The Chrysler lifetime warranty

Out of nowhere, Chrysler has suddenly established a lifetime powertrain warranty, the likes of which has never been seen before in the industry. This will almost certainly boost sales among those who like what Chrysler makes, but have been afraid of its transmissions and, perhaps, its four cylinder or 2.7 liter engines. The aftermarket may not be as happy, as repair parts will become mostly the province of the dealer (or Mopar, at the supplier level), and go-fast parts may not be as popular when people realize it will void their warranty. Of course none of this applies to those who drive used cars, and since the average car appears to be sold within five or six years anyway, chances are that the lifetime warranty will end up simply matching just about everyone else’s seven-year warranties.

Chrysler might just get a reputation boost from this - what company would start up a lifetime warranty, if they didn’t have darned good quality to begin with?

Here are some details from Chrysler:

At the expiration of the 3 year/36,000 mile Basic Limited Warranty, the original purchaser or retail lessee of each 2006 model year, 2007 model year and 2008 model year Chrysler, Dodge, or Jeep vehicle sold and delivered on or after July 26, 2007 will get a limited powertrain warranty for the lifetime of that original purchaser or retail lessee. Subsequent owners or lessees, even if they are within the same family or business, are not covered. Successor business entities or persons to whom the vehicle is transferred by operation of law are also not covered.

The Lifetime Powertrain Limited Warranty covers the cost of all parts and labor needed to repair a covered powertrain component that is defective in workmanship and materials. There is no coverage for towing.

SRT vehicles, Sprinters, diesel vehicles, Ram Cab/Chassis trucks, rental vehicles, and government vehicles are not covered. Vehicles used as a police vehicle, taxi, limousine, postal delivery vehicle or ambulance are not covered.

To maintain the Lifetime Powertrain Limited Warranty, the person or entity covered by this Powertrain Limited Warranty must have a powertrain inspection performed by an authorized dealer once every 5 years. This inspection will be performed at no charge. The inspection must be made within sixty days of each 5 year anniversary of the in-service date of the vehicle.

Covered parts include:

(Gas engine) cylinder block and all internal parts; cylinder head assemblies; timing case, timing chain, timing belt, gears and sprockets; vibration damper; oil pump; water pump and housing; intake and exhaust manifolds; flywheel with starter ring gear; core plugs; valve covers; oil pan; turbocharger housing and internal parts; turbocharger wastegate actuator; supercharger; serpentine belt tensioner; seals and gaskets for listed components only.

Transmission: transmission case and all internal parts; torque converter; drive/flex plate; transmission range switch; transmission control module; bell housing; oil pan; seals and gaskets for listed components only. Manual transmission clutch parts are NEVER covered.

Front Wheel Drive: transaxle case and all internal parts; axle shaft assemblies; constant velocity joints and boots; differential cover; oil pan; transaxle speed sensors; transaxle solenoid assembly; PRNDL position switch; transaxle electronic controller; torque converter; seals and gaskets for listed components only. Again, manual transmission clutch parts are NOT covered.

All Wheel Drive (AWD): power transfer unit and all internal parts; viscous coupler; axle housing and all internal parts; constant velocity joints and boots; driveshaft and axle shaft assemblies; differential carrier assembly and all internal parts; output ball bearing; output flange; end cover; overrunning clutch; vacuum motor; torque tube; pinion spacer and shim, seals and gaskets for listed components only.

Rear Wheel Drive: rear axle housing and all internal parts; axle shafts; axle shaft bearings; drive shaft assemblies; drive shaft center bearings; universal joints and yokes; seals and gaskets for listed components only.

Four-Wheel Drive (4X4): transfer case and all internal parts; transfer case control module and shift mode motor assembly; axle housing and all internal parts; axle shafts; axle shaft bearings; drive shafts assemblies (front and rear); drive shaft center bearings; universal joints and yokes; disconnect housing assembly; seals and gaskets for the listed components only.

