Chrysler group set to kill off its Dodge Stratus and Chrysler Sebring coupes

Will anyone miss them? I think I miss the Omni and Horizon more than I'll miss those generic bland-mobiles. To me, the Cirrus, Stratus, and Sebring have always represented the worst of trying to out-Japanese the Japanese makers. Boring, soulless, insipid, generic people-movers. Even the Sebring convertible has little to recommend it- if it had ever had some real power and maybe a 5-speed, it might have been a different story.

How so?

These flaws apply to most vehicles.

Did you experience any of them on your Dodge Stratus/Sebring Coupe?

The segment is the inexpensive mid-size car segment...which is a large part of the market. People that buy this level of car is looking for something inexpensive and doesn't have a high level of expectation because of that (exceptions exist)

I had a 2003 Chevy Malibu LS. Trust me, the Stratus (my wife has) and the Sebring (that I have that I bought to replace the Malibu) is a MUCH better car compared to the Malibu. It's much quieter, less road, suspension, engine and wind noises, smoother riding, doesn't leak every time it rains (although after 5 days the dealer did get the Malibu leaks fixed). The HVAC controls don't "feel" as cheap.

It's a inexpensive car for a market of people looking for "average" rides. So for that market, I'd argue that they are perfectly acceptable!

I've seen specially-optioned Sebrings in dealer showrooms that had better interiors than 300m's, and cost practically as much.

The condensation of the Chrysler car line continues.

..............and so does your continued griping....................!

Hardly! I don't know what "sticker's" you've been looking at. But a decked out Sebring can be had for the low $20's (low-end for around $16K). I paid ~$21K for my 2004 and it's a LXi with leather seats, sunroof, auto-stick, and several other goodies. A decked out 300M you're talking low $30's, at least!

Which is not a good idea. Toyota surpassed Chrysler by making 500 different SUV models and 800 different car models, then threw in a couple hundred truck models for good measure. Of course an exaggeration, but Toyota has been *adding* models with over 20 different model vehicles now I believe. If Chrysler kills the Stratus/Sebring without replacing it with something for that niche, that market will have no choice but to go elsewhere (Probably to Toyota or Honda).

Unfortunately, they have pretty much already gone.

part of the market. People that buy this level

of expectation because of that (exceptions

Yep - most of those sorts of people have discovered that they can buy a 2-3 year old high-end car that has come off some idiot's lease, that is a better car for the buck. Few of them are looking for new cars. With the 0% financing and all that, the higher-end market has been hopping, causing a huge number of nearly new used vehicles to hit the used market.

The mid-size market is also being chewed into by the low-end, like the Kia's and crap like that - some of those former midsize buyers are now going econobox shopping.

Ted

oil leaks . wheel bearings, cheap interior parts that break when cold abs units, 4 cy. headgaskets creaking windows and the blower resistors "James C. Reeves" wrote:

"mic canic" wrote in message news: snipped-for-privacy@cac.net... > yahoooo! those cars are a pile of s*it > How so?

I have NO doubt of that. But saying that a JA-body car is better than a Malibu is the textbook definition of "damning with faint praise."

:-)

I see quite a few Stratuses and Sebrings here. But, you're right in that there are more Camrys and Accords (lord the new Accords are ugly!) in comparison.

I guess I just like that model vehicle. In fact the wife just got back from a road trip to Arkansas in her 2003 Stratus (~18 hours each way) and praised how comfortable the car was and how well it performed in the Appalachians and Smokies. And she exceeded 30MPG overall. Seems hard to beat to me!

I don't know many perople that buy used cars, having had a unusual amount of bad luck buying other people's problems. Perhaps the cars these days hold up better to those people that buy a new car knowing that they will be trading in off in a couple of years so never spend the $$$ to do the maintenance. (which is where most used cars seem to come from in my experience)

Have you ever sat in the latest Accord? Visability not much better than the Chrysler 300.

Every time I am in a Stratus (loaner or rental) I am favorably impressed. Might be low expectations because of unfavorable reviews. I know others who feel the same way.

I think the new Accord looks worse than the 300....and that's pretty bad!