1996 Chrysler Cirrus Steering Problems

“Passenger side rear wheel knuckle broke off where support arm to vehicle attaches. This causes rear wheel assembly to loose structural support. Rear wheel is then free to twist in all directions causing loss of control of the vehicle. At highway speeds this can cause a catastrophic accident. The knuckle is cast aluminum and has no moving parts which can wear out.”

“The drivers side tie rod completely separated from the wheel as the car was being backed down a driveway. This made the car immediately uncontrollable. Fortunately this happened at very low speed in the drive. My wife was driving the car and she had our 3 year old son in the car. If this would have happened at high speed a terrible accident could have occurred. The shop that fixed the tie rod said that they have had many of the Cirrus' with this failure. The joint on the tie rod installed by the manufacture was a sealed type and had dried out and rusted away.”

“While driving 60mph on expressway, was turning a corner near home at 5mph when outer tie rod broke. Driver lost control. Vehicle stopped suddenly. Was towed to dealer & mechanic indicated tie rod should not have broken due to vehicle being new. Been in contact with dealer for tie rod part.”

“Consumer states that where the steering column meets the floorboard there is a knuckle. The knucle is not covered. The floor mat slides into the knucle, resulting in loss of steering. The dealer has recommended that the owner use manufacturer's floor mats to prevent sliding.”

“While backing into garage, right front tie rod end broke. Dealer contacted. Dealer found the ball and socket had rusted badly causing the socket to fall off the ball. Manufacturer notified.”