Canada is not covered due to laws in some provinces, according to Chrysler. Mexico is covered but may have different terms.

The Name Game – Brand Equity and Chrysler

Corolla, Civic, Altima, E-class, 3 Series; Everyone knows these names and the vehicles they describe. Why? Simply put, it is brand equity. Start small, and build on it. Keep building on it. Improve each generation, build loyalty to a nameplate and a company.

I don’t know how many generations of Corolla there are, or 3 Series, or Golf. It doesn’t matter. What matters is that these Companies have made continuous improvement to the same nameplate for several generations. The result is brand loyalty, and repeat business, for the nameplate and the company.

Why is this so hard for the domestic manufacturers to understand? By changing your nameplate with every new incarnation of vehicle you suggest that the last one wasn’t worth preserving – ergo, your company makes throwaway vehicles, not built to last, not here for the long haul, not worth being loyal to. This creates a perception of low quality, quick turnover, and a lack of respect for the people purchasing your product. Are these not the same qualities ascribed to the domestic three?

To be fair, the truck divisions of all three have got it, finally we have generational truck lines. Still not so in the car lines, though, with a few exceptions. What does Caliber mean to me, or Compass? Give me a third gen Neon, or a Valiant, or a Fury. I would like to buy something with some history and longevity.

Chrysler and Dodge are finally looking to their heritage to build equity, but so far they are trading on past glory. They need to commit to a long term development of specific vehicles and to stick with it. To show some serious commitment to their own products and history and drop the faddish name changing. It hurts your reputation, and the public perception of your product.

Take the 300 for example. Why ‘C’, when it should be ‘N’. That would make a believer out of me. Why cheapen the 300 nameplate with base 2.7 V6! That’s what killed it the first time around. ‘Banker’s Hot Rod’, was the term, fast, beautiful and expensive. You’ve arrived baby! Revive another name for a lesser car and keep the letter cars exclusive. That is brand equity. The Imperial was Chrysler’s technology leader, and competed with the best in the world, do it again, right this time.

Don’t drop the PT Cruiser, make it better, same with the Pacifica, you were first out with the crossover, brag about it, then go whup the competition’s butt with the next one. Bring back Plymouth, whatever the cost, it’s your bread and butter. Now is your chance to fix perhaps the biggest mistake DaimlerChrysler made and reintroduce Chrysler’s economy brand.

I know people who are on their third Corolla, fourth Civic, and other than the minivans, I can’t think of a single third generation Chrysler product. (trucks excluded) How can you build owner loyalty with a constantly changing nomenclature? It’s a simple answer; pick a name and a product and develop it over time. Stop throwing out the baby with the bathwater!

Why don’t front wheel drive performance cars gain in value?

Why don’t front wheel drive performance cars ever seem to appreciate? Why can you buy an amazing car like the Spirit R/T for $5,000? Why aren’t the rare Omni GLHS and Shelby Daytonas selling for more than their original price tag?

I don’t know why the rear wheel drive cars do so well and the turbocars don’t, but I’d have to agree that part of it is the guys in their 50s. Another part is that so many people either had one of those cars or knew someone who did. There were far fewer cars made (in terms of brands and models), and the hot cars got lots of print and pictures in the magazines. Nobody really drove trucks unless they had to or REALLY were into the truck image; Jeep sales were much smaller than they are now, crossovers and minivans didn’t exist. Almost all the market was in sedans and coupes, with wagons a definite minority. They sold Dusters like Toyota now sells Camrys, only there were fewer people, so market penetration was far higher. And if you had, say, a 318 ‘Cuda, you would want one now to relive those good times - only now if you had the money, you’d get the one you wanted then, the 340, or the Hemi, or whatever. I think that’s what gets the prices up.

