Chrysler Lemon Law Attorneys in California
Chrysler, a brand of FCA US LLC (part of Stellantis), now sells the Pacifica and Voyager minivans. It also built the Pacifica Plug-In Hybrid and, through the 2023 model year, the Chrysler 300 sedan. With these Chrysler vehicles comes a certain number of lemons.
If your Chrysler vehicle has recurring drivability or safety issues, you may have been sold a lemon. Lemon Law Help can talk with you about your potentially defective Chrysler.
If you decide to go forward with a lemon law case, we represent you at no cost while you seek cash compensation, a vehicle replacement or a Chrysler buyback under the California Lemon Law.
Top 8 Chrysler Issues
Keep a note of every repair visit for your Chrysler, then read through the signs below.
Auto manufacturers will sometimes release faulty cars, trucks, and other vehicles to the public. Chrysler is no exception and for this reason, you could have a viable Chrysler lemon law case.
Owners of Chrysler vehicles should look out for the following signs:
- Rough Gear Shifting
- Vehicle Cannot Turn On
- Transmission Failure
- Electrical Failure
- Hard Up and Down Shifting
- Fluid Leaks: Motor Oil, Steering Oil, Coolant Fluid, Transmission Fluid
- Sudden Deceleration
- Vehicle Stalls While Driving
Oil leaks are one example. Chrysler has a service bulletin, not a recall, for 2022–2025 Pacifica and Pacifica Plug-In Hybrid minivans that leak oil from the oil filter area. Owners may see a check engine light or oil on the ground under the van.
If these symptoms or any other vehicle problems repeatedly appear, you may have a Chrysler lemon. Learn more about what the lemon law can do for you. If you want to seek legal remedies from your auto manufacturer, consult an attorney to discuss your Chrysler lemon law rights.
How Chrysler Lemon Law Buybacks Work
If your Chrysler vehicle cannot be repaired by a Chrysler dealer or authorized repair facility after a reasonable number of repair attempts, California law requires the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back, and you can choose the buyback. The buyback is a duty under the lemon law itself, not a favor from Chrysler. However, you have to fulfill the following criteria:
- You must be eligible for restitution under the California Lemon Law
- Your Chrysler must have a warranty problem that the dealer could not fix
Lemon Law Eligibility: The California Lemon Law covers new vehicles sold with the manufacturer’s new car warranty and bought or used mainly for personal, family or household purposes. It also covers a vehicle under 10,000 pounds bought or used mainly for business by a company with no more than five vehicles registered in California.
The problem must be covered by the manufacturer’s warranty and must substantially impair the vehicle’s use, value or safety. You must also have brought your vehicle in for a reasonable number of repair attempts at the dealership during the warranty period.
Lemon Law Help works only in California. We help California residents who bought or leased a defective model year 2020 or newer vehicle from a licensed California dealer. We cannot help people outside California, unless they are active-duty military.
Proof of Your Chrysler Repair History: The most important piece of evidence of your vehicle’s defect will be your repair orders (also known as “work orders”). These documents are invoices that you receive at the end of each repair visit at your local dealership or repair facility. Other important pieces of information include your manufacturer’s warranty, your sales contract and/or lease agreement, and any documented communication between you and the manufacturer or dealership.
Legal nuances in the California Lemon Law can make this difficult for vehicle owners or lessees to prove independently. In a buyback, the manufacturer refunds the price paid or payable, minus a mileage offset, certain add-ons and any negative equity carried over from a trade-in, plus taxes, registration and other official fees, and repair, towing and rental costs.
If the manufacturer’s failure to comply was willful, a court may also award a civil penalty as high as twice your actual damages. Because FCA US has opted in to California’s newer lemon law procedures, which cover at least vehicles sold through 2025, you generally have to send Chrysler a written demand to repurchase or replace the vehicle, while you still have it, at least 30 days before filing a lawsuit that seeks this penalty. No penalty is owed if Chrysler offers to repurchase or replace it within 30 days of that demand and finishes within 60 days.
