On april 23, 2005, my son was traveling to work, about 12:30 in the afternoon, traveling westbound on the 210 freeway. At some point, his left rear tire went flat. His car lost control and spun counterclockwise, across four lanes of traffic, and head on into the center divider. His car continued to spin in the same dirrection and impacted again at the right rear quarterpanel, and the right rear bumper. My son got out of the car, and the chp arrived within ten minutes to have his car towed. I contacted daimler chrysler to let them know what happened and to express my concern. They sent an inspector to the salvage yard. Two weeks later I got a letter from chrysler saying that their recalled upper ball joint had nothing to do with the crash. I had a mechanic examine the vehicle, he had it lifted up with a forklift, and showed me the rack and pinion that was dangling down on the passenger side. He said that since there was no structural damage to the rest of the undercarraige, the broken steering was what caused my son's car to spin out of control, and crash into the median, injuring him, and threatening the other commuters.
1997 Chrysler Sebring steering problems
11 complaints (5% of all complaints for this car). 3 crashes reported.
- owner complaints
- 11
- of this car's complaints
- 5%
- crashes
- 3
- recalls
- 0
Which part fails
- Rack and pinion6
- Steering wheel/handle bar3
- Hydraulic power assist: pump1
- Column1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Chrysler Sebring steering problems in other years
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Related investigations
Steering shaft binding
There is no summary currently available
EA99028
Steering shaft binding
There is no summary currently available
PE99030
What 1997 Chrysler Sebring owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
The steering column and rack and pinion broke while driving the car at a speed of 35 - 40 and as a result, my husband had no control of the steering and we veered across the lane of the on-coming traffic and hit a light pole.
1997 chrysler sebring lxi as I was driving down the freeway at approximately 75 - 80 MPH, I felt this really hard jerk in my car where I had to rapidly grab the steering wheel with both my hands to control the car. The jerk slightly made my car steer to the right and the person on the right of me had to move out of the way. Luckily nothing happened, but what if something would of. Chrysler needs to really pay attention to these things and make sure that everything is safe, especially when it comes to a person's safety. I consider this bad business practice because chrysler does nothing to fix this problem to the already existing chrysler car buyers. Good business practice is keeping the client happy, and this goal is not being met by this company. I'm 20 years of age and now I'm stuck with a car that doesn't work, I still owe on, and is my only way of transportation.
Consumer states when making a right turn there is a griding sound that comes from the steering the harder the turn the louder the noise. Dealer contacted. Nlm
Reported noises to dealership in right tire and steering wheel. They first told me they could not find any problems. Took it back because noise got worse. They finally found that the steering rack was broken. They claimed to have fixed the problem. About 1 1/2 weeks later was turning corner at busy intersection. Right wheel turned inward and locked. Spun around in the middle of the street. Luckly no one was hurt. Although they say that this time it was the steering column. We investigated the part that was replaced and found that it was steering rack again. Dealer admitted that the part installed was defective.
Driver lost steering control and crashed into a barrier. Yh
Floor mat became jammed in the bottom of the steering column. Steering wheel would not turn. Was extremely diffcult to remove floor mat, had it happened on the highway instead of the driveway, I would not have been able to drive at all.
Transmission failed causing gears to stick.
Front end suspension rattles and squeaks.
The vehicle had intermittent noise in the steering, and it was diagnosed that the vehicle had a faulty rack and pinion. The vehicle had to be towed to the dealer due to a failed battery.
Questions about the 1997 Chrysler Sebring steering
Does the 1997 Chrysler Sebring have steering problems?
Owners have filed 11 complaints about the steering of the 1997 Chrysler Sebring, 5% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 1997 Chrysler Sebring steering problems start?
Not enough complaints include the mileage to tell.
Was there a recall on the 1997 Chrysler Sebring steering?
There is no recall for this problem on this model year.
What year does the Chrysler Sebring have bad steering?
The Chrysler Sebring model years with the most steering complaints are 2002 (22 complaints), 2001 (15 complaints) and 2008 (15 complaints).
Other 1997 Chrysler Sebring problems
Brakes 32Transmission 29Suspension 28Airbags 24Seat belts 23Engine 22Body 18Electrical 18Acceleration 16Visibility 14Wheels 14Fuel system 6Tires 3Lights 2Seats 2Locks 1
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