Look at the turbocars and you find they were often either not big sellers, or were unique. The Daytona never sold as well as any A-body. Though it clearly outsold some cars - Superbird/Charger Daytona, whose rarity is also a factor in their cost now - Superbird and Charger Daytona were basically Belvederes and Chargers, and THOSE were in a huge number of families (and for that matter the Charger was a sporty Coronet, which was also a huge seller).

Look at what’s selling for big bucks. B-bodies - the most popular cars Chrysler sold! The big sellers are the cars we grew up in, or owned, but with the performance goodies. A-bodies - ditto. That’s something like a quarter of the market back then in those two lines. Ditto for the Ford and GM lineups. C and D bodies aren’t nearly as popular though they are far rarer.

What’s more, those cars were what people wanted at the time; nobody disparaged the idea of American-made rear wheel drive V8 or even straight-six sedans and coupes. IT WAS WHAT EVERYONE HAD. Imports counted for nearly nothing; even Volkswagen was a niche player in the day, and Toyota was practically invisible until the 1970s.

Now, let’s look at the turbocars. They were made at a time when the imports had already taken over the mind of the American market; American carmakers bragged about their European feel and Japanese-like quality. The big performance front-drivers in the Mopar world were basically the turbo Daytona, Omni GLHS, and Spirit R/T. Spirit R/T might be worth something someday but nobody knew what it was then, and people won’t be seeking it unless they happen to come to Allpar; and by then darned few will be left functional. Yes, those might appreciate, but they’re still sinking because their reliability is, well, not always there, parts are hard to find, and they offer far less performance (if you include turns!) than a Neon SRT-4. Spirit R/T and Daytona R/T are, I think, most likely to gain in value: rarity plus speed that still beats most performance cars. Omni GLHS is also almost a secret, and that might be worth something though it’s a punishing car to drive, from what I’ve heard; Omni sold BIG for a few years. Daytonas didn’t sell all that well compared to, say, A or B bodies as a whole; or Dusters, but they offer good comfort and performance. I’d like one myself if my garage was empty. I’m starting to convince myself they’ll go up in value except for one thing: they were made when American cars were undesirable among a large segment of the population, and after fashion trends had changed.

Even now, there’s a snobbery of the rear wheel drivers - as though any rear wheel drive car can beat a front wheel drive car. At the time of the turbocars, Chrysler even published a chapter on why the front wheel drive cars could easily outhandle the rear drivers; which is pretty true until you get to a certain power level. But it’s Generally Accepted ™ that rear wheel drive is needed by any serious sports car. That’s one strike.

The perceived superiority of Japanese and German cars at the time the front-drive performance cars were made is another strike … the muscle cars were made before the Japanese, in particular, changed the model for cars. Detroit was clearly dominant then; it was weakened and on its present course by the time front wheel drive took over. I think that’s a factor.

The fact that the muscle cars offer a certain level of brute force - instant kick - that the turbocars generally don’t have is a third strike. They might not be as fast - a 340 Duster might not be able to beat a Daytona Turbo IV - but they have a certain kick which comes partly from the firmer shifting of the automatics most are equipped with, and partly from the torque-heavy tuning of the engines. I think that makes them more desirable, as well.

There’s also rarity on the street. I rarely see a car made before 1980. I see cars that look like front-drive performance Mopars all the time. The old fashioned look is hard to find; if you get a Daytona, you get a car that looks as though it could be in production right now. If you get a Valiant, Duster, Road Runner, etc., it’s clearly classic.

As for the gap between two door and four door, I can’t explain it!

Update: if I may quote “VNT” from the forums… mildly edited for the change of venue…

The 1986 Omni GLHS cars which are clean are in high demand, but the sales are not as public, and there aren’t many of them since so few were made. The 1986 GLHS made Hemmings’ list of the top 10 collectables of the 1980s cars. A clean mint example would sell in the $10-15K range. The 1989 CSX VNT cars are also valued. One thing which does hinder them is there is no Year One to call up and get repo parts; try finding mouldings, window felts, etc.