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Chrysler 300M: Problems & Solutions

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Comments

  • charlesf1charlesf1 Posts: 52
    Well my 2000 has been a trouble free car until I took it in yesterday because the A/C was not working. After some chasing around trying to figure out what was causing the problem it turned out to be the evaporator. After all those trouble free miles it caught up to me to the tune of $1,300. Since it had the original battery in it I had them replace it also since it was tied up.
  • bennboultonbennboulton Posts: 3
    Just found this forum...
    I have a 2003 300m Special. since the day I bought it (in 2003) I thought the headlight pattern (the shape of the light on the ground), is a ZIG ZAG or a step like pattern.
    on the drivers side it "freaked" me out several times as I thought that something
    was in the road until I got used to it. Every once in a while if someone else drives
    it, they mention how strange the pattern is
    The dealers says the pattern is normal.

    Benn
  • bennboultonbennboulton Posts: 3
    2003 300M Specail

    when I STEP on the gas pedle I do not get the "responce" I expect.

    The car does speed up but it seams to increase the RPM more that increase the
    speed of the car.

    I haeve ben told that this is typicle of Chrylser. But my wife drives a Sebring
    convert. (2002 6cyl) and JUMPS when you step on the gas.

    I know it is a "guy/male ego" thing but I think my 3.5 300M should have
    better profromance than the 3.0 Sebring
    :confuse:
    Benn
  • tayl0rdtayl0rd Posts: 1,926
    The Sebring and the 300M don't use the same transmission. I believe the Sebring has the 41TE and the 300Ms use the 42LE. I feel the same as you do about my 2002 Special. Unfortunately, the engine and transmission are programmed to not give you the full oomph you want; not to mention that the gear spacing is just all wrong for the 300M, it never puts you in the sweet spot when you need it. It's for preservation of the transmission. The only logic I see behind it is that the transmission can't stand up to the shock of being hit with 250+HP/TRQ so it's been programmed to ease the power to it.

    It stinks, I know. The best remedy is to use Autostick mode, and even that will leave you wishing for more in some situations.
  • larriemaclarriemac Posts: 6
    I have a 200 300M purchased new with 40,000 miles on it and fortunately none of the problems frequently referenced on this site. Car still has two of the four original "Badyears" with no problem, two fronts were replaced with "Goodyear eagles." The only issue, aside from FOUR %$#%^* sets of weatherstripping which Chrysler, then my dealer, covered (the most recent at five years and 39,000) is a strange new problem with Climate Control. When set at 72 degrees the heater blows cold air (in either the manual or auto mode). However, if I set the temperature to 80 everything is toasty. I have a third party premium extended warranty which will cover this with a deductible. Is there something simple I'm missing before giving the car up for a couple of days. here in the Rockies we need heaters, we got three inches of snow this past weekend.

    Thanks in advance for all the great people who contribute to this column.
  • bennboultonbennboulton Posts: 3
    I have been "netting arround" for some performance boost ideas and found these
    two things on ebay
    they go in-line between the ECU and air flow sensor circuit
    Item numbers: 7973314389 and 7973587143
    (did not want to post the long links)
    the second one appers to just a resister that is placed accross two contacts

    ...any comments about these
    Benn
  • maijaymaijay Posts: 1
    my sunroof is in vent position and won't close any suggestion's already checked fuses everything looked ok
  • tayl0rdtayl0rd Posts: 1,926
    Will it open all the way?
  • njeraldnjerald Posts: 688
    If Vents but will not open:
    Binding Linkage
    Faulty Circuit
    Faulty Switch
    Faulty Sunroof Controller
    Faulty Drive Motor

    Also check 20 amp high current fuse in the Power Distribution Center

    Your Service Manual tells all!!!!!!!!!!
  • my300mmy300m Posts: 6
    Was the replacement speaker from Radioshack.com the 3" tweater for $4.99? That's all I can find there....
  • jeffalbrightjeffalbright Posts: 1
    I have a very disheartening problem. My 2000 Chrysler 300M is not shifting correctly. On most occassions it hesitates at 3,000 RPM (sometimes lower or higher) when I am attempting to accelerate fast. It also happens at high speeds of 50 or 60 and trying to pass someone. It is a drop in engine power and RPM. I have taken it to the dealership and they did a computer upgrade and diagnosis and they have no idea. All spark plugs and filters have been changed. It at times does it 2 or 3 times in a row then finally accelerates. It happens at times between many gears. Not just one. Fuel injectors have been flushed. Had 5 people look at it and drive it and no one at the dealership or other shops can come up with a solution. Good gas, oil changed, no check engine lights, nothing! I am soooooo frustrated because I have spent hundreds of dollars and no answers. It has been occurring for more than 6 months now. It is getting a little worse. It's most prominent when accelerating fast or uphill. Any ideas? Please please please help!!!
  • tayl0rdtayl0rd Posts: 1,926
    Did you have them check/replace the transmission control solenoid or sensor? There have been a few folks here that had transmission problems and that turned out to be the culprit. As I recall, it was an inexpensive fix and some of them did it themselves.

