2003 Chrysler Pt Cruiser

THIS PROBLEM STARTED IN THE SPRING OF 2006. ALTHOUGH I DIDN'T KNOW IT AT THE TIME, THE FOG LIGHTS CAME ON BY THEMSELVES WHILE JUST SITTING IN THE PARKING LOT OR AT HOME. NO WARNING, SO I DIDN'T KNOW UNTIL I WENT TO START THE CAR AND THE BATTERY WAS DEAD. SINCE THIS WAS INTERMITTENT, NO LIGHTS ON THE DASH ADVISING ME THE FOG LIGHTS WERE ON AND DURING DAYLIGHT HOURS, I NEVER NOTICED THAT THE FOG LIGHTS WERE ON. AFTER SEVERAL TIMES OF THIS HAPPENING. THIS CAUSED ME TO REPLACE THE BATTERY. WHILE REPLACING THE BATTERY I NOTICED THAT THE ORIGINAL CABLES HAD INFERIOR BATTERY CONNECTOR LEADS. THE CABLES CONNECTORS WERE MOSTLY EATEN THROUGH CAUSING ME TO HAVE TO REPLACE THEM. (I NOTICED THAT WHEN I GOT THE NEW LEADS THAT THE CONNECTORS WERE OF A BETTER MATERIAL). DUE TO THIS NOT HAVING ANY RIME OR REASON AS TO WHY THE BATTERY KEPT GOING DEAD AND NO ONE HAD ANY IDEA WHY THIS WAS HAPPENING I SIMPLY HAD TO WAIT UNTIL I DISCOVERED THE CAUSE. IN DEC 2007 I WENT TO START THE CAR AND SURE ENOUGH THE BATTERY WAS DEAD. HOWEVER THIS TIME WHEN I JUMPED THE BATTERY THE FOG LIGHT ON THE DASH STAYED ON AND THAT IS WHEN I FOUND THE PROBLEM. I WAS UNABLE TO TURN THEM OFF SINCE THE SWITCH WAS ALREADY IN THE OFF POSITION. MY ONLY RECOURSE WAS TO REMOVE THE FOG LIGHT FUSE. SINCE REMOVING THE FOG LIGHT FUSE I HAVE HAD NO FURTHER ISSUES TO DATE. I STILL DO NOT KNOW THE CAUSE OR THE CURE SO, I LOGGED ON TO THIS SITE TO LOOK FOR A SERVICE BULLETIN OR INFORMATION TO TELL ME THAT AND HERE I AM. THE MILEAGE ON THE VEHICLE WHEN THIS WHOLE STUFF STARTED WAS APPROX 36,000 AND IT NOW HAS 42000 MILES ON IT. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHRYSLER PT CRUISER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FOG LIGHTS ACTIVATE BY THEMSELVES AND CAUSE HER TO JUMP START HER BATTERY OFTEN. SHE BELIEVES THAT THE CAUSE OF FAILURE IS THE SWITCH CONTROL DEVICE. THE MANUFACTURER ADVISED HER TO TAKE HER VEHICLE TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER AND HAVE THEM DIAGNOSE THE FAILURE. THE CONTACT HAS NOT YET GONE TO THE DEALER, HOWEVER, SHE CALLED THEM AND THEY TOLD HER TO BRING THE VEHICLE IN FOR INSPECTION. THE POWERTRAIN AND DEALER INFORMATION WERE UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 75,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 78,000.

WE OWN A 2003 PT CRUISER. IT HAS MANIFESTED THREE SEPARATE PROBLEMS, ALL OF WHICH ARE SIMILAR TO COMPLAINTS I HAVE FOUND FROM OTHERS ON THE INTERNET: FIRST, THE "CHECK ENGINE" LIGHT COMES ON. THE DEALER SAID WE NEEDED TO CLICK THE GAS CAP. WE DID THAT, BUT THE LIGHT CAME BACK ON. SECOND, THE FOG LIGHT SWITCH FAILED SUCH SO THAT THE LIGHTS TURNED ON WITHOUT THE SWITCH BEING TOUCHED. WE DISCOVERED THE PROBLEM ONLY AFTER THE BATTERY HAD BEEN DRAINED, STRANDING MY WIFE AT WORK. I "FIXED" THIS PROBLEM BY PULLING THE FUSE ON THE FOG LIGHTS. I HAVE READ COMPLAINTS IN WHICH THIS FAULTY SWITCH HAS ACTUALLY STARTED FIRES. THIRD, WE HAVE THE INFAMOUS INTERMITTENT STARTING"PROBLEM. I HAVE REPLACED THE STARTER AND THE BATTERY. I CHECKED ALTERNATOR FUNCTION AND INTEGRITY OF ALL CABLE CONNECTIONS TO THE STARTER. THEN I READ OTHERS' COMPLAINTS AND HAVE FOUND THERE IS NO AVAILABLE SOLUTION. THE PROBLEM BECAME MORE AND MORE FREQUENT, AND NOW THE VEHICLE IS DEAD IN THE DRIVEWAY. OUR VEHICLE HAS ONLY 54,000 MILES ON IT, AND WE BELIEVE WE SHOULD EXPECT MANY MORE MILES FROM IT. WE ARE AFRAID TO TAKE IT TO A DEALER AND HAVE HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS WORTH OF FRUITLESS DIAGNOSTICS DONE ON IT. WE STILL OWE $1,800 TO CHRYSLER FINANCIAL FOR THE CAR. IT PAINS US TO MAKE PAYMENTS ON A VEHICLE THAT IS A LUMP IN OUR DRIVEWAY. WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE THE VEHICLE REPAIRED AT NO CHARGE, ASSUMING THE MANUFACTURER HAS FOUND A SOLUTION. ALTHOUGH THE VEHICLE IS CURRENTLY OUT OF WARRANTY, THE PROBLEM BEGAN TO OCCUR LONG BEFORE THE WARRANTY EXPIRATION, BUT WE COULD NOT GET IT TO REPEAT FOR THE DEALER. IS THERE A "SECRET WARRANTY" FOR THIS ISSUE? WE CANNOT FIND A FULL-TEXT TSB TO FIND OUT. *AK

