1995 Chrysler Lebaron Problems

What owners report

Complaints on this model year are dominated by the driver's door, where owners describe hinges cracking or tearing away from the door and body until the door sags, sticks, or must be entered from the passenger side. Transmission complaints come next, describing harsh or delayed shifts, hanging in a gear, and occasional loss of drive, and a smaller group questions airbag warning lights and deployment behavior. Reports that list mileage tend to sit near 60,000 to 100,000 miles, and the door problem builds gradually rather than appearing suddenly.

1. 1
   Body and structure

   Driver's door hinge cracks and breaks away

   • 18 complaints (24%)
   • median 101,000 mi at 8.3 yrs old (1 states mileage, few)
   • filed 1998–2003

   Owners describe the driver's door creaking or popping, then sagging as a hinge separates from the door sheet metal or the body at the weld. Several report the hinge area splitting or rusting through so the door no longer closes squarely, and in a few cases the door dropped far enough to push in the front body panel. According to the complaints, body shops and dealers replaced or reinforced hinges or door shells, and several owners said they were told the vehicle was out of warranty or that the manufacturer would not assist. Reported across a wide mileage range, with the few complaints that state mileage clustering near 100,000 miles.

   What to check: Open and close both front doors slowly and watch the hinge mounts on the door and body for cracks, flexing, or a pop; check for wrinkled paint or a door that needs lifting to latch. Ask whether the hinges, welds, or door shell have already been repaired.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Driver's door cracked off where hinges meet the sheet metal, both upper and lower hinges are involved. Door creaked 2 days before. I was going to lubricate the hinges, but I saw cracking around the top hinge. The next day, yesterday, I took the car to a reputable local body shop. On the way I stopped for lunch. When I gingerly opened the door to get out, there was a sound. I only opened it about one third of the way and squeezed out. The door was now hanging visibly wrong, and had pushed in the sheet metal of the body panel in front of it. …”

   NHTSA complaint #750158, filed 2001-08

   “Driver's side door hinge has failed. Door does not close properly. Since door has falled and is not aligned, the opening action has crumpled the front quarterpanel, paint is now flawed. Now a repaint and body work is needed. Have noticed other lebarons with this same tell-tale damage; this is evidently a design defect. I understand that jeep products suffer from this flaw also.”

   NHTSA complaint #10007943, filed 2003-02, 101,000 miles
2. 2
   Transmission and drivetrain

   Harsh, delayed, or lost transmission engagement

   • 8 complaints (11%)
   • median 65,020 mi at 8.4 yrs old (1 states mileage, few)
   • filed 1995–2003

   Owners describe hard upshifts and downshifts, a harsh downshift into first when stopping, and in some cases the transmission hanging in second gear or dropping out of gear while driving. Complaints mention it occasionally behaving as if in neutral and then re-engaging on its own, and one owner found debris in the fluid pan with a suspected internal gear failure. According to the complaints, dealers diagnosed internal wear that required a rebuild or replacement. Mileage is rarely stated in these complaints; symptoms appear in ordinary city and highway driving rather than at one specific mileage window.

   1 related service bulletin

   What to check: Drive from cold through several stop-and-go cycles and feel for clunks, slipping, or hanging in a gear; check the fluid condition and ask whether the transaxle has been serviced or rebuilt.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Vehicle drops out of third gear to second gear slowing vehicle down. Dealer has been contacted. Vehicle is on second repair. Please provide further information. Ph”

   NHTSA complaint #10006418, filed 2003-02, 65,020 miles

   “Consumer was driving approximately 35-40 MPH, noticed noise in wheel area, transmission began shifting rapidly, upon changing the transmission fluid, consumer found crud, and other metal particles in the pan. Was told that a planetary gear set has possibly destroyed itself. Transmission model computer controled--604--4speed over drive.”

   NHTSA complaint #839839, filed 1999-06
3. 3
   Air bags

   Airbag warning light and deployment questions

   • 7 complaints (9%)
   • typically at 2.0 yrs old
   • 6 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 1996–2001

   Complaints describe the airbag warning light staying on, with a dealer saying the bag would not deploy while the light was lit, and a control module replacement that did not resolve it. Other owners question deployment force in low-speed impacts or whether deployment was appropriate at all. These reports concern warning-light behavior and post-collision observations rather than a single shared repair. Reported circumstances and filing dates vary, and mileage is generally not stated in these complaints.

   What to check: Turn the key on and confirm the airbag light comes on and then goes out; ask for any airbag module or clock-spring repair records and have the system scanned if the light stays lit.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The air bag lights illuminated on the dashboard, consumer has had the computer module replaced, the problem still occurs. Dealer states once the lights are illuminated on the dash the air bag would not deploy.”

   NHTSA complaint #808440, filed 1997-03

   “Consumer was in an accident and air bags deployed. Consumer stated that insurance company and dealership did not think that airbags should have deployed. License plate was bent.”

   NHTSA complaint #894569, filed 2001-08

Buying note. Inspect the front door hinge area carefully before buying and test drive through cold starts and stop-and-go traffic to judge transmission behavior, since those are the two most frequent complaint subjects. Service records for door repairs and transmission work are worth asking for.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 40 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.