    I'm curious what the computer upgrade was that they did to your car. Do you know?
  • bigmike5bigmike5 Posts: 960
    I second Tay10rd's suggestion. The input and output speed sensors cost about $23.38 each and are easy to change for someone who knows what they are doing. I would change them both just for the heck of it and see if that solves the problem. I always carry a set of spares in my glove box [never had a failure] because many other people had that type of problem early on. I also changed them both out as a preventive maintenance measure at my second tranny service. It is worth a try. The part numbers are:4800878 input and 4800879 output [$23.38 by gouging dealer, and $56 labor] I got the spares off the net at $15-17 from McKinney Dodge. I have a 99M but I think the parts are the same for the other years. :shades:
  • srobbinssrobbins Posts: 1
    charles. sounds like my story except i have a '99 300M....just came back from dealer who advised it could cost me close to $2,000 to replace evaporator. very expensive mostly due to labor. will have to shop around. understand small shops don't want to work on it as it takes too much time
  • hungryturtlehungryturtle Posts: 1
    Lock has failed. Key turns but nothing happens and the latch will not release the glovebox door. The handle moves but there is no release. Does anyone have a solution for gaining entry to the glovebox so I can replace the latch mechanism?
  • tayl0rdtayl0rd Posts: 1,926
    Get to the bottom of the dash where the glove box is then take out the screws holding the glove box to the dash. Then just flip it out.
  • vylasekvylasek Posts: 1
    Can anyone tell me how to remove the rear deck to get to my 6x9's and replace them?
  • 300m300m Posts: 6
    Does anyone know where I could find a bumper for a 2001 Chrysler 300M that has the extra slot on the other side to fit dual exhaust pipes???
  • illini4illini4 Posts: 140
    You have to do the cutout yourself, or have a shop do it. Do a search on this site for instructions.
  • rbottosrbottos Posts: 3
    It is the belts. The serpetine belt is the low growl. Must be tensioned with gage to140 lbs.
    The other noise ids the AC belt, usually slightly higher RPM.
  • thebammanthebamman Posts: 2
    Hey guys I know my first message was lengthy but still waiting on any possible responses or solutions. Basically my fuel light comes on when i have like 4-5 gallons left and when I'm on empty i have about 2.5 gallons left. Dealer can't find anything wrong. BTW 2001 300M, 37000 miles :confuse:
  • panthergampanthergam Posts: 2
    Just bought a 99 300M with 59,000 miles. Only has one problem. When turning to left or right, there is a thumping under driverside front. It only does it when first starting off or turning sharp. Sure could use some help. Thanks and if you have had this sound let me know what you found.
  • jgoodsonjgoodson Posts: 30
    I've noticed my 99 330m with 67,000 miles smoking slightly at times (gray smoke). At times I don't see it at all, and other times it is noticeable. I'm not using any oil - have it changed every 5000 miles at the dealer. The dealer seems to fill it slightly above the full line but I don't think that would be a problem. Anyone else have this problem? Is some smoke normal?. Has anyone had any experience, sucess with STP or Motor Honey or others? Any comments would be appreciated.
  • illini4illini4 Posts: 140
    My 2000 M puts out a small puff of smoke at startup. It's definitely oil smoke - can tell by the smell. I've seen posts describing oil entering the intake through the EGR and PCV valves, and that would explain the situation. Most I've ever added is 1/2 quart in 5000 mi.
  • keimosabekeimosabe Posts: 4
    Wow, nice forums. Glad I found you guys. Maybe you can help me with a problem I have just encountered. I have a 300M with approximately 47k miles and I love it. Recently, I noticed that my power seat (driver's side) is nolonger scooting back the 2 inches that it normally does when I take the key out of the starter.

    Also, at the same time, I have noticed that when I start my car, the seat nolonger scoots up like it used to, but the radio resets all saved stations and about 90% of the time will switch to the CD player. I do not have any navigation equipment installed. I have checked all the side panel fuses and the ones under the hood (the fuses, not the big black square things) and I have not found any that are blown. Also, sometimes, once I get the car running and go to set the statons, I can get 1 or two set and then if I try to set a third, all the stations I just set will reset. I thought for sure it was a fuse, but now I'm not so sure.

    I'm kind of scared to take it to my local dealer (he has screwed me a couple times inthe past) and I hope you guys can either give me a heads up so when I take it to him, or maybe can tell me outright what the problem is. Any ideas? :sick:
  • tayl0rdtayl0rd Posts: 1,926
    First, we need to know what model year your 300M is. Sounds like you might be having a hiccup in your Body Control Module. Trying disconnecting the battery for a half hour or so then reconnecting it. Then reset all your previous settings.
  • keimosabekeimosabe Posts: 4
    Okay, I will try that. It is an '02 model :)
  • keimosabekeimosabe Posts: 4
    ok, I tried disconnecting the battery. I actually left it disconnected overnight just to be sure. Still no dice. Actually, even with the car running I have a 50/50 shot when I go to program in a preset of the preset taking or the radio completely resetting. In other words, with the car running and I hit the SET button then press a preset, either it will take or the radio will read "2sel" and I will lose any presets and the readio will reset, usually defaulting to the CD player and I have to start the whole process over....very odd. :sick:
  • tayl0rdtayl0rd Posts: 1,926
    Sounds like we may have a slight similarity in our problems. I'm sure you've read my RB1 navigation radio woes. Just the other day, it was in rare form and actually working for the most part. I was entering in a destination and the whole thing reset itself while I was entering the destination. I didn't lose any radio station presets, though. I did experience something like that a couple of weeks ago. I was using the steering wheel controls to scroll through my Sirius radio presets and it jumped to the preview channel (184), and wouldn't change to any of my presets. As I was pressing the button, the channel preset number would change but they were all set to channel 184. I pressed one of the preset buttons on the radio itself and everything was back to normal.

    Weird. I have an '02 Special. I'm glad to finally see someone else is having similar radio issues as me. And since you don't have the navigation radio, it's got to be a computer glitch in the car itself. Have you taken it to the dealer yet?
  • keimosabekeimosabe Posts: 4
    hehehe no, that's what I was hoping to avoid. My local dealer has pulled a couple of screwy deals on my in the past and I'm always nervous about going to them. Would this be something covered under warranty from Chrysler, or am I looking at possibly a major cash outage here?
This discussion has been closed.