ON THE STREET ENGINE STOPPED, POWER STEERING INOPERATIVE, SMOKE APPEARED FROM UNDER THE HOOD. TURNED THE KEY OFF. RAISED THE HOOD, HAD FIRE BENEATH THE BATTERY AREA. DEALER STATED THAT A MISROUTED CABLE BETWEEN THE BATTERY AND STARTER SHORTED OUT, CAUSING THE FIRE WHICH RUINED THE CABLING, BATTERY AND STARTER. CHRYSLER'S EXTENDED WARRANTY WILL NOT COVER THIS DAMAGE BECAUSE THE BATTERY CABLE WAS NOT COVERED. *AK

NOT LONG AFTER I FIRST PURCHASED MY 2003 PT CRUISER ON NEW YEAR'S EVE, 2002, THE ENGINE LIGHT STARTED COMING ON. EACH TIME, I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER, AND EACH TIME, IT WAS DETERMINED NOTHING WAS WRONG. AFTER THE FOURTH TIME, I WAS READY TO SEE ABOUT HAVING IT CLASSIFIED AS A LEMON IF IT HAPPENED ONE MORE TIME, BUT IT DIDN'T, UNTIL RECENTLY. IN JANUARY 2007, I BELIEVE, I TOOK IT IN FOR THE SAME PROBLEM. DEALER SAID NOTHING WRONG. IN MARCH, I TOOK IT IN AND DEALER DETERMINED THE SOURCE OF THE PROBLEM WAS POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE, WHICH WAS REPLACED AT NO CHARGE. BY THEN, ANOTHER SYMPTOM WAS THAT ALL OF THE INSTRUMENT PANEL LIGHTS WOULD COME ON INTERMITTENTLY. ALSO INTERMITTENTLY, IT WOULD START, RUN FOR 5 SECONDS AND DIE. IF I DISCONNECTED THE BATTERY TO RESET THE COMPUTER, IT WOULD START. ONE WEEK, I HAD IT TOWED IN BECAUSE IT WOULDN'T START. I DIDN'T RESET THE COMPUTER, BECAUSE I WANTED THEM TO SEE THE PROBLEM, BUT IT STARTED FOR THE DEALER, AND THEY DETERMINED NOTHING WAS WRONG. AFTER PROTESTING THAT THE PROBLEM WAS NOT RESOLVED, DEALER AGREED TO TAKE IT IN TODAY, AND NOW THEY TELL ME THE PROBLEM IS A DEFECTIVE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER, BUT THEY CAN'T GUARANTEE, AFTER IT'S INSTALLED, THAT IT WILL FIX THE PROBLEM. MY COMPLAINT IS THAT ENGINE LIGHT STARTED COMING ON YEARS AGO, AND DEVELOPED INTO THE ISSUE TODAY, WITHOUT BEING REPAIRED. ALSO, A MESSAGE APPEARED ON THE ODOMETER THAT SAID "NO BUS." *JB

I PURCHASED A NEW 2003 PT GT TURBO CRUISER AND HAVE ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS SINCE DAY ONE. THE BATTERY HAS BEEN REPLACED TWICE AND THE LIGHTS HAVE NEVER STOPPED FLICKERING SINCE THE DAY I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE. THE CHRYSLER REPAIR FACILITIES WERE NICE TO DEAL WITH BUT THE PROBLEM HAS NEVER BEEN RESOLVED. I HAVE ALWAYS LIKED CHRYSLER PRODUCTS AND THROUGHOUT THE YEARS HAVE PURCHASED QUITE A FEW, AFTER THIS EXPERIENCE THIS WILL BE MY LAST CHRYSLER PRODUCT.

WE RECENTLY PURCHASED A USED 2003 PT CRUISER GT TURBO. WE REALLY LOVE IT. HOWEVER, THERE IS AN ISSUE WE HAVE BEEN TRYING TO FIGURE OUT. THE LIGHTING FLICKERS WHEN YOU START THE CAR. IT IS INTERMITTENT. AFTER RUNNING AWHILE IT DECREASES. USUALLY WHEN FIRST STARTING THE CAR IT IS REALLY BAD. WE DIDN'T NOTICE A DIFFERENCE WHEN WE USED MORE OR LESS POWER IN THE CAR, LIKE TURNING ON THE RADIO AND A/C. THE POWER FLUCTUATION MAKES ALL THE LIGHTS FLICKER INSIDE AND OUTSIDE OF THE CAR, AS WELL AS THE PANEL LIGHTS AND RADIO. *JB