They always have. JD Power seems to always prefer imports.

All of the car magazines, such as Motor Trend, Car and Driver, and others that I have been seeing, have been praising the new Chrysler vehicles.
Admittedly, Back in the time when your car was built,, Chrysler had been raped my Daimler and left to die. Our Caliber has been trouble free with the exception of 1 leaking strut.
I can understand your feelings on the brand (though the transmission is built by someone else).

What did they actually end up doing to fix the problem?

 

LXMan, in my frustration with the whole situation, I didn't actually get around to explaining how I finally got the vehicle fixed, which was actually the one positive in this nightmare situation.

Dodge-Chrysler's customer service hotline had left me completely high and dry. I tried for days and days to get in touch with my 'case-worker' who assured me I could discuss the issue with him at any point, but then refused to speak with me.

Trying to find an audience to hear me out, I reached out to Stew Hansen's Dodge, the dealerhsip where the car had been originally purchased. I thought it was a long-shot, but had heard from actually quite a few people about the integrity of the management there. I got in touch with the General Manager, and explained the siatuation.

The dealership had less of an obligation to me than did Dodge-Chrysler as a corporation, however the General Manager agreed this was quite outside the normal quality of Dodge's, and agreed to try and work it out with me.

Even while out of town and attending meetings, etc, the general manager took the time to hear my concerns, and we came to an amicable agreement where the dealership, and myself would pitch in to cover what Dodge-Chrysler was requesting as a 'co-payment' to fix the transmission. I wish I could have paid less (who wouldn't?) but I was in no way trying to get something for nothing, and looking back feel the agreement was reasonable for the situation.

I wouldn't be being truthful if I didn't say this whole situation shook my faith in Dodge vehicles, however we love the Caliber and look forward to having it as part of our lives as we move forward. I'm getting married in a few months, and will most likely be starting a family in the next couple of years. We intentionally bought this vehicle as close to new as possible, so it would be there and be reliable for us, which is part of why this was just so beyond frustrating.

I still wish Dodge-Chrysler would have stepped in a bit more, however I am extremely grateful that the dealership stepped up and respected me as a Dodge customer. Like I said they had less of an obligation to me than did Dodge-Chrysler. I truly think we were just looking at a 'lemon' type situation and not anything to do with the service the dealership provided before I bought the car 2nd hand.

Despite this being the epitome of what you would never imagine with a near brand new car in impeccable shape, I am just extremely happy to have it resolved. You would be hard pressed to find better customer service that what I got from the dealership in town, which is unfortunately not what I can say about the corporate customer service from Chrysler.

 

I'm so glad to hear this. Some dealers go the extra mile. Many do not!! I deal with Commonwealth Dodge here in town. I have a full line Chrysler dealership about 3 miles from the house, but I drive across town to my dealer because they have always treated me right. I bought my Ram there in 08, then a few months later went back and got the wife our 09 Caliber. My Dad ended up buying a new 08 Cgrand Caravan and my niece a new 09 Avenger. There service dept has always bent over backwards to make me happy as well as giving a great price on my vehicles and even gave me more than the trade-in value on the F150 that I traded in on my Ram (sight unseen!!) They never even saw my trade until after the deal was done.
The deal close to me has always had a bad reputation. So bad that they lost their 5 star status years ago and never have re-earned it. It was just bout by a huge dealer network here in town and may improve, but I am happy with my dealer and it is worth the drive.
I hope your Caliber will be as trouble free as ours has been. The only weak spots are the factory struts which don't seem to last as long as they should and the control arm bushings/ball joints. The average life on the oem pieces seems to be 80K to 90K miles if the roads are kinda rough in your area.
Best of luck and thanks for the update.

 

Is why my daughter went stick that thing is weird the CVT...seems the car runs in redline until you get to the speed you want. or we were driving it wrong it just felt weird, so stick she went. Now first gear is of no use you need to get into second before you get your foot off the clutch, other wise it's a cool little car. She got the upgraded amp and speakers and the rear door ones. It kicks pretty good considering it's OEM and just the cheap radio. I am gonna find her a touch screen radio .

 

The CVT2 takes some getting used too. It keeps the engine at peak power to help it accelerate. Since the 2.0 doesn't make a lot of power, what power it does make it is in the upper rpm range. Much like the clutch set-up on my nephew's JR Dragster.

 

I feel your pain! I too have gone through way too much heartache with my 07 caliber. I've had it since Jan. 08, and wish I had never bought it. There are so many other consumers who own the same model, and they have tried contacting Chrysler-Dodge, but they are ignored! I will never own another Dodge!! This is my 4th Dodge, and it's the first one to have so many problems, but I am no longer a Dodge fan.