries occurred and not other vehicles were involved. We see there is a recall on the control arm and wonder if we are covered.
Tl* the contact owns a 1999 chrysler sebring convertible. While driving approximately 15 MPH, the front end of the vehicle collapsed to the ground. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The technician diagnosed that the front driver's side lower ball joint and axle fractured. The vehicle was not repaired. There was a recall under the federal safety agency campaign number: 09e056000 (suspension) however, the recall expired. The manufacturer was not notified of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 129,000. The VIN was unavailable. Updated 10/3/2017
The right front ball joint separated from the lower control arm causing the wheel to become disjointed.
Tl* the contact owns a 2000 chrysler sebring convertible. The contact stated that while parking, there was an abnormal noise coming from the front end of the vehicle as the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. The contact discovered that the ball joints in the suspension system became detached from the housing. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was made aware the federal safety agency campaign number: 10e059000 (suspension), however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 154,000. Updated 12/19/14*cn updated 05/27/2015
Just turning off the main busy road from driving 40-45mph and onto a small residential narrow street doing 25mph I suddenly heard very loud clunking noises si I immediately stopped the car and got out and noticed that my rear drivers side tire was slanting inward. It turned out to be that my rear upper ball joint had busted . Was told by the tow truck driver that if it would of happened a few seconds earlier while driving 40 MPH on the main road, that I would of had a serious crash. Due to my tire buckling in from the ball joint breaking in half. The entire suspension on the car needs repaired. Front and back. All bushings, ball joints are totally worn down to almost nothing. Shocks/struts all no good.
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 chrysler sebring convertible. The contact stated that while driving 25 MPH, the rear passenger side wheel became fractured and folded under the vehicle. Also, the contact mentioned that moments later the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where the technician diagnosed that the upper control arm needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The failure recurred on the rear driver's side wheel. The failure mileage was 107,000 and the current mileage was 112,000.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the Chrysler Sebring Convertible ball joint
Which Chrysler Sebring Convertible years have ball joint or control arm failure problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2002 (12 complaints), 1996 (9 complaints) and 1997 (8 complaints).
How much does it cost to fix ball joint or control arm failure on the Chrysler Sebring Convertible?
Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $1,080 (median of 7 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.
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