Common Chrysler Issues
Our Chrysler lemon law attorneys help owners and lessees of model year 2020 and newer Chryslers seek a buyback, cash compensation or a replacement under the California Lemon Law. If you own or lease one, you may run into these common issues.
Chrysler 9-Speed Transmission Problems
Chrysler Voyager and Chrysler Pacifica vehicle models with 9-speed transmissions can experience these problems:
- Rough, delayed or sudden shifting
- Failure to shift properly
- Grinding or loud noises upon shifting
- Sudden or harsh acceleration/deceleration
- Loss of vehicle power
- Premature wear and tear
- Transmission failure
Chrysler service bulletins for 2021 and 2022 Pacifica models list rough shifting among the problems a software update addresses. Another bulletin covers a reaction shaft bushing that can wear early and turn on the check engine light in some 2020 and newer Pacifica and Voyager minivans built before December 2024. For some 2027 models, a bulletin covers a limp-in mode where the transmission sticks in fourth gear while slowing from seventh.
Owners of 2020 and newer Pacifica and Voyager minivans may pursue a lemon law claim if the dealer cannot fix a transmission problem covered by the warranty after a reasonable number of attempts.
Chrysler Pentastar Engines
Chrysler’s 3.6-L V6 Pentastar engines may experience these issues:
- Hesitation
- Engine misfires
- Vehicle surging
- Ticking noises
- Bucking
- Loss of power
- Engine failure
A Chrysler service bulletin blames a manufacturing issue for misfire codes, rough idle and valvetrain noise in Pentastar engines on 2020 and newer Pacifica and Voyager minivans built through September 2024. An earlier bulletin covered an abnormal engine ticking noise in some 2022 and 2023 Pacifica minivans.
Chrysler Pacifica Plug-In Hybrid Fire and Shutdown Recalls
Chrysler has recalled some 2020–2022 Pacifica Plug-In Hybrid minivans because the battery pack may catch fire, even when the van is parked and turned off. Until the repair is done, owners are told not to charge the van and to park it outside, away from buildings. A separate recall covers some 2023 Plug-In Hybrids, where a badly installed 12-volt battery part can cause a fire.
Some 2020–2023 Plug-In Hybrid minivans were also recalled because an internal transmission wiring connector may short circuit and shut off the engine. NHTSA was still reviewing that recall in October 2026, because the software fix warns the driver but does not remove the wiring connector short. For some 2024 and 2025 Plug-In Hybrids, a Chrysler service bulletin covers an internal transmission wiring connector short or a motor bearing failure, and the repair is a transmission rebuild.
Chrysler 300 Defects and Recalls
The Chrysler 300 sedan has its own recalls. Recalls for 2022 models cover tire pressure sensors whose batteries may fail early, and a recall for 2023 models covers a parking brake that may be misadjusted and let the car roll away. Certain 2020 and 2021 Chrysler 300 sedans were recalled because the side curtain air bag inflators may rupture.
Chrysler UConnect Infotainment Issues
Electrical, engine and powertrain problems are the most reported complaint categories for 2020 and newer Chrysler vehicles in NHTSA’s complaint database. Chrysler recalled 2021–2023 Pacifica and 2022 Voyager minivans because the radio software may prevent the rearview image from displaying. It later recalled some 2026 and 2027 Chrysler minivans because the rearview camera image may fail to display in reverse.
Along with other FCA vehicle models, the UConnect infotainment class action lawsuit alleges that 2021–2024 Chrysler Pacifica vehicles experience issues such as:
- Frozen infotainment display screen
- Loss of rearview backup camera image
- Distorted backup camera images
- Disconnected phone calls
- Navigation or GPS systems dropping off
- Failure to sync smartphones using Uconnect 5 through Bluetooth
These infotainment issues can distract drivers, and NHTSA says a rearview camera image that does not display decreases the driver’s visibility, increasing the risk of a crash.
FCA US LLC, part of Stellantis, also makes Dodge, Jeep and Ram vehicles. Read the Dodge and Jeep pages to learn about problems reported with those brands and discover if you have a Chrysler lemon law case.
